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Microsoft Project 2003

Working with combination views

07 May 2010

Microsoft Project allows you to have up to two views on the screen at a time. When you have two views split the screen into an upper and lower pane. These split screens are useful for displaying tasks and their resources, or resources and their respective tasks. The split screen is sometimes referred to as a combination view.

Handy to Know… To move from one pane to another in a combination view, you can press the function key F6.

For Your Reference… To display a combination view: 1. Select the desired view for the top pane 2. Double-click on the split view button at the bottom of the vertical scroll bar to split the view 3. Click in the lower pane and select the desired view

To review the complete Microsoft Project 2003 workshop Outline containing About Constraints & Deadlines for 2007:Click here.

To find out about our other Project Management and Microsoft Project Workshops contact Bute Ltd or review the outlines in our online catalogue :Click here.

About Constraints & Deadlines

06 May 2010

Every new task that you create in a project has a constraint imposed upon it. It is the type of constraint that dictates to Microsoft Project which calculation methodology to use for scheduling. When you add a new task to a project the task is constrained by As Soon As Possible for a project based on a start date, and by As Late As Possible for a project based on a finish date.

When you add a new task to a project the task is constrained by As Soon As Possible for a project based on a start date, and by As Late As Possible for a project based on a finish date.

Constraints Microsoft Project considers the sequencing requirements based on the tasks predecessors and then schedules the task after these requirements are completed –in the literal sense of the word, there are no real constraints placed on the task.

Constraints are rules or directives that will affect the outcome of a task. For example, a specific task might have to start on a particular day, or it may have to be finished by a certain date. These are constraints.

However, the default constraint can be changed to one of the following. • As Late As Possible • As Soon As Possible • Finish No Earlier Than • Finish No Later Than • Must Finish On • Must Start On • Start No Earlier Than • Start No Later Than

Constraints in Microsoft Project can be either hard or soft.

A hard constraint is one where the constraint must be honoured even if the predecessor links must be violated. This is the default setting in Microsoft Project.

A soft constraint is one where the predecessor relationship is honoured rather than the constraint.

Changing constraints to either hard or soft is done using the Tasks will always honour their constraint dates option in the Schedule tab of the Options dialog box.

Deadlines

Microsoft Project also allows you to assign a deadline to a task. A deadline is like a constraint on sedatives. Unlike a constraint, which can determine the outcome of the project, a schedule deadline is simply a marker place against a task and a time. If the task fails to be completed within the deadline an indicator appears in the project but the schedule remains unaffected.

To review the complete Microsoft Project 2003 workshop Outline containing About Constraints & Deadlines for 2007:Click here.

To find out about our other Project Management and Microsoft Project Workshops contact Bute Ltd or review the outlines in our online catalogue :Click here.

Assigning Specific Work Times

05 May 2010

If you want to contour a task in very precise measures you can insert work hours directly into the Task Usage sheet.

Handy to Know… You can also contour work for materials resources. The quantity of materials used over the duration of the task is distributed according to the selected contour.

For Your Reference...

To contour work hours: 1. Fix the duration of the task 2. Select View > Task Usage 3. Click on the desired task and select Project > Assignment Information 4. Select the Work contour. Click on [OK]

To review the complete Microsoft Project 2003 workshop Outline containing Assigning Specific Work Times for 2007:Click here.

To find out about our other Project Management and Microsoft Project Workshops contact Bute Ltd or review the outlines in our online catalogue :Click here.

Assigning Resources

04 May 2010

Once you have entered tasks and resources into a project you can use the resources and assign them to the tasks. There are a number of benefits to assigning resources, particularly clarifying responsibility, knowing how long it will take to complete a task and knowing how much the task will cost. Microsoft Project allows you to enter resources in a number of ways and using a number of techniques. For example, you can assign resources through a form view, a sheet view and even through a dialog box. The technique you use is determined largely by your own personal preferences.

More than one resource can be assigned for any given task. However, as you will see, care needs to be exercised to ensure that you assign resources at the appropriate time and in the correct way, otherwise scheduling problems may ensue. You can also assign resources on a part-time basis, perhaps to share the same resource across more than one task. Microsoft Project is also flexible enough to allow you to contour resource assignments.

One of the more popular views of a project is Task Entry view. Task Entry view is a combination view that displays a Gantt Chart in the top pane and a task form in the lower pane. One of the more popular views of a project is Task Entry view. Task Entry view is a combination view that displays a Gantt Chart in the top pane and a task form in the lower pane.

For Your Reference… To assign using Task Entry View: 1. Select View > More Views > Task Entry. Click on [Apply] 2. Click on the task in the Gantt Chart 3. Click in the Resource Name column of the Resources panel in the Task Form 4. Click on the drop arrow and click on the name of a resource 5. Click in the Units cell and type the appropriate amount of units 6. Repeat step 5 and 6 as necessary 7. Click on [OK]

To review the complete Microsoft Project 2003 workshop Outline containing Assigning Resources for 2007:Click here.

To find out about our other Project Management and Microsoft Project Workshops contact Bute Ltd or review the outlines in our online catalogue :Click here.