Project KickStart Help Manual

162 Pages·2008·7.52 MB·English

© Experience In Software, Inc., 1995 - 2006
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© Experience In Software, Inc., 1995 - 2006

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© Experience In Software, Inc., 1995 - 2006
Table of Contents
Start Here: Welcome to Project KickStart 6
Introduction 7
Welcome to Project KickStart 7
Use Project KickStart to... 8
Use the Planning Wizard 9
Navigating Project KickStart 10
What's New in Project KickStart Pro 5 11
What's New in Project KickStart Pro 5 (Pro Users) 12
Compatibility with earlier versions 13
Activating Trial Version 14
Licenses and Support 16
End User License Agreement 16
Customer Support 20
Reporting Technical Issues 21
Register Project KickStart 22
Planning Projects 23
Name Your Project 23
Phases - Step 1 of 2 24
Phases - Step 2 of 2 25
Goals - Step 1 of 3 26
Goals - Step 2 of 2 27
Goals - Step 3 of 3 28
Similar Projects - Step 1 of 2 29
Similar Projects - Step 2 of 2 30
People - Step 1 of 3 31
People - Step 2 of 3 32
People - Step 3 of 3 33
Obstacles - Step 1 of 3 34
Obstacles - Step 2 of 3 35
Obstacles - Step 3 of 3 36
Assigning People 37
Assign Tasks to People 37
Remove People from a Task 38
Add a New Person or Resource 39
Edit or Substitute People 40
Organizing the Project Plan 41
About Organizing Tasks 41
Change the Appearance of the Task List 43
Show or Hide Tasks in the Task List 44
Move Tasks within the Task List 45
Outdent and Indent Tasks 46
Add a Task or Subtask 47
Edit Tasks 48
Add Task Notes and Attachments 49
Add or Change Task Assignments 51
Add or Change Task Details 52
Check Spelling 53
Scheduling Tasks in the Gantt Chart 54
Scheduling Overview 55
About Scheduling Tasks 55
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© Experience In Software, Inc., 1995 - 2006
About the Gantt Chart 57
Autolink tasks (Pro Users) 58
About Linking Tasks (Pro Users) 59
Change the Display of the Schedule 61
Use the Gantt Chart Toolbar 63
Use the Gantt Chart Toolbar (Pro Users) 65
Understand Task Data View 66
Additional Features in Task Data View (Pro Users) 68
Understand Chart View 69
Additional Tools in Chart View (Pro Users) 71
Change Task Dates 73
Phase Dates Cannot Be Edited 75
Quick Tour of Working with Linked Tasks (Pro Users) 76
Link and Unlink Tasks (Pro Users) 78
Create a Milestone 79
Change Task Details 80
Change Details for Linked Tasks (Pro Users) 81
Reorganize Tasks in Task Data View 83
Change the Timescale of the Schedule 84
Specify Working Days 85
Change the Color of Taskbars 86
Make Tasks Overlap (Pro Users) 87
Manage Changes in Your Schedule (Pro Users) 88
Managing Libraries 89
Use a Library 89
Manage a Library 90
Manage the People Library 91
Import ACT! Contacts and Users to the People Library 92
Import Outlook Contacts to the People Library 94
Import Outlook Contacts via CSV to the People Library (Pro Users) 96
Printing Reports 97
Printing Dashboards 98
Print Reports 98
Print Dashboard Reports 99
Page Setup 100
Save As 101
Printing Task Reports 102
Print Task Reports 102
Print Preview 105
Printer Setup 106
Page Setup 107
Email Task Reports 108
Save As HTML 109
Save As RTF 110
Printing Gantt Chart Reports 111
Print a Gantt Chart 111
Print Preview a Gantt Chart 115
Page Setup 116
Printing to an Adobe PDF file 117
Save Gantt Chart Images 118
Export Project Data 119
Export to ACT! 120
Export to ACT! 7 and Later 120
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© Experience In Software, Inc., 1995 - 2006
Export to ACT! 6 122
Export to Microsoft Outlook 123
Export to Microsoft Word 125
Export to Word Processors (Other than Word) 127
Export to Microsoft Excel 128
Export to Microsoft PowerPoint 130
Export to Microsoft Project 132
Export to SureTrak Project Manager 133
Export to FastTrack Schedule 134
Export to Milestones Professional 135
Export to Mindjet MindManager 136
Export to WBS Chart Pro 137
Export MPX Files 138
Reference 139
Menus 140
File Menu 140
Edit Menu 141
View Menu 142
Tools Menu 143
Options 144
Data Menu 145
Timescale Menu 146
Help Menu 147
Shortcuts 148
Share Project KickStart data 150
Open a Project 151
Dedication 152
Credits and Trademarks 153
Uninstalling the software 154
Using Past Projects 155
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© Experience In Software, Inc., 1995 - 2006
Start Here: Welcome to Project KickStart

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© Experience In Software, Inc., 1995 - 2006
Introduction
Welcome to Project KickStart
Whether you’re a novice or seasoned pro, you’ll be amazed at how quickly you can create a thoughtful,
comprehensive task list and project schedule. Using Project KickStart, you can go from raw idea to a
project task list in 30 minutes. You do not need any special project management training to use Project
KickStart.
The first thing you'll want to do is:
 Open a project: Click to open one of our sample projects.
 Start a new project: Click to begin planning your own project.
 Open your last project: If you've already created a project, click this option to open your most recent
project.
After that, let Project KickStart show you the way. It’s easy to navigate Project KickStart with its intuitive
graphical interface--it feels like a coach is guiding you through each step.
Next Steps
Project KickStart guides you through the process of planning and scheduling your project. On the top of
each Project KickStart window are instructions explaining what to do. Read the instructions, enter your data,
and then click the Next button in the lower-right corner of the window. Additional help is always available
from the onscreen Advisor and Project KickStart Help.
Sample Projects
The sample projects are completed projects that let you get a feel for Project KickStart. If you find one
similar to the project you want to create, open it, save it with a new name, and then customize it to meet
your needs.

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© Experience In Software, Inc., 1995 - 2006
Use Project KickStart to...
Project KickStart is organized into three sections: planning, scheduling, and exporting to other programs.
 Plan: The Project KickStart graphical interface acts as a Planning Wizard, guiding you through eight
steps for planning your project. Some planning steps involve brainstorming to identify tasks that you
might otherwise overlook.
 Schedule: The Project KickStart Gantt chart makes scheduling tasks fast and easy. You can print
taskbars in color and save Gantt charts reports as images so you can email them to colleagues or
include them in a report.
 Export: Communicate your projects in a variety of ways by exporting project data to other applications,
including Microsoft Outlook. With one mouse click, you can include Project KickStart plans in a
Microsoft Word document, Excel spreadsheet, PowerPoint slide presentation, and more.
People are using Project KickStart to:
 Create process templates, project reports, to-do lists and more.
 Communicate project details to others through reports, email, and Gantt chart schedules.
 Ensure project buy-in by including the needs of team members in your plan.
 Consider project goals and obstacles in the planning process and prevent surprises later.
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© Experience In Software, Inc., 1995 - 2006
Use the Planning Wizard
Project KickStart uses a Planning Wizard that guides you through eight steps for planning your project. To
step through the wizard, click each icon on the Steps bar (on the left side of the Project KickStart window) in
order. On each window, t ips and advice are always available by clicking the Advisor button. You click the
Next button to continue.
Name: Each project has a name. To start planning your project, give it a
short, descriptive name.
Phases: Consider how your project will break down into major activities,
or phases. Start by listing your phases, and then list the tasks that
belong in each phase.
Goals: Goals are what you hope to accomplish in your project. Enter or
select the goals for your project. Then you can list any new tasks to
achieve each goal.
Similar: Projects often have tasks in common. In this step, you can
borrow tasks from past projects to help you plan this project. Then you
can add any new tasks from a similar project to the phases of your
current project.
People: List the people, groups, or things that might provide resources
for your project, including yourself. Then identify any new tasks these
people might do or suggest for your project.
Obstacles: Each project has obstacles you can overcome if you
anticipate them. List the obstacles you will face in your project, and then
identify any new tasks needed to avoid the obstacles.
Assign: Assign tasks to people and other resources.
Tasks: Change the order of your tasks, add and delete tasks, and
create subtasks. You can also edit tasks, change assignments, and add
notes.
Schedule: Schedule the tasks in your project. To make scheduling
easier, new projects open with a "starter schedule" beginning today,
which you can customize to fit your project.
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© Experience In Software, Inc., 1995 - 2006
Navigating Project KickStart
When you use the Planning Wizard, you work with a step window similar to the following illustration.
Steps bar: Click a step button to perform a step in the Planning Wizard. The selected button shows your
current step.
Name of your project: Shows the name entered in the Name step.
Menu bar: Select options from the menu bar to work with your projects.
Toolbar: Click buttons to perform common tasks, such as saving your project.
Step instructions : Indicate how to perform the current step.
Library button: Click to open a library for the current step. For example, click the Goals Library button to
open a library listing typical project goals.
Back and Next buttons: Click a button to return to the previous step or continue to the next step in the
Planning Wizard.
Advisor button : Click to see instructions, tips, and notes for completing the current step.
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