Would you like to create a questionnaire, sign-up form, quiz or other type of form that people can fill out on their computer? If so, here are some general instructions on how to create a form using Microsoft Word 2011 on your Mac. Once you’ve created the form you can distribute it as an email attachment or via a web site. The recipient could then complete the form on his or her computer and return it to you. Microsoft has instructions about how to create interactive forms in Word 2008, Word 2004 and Word X. Here are some pointers to how to create a form using Word 2011.

By default Word 2011′s Form Control features are hidden. To make them visible you have to enable the Developer tab on the Ribbon. Here’s how to do this:

• Open a new document in Word 2011.
• Click on the Word menu and select Preferences.
• Click the Ribbon button on the bottom row on the right-hand side.
• In the Customize section, scroll through the list and insert a check mark next to Developer.
• Click the OK button.
• Click on the Developer tab on the Ribbon and you’ll see the Form Controls as depicted below.

You can now use these controls in a document. Let’s look at how to use the Text Box, Combo Box and Check Box.

The Text Box lets the form-filler type in their own answer. Click the Text Box option to insert a Text Box into your Word document. Double-click on this Text Box to control its options. For example, you could set a Maximum Length for the recipient’s answer.

The Check Box lets you create a box that can be checked by the form-filler.

The Combo Box lets you enter a list of choices that will appear in a drop-down list. The form-filler can select only one choice. After adding a Combo Box to your Word document, double-click it to be able to enter the choices that you want to offer.

The Protect Form button is very important. After you’ve finished your document click the Protect Form button. This button locks the document so it can’t be edited. In other words, it turns the document into a fillable form. Once you’ve protected the form you’re ready to distribute it to others.

Below is a picture of a sample document which demonstrates the Text Box, Combo Box and Check Box.

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Have you ever wanted to report a bug or request a feature for an application made by Apple, Adobe or Microsoft? Each company offers you the opportunity to do just that. Use the following web page addresses to submit your bug reports or feature request.

Apple Product Feedback and Feature Request

Microsoft Product Feedback and Feature Request

Adobe Product Feedback and Feature Request

I should mention that you shouldn’t expect to receive any feedback when you fill out one of these forms. I had a conversation with an Apple Store manager who mentioned that when he visited Apple’s headquarters, he saw a room full of people who were reading and processing all of the feedback they received.

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Are you unable to install Office 2008 Update 12.2.9 because you’re told you have to quit Sync Services, but you can’t find SyncServices? Use this work around.

In order to get the 12.2.9 update install, I had to stop using Microsoft’s built-in auto-update feature and install do this installation by hand using these steps.

• Download the Office 2008 for Mac 12.2.9 update from Microsoft’s web site by clicking the Download button. The update should be placed in your Downloads folder if your Mac uses Mac OS X 10.5 or higher. It’ll be named Office2008-1229UpdateEN.dmg
• Close and save all open documents and quit all applications.
• Shut down the Mac.
• Safe Boot by holding down the shift key while you start the Mac up. Keep holding the shift key until the gray Apple logo appears on the screen. We’re using Safe Boot to ensure that Sync Services is not running. A Safe Boot takes longer than a normal startup, so please be patient.
• When your Mac has finished starting up double-click the Office2008-1229UpdateEN.dmg file located in your Downloads folder. (Or wherever it is located.)
• Double-click the Office 2008 12.2.9 Update.mpkg to start the installer.
• Follow the on-screen instructions which are displayed. Mostly you just need to click on the Continue and Agree buttons a few times. Eventually you’ll be asked to enter your Mac account’s username and password.
• The 12.2.9 update will be installed. Quit the installer after it has finished.
• Restart your Mac normally. In other words do not do another Safe Boot.

Congratulations. You’re done. The update is installed. You can confirm this by opening Word and then selecting “About Word” from the Word menu. You’ll see version 12.2.9 listed.

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When you open Entourage 2004 does it immediately display the spinning multi-color ball icon? This icon simply indicates that Entourage is thinking. However, if this icon never goes away, then Entourage is getting stuck while trying to complete a task. There are a number of possible causes, but over the past two months I’ve had 5 different clients all report this same problem. In every case the problem was caused by a message being stuck in Entourage’s “Outbox.” The Outbox is where Entourage temporarily stores an email message between the time you click the “Send Now” button and when Entourage finishes sending the message. For reasons I haven’t been able to figure out, sometimes Entourage is not able to send the message and it gets stuck on the way out.

There are two ways to fix this problem. Option 1 – I realized that if I disconnected the Mac from the Internet by either unplugging its ethernet cable or turning off Airport then I could open Entourage and it would not try to send the message. Then I could simply delete the message in the Outbox and reconnect the ethernet cable or turn Airport back on.

Option 2 – I did some online research and learned that people have been having this problem for years and there is an even easier fix. Simply hold down the shift key while clicking on Entourage’s icon to open it. Holding down the shift key disables the built-in schedule that automatically gets new email messages and sends email messages in the Outbox. This solution came from the Entourage Help Page which has been invaluable over the years when I’ve needed to troubleshoot Entourage issues.

Additional Note: A further curiosity in this situation is that Entourage seems to be frequently getting hung up while specifically trying to send a forwarded copy of an Alaskan Airlines itinerary. I don’t know what is unique or problematic about these emails from Alaska Airlines. I can only guess that Alaska Air has recently changed the contents of their itinerary emails and that one of these changes somehow causes Entourage to get stuck when asked to forward these emails.

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