Paperless Tickmarks Part II

In response to overwhelming requests , this update to my previous post about using PPC tickmarks in excel and word provides tips on setting up those same tickmarks in Adobe standard.  After you have set things up, you should be able to use those same tickmarks to markup spreadsheets and documents, as well as any document in pdf format.

Right off the bat, let me tell you that I have only set this up for use in Adobe Standard 7.0.  I have not upgraded to a newer release, but I assume the setup should be very similar in any version.  Also, the functionality of the tickmarks in adobe is not the same as it is in excel and word.  In those programs, the PPC tickmarks actually run from a macro that allows you to insert the tickmark wher your cursor is, and also allows you to label tickmarks, choose relevant tickmarks, and insert a legend.  This “hack” to get the tickmarks into Adobe only makes them available as a stamp, if you need a tickmark legend, you will have to create that manually.

Setting up the tickmarks can be tedious, in that you will need to set up each tickmark you would like to have available.  However, once you are done, it is easy to copy the tickmarks to other users around the office.  In Adobe, select Tools|Commenting|Stamps|Create Custom Stamp.  Hit the browse button and navigate to the folder that contains the PPC tickmark images.  This folder was set up by PPC when the program was installed.  On my computer it is located in c:\program files\common files\PPC\addins\images.  If it is not there, do a seach on your computer for a file called tickmark1.gif, and windows will show you were the images can be found.

In that folder, select Tickmark1.gif.  This is the TB tickmark.  Select ok, and under category create your own custom category, such as PPC Tickmarks.  Under name, give it a description like Trial Balance.  I also keep the box checked to down sample the image.  Repeat this process for all of the tickmark.gif images in the PPC images folder.  When you are done, in Adobe, select Tools|Commenting|Stamps and you will now see the PPC Tickmarks category and all of the tickmarks available for insertion into the document.  They show up pretty large in the menu, but paste into the document in a nice size.

Finally, to share your newly created PPC tickmark stamp pallet with others in the office, navigate to your Adobe stamps folder.  Mine is located at: C:\Documents and Settings\my name\Application Data\Adobe\Acrobat\7.0\Stamps (some of these folders may be hidden, so you may need to make sure you are showing hidden folders in windows (beyond our discuss here).  In this folder are various randomly named pdf files.  Open each until you see the file containing the stamps you just created.  Copy this file to other users’ Adobe stamps folders, and you will be good to go.

Filed under: Office Technology, Paperless Office, Software, Tickmarks , Paperless Office, Software, Tickmarks

Our Paperless Office Tools – Part 1: Electronic Tickmarks

The paperless office dream seems to be becoming a reality for many firms.  In my office, we have implemented many tools to try to go completely “on the fly” paperless.  In this series, I will share with you some of the tools we have implemented.  I welcome any comments or suggestions you may have about paperless tools you use.

In this post I will explore one of the basic tools we use – PPC’s Tickmarks.  This handy little program came with our copy of the electronic version of their disclosure checklist (a great tool in and of itself).  The PPC Tickmarks program installs automatically for use in Excel or Word.

It comes with a predefined set of tickmarks, each of which can be defined during each use.  In our firm, we have a defined a few of them to have universal meaning (TB, GL, PY, etc.), and the remaining ones can be defined by each user as they wish.  There is a button to insert a tickmark legend as well.  Pressing this button inserts a list of the desired tickmarks as well as their meaning.  View a larger image of the picture attached to see an example of the program in action.

We generally create workpapers in one of three programs – Excel, Word or Adobe (pdfs).  In my next installment, I will show you how we have taken these same tickmarks from the PPC Tickmark program, and put it to use in Adobe, so that we have a standard set of tickmarks in all of our documents.

Our desire is to make preparation of paperless workpapers as similar and easy as preparation of a paper set of workpapers, and having a standardized way of insterting tickmarks has been a good start.

Filed under: Paperless Office, Software, Tickmarks , Paperless Office, Software, Tickmarks