Microsoft Project Tutorial

 Kathryn M. Kimery
Kansas State University
 Table of Contents

Introduction to Project Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Lesson 1: Microsoft Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Lesson 2: Tasks and Phases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Lesson 3: Summary Tasks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Lesson 4: Linking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Lesson 5: Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Lesson 6: Project Cost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Lesson 7: Evaluate and Adjust the Schedule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Lesson 8: Critical Path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Lesson 9: Views, Tables, and AutoFilters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Lesson 10: Updating the Project Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Lesson 11: Printing Views and Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

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 Introduction to Project Management

In the 1996 Guide to the Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK) states
that a project is "a temporary endeavor to create a unique product or service." The
key points of these definitions are that a project has a unique objective and that a
project has a definite start, duration, and finish.

The challenge of project management is to balance the project scope, schedule, and
resources while meeting or exceeding the stakeholders needs and expectations. A
project manager is the person who guides the project towards the objective by
organizing human, financial, and physical resources; supervising the progress;
assessing the impact of variations to the plan, monitoring progress of the project,
and completing the evaluation of the project at the end.

Project management software aids the project manager develop, schedule, and
manage a project by breaking complex information into simple subtasks each with
its own start date, duration, completion date, and resource requirements. By using
project management software to track changes to the original project plan, the
project manager is able to see the impact of those variations to the entire project
including costs. The project management application also acts as a repository of
project information and a report generation tool.

Microsoft Project has become a core project management application in use by a

growing number of organizations to help them improve their chances of project
success. Data is easily transferable between Project and other front- and back-
office software applications. Many “bolt on” applications are also being made
available by 3 rd-party vendors to extend the basic functionality of Project.

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 Lesson 1: Microsoft Project

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Start Microsoft Project

2. Examine the parts of the Microsoft Project screen
3. Examine the View Bar
4. Be introduced to the project for this course
5. Use the Project Information dialog box
6. Use the Properties Information dialog box
7. Save the project file

On the Start menu, point to Programs, then Management, then click Microsoft
Project. When you start Project for the first time, you may see a Welcome dialog
box. You may click the button to close the Welcome dialog.

If you are new to Project Management, you can learn more about using Project by
stepping through the Quick Preview, the Tutorial, or the Project Map. These can be
accessed via HelpàGetting Started.

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 Task ID Entry Table
View Bar Gantt chart
(No tasks at this time)

A brief description of each of the indicated features appears in the table on the
following page. You should be familiar with other common Windows features such
as scroll bars and split bars.

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WINDOW PART DESCRIPTION
Select All button Selects all the rows and columns in a sheet
Title bar Contains the window title and the application sizing
buttons
Menu bar Row of menu items and the window sizing buttons
Standard toolbar Icons representing common Project functions
Formatting toolbar Icons representing common actions that change the
appearance of your document
Entry Bar Used to enter or edit information in fields
View Bar Provides a convenient means of changing views by just
clicking the icons that appear on the View Bar. To
remove the View Bar, on the View menu click View Bar
Task ID Contains the number that Microsoft Project assigns to
each task as you add it to the project
Indicators Displays small icons for communicating information
about a task, resource, or assignment
Entry Table Displays basic information regarding tasks, such as task
name, duration, scheduled start and finish dates,
predecessors, and resources
Gantt Chart Displays task information about your project as both text
and bar graphics

View Bar

We will use many of these views during the course. A brief description of each view
is given below. This category of views is called the task views.

The Calendar view displays a monthly calendar showing tasks and

durations. This view is used to show the tasks scheduled in a specific
week or range of weeks.

The Gantt Chart view displays a list of tasks and related information, and
a chart showing tasks and durations over time. This view is used to enter
and schedule a list of tasks. This is the default view when MS Project is
opened.

The Network Diagram view displays a network diagram showing all tasks
and task dependencies. This view is used to create and fine-tune your
schedule in a flowchart format.

The Task Usage view displays a list of tasks showing assigned resources
grouped under each task. This view is used to see which resources are
assigned to specific tasks and to set resource work contours.

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The Tracking Gantt view displays a list of tasks and related information, and
a chart showing baseline and scheduled Gantt bars for each task. This view
is used to compare the baseline schedule with the actual schedule.
The following views are called resource views.

The Resource Graph view displays graphs showing resource allocation,

cost, or works over time. This view is used to display information about a
single resource or group of resources over time.

The Resource Sheet view displays a list of resources and related

information. Use this resource view to enter and edit resource information in
a spreadsheet-like format.

The Resource Usage view displays a list of resources showing allocation,

cost, or work information for each resource over time. This view is used to
show cost or work allocation information for each resource and to set
resource contours.

When you select this option a dialog box similar to the one pictured below
displays on the screen listing the other views available in MS Project.

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Introduction to the Project

For this course, our project is to evaluate & update the website for the MIS
department at Acme University. Before entering information in Microsoft Project, we
must do some preparation.

Goal of the Project

First, we must define the goal of the project in specific and measurable terms. For
this course, our objective is to evaluate and update the existing website for the MIS
department and to prepare a plan for updating and maintaining all of the websites
for departments within the Faculty of Commerce. A primary criterion for success is
to complete the project before spring semester begins.

By stating the project goal in clear and specific terms you know exactly what you
are trying to accomplish and why, thereby providing focus throughout the project.

Scope

The scope is the combination of all the project goals, including the major
deliverables and their cost, quality, and timing requirements to accomplish those
goals.

For this course, the scope could include such tasks as identifying existing web
editing and management tools, documenting the existing web layout, e valuating the
effectiveness/weaknesses of the existing web pages, investigating user
requirements, designing & documenting the new web page, implementing the new
pages, testing, planning the development project for other departments, and
preparing the plan document.

When you define the scope it is important to state what is not part of the project. For
example, your work is limited to the MIS department site. You must clarify whether
or not this includes assisting individual faculty with class-related pages. For this
project, we will say that links will be provided, but no active assistance will be
provided. We will also clarify that institutional graphics files will be provided by
External Affairs.

Assumptions/Constraints

Factors like the duration a nd the cost of specific tasks will impact your entire project.
Try to estimate these factors based on previous projects, past experiences, or
directly from the people responsible for those tasks. Some of the factors that you
must take into account may be out of your direct control. For example, we will
assume that the university has all software, hardware, and infrastructure necessary
to complete the project requirements. We will also assume that we will have
reasonable access to users, staff professiona ls, and administrators as needed. If

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we discover during the course of the project that the assumptions were false, then
either the project scope or schedule would have to be adjusted.

Constraints identify the resources limits within which our project must be completed.
For our project, the delivery date is set for January 15, 2001. We are restricted to
using only student employees and existing hardware, software, and infrastructures
maintained by the university computer center.

Project Information

Before we start to enter tasks, you will fill out the project information dialog box prior
to saving the project for the first time. Select the Project Information command on
the Project menu.

A Project Information for 'Project 1' dialog box similar to the one pictured below will
appear on your screen.

The default name for this project is Project 1, until you save the project file for the
first time.

As you can see, you may specify the date you want the project to begin or the date
on which the project must end but not both. It is recommended that you enter the
project's start date and let Project calculate the end date after you have entered all
the tasks and assign durations.

If is absolutely essential that a project must be finished by a certain date, then enter
the project's finish date and the start date will be calculated automatically after all
the tasks and durations are entered.

We want to start working on our newsletter on Monday, Nov. 6, 2000. Click the down
arrow beside the start date box. A monthly calendar is displayed.

Click the appropriate navigation arrow until the month of November is displayed.

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Click on November 6. The calendar closes and the start date box should display
the. Notice that the finish date is gray-ed out. Click the OK command button.

Notice that the Gantt chart view has change to display the dates closer to the start of
the project.

Properties Information

Notice that the weekends are displayed in gray, denoting that this is nonworking
time. We will add holidays la ter.

On the File menu, select the Properties command. A dialog box similar to the one
pictured below will appear on your screen.

In the Title box, type “Web Project”.

In the Subject box, type “MIS website evaluation & update”.

In the Author box, type your name.

In the Manager box, type your name.

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In the Company box, enter “Acme University”.

In the Comments box, enter the project goal: “Evaluate and update the MIS website
and prepare a plan to update other departments’ websites.” This is also a good
place to enter the scope and assumptions of this project. Click the OK button.

Save the Project

Click the Save button on the toolbar. When the File Save dialog box appears on
your screen, save the project as WebProj on the disk in the A: drive. Project will
automatically add the extension “.mpp”. Click the Save button.

Notice that the title bar now displays the name of this project.

Do not close Microsoft Project.

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 Lesson 2: Tasks and Phases

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Modify the project base calendar

2. Define tasks
3. Enter tasks into the task list
4. Edit, insert and move tasks
5. Delete tasks and undo deletions
6. Define phases
7. Order and group related tasks
8. Enter durations
9. AutoFit columns

When you create a project plan, Project attaches the "standard" project calendar by
default. The Standard calendar shows the weekdays as working days with the
default working hours from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with a break from 12:00 p.m. to
1:00 p.m. All weekends are considered as nonworking days. If your company uses
a different set of working and nonworking days and hours, it is best if you modify the
project calendar before you start to enter tasks and durations.

Base Calendar

The base calendar is used to define the working days and hours for a project or a
set of resources. First, let's take a look at the default calendar options. On the Tools
menu, select the Options command.

Select the Calendar tab if it is not already active. A dialog box similar to the one
pictured below should appear on your screen.

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You can see that by default, the week starts on Sunday, and the Fiscal year starts
in January. You can also see the default start time and end time of the workday as
well as the number of hours per day and the number of hours per week that are
scheduled for work. These default settings match our needs, so we will not make
any changes. Click OK.

Since our project starts on November 6, we know that the holidays we must
consider are Thanksgiving, and perhaps Christmas and New Years Day. On the
Tools menu, select the Change Working Time command.

A dialog box similar to the one pictured below should appear on your screen.

Use the vertical scroll arrow to change the month to November 2000. Select
November 23 and 24 b y clicking on the box for the 23 then holding down the CNTL
key while clicking on the 24 in the calendar. In the “For selected dates” portion of
the dialog box, click the radio button beside Nonworking time. Select any other day,
and then select November 23 again. Notice that the calendar box for November 23
is now shaded indicating a nonworking day. Also note that in the “For selected
dates” area of the dialog box, no working times are displayed.

Now navigate to December 25. Select December 25, then click Nonworking time.
Do the same for January 1, 2001. Click OK when you are through.

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Tasks
A task is an identifiable piece of work that must be done to meet your project goal. A
task should neither be too big or too small. This may be difficult for you to identify
until you gain more experience in project management. A large task should be
broken into smaller tasks but not so small as to clutter your project plan.

For example, in our web project there would be no task called "Make the Website',
as this is not a single action that can be done all at once. To accomplish this goal,
various tasks such as designing the theme, procuring graphics, coding the pages,
publishing the code, etc. must be performed. These are the tasks to include in the
project pla n.

On the other hand, an action such as turning on the computer is too small to be
included as a task. This task, by itself, does not advance the project. It is really part
of one (or more likely, many) tasks in the project.

Entering Tasks

We are now ready to enter the tasks. First, we will list each task required to
complete this project, allowing the default duration of 1 day. After all the tasks are
entered, we will review the order of the tasks and duration of each task. We will then
adjust the project accordingly. Enter the tasks listed in the table below. As you enter
the task, a Task ID will appear in the Task ID column.

Task ID Task
Number
1 Inventory existing tools, hardware, infrastructure
2 Document existing website
3 Evaluate existing website
4 Investigate user requirements
5 Design web scheme
6 Procure graphics
7 Storyboard website
8 Code website
9 Publish
10 Test
11 Plan work for other departments
12 Prepare final documentation & write report

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Your screen should be similar to the one picture below.

When you have finished typing in the tasks, click on the Save icon on the Standard
toolbar. A dialog box similar to the one pictured below appears on your screen.

Be sure the option Save 'Web Project.mpp' without a baseline is selected. A base
line is a snapshot of the project as it is now scheduled. If you do not need to
compare it to future changes (the default), select this option. Also click the check
box beside Don't tell me about this again. Click the OK button.

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Editing Tasks

Looking at the tasks, you can see that some of these tasks are out of order and a
few new tasks need to be entered. You may also see some spelling errors that you
would like to correct.

If you wish to edit the entire task, select the task in the Entry table then type the new
task. If you wish to correct a typo, select the task in the Entry table then position the
mouse pointer (I-beam) in the Entry bar and click to obtain an insertion point. Using
the cursor control keys you can move the insertion point to the left or right. You may
also use the <Delete> or <Backspace> keys to remove unwanted text. When you
are finished typing, press the <Enter> key to accept your changes.

Inserting Tasks

To insert a task, click on the Task ID of the task that you want to place the new task
before. The entire task row will be selected. Select Task 11 – Plan work….

On the Insert menu, select the New Task command. Alternately, you may also tap the
<insert> key.

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The new blank task will appear above the row you previously selected. Click in the
Task Name column of the new Task 11 and type Make Corrections. Press <Enter>.

Deleting Tasks

To delete a task, select the Task ID of the task you wish to remove. Select Task 11
– Make Corrections. On the Edit menu, select the Delete Task command.
Alternately, you may tap the <Delete> key.

Undo

If you change a task, you can restore it by clicking the Undo Delete icon on the
toolbar. Click the Undo Delete button to restore Task 11.

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It is important to note that Project has just one level of Undo. This icon now changes
in respect to the previously done task. In this case the icon is now a Redo Delete
button, like the icon pictured below.

Phases

A phase is a group of related tasks and represents a major step in the project.
Breaking a project into phases allows you to focus on one part of the project at a
time. You can see the logical flow of the tasks and are able to see if there are tasks
missing. We are going to add and move some tasks so that we can group the
related tasks into phases.

Moving a Task

We decide that, because we must collect user input before evaluating the quality of
the existing website, we should list Task 4—Investigate user requirements before
Task 3—Evaluate existing website.

Select Task 4 by clicking on the Task ID number. Point at the Task ID, when the
mouse pointer changes to a white arrow, hold down the left mouse button and drag
the task up the column.

As you drag you will notice a grey horizontal line appear on the screen. When the
line is under Task 2 release the mouse button. The previous Task 4 is the new Task
3.

The rest of the tasks automatically renumber to reflect any changes.

Order and Group Related Tasks

Select Task 1, then tap the <insert> key. Click the Task Name column and type
Analysis. Tap <Fnter>. The first few tasks should be similar to the picture below.
The phase Analysis will contain the tasks 2 - 5, inclusive.

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Tasks 6, 7, 8 will be grouped in the phase called Design. Select Task 6 and tap the
<insert> key. Type Design in the Task name column of the new Task 6, and then
tap <Enter>. The other tasks renumber automatically.

Tasks 10, 11, 12, & 13 will be included in the phase Implement. Select Task 10, tap
the <insert> key and type Implement in the Task Name column then tap <Enter>.

Select Task 15 and tap the <insert> key. Type the Task Name Plan Phase 2 and tap
<Enter>.

Click the Save icon on the standard toolbar.

Duration

Not all of the tasks listed will take 1 day to complete. As a matter of fact, most tasks
may take more or less time. Duration is the actual amount of time required to
complete a task. Duration can be specified in minutes, hours, days, or weeks. By
default Project does not enter work during nonworking days, such as weekends and
holidays. To schedule work during nonworking time periods, specify the duration as
elapsed duration. For example, if you have a task scheduled to start on a Friday,
with an elapsed duration of 3 days, the task will end on Sunday.

The following is a table of the abbreviations, the description and the duration that is
displayed in Project.

Abbreviation Description Display in Project

M Minute Min
H Hour Hr
D Day Day
W Week Wk
Em Elapsed minutes Emin
Eh Elapsed hours Ehr
Ed Elapsed day Eday
Ew Elapsed week Ewk
0 Milestone 0 days

A task that is given a time lapse of 0 is called a milestone.

So now let's change the duration of some of the tasks in the Web Project. If you
should see ###### in a portion of the next column, do not worry. This means that
the column is not wide enough to display the information. We will deal with that
shortly.

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Task ID Task name Duration
1 Analysis
2 Inventory tools… 4 days
3 Document existing… 3 days
4 Investigate user… 4 days
5 Evaluate existing website 1 day
6 Design
7 Design web scheme 3 days
8 Procure graphics 1 days
9 Storyboard website 3 day
10 Implement
11 Code website 6 days
12 Publish 2 days
13 Test 2 days
14 Make Corrections 2 days
15 Plan Phase 2
16 Plan work… 4 days
17 Prepare documentation… 4 days

AutoFit Columns

To AutoFit any column, point the mouse to the divider between the column names.
When the mouse pointer turns into a double-headed arrow, double click. The
column to the left will adjust to the best fit.

Save your project file now.

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 Lesson 3: Summary Tasks

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Create summary tasks

2. Outline task list
3. Expand and collapse summary tasks
4. Display the project summary task

If you have exited Microsoft Project, please start Project and open the Web
Project.mpp file stored on your disk.

Create Summary Tasks

A Summary Task is a main task (phase) made up of subtasks. In the last lesson we
ordered and grouped related tasks in the task list and identified phases in the Web
Project project.

A summary task, like a milestone, requires no work but it summarizes information

about its subtasks. For example, when we assign costs to subtasks, then the
summary task's cost is the total of the costs of all the subtasks. You can create
summary task containing subtasks that are themselves summary tasks.

The advantage to creating summary tasks and subtasks is that you now have the
flexibility to view and print reports at the appropriate level of detail.

Previously, we moved and inserted tasks so that related tasks were grouped
together. However, as noted there did not appear to be any discernible differences
among the tasks as they all left aligned in the Task Name column.

Outlining the Task List

By outlining the task list, we will be able to visually distinguish one summary group
from another. By indenting a task, a task is moved to a lower level, that is, it
becomes a subtask of the task above it.

By outdenting a task (if it is not already at its highest level), the task is moved to a
higher level. That is, it becomes a summary task of the tasks that follow it.

Task 2,3,4, & 5 will become summary tasks of Task 1 - Analysis.

Click on Task ID 2, then point to Task ID 5, and hold down the <Shift> key and click
the left mouse button. The contiguous tasks 2 - 5 will be selected, as pictured below.

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Click the Indent icon on the Outlining Toolbar.

Deselect the area by clicking on any task name.

There are a few things to note:

1. The task name Analysis is now bold enhanced and a minus (-) sign appears in
front of the task name. This task is now a summary task and the subtasks are
visible and indented from the left.
2. The duration of Analysis is 4 days (assumes all tasks can be completed
concurrently).
3. In the Gantt chart, a black bar extends across the area to include the bar charts
of the durations of all the subtasks.

Select Tasks 7-9, inclusive. Click the Indent icon. These tasks will be subtasks of
Task 6 - Design. Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

Select Tasks 11-14, inclusive. Click the Indent icon. These tasks will be subtasks of
Task 10 - Implement. Select tasks 16 & 17. Click the Indent icon. These will be
subtasks of Task 15 – Plan Phase 2.

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Click the Save icon.

Collapse Summary Tasks

When you are reviewing your project plan, you may want to see only the summary
tasks. To collapse a summary task, click the minus (-) sign in front of the task name.

Click the minus (-) sign in front of Task 1 - Analysis. Your screen should be similar to
the portion pictured below.

Collapse Task 7, Task 10, & Task 15.

Alternately, you can select a task, then click the Hide Subtask icon on the toolbar.

The subtasks of the selected summary task are hidden.

Expand Summary Tasks

In order to view the subtasks, click the plus (+) sign in from of the group task name.
Click the plus (+) sign in front of Task 15.

Alternately, you can select a task, then click the Show Subtask icon on the toolbar.

Show All Subtasks

It would be very time-consuming to click the plus (+) in front of every summary task.
On the Formatting toolbar, there is an icon labeled Show All Subtasks. Click this
icon and all subtasks in the project plan are displayed.

Before we finish the outlining lesson, we should add the highest leve l summary task
called Web Project. This will give us a summary level for some of the reports.

Select Task 1 – Analysis and tap the <insert> key. Select the Task Name Column
and type Web Project and tap <Enter>. Select Tasks 2 - 18, inclusive. Click the

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Indent icon. Now all tasks are subtasks of the Web Project task. Your screen should
be similar to the portion pictured below.

Save your file by clicking the Save icon.

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 Lesson 4: Linking

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Understand linking terminology

2. Create a task link
3. Change a task link
4. Remove a task link
5. Overlap tasks
6. Delay tasks

As you have probably noticed, all the tasks still have the same start date - the start
date of the project. We have entered the tasks in an order that you would expect the
tasks to be done in order to achieve your project goal. Since Project does not
schedule the tasks one after the other automatically, you must provide the
information to link the tasks based on their start and finish dependencies.

Understanding Linking

Linking is a powerful tool. Project will calculate the task start and finish dates of
each task automatically, as well as the project finish date. By linking the tasks you
can see instantly how any changes to the start, duration, or the finish date will effect
any related tasks and the entire schedule.

Before you link the tasks, you must determine the sequence of the tasks, especially
whether or not the start or finish of one task depends on the start or finish of
another. Not every task depends on another task. If a task does not depend on
another task, don't link it, just specify a start or a finish date.

Usually one task must finish before another task can begin. However, you may have
the situation where one task must start but not need to be finished before another
task can start.

A predecessor task is a task that must start or finish before another task can start or
finish. A successor task is a task that cannot start until another task has started or
finished.

Task Dependencies

When you have identified the predecessor and successor tasks, you need to decide
on the type of link to use when you link one task to another. There are four types of
task dependencies.

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 TASK DESCRIPTION
DEPENDENCY
Finish-to-Start The first task must be
(FS) finished before the next
task can begin
Start-to-Start Both tasks can start at
(SS) the same time
Finish-to-Finish Both tasks must finish at
(FF) the same time
Start-to-Finish A task finishes after its
(SF) predecessor starts

Creating a Task Link

Before you create a link, you must first select the tasks you want to link. Select the
first task by clicking on its Task Name, then hold down the <Ctrl> key and select as
many tasks as you want to link. You may also select the first task by clicking on its
Task Name, then hold down the <Shift> key and select the last task in the list you
want to link. If you wish to deselect a task in the list, hold down the <Ctrl> key then
click the Task Name of the task to be deselected.

Select Task 3 – Inventory Tools… and Task 4 – Document Existing…. Click the Link
Tasks icon on the Standard toolbar.

By default, Project will link the tasks finish-to-start.

Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

You should be able to see that Task 3 finished before Task 4 starts. You should also
be able to see an arrow linking the two tasks.

If you double-click on the line linking the two tasks, a Task Dependency dialog box
will appear on your screen, similar to the one pictured below.

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If you click the drop-down arrow beside the type box, a list of dependencies will be
displayed.

Change the dependency, highlight Finish-to-Finish and click. Click the OK button.
Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

We will now continue to add dependencies throughout the project plan.

Select Task 4 and Task 5 and link Finish-to-Start.

Select Task 4 and Task 6 and link Finish-to-Start.

Select Task 5 and Task 8 and link Finish-to-Start.

Select Task 6 and Task 8 Finish-to-Start.

Select Task 8 and Task 9 and link Finish-to-Start.

When you position the mouse over the bar of any task in the Gantt chart the mouse
pointer turns into a four-headed arrow. Click and hold down the left mouse button.
An information box similar to the one pictured below will appear on your screen.

This is the information box for Task 5—Investigate User Requirements. This task
has a duration of 4 days. However, the weekend (which is nonworking time) is
included in the time, so the task starts on Friday, November 10 and ends on
Wednesday, November 15.

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Select Task 9 and Task 10 and link Finish-to-Start.

Select Task 10 and Task 12 and link Finish-to-Start.

Select Task 12 and Task 13 and link Finish-to-Start.

Select Task 13 and Task 14 and link Finish-to-Start.

Select Task 14 and Task 15 and link Finish-to-Start.

Select Task 15 and Task 17 and link Finish-to-Start.

Select Task 17 and Task 18 and link Start-to-Start.

Save the file by clicking the Save icon.

Removing Task Link

To remove a task link, select the two tasks, then click the Unlink Tasks icon on the
Standard toolbar.

Another way to delete a task dependency is to double-click the line linking the tasks
to display the Task Dependency dialog box, then click the Delete button.

Lag time

There are times when task links do not show accurately when tasks will actually
start. For example, Task 17 and Task 18 start on the same day. It would be most
realistic to suggest that planning will be underway for at least a day before
preparation of the final report can begin.

By using lag time, you can specify a waiting period between the start of the
predecessor task and the successor task. Double-click the line linking Task 17 and
Task 18 to display the Task Dependency dialog box. Change the Lag time to 1d
then click the OK button.

28
Lag time is always a positive number.

Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

You can see that Task 18 is now due to start 1 day after the start of Task 17.

Lead Time

Lead time is used to overlap two tasks so that a successor task starts before a
predecessor task finishes. It is the same thing as negative lag time. For example,
Task 12 and Task 13. The code can begin to be published (uploaded) to the server
as soon as the first few pages are coded. You would not have to wait for all the
pages to be coded before uploading to the server.

Double-click the line linking Task 12 and Task 13 to display the Task Dependency
dialog box. Change the lag time to -1.
Click the OK button. Lead time is always a negative number. Your screen should be
similar to the portion pictured below.

As you can see, the start of Task 13-Publish is now scheduled to start before the
coding of the website (Task 12) is completed.

You can use minute, hour, day or week for the lead or lag time units. If you need to
specify an elapsed duration, start the time unit with the letter "e". For example,
edays for elapsed days. Remember that elapsed days include weekends and other
nonworking days.

29
After linking the tasks, your task durations should look like the following:

Save the project file.

30
 Lesson 5: Resources

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Determine resource needs

2. Create a resource list
3. Examine the resource calendar
4. Assign resources to tasks
5. Remove a resource from a task
6. Replace a resource

Resource Needs

The number of resources (people, places, or things) you use and the skills of the
resources that are required affect both the duration and the cost of the project. If
you have too few resources, the project may be longer in duration than you thought,
but the cost of the project may be less than anticipated. The cost of the project may
soar if you have too many resources. The skills of the resources (people) will affect
the quality of your project.

There are some basic questions to ask when considering your resource needs.

1. What are the categories of tasks that must be done?

2. How many tasks need to be done?
3. What is the skill set required for each task?
4. How many resources do you need to complete the task on time?
5. Can one resource work on more than one task?

You must estimate your resource need accurately. If you can, ask the persons who
will perform the work to estimate the resources needed. Another way to estimate is
to look at the resources required for a similar project, then adjust for the differences
in tasks and the skill sets available for this project. Making your task list a series of
simple, small tasks improves your ability to estimate accurately.

Creating a Resource List

A resource list includes the name of the resource and the maximum amount of time
per day that the resource is available to work on this project. You are better off to
create the resource list before you start to assign resources to the tasks.

On the View menu, select Resource Sheet command. Enter the resource name in
the appropriate column. Avoid using proper names, instead use the title of the
position. For example, use Web Analyst, not Mary Forbes. Enter the following
resources so that your screen is similar to the portion pictured below.

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The web analysts are part-time employees working only 2 hours per day. Their
maximum units per day, therefore, is indicated as 25%. The project manager is
responsible for many tasks and can only devote 10% of any day to this project. The
assistant analyst, when assigned to a project task, can devote his/her full day to the
task.

Resource Calendar

In any project, there will be occasions when a resource has scheduled nonworking
time. In order for your project plan to take that information into account, you must
modify a working times calendar for an individual resources.

Select the resource that you want to modify the working time calendar for, then click
the Resource Information button on the Standard toolbar. Select the Project
Manager and click on the Resource Information button.

Click on the Working Time tab.

Use the arrow to navigate to November, if necessary. Select November 20 through

23 (click 20 and then click 23 while holding down the shift key). In the ”For selected
dates” area, click the “Nonworking time” option button. Click the OK button.

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Return to the Gantt view by selecting Gantt Chart from the View menu or by clicking
Gantt Chart in the View Bar. Save the project file by clicking the Save icon.

Assigning Resources

Project calculates the task schedule by using work, duration, and resources
associated with the assigned task.

Work is the amount of effort, measured in time units, put into a task by a resource.
The total work for a task is the sum of all time units assigned to a task.

Duration is the amount of time between the start and finish of a task. Project
calculates the task's duration based on the number of resources and the amount of
work assigned to the task.

Resources are the people or equipment required to do the work.

By default, Project will set the units of work for a task as the sum of resources
assigned to the task times the units of work specified for each resource.

To assign a resource, select the task to which you want to assign the resource, then
click the Assign Resources icon.

Select Task 3 - then click the Assign Resources icon.

An Assign Resources dialog box, similar to the one pictured below should appear on
your screen.

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Select the Web Analyst 1 and the Web Analyst 2, by clicking on the first name, then
hold down the <Ctrl> key and click the second name. Click the Assign button. Do
not hit the <Enter> key or click the Assign button until both resources are selected.
If you do, the duration for the task will be affected. If this happens, simply click on
the duration for the task in the datasheet and change it back to 4, the appropriate
number of days for this task.

Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below. You may have to move
the Assign Resources dialog box out of the way to see the Gantt chart behind it.

Look at the Assign Resources dialog box. By default, Project assigns all of the
resources’ maximum daily units to the task. A check mark appears to the left of
each name assigned to this task.

You may assign less than all of a resources maximum time but the duration of the
task will be altered. Change the units of the Web Analyst 1’s time to 10%, clicking in
the Units column beside the first name and type 10. Tap the <Enter> key. Your
screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

Change the 10% back to 25% in the Assign Resources dialog box and click the
Assign button. The duration for Task 3 should return to 4 days.

Select each of the tasks listed in the table below and make the appropriate
assignment of resources and units. You may select multiple tasks that have the
same resource allocations and assign resources to these tasks at the same time.
Hold down the <Cntl> key while clicking on the tasks, then select the appropriate
resources and click the Assign button. Do not enter any values in the units column.
Allow Project to use the default values you entered on the Resource Sheet. Watch
the task duration as you assign resources. If it changes, it means you made an error
while assigning resources. Make sure the assigned resources are correct, then edit
the duration to match the original value (see pg. 30).

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Task Number Resource Units
4 Web Analysts 1 & 2 25
5 Web Analysts 1 & 2 25
Assistant 100
6&8 Web Analysts 1 & 2 25
Project Manager 10
9, 10, 12, & 13 Web Analysts 1 & 2 25
14 Web Analysts 1 & 2 25
Project Manager 10
15 Web Analysts 1 & 2 25
17 Web Analysts 1 & 2 25
Project Manager 10
18 Web Analysts 1 & 2 25
Assistant 100

If you scroll to the top of the Gantt chart, you can see the duration of the entire
project.

Close the Assign Resources dialog box.

Removing Resources

During a project, many events can happen to change the project plan. People may
become ill or too busy with another project to work on this one. It is easy to remove
a resource from a task.

Select the task that you need to remove the resource from, then click the Assign
Resources icon. The Assign Resources dialog box appears. Select the Resource
you wish to remove, then click the Remove b utton.

Notice on the Gantt chart that Task 8 spans 6 days rather than the desired duration
of 3 days. This is because the Project Manager is on vacation for 3 days during the
period when we anticipated working on the plan. We can manage this conflict by
either talking the manager into moving his time off, delaying this task, trying to push
it ahead in the schedule, or deciding to do the plan without the manager. We
decide that the manager’s input is not important for this task and choose to simply
remove this allocation from our plan.

Select Task 8 and then click the Assign Resources icon. Select the Project
Manager, then click the Remove button and the Close button. This task now
requires 3.6 days. This shift in time is caused by the fact that Project, by default,
operates in “effort driven” mode. After resources are allocated to a task for the first
time, the work units become fixed for the task. Further adjustments to resources
will cause a recalculation of the duration of the task. Effort drive n mode can be

35
toggled off by selecting a task from the Gantt view and clicking on the Task
Information button on the toolbar.

On the Advanced tab, deselect the check box for Effort Driven. We wish to leave
this setting on, but need to readjust the duration for a task. Simply click on the
duration cell for the task and edit the duration for Task 8 back to 3 days in the Gantt
view.

36
 Lesson 6: Project Cost

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Examine the estimated cost of the project

2. Assign a fixed cost to a task

Now that we have entered and linked the tasks, estimated the duration of each task,
and assigned resources to all the tasks, it is time to see how much this project is
going to cost.

Display the Gantt chart on your screen. On the View menu, Select Table:Entry, then
select Cost from the submenu that appears.

Move the divider bar to the right to reveal more of the cost table. Your screen
should be similar to the portion pictured below.

37
From this view, you can see the total cost of your project as planned so far.

If you scroll to the end of the project plan, you can see Task 18 – Prepare Final
Report has a total cost of $332, which represents the salary cost for the two
analysts and the assistant analyst. We can also plan for a fixed cost to cover the
cost of having an outside company copy the final reports.

Fixed Costs

Select the Fixed Cost column beside this task and enter 75 and tap the <Tab> key.
This cost is not prorated - based on the completion of the task. This accrued cost
will be paid in a lump sum when the work is finished. In the Fixed Cost Accrual
column, change Prorated to End and tap the <Enter> key.

Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

Click the Save icon. Scroll to the top of the screen.

38
 Lesson 7: Evaluate and Adjust the Project Schedule

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Check the project finish date

2. Check the cost of the project
3. Check the duration of the project
4. Refine task duration estimates
5. Locate resource over-allocations
6. Level resources automatically

Now that you have entered all the information into the project plan, it is time to fine-
tune the plan by adjusting the scope, resources, and time. There are two major
steps to evaluate and adjust the project plan.

1. High-level View of the Project

First, look at the schedule and answer the following questions:

1. Does this plan meet the project goals?

2. Does it include all the necessary tasks to complete the project?
3. Are the cost, duration, and work estimates accurate?
4. Did you assign the correct resources to each task?

2. Streamline the Project Plan

Answer the following questions:

1. Does this plan include only the tasks required to complete the project?
2. Are the resources used efficiently?
3. Can you reduce the cost of any tasks?

Project Finish Date

First, let’s add a milestone. A milestone is an important point in the life of the
project. It has no real duration, but rather is a marker or demarcator between
stages, or phases, or marks the end of the project itself. Enter a new task at the end
of the task list (Gantt view, View/Entry/Table): Task 19, Project Completed, with a
duration of 0 days. Outdent the task name if necessary so that it is aligned as far to
the left as possible. Link the milestone, Finish-to-Start, with Task 18. Return to the
Cost Entry Table view.

39
Select the Task 19 – Project Completed in the Task Name column then click the Go
To Selected Task icon. The Gantt chart displays that task bar.

The project will finish on:. __________________

Cost of the Project

Scroll to the top of the project plan. Adjust the split screen, if necessary, to display
the total cost of the project.

The project will cost: ___________________

Duration of the Project

On the View menu, select Table: Cost, then select Entry from the submenu. Scroll to
the top of the project plan and adjust the split screen to display the project duration.

The project has a duration of: ________________

Refine Task Duration Estimates

Let's make some changes to the duration of the tasks.

Task ID Task name Duration

#10 Storyboard website 4 days
#14 Test 5 days
#15 Make Corrections 4 days

Scroll to the top of the project plan.

The duration of the project is: _______________

Locate Resources Overallocations

Another way to adjust the schedule is to look at the allocation of resources and
reassign some of the resources. This will affect both the duration and the cost of the
project. On the View menu, select Resource Sheet, or click on the icon for the
Resource S heet view. Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

40
You can see that two of the resources have a leveling indicator indicating that these
resources are overallocated. Also the Resource name is displayed in red. Select the
Web Analyst 1. On the View menu, select Toolbars, then click on Resource
Management.

A new toolbar is displayed on your screen; similar to the one pictured below.

Click the Resources Allocation View icon.

41
Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

The top portion of the display is the Resource Usage view. The bottom portion is
called the Leveling Gantt view.

Look at the week of Nov. 5. Overlapping tasks require the Web Analyst 1 to do 4
hours of work in one day, which is not possible (the analysts are restricted to only 2
hours of work on the project each day). The narrow blue bars in the Leveling View
suggest the impact of delaying tasks to resolve the overallocation. Scrolling down
in the top window reveals that a similar overallocation exists for the Web Analyst 2.

Resolving Overallocations Manually

Scroll to the week of December 24. You will see that there is an overallocation of
time for both of the Web Analysts. They are assigned to work on Task 17—Plan
Work and Task 18—Prepare Final Report at the same time. Because we think we
should modify tasks and resource allocations to make the work more efficient, we
decide to make changes manually that will resolve the overallocations of resources.
Remove the split screen by selecting Remove Split from the Window menu. Then
click the Gantt Chart icon to return to the Gantt view. Make the desired changes in
this view.

After carefully considering how the work can best be done, we decide to add a new
Task 19—Review Report, duration 1 day, and assign both Web Analysts and the
Project Manager to this task. We increase the duration for the Plan Work task from
4 days to 5 days. Then we remove the Web Analysts as resources on the new
Task 18—Prepare Final Documentation and manually edit the duration of the task
to 4 days. Lastly, we must make sure that our new linkages are correct. If
necessary, adjust the linkages between these tasks to show that Task 19 is linked

42
Finish-to-Start with Task 18, and Task 20—Project Completed is linked Finish-to-
Start with Task 19. The link between Task 18 and Task 20 can be deleted.

Your Gantt View should look like the following.

What is the new finish date of the project? _________________

Leveling Resources Automatically

To resolve resource overallocations, you can delay or split tasks. This strategy is
called leveling. Project can do this leveling automatically. Project examines
overallocations by looking at task dependencies, dates, times, and a number of
other factors and determines if a task can be delayed or split to resolve the conflicts.

Click the Save icon. It is wise to save your file before leveling. If for some reason
you cannot remove the automatic leveling, you can close the file without saving the
changes. When you reopen the file o nly the leveling changes will be lost.

On the Tools menu, click Resource Leveling.

A Resource Leveling dialog box similar to the one pictured below will appear on your
screen.

43
Be sure all the options are selected as pictured in the Resource Leveling dialog box.

Click the Level Now button.

If you see a dialog box similar to the one pictured below, it means you mistakenly
checked the “Level only within available slack” checkbox. Project could not
automatically level-away our overallocations because we do not have any slack in
the schedule.

Click the Stop button and return to the Resource Allocation view. From the Tools
menu, select Resource Leveling again, but this time de-check the check box on the
Resource Leveling dialog box labeled “Level only within available slack. Click Level
Now.

44
If a Level Now dialog is displayed, click on Entire Pool and then click OK.

When the process is completed, check the new finish date for the project.

In the Resource Sheet view, check to see if any of the resources are still
overallocated. You can review the changes made by automatic leveling in the
Resource Allocation view. In the Leveling View (the bottom pane of the Resource
Allocation view), the green bar is the preleveled task and the blue bar is the new
leveled task. On the left side of the bottom pane is the Delay Table. Scroll to the
right to reveal the column Levelling Delay. You can see here that only Task 4,
Document Existing Website, was delayed by 3 elapsed days (that means it would
include non-work days, if necessary) to make it possible for out resource
overallocations to be resolved.

To remove the split window, select Remove Split on the Window menu. Select
Gantt Chart from the View menu or click the icon.

What is the duration of the project now? What is the total cost of your project now?
Save your file.

If, for some reason, automatic leveling did not produce the results you expected or
you discover a major error in your scheduling or task linking, you should be able to
remove the leveling. On the Tools menu, click Resource Leveling and click the
Clear Leveling button, located at the bottom left of the Resource Leveling dialog box
(see the dialog box fragment below). Do not clear leveling for this project.

45
 Lesson 8: Critical Path

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Understand the term critical path

2. Use the Gantt Chart Wizard
3. Use the Task Form
4. Change task information in the Task Form
5. Save the project with a baseline

Critical Path Defined

The critical path identifies those tasks that are crucial to the duration of the project.
If a task on the critical path is delayed or the duration extended, it will impact the
project finish date. A critical task is one that has no slack time; that is, the amount of
time a task can slip before it affects another task's dates or the project finish date.

GanttChartWizard

The GanttChartWizard will take you through the steps to format the Gantt chart.
When the Gantt chart is formatted to display the critical path, Gantt bars displayed
in red are the critical task, while noncritical tasks are displayed in blue.

Click the GanttChartWizard icon.

Step 1

A GanttChartWizard - Step 1 dialog box, similar to the one pictured below appears
on your screen.

46
Read the information and then click the Next button.

Step 2

When GanttChartWizard - Step 2 dialog box appears, select the Critical path option.
If your dialog box is similar to the one pictured below, click the Next button.

Step 3

The GanttChartWizard - Step 9 dialog box appears, similar to the one pictured
below.

If you wish to see the resources and dates display, be sure that option is selected.
Click the Next button.

47
Step 4

The GanttChartWizard - Step 13 dialog box appears on your screen, similar to the
one pictured below.

The default option to show link lines between dependent tasks is selected. Next,
Click the button.

Step 5

The GanttChartWizard - Step 14 dialog box appears similar to the one pictured
below.

Read the information, then click the Format It button.

48
Step 6

The GanttChartWizard - Step 15 dialog box appears on your screen, similar to the
one pictured below.

Click the Exit Wizard button.

Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

You should be able to see that most of the tasks are now red (critical tasks) with a
red line linking the tasks (critical path). Early in the schedule, however, there are 2
tasks that are blue (non-critical tasks). Task 3 is classified as non-critical because
Task 3 is linked to Task 4 with a Finish-to-Finish connection. This creates flexibility
in when this task must be completed. Task 6 likewise has flexibility in its finish time.

What is the duration of the project now? ___________________

What is the date the project will end? _________________

What is the cost of the project? ___________________

Save your file.

49
Setting a Baseline

To track the actual progress of the project in Microsoft Project, you set the baseline
to compare your original plan for the project with the actual course of the project.
This will allow you to see which tasks started earlier or later than planned, budget
comparisons, and so on. You should set the baseline once the project plan has
been fine-tuned and before you start to enter actual data once the project has
started.

On the Tools menu, select Tracking command, then click on Save Baseline on the
submenu.

A Save Baseline dialog box should appear on your screen similar to the one pictured
below.

Accept the default options as pictured in the dialog box above, then click the OK
button. You will not notice any difference on your screen.

50
 Lesson 9: Views, Tables, and AutoFilters

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Explore Project views

2. Explore project tables
3. Apply an AutoFilter

During this course we have been working with the Gantt chart and the Resources
Sheet. Microsoft Project has many different views, tables and filters available to
display your project information.

Views

A view displays portions of your project information in a particular format. In most

views you can enter or edit information. MSProject groups views into two
categories: task views (20) and resource views (6).

Views are further divided into sheets, charts, graphs, and forms.

Sheets

A sheet is a spreadsheet-like representation with the task or resource information

usually arranged vertically, like a list. The categories of information about each item
are arranged in columns. The Resource Sheet is a good example. Examine the
portion pictured below.

Charts and Graphs

Charts and graphs display your information graphically. The Calendar view is a
good example of another way to look at task information. Click on the Calendar View
icon or select it from the View menu. The Gantt chart is the most commonly used
chart view. Return to the Gantt chart view.

51
Forms

The best way to enter detailed information in your project plan is to use one of the
many forms available in Project. Usually a form has relevantly labeled tabs that
contain editable fields relating to a task or a resource.

The Task Information form is a good example. Click on a task in the Task Name
column of the Gantt datasheet and click on the Task Information button.

Click Cancel to close the form.

Tables

A table is a set of fields displayed in rows and columns. Each column contains
specific information about the row item. Tables are the keys to getting the most out
of the sheet views. If the sheet view you are using does not display the information
you need, you can select a different table for the view. For example, throughout this
course we used the Entry table and the Cost table while in the Gantt chart view.

The are two types of tables: task table and resource tables. Task tables can be
applied to 14 views and resource tables can be applied to 3 views.

Applying tables does not add or remove information from the project, it merely
changes the way that information is displayed.

On the View menu, select the view that you need. When the view changes on your
screen, on the View menu, select Table to see a list of available tables that are
available for this view. In the portion of the screen pictured below, you can see that
for the Gantt view there are many tables available.

52
AutoFilters

When a view displays more information than you need, you can apply filters to see
the information required without much scrolling. Tasks and resources contain
subsets of common characteristics. There are many filters available in Project
depending on the sheet, chart, or view that is displayed.

In a sheet view, you can apply an AutoFilter to display only the information you want
to see about a task or a resource. For example, we may want to see only the tasks
that have been assigned to a resource or tasks that have a certain duration. (This
feature works much like autofilters in Microsoft Excel.)

In the Gantt chart view with the Entry table displayed, click the AutoFilter icon.

Down arrows will appear next to the column labels in the datasheet portion of the
screen. Click the arrow in the column heading of the field that you want to filter, then
click the value you want. Click the arrow in the Duration column. Your screen should
be similar to the portion pictured below.

53
Then select > 1 week, to display the tasks that ha ve a duration longer than one
week.

Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

Notice that the column heading is displayed in blue, indicating that this field has a
filter applied to it. If you wish to filter for a condition based on another value in
another field, select the arrow in the column and make a selection from the
displayed list. To turn off the filter and to display all the project information, click the
AutoFilter icon again.

54
 Lesson 10: Updating the Project Plan

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Enter actual start and finish dates for a task

2. Enter the actual duration of a task
3. Indicate progress on a task as a percentage
4. Update actual costs

Now that the project plan has been entered and refined, the project is approved and
starts. How do you track the progress of your project? You will need information
about each task, such as the start and finish date for each task, the actual duration
of the task, the percentage completion of each task, and the actual cost.

You should update your project plan regularly so that you can identify any problems
as early as possible. To make our work in class consistent, on the Project menu,
select the Project Information box. Change the current date to November 27, 2000.

Enter Actual Start and Finish Dates for a Task

With the Gantt chart displayed on your screen, select Task 3 – Inventory Tools. On
the Tools menu, select Tracking. Select Update Tasks from the submenu.

The Update Tasks dialog box appears on your screen, similar to the one pictured
below.

Assume that the project started on time. If the start date is not displayed, click the
arrow beside the start date to display the calendar. Navigate to November, then
click on November 6. You can see from the dialog box that this task has a duration

55
of 4 days. Assume that this task was completed in 4 days, as expected. Change the
Finish date by clicking the arrow beside the Finish box to display the calendar.
Select November 9, then click the OK button.

Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below. You should see a check
mark beside the Task ID and a progress line in the Gantt chart, indicating that this
task is completed. If you position the mouse pointer over the check mark,
information on the task’s completion is displayed. Similarly, point at the bar in the
Gantt chart and click to see start and finish dates for the task.

Enter the Actual Duration

Select Task 4 – Document existing website. On the Tools menu, select Tracking,
then Update Tasks. Work on this task was slower than expected. In the Update
Tasks dialog box, enter the Actual duration as 4 days (more than the planned 3
days). Project will assume the task started on time.

Then click the OK button. The task bar for Task 4 extends from 3 days to 4 days.
Check the project completion date now. Does this change the duration of your
project?

Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below.

Progress as a Percentage

Select Task 5—Investigate User Requirements. Select from the Tools menu,
Tracking, then Update Tasks.

Change the percentage complete to 50%, then click the OK button.

Your screen should be similar to the portion pictured below. The black bar indicates
that half of the task (Saturday and Sunday are not considered work time) has been
completed.

56
From the Update Tasks form, you may also track notes about the progress of a
task. Return to the Update Tasks form for Task 5 (click Task 5, then select
ToolsàTrackingàUpdate Task). Click on the Notes button on the bottom of the
form. Type the following note: Several key users have been difficult to reach. Click
OK. Click OK again on the Update Tasks form to return to the Gantt view. A Notes
icon now appears to the left of the task name in the Gantt view. The te xt of the note
is displayed when you position the cursor over the icon.

Throughout the duration of the project you would continue to track the start and
finish dates, the actual duration, or percent completion of the tasks in your project
plan. Remember that tasks completed more quickly than expected (using less
actual work) will shrink the cost of the project and, possibly, the total duration of the
project. Time overruns will have the reverse affect.

Click the Save icon to save your project.

57
 Lesson 11: Printing Views and Reports

Objectives

In this lesson, the student will:

1. Print the Gantt chart

2. Print the Project Summary report
3. Examine available reports

Print the Gantt Chart View

Both views and reports can be printed. When you print a view, the printout includes
only the information that is displayed on your screen. Display the Gantt chart and
the Entry table on your screen. AutoFit the Task Name column, then position the
split bar to the edge of the Task Name column. Click the Print Preview icon.

Your screen should be similar to the picture below.

58
To see more than one page, click the multipage display icon.

Click the Page Setup button.

A Page Setup - Gantt Chart dialog box appears. Click the Page tab. The dialog box
should be similar to the one pictured below.

You can make selections about the Orientation and Scaling of this view. In the
above dialog box, the Gantt chart will be printed Landscape with the scaling
adjusted to 100% (the default). You can make selections about the size of the
margins and the borders on the Margins tab. You can make decisions about
headers and footers on the Header and Footer tab, respectively.

Click the Legend tab. The legend is the information printed on the bottom of the
default printout that explains the meaning of the symbols in the Gantt chart view.
You may select if you want the legend to appear on every page, on a page by itself
or not to be printed. You may also adjust the width of the legend area on the bottom
of the page.

When you have finished making selections in the Page Setup dialog boxes, it is
wise to click the Print Preview button to see how the options will affect your print

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out. If you are satisfied, then click the Print button on top of the Print Preview
screen.

Print the Project Summary Report

Sometimes the information you need or the format you prefer is not available in any
one view. The data displayed on the report is the same data that you see in a view.
So any changes you make to the data in the project plan will also be changed in the
reports.

You can print high-level summary reports or detailed task, resources, costs, and
progress reports. By using filters in combination with tables, filters, and other
options, you can further refine your reports.

To see the reports that are available in Project, on the View menu, select the
Reports command. The Reports dialog box appears on your screen, similar to the
one pictured below.

Select the Overview Reports, then click the Select button. A dialog box similar to the
one pictured below will appear on your screen.

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Select Project Summary, then click the Select button. The Project Summary report is
displayed in the print preview screen, similar to the portion pictured below.

You may magnify the report by moving the mouse over the report. When the mouse
pointer changes to a magnifying glass containing a plus sign, click your left mouse
button. The report will be magnified on your screen, similar to the portion pictured
below.

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If this is the information that you need, click the Print command. If this is not the
information that you need, click the Close button and you return to the Reports
dialog box. You may make another selection or click the Cancel button to exit
Reports.

Available Reports

The Current Activity Reports dialog box includes the reports as pictured in the
following dialog box.

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The Costs Reports dialog box includes the reports as pictured in the following dialog
box.

The Assignment Reports dialog box includes the reports as pictured in the following
dialog box.

The Workload Reports dialog box includes the reports as pictured in the following
dialog box.

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The Custom Reports dialog box includes the reports as pictured in the following
dialog box.

Select the Critical Tasks, then click the Edit button.

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A Task Report dialog box appears on your screen similar to the one pictured below.

Each tab allows you to make selections to further customize this report.

It is important to note that you can edit most reports. Some reports allow more
editing choices than others, however. Notice that the Definition tab contains objects
to specify the source of data and the field on which the data is filtered. The Details
tab contains objects for adjusting the items included in the report and the Sort tab
allows you to change the sort order of data in the report. The Text button will display
a dialog box to change text attributes (font, size, color, style, etc.).

Click the Cancel button on each dialog box to return to the Reports dialog box. Click
the Cancel button on the Reports dialog box to return to your project.

Click the Save icon to save your project.

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