I am a big fan of the mantra (and the book) "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff", so a post about the importance of small things might appear somewhat contradictory. But some times the smallest things can make a huge difference to how quickly you can get something done and therefore how happy you feel about an activity.

Here are my (current) favourite 3 "small" things I've discovered in OneNote 2007 that get me home faster! (Why OneNote? Because I've been in a training course today, taking all my notes in OneNote, so it's at the front of my mind. Another day, I'll feature another product!)

1. Ctrl+hyphen in OneNote applies (or removes) strike-through to the selected text.

I am a huge list maker, and when I discovered OneNote, it was a natural home for all my plans and to-dos (and my desk is now a whole lot tidier as a result). But it was a laborious process to strike out each of my tasks as I completed them. Not any more - now I can get the satisfaction of (electronically) striking an item off my list with one key stroke.

2. Joining "paragraph windows" in OneNote with the Alt key.

I use OneNote a lot for mapping out ideas and assembling my thoughts, sometimes before I write an email or a Word document. (Somehow it feels less intimidating than the big white page of a blank Word document, so I find that I can write more easily.) This week I've been working a lot on an assignment for a training course. Along the way, I ended up with lots of different text windows, each with individual ideas and paragraphs. Previously this would have been a big cut-and-paste job. Now it's a simple drag and drop - I just hold down the Alt key as I'm dragging the window and it automatically merges with any other window that I drop it onto.

3. Saving images directly from OneNote.

I use the OneNote screen clipping loads (particularly for copying the electronic receipts you get when you order online: I screen-clip the relevant details and hang on to them in OneNote until my delivery arrives) and every now and then I need to turn my clipping into a "proper" image file.

Previously, I would paste the screen clipping into Paint and save the image from there. Not a huge hassle, but a "process" nonetheless. Now, it's just one simple step: right-click on the image and choose "save as". My only gripe is that at the moment the only available file format is PNG - but I guess that's the sort of small stuff that I shouldn't sweat...