Support and FAQ

A file with a .zip extension is called a Zip file and is simply a way of either compressing a file (to make it a smaller size for faster download) or archiving multiple files into a single file. Vertex42 uses .zip files for both of these reasons.

You must extract Excel files from a .zip file before opening them or the spreadsheet will open as "Read-Only" and you'll be unable to save changes.

Most of the time, to open a .zip file all you need to do is double-click on the file and it will open as if the file were a directory and you'll see a list of the files inside the .zip archive. At that point, you can drag and drop the files onto your desktop or into some other directory.

Another common way to Extract files from a .zip file (when using Windows) is by right-clicking on the .zip file and selecting "Extract all..."

If neither of these methods work, you may need to use an Unzip utility, which you usually get for free and your computer most likely already has an unzip utility built in. For more information, see the following articles:

• Zip Files in Windows
• Unzip Files on a Windows or Mac

If you are having problems downloading a purchased template, please contact me and include your receipt number and exact name of the template you purchased and I'll email you a copy.

Many of the Vertex42 templates include workbooks with multiple worksheets. If you don't see the worksheet tabs at the bottom of your Excel window, then first check this forum thread. If the scroll bar isn't the problem, then make sure that your worksheet window is maximized. Sometimes, when you open an Excel file from the web, the worksheet shows up as a separate window, but it may be very subtle - the undocked worksheet may be located such that the tabs and scroll bar are not visible. Double-click on the title of the worksheet to make it full-size again, or click on the Maximize button in the upper right corner of the worksheet window.

Many Vertex42 templates are financial in nature and usually display the dollar currency symbol "$" by default. To change the symbol, select the cell and then press Ctrl+1 or go to Format > Cells to open the Format Cells dialog box. In the Number tab, select Currency in the Category list. Then select your desired currency symbol from the Symbol drop-down box.

If you see "#######" in a cell, it means that the column is not wide enough to display the contents of the cell. Just increase the column width or decrease the font size to fix this problem.

Many of the Vertex42 templates are designed to allow you to add and delete rows as need such as invoices, budget templates, checkbook registers, exercise logs, etc. The important thing to remember is that when you add a row, you not only need to insert the row, but you also need to (1) copy the formulas and formatting and (2) ensure that subtotal formulas and chart series expand to include the new row. To help ensure that this happens follow these steps:

1. Select any row in the table EXCEPT for the first row of the table or sub-section: Click on the row number or press Shift+Space.
2. Insert a new row above the currently selected row: Press Ctrl+Shift+"+" -or- right-click on the row number and select Insert -or- use the menu to go to Insert > Rows.
3. Copy the formulas and formatting: With the new row currently highlighted, press Ctrl+d to copy the formulas and formatting from the row immediately above the current one.
4. Make any necessary changes to the newly inserted row.

1. Select a row you want to copy: Click on the row number or press Shift+Space.
2. Copy the row: Press Ctrl+c.
3. Select any row in the table EXCEPT for the first row of the table or sub-section: Click on the row number.
4. Insert the copied row: Press Ctrl+Shift+"+" -or- right-click on the row number and select Insert Copied Cells.
5. Make any necessary changes to the newly inserted row.

Method 2 is used extensively in the gantt chart template. It is also handy if you are using the checkbook register, where you may have recurring bills. You can select and copy the group of rows, insert those copies rows at the end, and then just change the dates.

Remember: If the template uses subtotals or charts, you must insert copied rows ABOVE the last row or BELOW the first row (or somewhere in between). There is a tendancy to want to insert copied rows immediately above the subtotal. Don't do that! If you need to, "gray out" the last row before the subtotal and remember to always insert new rows above that one.

Defining the Print Area: Sometimes you will want to print a specific area of the spreadsheet, or you may need to redefine the print area that is already set. To do this ...

• In Excel 2003: Select the Range you want to print, then go to File > Print Settings > Set Print Area.
• In Excel 2007: Select the Range you want to print, then go to Page Layout > Print Area > Set Print Area.

Scaling the Page: After you define the print area, you can tell Excel to fit the area on a single page or multiple pages. To do this, open up the Page Setup dialog box, go to the Page tab, then set the Scaling as needed.

• In Excel 2003: Go to File > Page Setup
• In Excel 2007: Go to Page Layout and click on the little arrow to the right of Page Setup.

Keep in mind that the cells highlighted green represent values you need to enter (i.e. inputs). The only other cells you need to modify (that are not green) are the task, task lead, and the information in the header (current date, project title, etc.) The dark green cells used for the main tasks contain formulas, but they are highlighted green because these formulas are optional. If the main task has no sub tasks, you could instead manually enter the start date and duration.

Important: When using formulas for the end date and total duration and % Complete for the main tasks, if you add or remove rows, you'll need to check the formulas in the dark green cells to make sure they are still referencing all the correct sub tasks. Make sure that if you add rows, you insert rows above the last sub task, so that the references will "stretch" correctly.

Some people have asked why the % Complete value doesn't update automatically, based on the current date. The % Complete is always a manually entered value (except for the dark green cells which calculate the overall % Complete for the main task based on the respective sub tasks).

A main assumption in the Gantt chart is that the % Complete for a task can only be estimated by the task lead or their team members. The two different colors of the bars in the Gantt chart (gray for incomplete and blue for complete) are extremely useful in quickly determining the overall status of your project. If you see gray in the bars to the left of the red line (current date) that is a warning to you that a task is behind schedule. A lot of blue to the right of the red line indicates you may be ahead of schedule.

The Gantt Chart currently uses the mm/dd/yy format to display the Start and End dates. To use the UK format for dates (dd/mm/yy), you can change the date format by selecting the cells containing dates and pressing Ctrl+1 to get to the Format Cells dialog box. Go to the Number tab and change the Custom format to "ddd dd/mm/yy". Depending on your system preferences, you may then need to enter dates as "26 Jul 09" to make sure that Excel interprets the date correctly.

To import tasks from Excel into Project is pretty simple if the data is formatted correctly. You could create a new worksheet and copy your data so that it appears with the headings Name (for the task names), Start (for the Start Date), Finish (for the End Date), and Duration. Then use the Import Wizard in MS Project. I don't provide support for MS Project (in fact, I don't even own it).

(1) If you are using the worksheet that displays only Monday-Friday, check to make sure that Today's Date is not a Saturday or Sunday. (2) If you are using a formula for Today's Date, use =TODAY() instead of =NOW() because NOW() returns both the date and the time. (3) Make sure that Today's Date is within the range being displayed by the chart.

If you are using Excel 2007, you can copy/paste columns to the right to extend the gantt chart (because Excel 2007 has a larger maximum column limit). You will need to update the print area afterwards. For example, if you are using the GanttChart worksheet, select the last date in the chart (which spans 7 cells) and press Ctrl+Space to select the associated columns and then copy paste those 7 columns to the right.