Documenting a Day

 

        The role of applications is to make our lives easier and make our workflow more efficient. Utilizing multiple applications to make this happen is paramount in the life of any Army soldier that must use computers and must work in an office. Work is noticeably easier when we have these tools at our disposal. Experiencing the use of applications like MS Word, MS Excel and MS PowerPoint will help employees appreciate the functionality of the programs altogether. I will be addressing my experience with creating a journal entry, calculating percentages, developing a presentation, and manipulating a database in this essay.

            When it comes to the functionality of each application that I used, I realized very quickly that each application is used for specific things. Microsoft Word is used for developing journal entries, constructing documents from scratch, and changing the fonts of words, sentences, and paragraphs to craft a specific document. Microsoft Excel is used to develop spreadsheets that will calculate percentages, automatically input dates, and develop charts to be used for tracking purposes. Microsoft PowerPoint is used to create presentations, explaining difficult topics in a more precise manner and is used to develop presentations to present to large audiences. Overall, these applications and multiple other database applications make up the entirety of the office environment that we use to complete assignments and tasks.

            When it comes to advantages and disadvantages of each application, there are always many for any experimental application but here are a couple that I have noticed. One advantage of Microsoft Word is that the fonts can not only be changed in the application, but new fonts can be added manually as well which is always a plus. The disadvantage is that if you don’t already have the font of a document you upload, it will not load with that same font as it’s not in the system. The advantage of Microsoft Excel is that it has formulas built in that can automatically calculate what the values should be when it comes to specific requirements. The disadvantage is that if you are not familiar with the formulas used, when inputting your data you may not be able to get the best results. The advantage of using Microsoft PowerPoint is that it makes presenting slide shows a lot easier and efficient. A disadvantage of using PowerPoint is that when editing your slides you are limited as to how you can apply your edits when developing the presentation. All of these applications have shortcomings but inevitably they also have great functionality as well.

            I would say that the most appropriate software for documenting the information about my day would have to be Microsoft Word because it allows me to explain what goes on during my day. While Excel and PowerPoint allow for data to be presented in a more efficient way, I found that for me I’d rather have a free flowing application to present my findings. I also believe that one additional scenario that I could use all three applications is when I have to develop CBRN (Chemical Biological Radiological, and Nuclear) Reports for my Division Headquarters. I normally use Word for requesting more chemical protective equipment for certain companies under me, Excel for compiling a CDE (Chemical Defense Equipment) Report detailing how much chemical equipment we have, and PowerPoint to present to our Division our statuses when it comes to training and equipment.

            In conclusion, the role of applications is to make our lives easier. We utilize Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and Microsoft PowerPoint the most and it helps us in our every day tasks. When using computers there are always advantages and disadvantages of certain applications but the ingenuity of them all is constant. Experiencing the use of these applications helps you appreciate them more in their ease of use. This has been my experience when it comes to creating journal entries, calculating percentages, developing presentations, and manipulating databases.