Save time in your drafting by using the following Microsoft Word tip from the Carmen Baru of the CCLA Technology Committee!

This post was written by Carmen Baru from the CCLA Technology Committee.

To describe OneNote as a note-taking app is like describing chocolate as a food preparation of cocoa seeds: it is that, but it is so much more. Part of the MS Office suite, OneNote is used to gather information, add comments, organize them, and map past and future steps. At its best, OneNote works like a thought-management tool.

Collecting Information

A OneNote page is a blank canvas with no borders and no pre-set grid. The user clicks anywhere on the page and starts typing, hand-writing, drawing, pasting pictures, or inserting files. Text copied from the internet indicates its source (unless the option is turned off). A file inserted as an attachment can be modified, and the modifications can be saved.

Inserting Audio / Video Recordings

For notes based on an audible event such as a lecture or a discussion, OneNote can record the audio and link it to the typed notes. The user can then listen to the audio corresponding to a certain note entry.

To insert audio/video recordings: in the command ribbon, go to Insert > Recording > Recording audio.

To play back the audio recording linked to a certain note entry: click on the entry, then click the “Play” symbol (a triangle in a circle) that will appear to the left of that entry.

Organizing Information

OneNote reproduces the organizational concept of a binder, with each notebook containing sections or groups of sections, and each section containing pages or subpages. To create a New Section Group, right-click on the empty space next to the section tabs. To create a page, click “+Add Page”. To create a subpage, create it as if it were a page, then click the page tab and drag it to the right.

A OneNote can tag entries (“Home” tab > “Tags”). There are many pre-set tags, and more can be created. For example, an entry indicating a weakness in the file could be highlighted and marked with a suggestive icon:

Revisiting the Notes

OneNote entries are marked with a timestamp and the name of the author. The information can be accessed by right-clicking the entry: the timestamp is at the bottom of the menu that appears after right-clicking the entry.

The feature is useful in collaborative settings, when multiple users address the same material. It is also useful as a reminder of the date, time, and duration of the phone call or meeting corresponding to the notes.

OneNote also helps identifying information with various search functions. It can search:

• text on the page (CTRL + F) or in one or more notebooks (CTRL + E);
• text in an image, provided that the OCR tool has been applied. To use the OCR tool, right-click on the image, then click “Make text in image searchable.”
• text in audio or video recordings. To use this function, the user must first turn on “Audio Search”: File > Options > Audio & Video > Audio Search: tick the checkbox to Enable searching audio and video recordings for words

To Wrap It Up

OneNote can seem daunting, with too many options and an unregulated, anxiety-inducing blank page. But OneNote is a feature-rich tool worth exploring, especially since many of us already have it on our computers, as part of the MS Office suite or as a Windows app. And I believe that, for many, it will be very much like chocolate: once you take the first piece, you will come back for seconds.

Are you protected? The WannaCry ransomware wreaked havoc on the world’s information systems this weekend and it continues to spread; and you know what they say, the best time to make sure your information systems are up-to-date is yesterday. The second best time, of course, is now. Trust is infinitely harder to regain than it is to lose, so it’s important you don’t fall into the “it won’t happen to me” fallacy. It’s important you take the time to make sure your firm and your personal information systems are adequately secured.

Here are some bare minimum steps you should be taking to protect your data.

1. Ensure all of your software is legitimate and up-to-date. WannaCry, as does other malware, propagates itself through flaws discovered in older versions of software. Microsoft patched the vulnerability a month ago, but the ransomware was still able to target systems that had not made the update. It is extremely important to make sure that your software has installed the latest patches. Equally as important is that your software is not so old that it is no longer being supported by the developer.
2. BACKUPS, BACKUPS, BACKUPS. I can’t stress this enough: you need to consistently backup your data! Attacks such as WannaCry can be easily avoided by just restoring your files from a recent backup. If you’re dealing with your personal system, there is plenty of free software out there to do this, and some low cost cloud options as well. Make sure you can restore your systems easily in case of an emergency.
3. Don’t click on links from emails until double-checking. Even if it’s seemingly from someone you know, double-check where the link goes first by hovering, or checking with the person who sent it. Better safe than sorry.
4. Use a password manager. Many problems occur because passwords are too simple and open to a brute force solution by a computer. Additionally, reusing the same passwords on different sites allows easy unauthorized access. Use different, complex passwords on different sites, and use a password manager so you don’t have to worry about remembering all the variations.
5. Have you been pwned? Check if your email address or passwords have been included in any breaches, and be emailed if it is in any future breaches. If you administer multiple emails across a domain you can check if any are on the lists. If you are; don’t panic! Change your passwords and enable two-factor authentication wherever possible.

All of these might sound a little obvious, but they are simple safeguards to take especially when you are dealing with potentially sensitive information.