OVER 2 YOU, 070 (05/03/02)

FORMAL FORMATS

Dear Sir,

Please could you tell me whether there is an accepted protocol for starting and finishing e-mails in the ‘Dear Sir’ and ‘Yours faithfully’ letter format, according to the status of the person being addressed?

Yours faithfully

Fred Sommers, Wokingham

Surely one of the benefits of e-mail is that it allows us to escape from the archaic format we use for snail-mail?

For example, why do I write 'Dear madam' when the person addressed is not known, and hence not in the least precious to me? Why should I conclude with 'Yours faithfully' if I am not hers, and owe the recipient no loyalty whatsoever?

If I write 'Dear Mr Maybury', doesn't it imply that our expert has some call on my affection? I hope that I write sincerely without the need to sign off as such. And 'Yours very truly'? Ugh!

Thankfully, few folk these days 'have the honour to be, Sir, your most obedient servant'. But does a correspondent in France really still need to 'assure you, Monsieur, of my most distinguished sentiments'?

No, it's antediluvian so let's lose it all! If you insist, the recipient's name at the head of an e-mail should be more than adequate as a salutation (I'm old enough to dislike 'Hi!'). At the end, perhaps 'Best wishes' or whatever - if you really wish him well. Otherwise shouldn't just your name suffice?

Colin Hague via e-mail

I have had many similar questions raised by students at the college where I teach adults new to computers and the Internet. My response is that we should regard the content of an email as no different to that of written correspondence. A message can take several forms, including that of a quick, almost scribbled, note, a letter to a friend or a more formal affair.

Each of us will approach these in our own way and the first two, being of a casual nature fall, in my view, out with the constraints of any protocol. In other words, if you wish to start "Hi Fred" or dive straight in with the message itself it is up to the writer. Where you are corresponding with someone that you do not know, however, then as a matter of normal
politeness, I would suggest that you start as you would a letter: Dear Sir, Dear Mr Sommers (if you are addressing a particular person) or whatever and end appropriately. It should also be in order to dive straight in without
the Dear bit where you are effectively sending a 'scribbled note' to someone.

I would strongly recommend that the structure of the text is set out as in a modern letter with paragraphs etc. but it should be noted that what may appear splendid on your screen is unlikely to appear the same on the reader's screen by virtue of the different line lengths provided by different windows or frames within e-mail screen displays - they may even not receive it in html (the fancier) format. Furthermore, it is worth
mentioning that several students send me what I imagine were originally beautiful script-like productions in their favourite font. I use the word imagine because rarely do I have that particular font installed and the software will substitute another, seldom very satisfactorily.

The most annoying e-mails I receive are those from people still fairly new to the idea of e-mail who not only provides textured backgrounds but also music! Even the best laptop does not handle these tinny tunes well. Lastly, the rudest thing you can do is send someone a message, which contains a vast
attachment. An uncompressed image, however lovely, can take several minutes to arrive on most people's PCs and no amount of Dear this or Yours that can make up for the time spend staring at a little box declaring Downloading message 1 of 4. Don't do it. . er. . please.

Yours faithfully

Andrew Hill MBA, Milton Keynes
 

HANDY ACCOUNTS

I am a self-employed handyman and I have been looking for a simple accounts package. Most of the popular accounts programs are too complicated as they include stock control and VAT which I do not need. All I want is something to keep a record of my customers, purchases, sales, print invoices, and do a simple balance sheet so I now how my business is doing week to week. Can anyone recommend a simple and inexpensive software package?

I. Palfrey, via email

I have used ‘Quicken’ for three years now and find it simple but very efficient. Standard Quicken is cheap and would cover all his needs except Income Tax.  This would be included if he got the somewhat more expensive Quicken De Luxe.

Ian Robinson,

I would recommend "Visual Accounts", This has been around now for several years, current version entitled "Visual Accounts 2000" available from JQL Software at: http://www.j-q-l.freeserve.co.uk/jqlsoft.htm.

Two versions (Home Edition, £19.99 and Professional Edition £49.99) are available for download as free 45-day trials.

T. Martin,

If Mr Palfrey already has Microsoft Office, then why not use some of the template spreadsheets in Excel (Invoice, Balance Sheet...). With the professional version, he also gets Access, which has further templates, and customer tracking databases, for example.

Dave Parker, Whitchurch, Aylesbury

Mr Palfrey could have a look at Moneysoft's website - www.moneysoft.co.uk

-- where he will find details of Money Manager and Office Manager.
Peter Wakeman via e-mail

In the mid-eighties IBM marketed excellent   "Assistant" series software, which included Filing Assistant, Reporting Assistant and Planning Assistant.  The first two were a combined database/print out (the latter a simple spread sheet) and are extremely user-friendly, very versatile and adaptable to most needs.  I have been using them for a small business with great success. They work on Windows 98, but I am not sure whether they do on Windows XP as they are DOS based programs.  He should contact IBM to see if they are still available.  If not he can contact me and I may be able to help.  Hervey Raymond

Hervey T. Raymond,

I would like to recommend Mind your own business. (MYOB)Small package for small companies. It’s very user friendly and you can chose if you would like to deal with VAT or not.
Ewa Englund

I run a small pub/restaurant and for the last 2-3 years have been using an accounts package called Cashflow Manager, which was originally obtained through our accountant.  Details from www.cashflow-manager.com. It’s an excellent system for a small business and is about a quarter of the price of the big accounts packages
Jenny Crawley,

EXCEL IMPORT

I maintain an Excel spreadsheet, which includes columns containing names of people and their associated email addresses. Is there a way of exporting these columns to be used as an email distribution list in Microsoft Outlook?
Bob Austin, via email

I do not use Outlook, but the following works in Outlook Express. Create column headings in your spreadsheet and Save As in CSV (Comma Separated Values) format. Then run your Address Book and go to File, Import, Other Address Book. From the types of address book to be imported, select Text File (Comma Separated Values) and click Import. From the next window, locate your file and click Next. Select the fields you wish to import and you will be asked to match these fields with the appropriate address book fields. Lastly, click Finish and the job is done.

Andy Boyce,

If the email addresses were, for instance, in cells A1, A2 and A3 then the way to send them all emails would be to enter the following formula:

=A1&"; "&A2&"; "&A3

in an appropriate cell.

This will combine the various addresses in the required format. They can then be Copy and Pasted into the email.  

Eddy Maddix,

If you ensure that your email addresses are in separate cells you can simply cut and paste the required cells from Excel to the Outlook address fields: To, Cc or Bcc. Select using Shift and left mouse button for copying contiguous addresses or Ctrl and left mouse button if you need to cut odd names.  Avoid using the mouse alone to select email addresses as this may activate each hyperlink thus creating a new mail to each addressee.

I find that if I cut and paste a column of email addresses they appear one above the other in the address field but Outlook rearranges them during sending without problem.  Check that Excel has detected your entries as email addresses – they should change to blue, underscored characters.If not select the cells and select Format/Cells/General
John Roe

GREAT WAR RESEARCH

I am attempting to research my father's service in the Great War but am hitting brick walls. My father was a retired regular soldier who re-enlisted in 1914 and went to France in 1915 with the 7th (Service) Royal Scots Fusiliers.  The Records Office at Hayes in Middlesex was bombed during the Second World War and many records, including my father's, were badly damaged. The Royal Scots Fusiliers' museum was moved from Ayr to Glasgow but before the RSF memorabilia had been catalogued the museum was set on fire by vandals and damaged by the fire or and water. Where else can I seek information?  Is it possible to gain access to the Great War medical records?

T. S. Leonard, via email

I visited the Public Record Office (PRO) recently just after reading TS Leonard's letter about his father in France in 1915 with 7 Royal Scots Fusiliers. This would have entitled him to the 1914-15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal.

I checked in the medal cards (500 Leonards!) and found two, a John and a Thomas, with the RSF who got only the two medals each. A third one, John, with 6 RSF got all three, so he may be the father, but his card was annotated "died".

I checked on him in the Commonwealth War Grave web site and find he died on Sunday 26th September 1915 while with 6th Battalion. He is commemorated on the Loos Memorial, Pas de Calais, in panels 46 to 49.

Because I did not know if this was the right man, I did a halfhearted search of the so-called "burned" records. Incidentally 40% survived in some form so they are worth searching. However, I did find a John Leonard RSF whose papers should not have been there. He was from St. Nicholas, Aberdeen, and enlisted 23rd August 1897; embarked on SS Pavorina (?unclear?) arriving on 22nd October 1899and appears to have died in South Africa (Boer War) on 15th December 1899. Perhaps another relation?

Ashley Tinson

Mr Leonard could try Army Service Records of the First World War (PRO Readers' Guide No. 19) by William Spencer (3rd rev.ed, 2001) available from the PRO bookshop (£9.99).

David Borrill, Bilton, Hull

Your correspondent needs to look at the PRO website www.pro.gov.uk for the full range of records available for personnel who served in the Great War and the books and pamphlets on the subject.

George Mortimer,

The PRO publishes various guides including one on searching for Army records. However if the person continued in service, or re-enlisted, after the war those records are still held by MoD, Defence Records 2b, Bourne Avenue, Hayes, Middlesex, UB3 1RF and will only be released to the direct next of kin  (their words). There is a £25 non-refundable search fee.
J W Adie,

CAN YOU HELP?

We produce a talking newspaper for the blind and currently record these on cassettes. However this technology is rapidly being phased out and we need to establish a viable alternative as we are led to believe that tapes will cease being available in 2004.

Does anyone know have any experience of using CDs for newsletters or similar? Any help would be appreciated including the best way of getting the recordings onto the PC for editing and subsequent distribution.
Geoffrey Thomas, via email

(NB Jonathan, above from Telegraph talking newspaper department…)

I retired from teaching long ago - but still hear horror stories about the clerical time taken up with dinner money administration. Does anyone know of a simple, cheap (preferably free!), stand-alone program, which would help in a largish primary school?

Ray Glover, via email

My seven-month old son loves watching my screensaver. Is it possible to get one that would be educational, like a set of flash cards etc.

Rob Kent, via email