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Hey everyone — it’s John from On The Pulse.
In this week’s edition of On The Pulse, we’re keeping you up-to-date with the new features in Microsoft 365, including Word, Loop, and OneNote. We’re also giving our readers the chance to impress their co-workers with dynamic helper text in Microsoft Excel!
This week’s topics include:
✅ Approvals App Now Available in Microsoft Word
💬 New Comments for Loop Tables & PDF Download Option
📊 New Eyedropper Tool in OneNote
🕟 HOW TO CREATE DYNAMIC HELP TEXT IN MICROSOFT EXCEL
Let’s Go!👇
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✉️ TOP STORIES (WITH OUR INSIGHTS)
✅ Approvals App Now Available in Microsoft Word
Document approvals can now be managed within Microsoft Word using the new “Approvals” add-in.
Full Story and Our Insights:
Microsoft has introduced the Approval add-in for Word, enhancing document approval management directly within the application. Previously, approval requests linked to files could only be managed through the Approvals app in Microsoft Teams. Now, users can create, manage, and respond to approval requests directly within Word.
How it Works
Install the Add-in:
Open the web or desktop version of Word.
Go to the “Home” tab at the top. [1]
Click “Add-ins.” [2]
Search for “Approvals.” [3]
Click “Add” next to the Approvals app. [4]
Create an Approval Request:
Open the Approvals pane in Word and click New approval request.
Choose either a basic request or a pre-created team template.
Fill in the necessary details, and click “Send” at the bottom.
Respond to a Request:
In the Approval history section, select the request and click either Approve or Reject.
Create a Template in Teams:
Team owners can create approval templates in the Approvals app in Microsoft Teams by selecting “Create or manage templates”, then “New template,” and following the prompts.
Requirements & Availability
The Approval add-in is available to all Microsoft 365 subscribers with an F1 (Frontline worker) license and above, including EDU and Enterprise licenses. The add-in is accessible to all eligible Microsoft 365 subscribers.
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💬 New Comments for Loop Tables & PDF Download Option
Microsoft has updated Loop, allowing users to add comments to any table cell. Also, users can now download Loop pages as PDFs.
Full Story and Our Insights:
Microsoft has now released comments in Loop tables and boards. This feature enables users to add comments to cells in tables or fields in boards, facilitating contextual feedback and asynchronous collaboration.
Users can post comments, reply to existing ones, and edit or delete their own comments as needed.
This feature is available to all Microsoft 365 subscribers and can be accessed through the Loop app.
To add comments to tables, right-click any table cell.
Then select “New comment.”
To view comments, click the comment icon inside the cell.
To delete your comment, right-click the cell and select “Delete comment.”
To save your page as a PDF, click the three dots (…) next to “Share” at the top. [1]
Then select “Print & PDF export.” [2]
📊 New Eyedropper Tool in OneNote
Microsoft has introduced a new eyedropper tool for the desktop version of OneNote that allows users to select colors based on content within the notebook.
Full Story and Our Insights:
The new eyedropper tool in the desktop version of OneNote allows users to select colors that are already present within the notebook.
To use the eyedropper in Windows, click the “Draw” tab. [1]
Then click one of the pens. [2]
Select “Eyedropper” in the dropdown. [3]
🕟 HOW TO CREATE DYNAMIC HELP TEXT IN MICROSOFT EXCEL
If you need to add helper text to your Excel worksheets, the simplest way to do that is with notes or comments. However, if the instructions ever change based on data in other worksheets, notes and comments would need to be updated manually.
With our exclusive VBA code, you can add static or dynamic helper text that shows up next to selected cells.
❗Note: The following method only works for the desktop version of Excel.
Possible Uses
If you have a list of working codes stored in a different worksheet or workbook that users need to enter into a field, you can use dynamic helper text to display the current working codes to users.
How to Create Dynamic Helper Text
Start by clicking the + plus icon at the bottom to create a new worksheet. [1]
Then enter “Help” as the worksheet’s name. [2]
Now click the “Developer” tab at the top. [1]
Then select “Visual Basic.” [2]
Double-click your worksheet in the left menu, and a new code editor will open. [1]
In the code editor, paste the following VBA code: [2]
Private Sub Worksheet_SelectionChange(ByVal Target As Range)
Dim helpSheet As Worksheet
Dim helpText As String
Dim helpCell As Range
Dim helpTextBox As Shape
Dim textBoxHeight As Double
Const targetSheetName As String = "Sheet1" ' Change this to your target sheet name
Const helpSheetName As String = "Help" ' Change this to your help sheet name
' Set the help sheet
Set helpSheet = ThisWorkbook.Sheets(helpSheetName)
' Check if the selected cell is in the target sheet
If Target.Worksheet.Name = targetSheetName Then
' Get the corresponding cell in the help sheet
Set helpCell = helpSheet.Cells(Target.Row, Target.Column)
' Check if the help cell has contents
If Not IsEmpty(helpCell.Value) Then
' Get the help text
helpText = helpCell.Value
' Delete any existing help textbox
On Error Resume Next
ThisWorkbook.Sheets(targetSheetName).Shapes("HelpTextBox").Delete
On Error GoTo 0
' Calculate the height of the textbox based on the number of lines in the help text
textBoxHeight = Len(helpText) / 30 ' Adjust the divisor based on the desired height per line
' Add a textbox to display the help text
Set helpTextBox = ThisWorkbook.Sheets(targetSheetName).Shapes.AddTextbox(msoTextOrientationHorizontal, _
Target.Left + Target.Width + 5, _
Target.Top, _
200, _
textBoxHeight * 15)
With helpTextBox
.Name = "HelpTextBox"
.TextFrame.Characters.Text = helpText
.TextFrame.AutoSize = True
End With
Else
' Delete the help textbox if it exists
On Error Resume Next
ThisWorkbook.Sheets(targetSheetName).Shapes("HelpTextBox").Delete
On Error GoTo 0
End If
End If
End Sub
In the code, change “Sheet1” to the name of the worksheet where you want the helper text to appear.
Close the VBA editor and return to Excel.
In the “Help” worksheet, enter helper text in the cells where you want them to appear in your main worksheet.
To include dynamic content from other worksheets or workbooks, use the following formulas in the “Help” worksheet:
From a different worksheet:
='SheetName'!A1
='SheetName'!A1:A10
From a different workbook:
='[WorkbookName.xlsx]SheetName'!A1
='[WorkbookName.xlsx]SheetName'!A1:A10
Example:
=TEXTJOIN(CHAR(10), TRUE, Codes!A2:A5)
✅ WRAPPING UP!
That’s all for this edition of On The Pulse.
Thanks for reading and see you soon! 👋