Changing the Office Assistant

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated March 30, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

Some days you feel like a paper clip, other days you feel like a genius or a dog. You can change the Office Assistant to reflect your moods, if you so desire. To do so, follow these steps:

  1. If the Office Assistant is not visible on your screen, asking you what you would like to know, press F1. This displays a cartoon balloon above the Office Assistant that has two or three buttons at the bottom.
  2. If the Office Assistant does not appear when you press F1, close the Help system (which should have appeared) and then choose Show the Office Assistant from the Help menu. This displays the Office Assistant, along with a cartoon balloon with two or three buttons in it.
  3. If the cartoon balloon doesn't appear as described in steps 1 and 2, click once on the Office Assistant. It should now appear.
  4. Click on the Options button. This displays the Office Assistant dialog box.
  5. Click on the Gallery tab. (See Figure 1.)

    6. Figure 1. The Gallery tab of the Office Assistant dialog box.

  6. Scroll through the available Office Assistant characters by using the Back and Next buttons.
  7. When you find an assistant you like, click on OK.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2871) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Protecting Tracked Changes

Track Changes is a great tool for editors and collaborators to use when creating documents. An author, seeking changes ...

Discover More

Deleting All Graphics

Graphics can really add pizzazz to a worksheet, but they can also present some drawbacks. If you want to get rid of all ...

Discover More

Some Documents Open Slower than Others

It's great when your documents open quickly, particularly when you need to work with lots of documents at the same time. ...

Discover More

Excel Smarts for Beginners! Featuring the friendly and trusted For Dummies style, this popular guide shows beginners how to get up and running with Excel while also helping more experienced users get comfortable with the newest features. Check out Excel 2013 For Dummies today!

Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is two more than 7?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2024 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.