Description:
While earlier versions of Microsoft Project have been powerful but not always easy to use, this latest version includes Office XP-style task panes and smart tags that make the program easier than ever to use. Inexperienced users can rely on the Project Guide to make sure they cover the four key areas: tasks, resources, tracking, and reporting. The wizards that take you through each step are friendly and helpful, yet there are plenty of options for advanced project managers. Adding more information to a project or seeing details about a specific task is simple and intuitive, and includes all the options you're likely to need. For example, you can set working hours for individual resources, entire teams, specific tasks, or an entire project. The interface in Project 2002 is clear, too. You can work in a variety of views and edit your projects in the view you prefer. You can group project information in a variety of ways so you can view tasks in the order you prefer. And the range of reports includes tasks that should have already begun or have slipped, as well as the usual list of what's in progress. In addition, the Resource Availability Graph makes it very easy to manage resource allocation. Smart tags help you avoid problems by reminding you of related issues. For example, if you assign an additional resource, the smart tag suggests that you'll want to either shorten the time the task will take or increase the amount of work involved. You can ignore the smart tags or turn them off, but they help you find the more advanced features, and use them for more consistent results. Project 2002 allows for less disciplined projects as well as fully detailed ones. If the plan keeps changing you can save up to eleven versions to look back at for comparison, as well as comparing the plan to the actual progress being made. You can easily manage data back and forth between Project and Excel, or start lists of tasks in Excel and turn them into projects. For true collaboration with other Project users you'll need to invest in Project Server, which works even better with the enterprise tools in Project Professional. Project 2002 features tools for experienced managers, such as resource leveling, but you don't need to know a lot about project management to stay on top of work with Project. Just remember--it won't actually run the project for you. --Mary Branscombe, Amazon.co.uk
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