MSP Notes

Microsoft Project Training Guide
Creating a Project Plan

Starting a New Project
When Microsoft Project is first launched a blank project is displayed with the Project
Information dialog box on top. A project plan can be started from this screen by typing directly
into the blank project.
Starting a project from an existing file

If a project plan exists that is similar in task requirements to a project that is to be started, then
using the old file can be very efficient. A new project plan can be started from an existing plan just
by opening the file and using the Save As command to give the plan a new name. However, the
old file most likely has dates that will not match the current timeline and will need to be changed.
If the project has progress tracked against it, then the dates cannot be changed until the actual
start, actual work, and percent complete are removed from the tasks.
To start a project from an existing file
1. Open the old project plan.
2. From the View menu select Table: <table name>, then click Tracking.
3. Highlight the % Complete column.
4. From the Edit menu select Clear and click Contents. All actual fields will also clear.
5. Select the title of any column and right click.
6. Select Insert Column and choose Constraint Type.
7. Select the entire column by clicking on the title, then click Edit and choose Clear, then click
Contents. All tasks will now have the As Soon As Possible constraint and are free to be
rescheduled.
8. From the Tools menu select Tracking and Clear Baseline. (This is an optional step as
resaving a baseline will overwrite any existing baseline.)
9. Next consider the calendars and the resources being used to make sure the meet the new
projects requirements.
10. From the Project menu select Project Information. Enter new start date if scheduling
from start, a finish date if scheduling from finish. All the tasks in the project will reschedule
based on the new Project Start date.
11. Save the new project with a new name by selecting Save As from the File menu.
Working with a template

Working with a template is similar to opening an existing project plan except that probably will not
be any progress saved in the project. The file extension on a Microsoft Project Template is .mpt.
This is helpful when the file is saved because the Save As dialog box will always display as it is
looking for an .mpp file extension. This way the template will not be overwritten by a new plan.
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Creating a new file from a template

1. Open the template file and choose File; then click Save.
2. Enter a new file name and click Save.
3. From the Project menu select Project Information.
4. Enter new project date information and consider calendars in use as well as resources.
Importing files and file formats will be discussed in more detail.
Project Information Dialog Box

The Project Information dialog box is presented by default when a new project is opened. This
dialog box is used to specify the scheduling mode, From Start or From Finish, the first step in
creating a project plan.
Figure 1. Project Information dialog box

Project Start Date - The project Start date specifies the first day of the first task. Tasks are
automatically scheduled from or after this date.
Current Date - This setting specifies the Current date. It is used in place of the Status date
for the complete-through date in the Update Project dialog box if the current date is later
than the Status date, or the Status date is set to NA.
From Start/From Finish - This option designates how a project is scheduled.
Priority - This sets the leveling order of importance for the project as a whole. It is used when
using a resource pool or leveling a project with inserted projects. Priority may be set from 0
to 1000 with 1000 being the higher priority.
Status Date - Microsoft Project uses the status date to identify the complete-through date in
the Update Project dialog box unless it is earlier than the Current date setting. If you set
the Status date to NA, Project uses the Current date as the Status date.
The Project Information dialog box can be turned off by going to the Tools menu and selecting
Options. Then choose the General tab and clear the check mark from Prompt for project info
for new projects option.

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Entering Tasks
Overview
Tasks can be entered in many ways into a project file. Tasks can be entered in every type of task
view using either the keyboard or a mouse. The most common way to enter tasks is in the table
area of the Gantt Chart view (see diagram below). You can insert, copy, or delete tasks as
required or change the font and format, as you would using other Microsoft applications.
Figure 2. Task Entry

Each task is a unique record in the project files database. The ID number of the task makes the
task unique not the name.
Field Dependencies
When a task is created certain fields are required and populated by default. Microsoft Project
uses the data in the default fields to calculate other information. For example, by default, all tasks
start on the Project Start date and are 1 day in duration. The Finish date for the task is then
calculated from that information. If the Finish date is edited then the Start date will recalculate.
The constraint type of a task determines whether Start or Finish will recalculate when Duration is
modified.
Constraint Type
The default constraint for tasks when the project is scheduled from start is As Soon As Possible.
If you directly enter a start date for a task the constraint changes to Start No Earlier Than and if
a finish date is entered a finish constraint is applied to the task. Be aware that constraints can get
set on tasks inadvertently by the user and can then cause confusion when one of the three
dependant fields is changed.
Microsoft Project has eight different constraint types:
As Late AS Possible (ALAP)

As Soon As Possible (ASAP)
Finish No Earlier Than
Finish No Later Than
Must Finish On
Must Start On
Start No Earlier Than
Start No Later Than

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The calculations are part of Microsoft Projects scheduling engine and the defaults are set by
options that can be modified to suit your business needs.
Tasks
There are different kinds of tasks to represent specific kinds of information. There are subtasks or
normal tasks, milestones, project summary tasks, summary tasks, recurring tasks, split tasks, and
tasks that appear grayed out. The first five will be discussed at length in this section. Split tasks
are tasks that stop and then start again for various reasons a later chapter has been devoted to
split tasks. The grayed out tasks represent relationship links to tasks in other project files and are
discussed in a later lesson.
To Enter a Task
1. In the Task Name field, type the name of your first task (or use the entry bar).
2. Press ENTER, or click the green check mark on the entry bar.
3. An estimated duration of one-day (1day?) will be displayed automatically when you enter
each task.
To Edit a Task Name
1. Click on the Task Name you want to edit.
2. Edit the name in the entry bar (or click a second time to edit the cell).
3. Click the checkbox on the entry bar or click the ENTER key to confirm the name change.
Figure 3. Edit a Task Name

To Delete a Task
1. In the Entry table click on the grey area relating to the row of the task you want to delete. The
whole row becomes selected in the table.
2. Press the DELETE key on the keyboard OR, click the Edit menu, choose Delete Task.
If you select just the Task Name and select DELETE, a smart tag will appear to give you
the option to just clear the Task Name or to delete the entire task.

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Figure 4. Delete a Task

To Insert a New Task
1. On the Entry table, click on the field where a new task is to be inserted (for example, highlight
task 4).
2. Click on the Insert menu, choose New Task. A blank row will be inserted above the
highlighted row (for example, after task 3).
Figure 5. Insert a Task

To Move a Task
1. In the grey area of the Entry table, click on the ID of the task that you want to move. This
selects the entire row.
2. Point the mouse at the bottom edge of the box. The mouse pointer changes to a white
arrowhead with a move cursor. Click, then drag and drop the task to its new position. A
gray indicator bar displays to visually show where the task row will be positioned. This
moves all the information about that task.
To Move a Task Name
1. On the Entry table, click on the Task Name that you want to move.
2. Point the mouse at the bottom left edge of the box. The mouse pointer changes to a white
arrowhead. Click, drag, and drop the task name to its new position.
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Task Durations
Overview
When entering task durations, enter the amount of time expected to complete the task and dont
be concerned about the length of the project at this point. Later, as relationships between tasks
are defined and resources are assigned, the finish date of the project will be adjusted.
The default duration of tasks is one-day and one day equals 8 hours. To specify duration in a time
unit other than day, type the number and the abbreviation for the time unit. Or change the default
time unit, choose Options from the Tools menu and click the Schedule tab. You can change
what one unit of time equals on the Calendar tab and you can change the default abbreviation
used, on the Edit tab.
To Enter a Duration
1. Click in the Duration field.
2. Type the number (and abbreviation if other than d for days).
The available abbreviations are:
M = Minutes
H = Hours
D = Days
W = Weeks
Mo, Mon = Months
3. Click the checkbox on the entry bar or, press ENTER. Continue until you have entered
durations for all tasks.
Note : If you have more than one task with the same duration it may be quicker to select
the tasks, click the Information button on the toolbar and then type the duration. Or use
the fill down by dragging the bottom right corner of the cell and dragging down. The fill
down command is also under the Edit menu.
Estimated Duration
All new tasks are automatically created with estimated durations by default to signal that a
duration has not yet been entered. This is denoted by a ? after the duration. Users can enter a
different duration followed by a ? to denote that this duration value is not certain. This allows a
duration to be entered that is only an estimate, and it is easily recognized as such so that users
know to come back later and confirm it or change it when they have a concrete value. Tasks with
estimated durations are easily found using the Tasks With Estimated Durations filter, or by a
quick visual scan for question marks in the duration column.
The ? can be typed or selected in the Task Information form as seen below.

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Figure 6. Estimated Task Duration
Elapsed Duration
Type ed (or eh, etc.) to indicate an elapsed duration. Elapsed duration ignores the project
calendar and nonworking time, 1ed equals a continuous 24-hour period. This is used where the
work is to be continued or completed over non-working time e.g., over a weekend. For example, a
process that needs to run for 72 hours uninterrupted, the duration can be entered as 3ed or 72eh.
Summary Tasks
A summary task is made up of subtasks and summarizes those subtasks. You can use the
Microsoft Project outline feature to create summary tasks. Microsoft Project automatically
determines summary task information (duration costs, etc.) by using information from the
subtasks. A summary task Start date is the earliest start of its subtasks and the summary task
Finish is the finish of its latest subtask. The duration for the summary is the total of the working
days between its start and finish dates.
The figure below shows what a summary task looks like in the Task Sheet view.
Figure 7. Summary Task in Task Sheet view

To create a Summary Task
1. In a Gantt Chart view, insert a new task into the table above the tasks that will eventually
become the subtasks.
Or
2. You may already have entered task names that will represent phases in your project plan, if
so, skip to Step 3
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3. Type in the name of the task that will become the summary task
4. Select the task(s) that you want to identify as subtasks
5. Click the Indent button to indent the task (s)
(push it to a lower level of the hierarchy)
As you indent tasks summary task formatting will be applied to appropriate tasks, as shown in the
picture at the top of this page.
To undo a Summary Task
1. On the View menu select Gantt Chart.
2. Select the subtask(s).
3. Click the Outdent button to outdent the subtask(s)
(push it to a higher level of the hierarchy)
4. As you outdent the subtasks, summary task formatting will be removed from the appropriate
task.
To show / hide Subtasks
With summary tasks created, it is possible to show or hide the subtasks beneath them.
1. On the View menu select Gantt Chart.
2. In the Task Name field select the summary task containing the subtasks that you would like
to show/hide.
Click show subtasks
or
Click hide subtasks
The Project Summary Task

The project summary task displays your entire project on a single row with its own summary task
bar at the top of your project. It allows you to see at a glance the entire time line of your project.
Project-level summary tasks are hidden by default.
To show the Project Summary Task
1. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the View tab.
2. Under Outline options, select the Project summary task checkbox.
3. A new task will appear at the top of the table. Type in a task name.

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Project summary tasks have some unusual characteristics:
ID = 0 (doesn't show in ID field)

Unique ID = 0
Outline Level =0
Summary = Yes
Only project summary tasks can be created at Outline Level 0

The values of project summary task fields are calculated just as they are for any other summary
task. These values will usually be the same as those shown in the Statistics tab under the File
menu after selecting Properties. The Start or Finish date of the project summary task may vary
from the Project Start or Project Finish if tasks are constrained to start or finish on dates other
than those specified in Project Information.
The Notes field of the project summary task is a reference to the same text string referenced by
the Comments field in the Properties dialog box accessed via the File menu; changing one of
these is equivalent to changing the other.
Entering Milestones
A milestone is generally considered to be a key event, typically a deliverable such as parts
delivered. For progress meetings you may find it useful to filter your plan to display milestones
only. Microsoft Project allows several ways of identifying milestones. For consistency, it is better
to adopt one method only.
Method 1: On allocating a task with duration of zero, Microsoft Project will automatically display
the task on the Gantt Chart as a diamond symbol.
Method 2: You can identify tasks that have duration as also being milestones. To do this:
1. Double-click on the Task Name to display the Task Information dialog box.
2. Select the Advanced tab, and then click in the checkbox to Mark task as milestone.
Figure 8. Marking a task as a Milestone

Both methods set the Milestone field to Yes. Inserting the Milestone field into a task table and
setting the field manually, is another way to identify a task as a milestone.
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Recurring Tasks
Recurring tasks enable the user to add regular recurring events, such as weekly or monthly
meetings to the project plan. With this feature the user can specify the following:
When the event will reoccur (for example, monthly, weekly, every 3rd Monday)
The duration of the recurring event
When the recurrence will start and end or how many times the event will reoccur
To insert a Recurring Task
1. From the Insert menu, select Recurring Task (this command is available anywhere that
creating a single task is available).
2. The Recurring Task dialog box appears.
3. Specify the task name, duration, and recurrence details.
4. Click OK.
Figure 9. Recurring Task Information dialog box
Options in the Recurring Task Form and their Function

Task Name. The name of the recurring task. Each individual occurrence of the task is named
as "Name "+ number. For instance, a recurring task named "Meeting" will have subtasks
named "Meeting 1", "Meeting 2", etc. If the name + number combination would be greater
than 255 characters, the name will be truncated to allow for the number.
Duration. The duration of each occurrence of the event. Not the total duration of the recurring
task itself.
Recurrence Pattern. The primary period of time between task occurrences. Note that
recurring periods of less than 1d are not allowed.
The title and options of the adjacent group vary depending on the time period selected (daily
weekly etc.)
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Daily. Can select occurrences with periods of either 1-12 days, or 1-12 workdays. Changing
the Default Hours per Day on the Calendar tab has no effect on the daily scheduling; one
day in this instance is always 24 hours
Weekly. The number of occurrences each week is determined by the day(s) selected. The
period can be 1-12 weeks.
Monthly. The user can select tasks to occur on either:
A particular day number, with a period of 1-12 months. The first, second, third, fourth, or
last day of the month, with a period 1-12 months.
Yearly. Can select tasks to occur every year on either: A particular month and day or the first,
second, third, fourth, or last occurrence of a particular day, of a particular month.
Range of recurrence. These options determine the overall length of the recurring task.
Start. The earliest possible start date for the first occurrence of the task. Default is the project
start date.
End after n occurrences. For n Occurrences: Number of task occurrences that should be
created.
End by. The latest possible finish date for the last occurrence of the task. Default is the
Project Finish date. Either this date or the number of occurrences must be specified.
Calendar for Scheduling this task. Allows the task to be scheduled based on the working
times of the specified a calendar instead of the project calendar.
Scheduling ignores resource calendars. This option will allow the subtasks to be
scheduled without checking resource availability as long as a task calendar has been
specified.
Properties of Recurring Tasks

The individual task occurrences are scheduled using the Start No Earlier Than constraint if the
project is Scheduled from Start, or the Start No Later Than constraint if the project is Scheduled
from Finish. The setting for project start is in the Project Information dialog box.
The Roll up field is used to format the individual task bars to draw on top of the summary bar.
The Hide field is used to format the summary task bar from drawing at all. These fields are
automatically set to Yes when you use the Recurring Task dialog box. These fields can also be
used to format other kinds of tasks on the Gantt Chart.
The Priority of the subtasks for the recurring task is set to Do Not Level. This means that when
resource leveling is invoked, automatic leveling will not reschedule recurring tasks.
There is also an internal field that flags this task as a recurring task. This flag is not accessible,
but the status can be determined by double-clicking the task, the Recurring Task Information
dialog box displays instead of the standard Task Information form. It is not possible to change
the status of this flag. If the subtasks are promoted or deleted so that a recurring task is no longer
a summary, the Task Information command will display for a normal task. If any tasks are then
demoted beneath that task, it will again be regarded as a recurring task.
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Editing Recurring Tasks

Changes to individual occurrences of the recurring task can be made normally using the Task
Information form. These individual tasks can be modified or deleted as needed.
If just the recurring task summary is selected, then double-clicking the task brings up the
Recurring Task form. Changes to the recurring task made in this form are handled as follows:
Table 1. Changes to Recurring Task
Item Changed
Task Name
Duration
Recurrence Pattern
Day change
Start
End after X occurrences or
End by date
Calendar for Scheduling this
task
Scheduling ignores resource
calendars
Result
All instances of the old task name will be replaced with the new task
name. For instance, if the name changes from "Wed Meeting" to "Weekly
Mtg", then "Wed Meeting 3" would change to "Weekly Mtg 3" on the
subtask.
The duration of any uncompleted task that has the old duration is
changed to the new duration.
If the recurrence pattern of task is changed, (e.g.,weekly to daily) Project
alerts the user that all un-started occurrences of the task will be deleted
and replaced with new occurrences. User can OK or Cancel.
If the user changes the day of the week, month, or year that a task begins
on, Project will not delete tasks, but rather just change the constraint date
of any un-started tasks.
The Start date can only be modified if none of the subtasks have an
Actual Start date. If modified, the constraint date of each subtask will be
changed to reflect the new date.
Project will add or delete tasks to or from the end of the group as
necessary. If tasks that need to be deleted have Actual Start dates,
Project will alert the user and provide an option to Delete or Cancel.
Changing the calendar used may affect when the subtasks can be
scheduled, Project alerts the user that all un-started occurrences of the
task will be rescheduled. User can choose Yes, No or Cancel.
This option will reschedule the subtasks without checking resource
availability as long as a task calendar has been specified.
Additional Notes on Recurring Tasks

Recurring Field
There is a Yes/No read-only task field, called Recurring that can be used to filter for recurring
tasks. Only recurring tasks and their subtasks have a Yes in the Recurring field.
Recurring Tasks Default to Do Not Level

Because of the complexity of leveling all the subtasks in a recurring task, by default recurring
subtasks are created with a priority of Do Not Level. The task Leveling Can Split and Level
Assignments task fields are set to No. This means that all other tasks and assignments are
leveled around recurring tasks.
However, these settings can be changed to allow the subtasks of the recurring task to level.

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Task Information Form

The Task Information form that appears on the screen as a dialog box, provides the user with
information relating to the task and enables the user to make changes to the information in a
single task or set of tasks. This tabbed dialog box is available from the pop-up menu that appears
when right-clicking on a task, from the Information button on the Standard toolbar, or by doubleclicking on a task.
Figure 10. The Task Information dialog box
The General Tab

The Name, Duration, and Estimated fields are available in all tabs of this dialog box, including
the General tab.
The Percent Complete field can be modified in this dialog box, as can the Priority. There are
1000 priority values, where 1 indicates low priority and 1000 indicates high priority.
Although the Start and Finish dates are available, the Baseline and Actual dates are not. These
dates are not available in any of the Task Information tabs.
The Rollup Gantt Bar to Summary checkbox corresponds to the Roll up field. This toggles
whether specific task information, defined in the Gantt Bar Styles, rolls-up, and shows on its
summary task. The Hide Task Bar checkbox corresponds to the Hide Bar field. Checking this
box hides the Gantt bars associated with the task. Both these fields are used when a recurring
task is created. They can also be used independently to format bars on the Gantt Chart.
The Predecessors Tab

The Predecessors tab provides a very useful interface for entering task relationships. The fields,
ID, Name, Type of relationship, and Lead / lag for each predecessor is listed in a grid. Pulldown lists are provided for task names and relationship types. If only a single task is selected, the
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predecessors already linked to the task will be displayed in the grid. If multiple tasks are selected,
the grid will be blank.
The Resources Tab

The Resources tab provides a grid for entering resource names and units that are assigned to
tasks. If only a single task is selected, the resources already assigned to the task will be
displayed in the grid. If multiple tasks are selected, the grid will be blank.
The Units field is parsed just as it is in the Resource Assignment dialog. If only a number is
entered, that number of resource units is assigned to the selected task(s). If a valid work value is
entered instead, then Microsoft Project calculates the units using the formula:
Units = Entered Work / Duration.
For example, if a task with duration of 8h is selected, and 2h is entered in the Units field for a
resource, Microsoft Project will assign 25% Units of the resource to the task, and display 25% in
the Units field.
The Advanced Tab

This tab provides access to the Constraint Type and Constraint Date fields. It also allows
editing of the task type and effort driven fields; these fields play a large role in resource
assignment and are discussed in a later chapter.
A task calendar can be assigned to a task. This allows the task to be scheduled outside the
project calendar. If a task calendar is assigned then the option scheduling ignores resource
calendar is available.
The WBS field can be edited here as well as the Earned Value method.
The Mark Task as Milestone checkbox corresponds to the Milestone field.
The Notes Tab

The Notes tab provides a multi-line edit box for entering task notes, in addition to the Name and
Duration fields. When the Enter key is pressed, the insertion point advances to the next line in
the note, rather than closing the form.
Selecting the Task Notes command from the default Project menu will bring up the Task
Information form with this tab active.

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Additional ways to create tasks

If you type a task name in any task table a task record will be created. Or double-click any row in
a task table and enter data into the Task Information form.
The mouse can be used to draw a new task in a Gantt Chart, Calendar, or Network view.
To draw a task in a Gantt Chart or Calendar view
1. Click the left mouse button down and hold, the cursor turns into a + sign.
2. Drag the mouse and a task bar outline is drawn in gray.
3. Release the mouse when the task bar is drawn to the desired duration.
The Start date is determined by which day the bar begins and the Finish is calculated from the
Start and the Duration. Drawn tasks will have a constraint type of Start No Earlier Than, by
default.
Creating tasks in a Network Diagram

1. Click the left mouse button down and hold, the cursor turns into a + sign.
2. Drag the mouse and a task box outline is drawn in grey, release at any time.
All tasks boxes in this view are the same size and are added to the Network dialog box layout
automatically. For best results turn off the automatic setting by going to the Format menu and
selecting Layout, and then click the radio button for Allow manual box positioning. Doubleclick the task to bring up the Task Information dialog box to enter the task details.

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Lesson 2: Exercises
1. What makes a task unique?
2. By default, on what date will a task start?
3. What does the ? next to the duration indicate?
4. What is elapsed duration and how is it indicated?
5. How is a summary task created?
6. How are summary task Duration, Start and Finish calculated?
7. Name two ways to indicate a milestone task.
8. Where are the options to change the duration abbreviations?
9. How can the Project summary task be displayed?
Lab 1. Familiarize yourself with the options that affect the defaults for entering
tasks
1. On the File menu select New and choose blank project.
2. In the Project Information dialog box enter a Start date of Oct 1st 2001 and click OK.
3. Enter a task name, note the Start, Duration and Finish field display # signs. This indicates the
column to be to narrow to display the data. Widen the column.
4. From the Tools menu select Options and click the Schedule tab.
5. Change New Tasks: to Start on current date.
6. Change Duration is entered in: to Hours, and click OK.
7. Enter a new task and note the start date and duration.
8. From the Tools menu select Options and click the Edit tab.
9. Under the View Options for time units, go to Hours and select h.
10. Uncheck Add space before label and click OK.
Questions for Lab 1:

1. What is the start date of the task before you changed the New Tasks option and after?
2. What is the duration abbreviation of both tasks entered?

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Lab 2. Create and modify a recurring task to see how modifications can cause
scheduling conflicts
1. In an open file select the Insert menu and click Recurring task.
2. For Recurrence pattern check every Monday.
3. For Range of recurrence select End after radio button and enter 4 in the occurrences box.
Click OK.
4. Click the + sign next to the summary task for the recurring task. Note task names for the
individual tasks and their Gantt bars.
5. Drag the second occurrence of the task and move it to the next day.
6. Click the sign on the summary task, notice the Gantt bars are no longer symmetrical.
7. Double-click the recurring task and change the recurrence pattern to daily and occurrences to
8.
Questions for Lab

1. What scheduling messages appeared after step 7 was completed?
Lab 3. Create a summary task with subtask Gantt bars rolled up to understand
how the Hide and Roll up fields effect tasks. The finished task will look
similar to the recurring task
1. Enter five tasks, each with the same name with a number after each from 0-4.
2. Highlight tasks 1-4 and indent them.
3. Drag each task out to start on a different day.
4. Highlight tasks 1-4 and double-click to bring up Task information.
5. On the General tab, click Roll up Gantt bar to summary and click OK.
6. Highlight the summary task, double-click, and check Hide task bar.
7. Click OK.
Questions for Lab 3

1. What did the summary task look like before step 6 was completed?

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Answers to Exercise
1. The Task ID makes the task unique.
2. The Project Start date is the default start for all tasks.
3. The ? stands for estimated durations.
4. Elapsed duration is indicated with the abbreviation ed and it stands for a continuous time
period and ignores non-working time.
5. Summary tasks are created by using the outlining tools.
6. Summary task duration is calculated as the total working days between the earliest start of
the subtasks and the latest finish.
7. Milestones can be either zero day duration or marked as a milestone using the task
information form or entering yes in the milestone field.
8. From the Tools menu select Options and click the Edit tab.
9. From the Tools menu select Options and click the View tab.
Answer to Lab 1
1. The start date of the first task is Oct 1st 2001, the second task is todays date.
2. The duration for the first task is 1day? The second task is 8h?, no space.
Answers to Lab 2
Two dialog box boxes displayed when changing both recurrence pattern and the number of
occurrences. They are:
and

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Answers to Lab 3
1. Before Hide task bar was checked, the summary task appeared as a black summary bar
with blue task bars on top.

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Microsoft Project Training Guide

Creating a Project Plan

Starting a project from an existing file

Working with a template

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Creating a new file from a template

Project Information Dialog Box

Figure 1. Project Information dialog box

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Figure 2. Task Entry

As Late AS Possible (ALAP)

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Figure 3. Edit a Task Name

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Figure 4. Delete a Task

Figure 5. Insert a Task

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Figure 6. Estimated Task Duration

Figure 7. Summary Task in Task Sheet view

The Project Summary Task

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Project summary tasks have some unusual characteristics:

ID = 0 (doesn't show in ID field)

Only project summary tasks can be created at Outline Level 0

Figure 8. Marking a task as a Milestone

Figure 9. Recurring Task Information dialog box

Options in the Recurring Task Form and their Function

Properties of Recurring Tasks

Editing Recurring Tasks

Additional Notes on Recurring Tasks

Recurring Tasks Default to Do Not Level

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Task Information Form

Figure 10. The Task Information dialog box

The General Tab

The Predecessors Tab

The Resources Tab

The Advanced Tab

The Notes Tab

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Additional ways to create tasks

Creating tasks in a Network Diagram

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Questions for Lab 1:

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Questions for Lab

Questions for Lab 3

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Centre for Excellence in Project Management

Centre for Excellence in Project Management

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