Do you take shortcuts when you type? Steve mentioned in a comment to an earlier topic:
"KEYSTROKE SAVERS" are what I call things like "preso" (presentation) and EM (e-mail).
The problem is that not everyone will be able to discern your meaning when you use shortcuts. So, here's a great solution:
MS Word has a cool tool that allows you to define shortcuts...
...that will call the full text included in the definition. Write the full text once, highlight it and click on the "Tools" menu and choose "AutoCorrect Options..." A window will open, your full text will be inserted into the appropriate field and the cursor will appear in a field where you define the shortcut. In Steve's case he would enter "preso" and click "OK." From then on Steve will be able to use his shortcut to save keystrokes, but Word will type the full text.
I use AutoCorrect in this way all of the time. I prefer to use AutoCorrect for my signature. JKD instantly becomes:
John K. Davis, Technology Advocate
230 West Laurel Street
Brittany Tower, Suite 205
San Diego, CA 92101-1461
Voice: 619-549-5403
Toll-Free: 866-250-3690
Fax: 208-723-2181Weblogs by John:
Technology Advocate Blogger, www.johnkdavis.com
Digital ID Blogger, johnkdavis.typepad.com/digital_id_blogger
Support Blogger, johnkdavis.typepad.com/support_blogger
Gadget Blogger, johnkdavis.typepad.com/gadget_blogger
KM Blogger, johnkdavis.typepad.com/km_blog
TUUN, johnkdavis.typepad.com/tuun
I have other signature shortcuts--one omits my snail-mail address, another adds insurance membership identification for communication with healthcare providers and pharmacists, and another inserts a graphic image of my handwritten signature. Signatures are only a good place to begin. There are hundreds of personally created shortcuts in my AutoCorrect tool. It can save you a lot of time while enabling clear communication.
One word of caution: make sure your shortcut is not a word. If you use a word, then that word is no longer available to you, it always converts to the longer definition. "First" might always come out "First Unitarian Universalist Church of San Diego." So make something up that is unique like "1uu" to define the shortcut.
