Office 2007 - SmartArt
SmartArt is a tool which will allow you to create professional business graphics easily and simply. It is particularly useful in PowerPoint and also in Word.
If we go to the Insert tab and choose SmartArt, we can choose from a whole range of possible types of graphics:
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Lists,
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Process,
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Cycle,
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Hierarchy,
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Relationship,
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Matrix,
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and Pyramid.
If I choose one, and click OK, I can start adding my text. [Adds text]
Now, as far as Text goes, I can click on the left-hand edge and edit my text, and close it here [Clicks x close icon].
I can do the same in the Create Graphic group of controls in the SmartArt Design tab, by clicking Text Pane.
Here I can choose to add more text, I can Promote or Demote.
So we'll Promote to create a new country [types "UK"] [Presses ENTER for a new list item].
Demote to make something of interest about it.
Again we can toggle Text Pane on and off [clicks Text Pane icon in Ribbon]. [Clicks to select one of the shapes]
There are many things we can choose to do.
With the Design tab we can change the layout [As the mouse pointer hovers over different options there is a "Live Preview" to show you the effect]
We can change the Style, so this adds a white outline, and this has a more subtle effect, and you'll see the preview there.
Change Colours allows us to modify how this behaves, and again, we've got the preview.
The SmartArt Format tab [clicks it] will let us change the shapes.
We can use WordArt styles.
We can use Text Effects:
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Shadow,
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Reflection,
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Glow,
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Bevel,
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3-D Rotation,
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Transform (Warp).
Don't go overboard on these!
We can change Theme Colours, on the Text, we can change how the shape is filled with different colours from our Theme or indeed anywhere else. Shape Outline - no Outline or an Outline round it.
Shape Effects:
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Shadow,
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Reflection,
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Glow,
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Soft Edges,
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Bevel (make it look more like a button),
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3-D Rotation.
We can also select parts of it [clicks a shape] and use the rotation option [drags the green select button] [Clicks Undo]
We can drag corners to expand or make smaller, or drag an edge to make smaller and change the shape.
Don't go over the top with these!
Also, if you have an existing List and you wish to apply a SmartArt design to it:
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Select all the text in the list,
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Control and X to Cut,
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Go back into Insert (tab) SmartArt,
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Choose your type of (List) SmartArt,
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Go into the Text Pane,
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Select all the text in there,
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and Control and V to Paste.