10 Microsoft Add-ins That Will Save You Time

1. Create Mathematical Notations in Word
   With MathType, you can create mathematical notations in Word. This add-in is perfect for anyone that writes scientific, engineering or mathematical papers. You can also use MathType on web pages, PowerPoint presentations and desktop publishing tools. No more struggling to create graphs and perform calculations. MathType can do it all, even solve multiple variables!

    

2. Lookeen
   Searching for something? Check out Lookeen for Outlook 2003 and 2007. Lookeen can search all of your Outlook folders including your archived ones. Try searching your mail, attachments, appointments, tasks, notes and contacts all at the same time. Holy smokes, that’s quick!

    

3. Search Commands Made Easy
   Do you or your users get frustrated searching for commands? Try Search Commands. Search Commands is an add-in that creates a new tab to allow users to enter their own words to find commands.

    

4. Office Live
   Office Live lets you open and save documents in Office Live Workspace directly from Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

    

5. The Mail Merge Toolkit
   Mail merging has many limitations. However, with this add-in, there are very few. Mail Merge Toolkit expands your capabilities in Outlook, Word and Publisher. You will be able to personalize the subject, attach files to your messages, send HTML/RTF messages and send a message from Publisher in GIF format. So, who’s ready to do a mail merge?

    

6. Mail Merge for PowerPoint: Necessary, no. Cool, yes.
   Many of you won’t need this add-in, but we are adding it to this list anyways. This add-in merges data from Excel tab- or .csv files into PowerPoint text boxes, pictures, notes and hyperlinks. You can merge data, pictures, movies, sounds, and external text files. For example, if you are organizing an event and need to print an award for an attendee, you can save on postage and print their award immediately after the event. It’s easy as pie.

    

7. Narration Timing Tweaker
   Ever have to add your lovely voice to a PowerPoint presentation? Well, if you have, you know it’s a pain to do because audio enhancements are impossible to edit, until now. Narration Timing Tweaker allows you to edit the narration portion of the slide show anywhere you like.

    

8. Print What You Want and How You Want in Outlook
   With Blueprint for Outook, you now have more printing features. This is genious people! I print emails all the time to edit, present at a meeting or merely tuck away into a records binder. However, printing in Outlook is so limiting. It’s about time there’s an add-in for this. Blueprint for Outlook has printing features that allow you to print a single page or selected text. Also, you can automate a custom print task or print an attachment.

    

9. CrossEyes for Word
   If you work with long documents, formatting can be a royal pain. It takes time and patience, but with CrossEyes, formatting in Word has never been easier. Your formatting troubles can be identified and resolved without a sweat.

    

10. Microsoft Outlook SMS
    Don’t waste your monthly text messages any longer. With the help of Microsoft Outlook SMS, you can send SMS text messages through most Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) mobile phones, connected to a PC using Outlook 2003 or Outlook 2007. You enter the message in an Outlook-type message form and then send that message to a mobile phone without third-party software or a subscription to a mobile network service if you connect the phone to a PC.