January 2024 Newsletter

Tips and Tricks #3: Milestones Professional

We made a great video for this month with some new Tips and Tricks, including:

  • Two symbols on top of each other
  • Global symbol date format
  • Vertical / Sideways text in column
  • Dependency Mode
  • Change Background of individual Rows
  • Symbol Text Background

Check out our Videos page to see all of our available videos. You can also directly go to our Youtube Channel to see them as well.

Be sure to Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for all the latest and greatest Milestones software videos!

January 2024 Tips and Tricks

For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for January 2024

Show hidden columns when all are hidden
I hid the only column on my schedule.  Now my schedule has no columns.  How do I add a column on the left?

Two symbols on top of each other
Is there any way to move milestones in front or behind when they are stacked on top of each other with overlapping dates? I don’t want to use vertical symbol position and move to another level.

Bar colors change unexpectedly after refresh
I have a schedule with several joined bars.  P3 is supposed to be filled blue but stays white.  Then, after I refresh, the bar for P2 disappears and P3 fills as expected:

See bar status color in toolbox
My bars are all the same color before status, but they have a different after status color, how do I tell them apart in the toolbox?

Link to Active MS Project Tasks not working
I am trying to bring tasks into my Milestones schedule from Project server.  I’m not getting any errors, but nothing is coming in

Remove a shadow under a bar
Can anyone advise how I may remove shading under a bar and legend entry?

Get list of all Project UIDs in Milestones schedule
I’m using Symbol Links to an MS Project file. Is there a way to get a list in Milestones Pro of all the UIDs I am linked to?

Numbers or letters inside symbols
I need to have numbers inside my triangle symbols.  Right now I am using symbol text and the text is pretty small and hard to re-size when the symbol sizes change.  Is there an easier way to do this?

For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for January 2024

Upgrade to Milestones Professional 2025

Click here to Upgrade to Milestones Professional 2025 for only $199 (if you already own any version of Milestones Professional).

To see what has changed, check out our “What’s New in Milestones Professional 2025” page.

Join the Milestones Professional Users LinkedIn Group

For anyone interested, there’s a free Milestones Professional user group on LinkedIn you can join to share best practices, network with other users, and maybe learn some tips along the way from other experienced Milestones users. To join, head over to the following website and click Join: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=6796817

Note: This user group is an unofficial group run by Milestones software users, and is not managed by KIDASA Software, Inc. A free LinkedIn account is required to join the group.

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    December 2023 Newsletter

    Coded Import Options from MS Project into Milestones Professional

    We made a great video for this month on importing from MS Project.

    This video shows almost all of our Coded Import options for getting your tasks from MS Project over to Milestones Professional.

    This video covers lots of different import options, including “Birds on a Wire”, “Coded Presentation Timeline”, “Coded Symbols and Bars”, “Coded Finish Dates”, and a few more.

    With these import options, you can either set up a Text field in MS Project to group tasks together during the import, or you can even use Number fields with a couple of the options, to tell Milestones how to display the tasks.

    Check out our Videos page to see all of our available videos. You can also directly go to our Youtube Channel to see them as well.

    Be sure to Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for all the latest and greatest Milestones software videos!

    December 2023 Tips and Tricks

    For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for December 2023

    Global symbol date changes
    My symbols are not showing dates.  I’ve tried unhiding dates in the toolbox and also individually.  Why won’t the dates show up?

    Highlight changed dates when refreshing
    I refreshed my schedule and choose the option to highlight the changes.  Now, how do I turn off the highlighting?

    Transfer a license
    The last user of one of our milestones licenses has left the company.  How do we transfer his registered license to another user at our company?

    Skipping dates when moving with mouse
    In a Gantt chart when I try to move an end date, it always seems to skip one day of the week (i.e. Mon, Wed, Thurs, Fri). The day skipped changes as well. I have checked all calendar options and cannot determine why it is doing this.

    Sorting by dollar values
    I need to sort tasks by dollar amount and dollar categories.  How is this done?

    Anchor text to a symbol
    Is there a way to anchor  a string of text to a symbol or a task row?

    Bars not filling in on imported schedule
    I imported my Microsoft Project schedule into Milestones Professional.  I want the bars to fill to the status date.  Most of them don’t do this.  Why not?

    Change a symbol’s color
    How can I change the color of a single symbol on the schedule?

    For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for December 2023

    Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional

    Click here to Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional using your serial number (if you already own any version of Milestones Professional).

    To see what has changed, check out our home page.

    Join the Milestones Professional Users LinkedIn Group

    For anyone interested, there’s a free Milestones Professional user group on LinkedIn you can join to share best practices, network with other users, and maybe learn some tips along the way from other experienced Milestones users. To join, head over to the following website and click Join: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=6796817

    Note: This user group is an unofficial group run by Milestones software users, and is not managed by KIDASA Software, Inc. A free LinkedIn account is required to join the group.

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      October 2023 Newsletter

      Milestones Professional ValueSet Type 4: Values from Symbols

      Did you know you can add DataGraphs to the bottom of your Milestones Professional Schedule?

      In this video, we cover one of the types of ValueSets that you can graph, ValueSet 4 (where you can assign values to symbols).

      Check out our Videos page to see all of our available videos. You can also directly go to our Youtube Channel to see them as well.

      Be sure to Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for all the latest and greatest Milestones software videos!

      October 2023 Tips and Tricks

      For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for October 2023

      Show baseline dates without showing baseline symbols
      Is it possible to display baseline fields in the schedule’s columns but not show the baseline symbols and bars in the Gantt chart?

      Show date and text on same line for a symbol
      I have a few symbols on my schedule for which I would like to display both the start date AND the text on the same line on the left side of the symbol.  Is there a way to combine the symbol text and the date?

      Vertical connectors on a multi-page schedule
      My schedule has many vertical connectors, connecting dates across pages.  When I look at the connectors, it’s often challenging to determine which page they are connected to.  Is there anything I can do to make this easier?

      Multiple legend rows
      I would like to have a legend with multiple rows and 4 entries per row. How do I add a 2nd or 3rd row in the legend?

      Move a symbol and keep the same date
      When I move symbols to another task row, the dates changes.  I want the dates to stay the same when the symbols are rearranged on the schedule.  Is there a way to make them stick to their original date?

      Insert page breaks
      I need a couple of page breaks in my schedule so that I can have a couple of short pages.  Is this possible?

      Flag tasks that are nearing completion
      How can I display symbols in a column to indicate which tasks are, for example, 50%, 75%, 90% complete?  I want to show which tasks are complete, which ones haven’t started and so on.

      For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for October 2023

      Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional

      Click here to Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional using your serial number (if you already own any version of Milestones Professional).

      To see what has changed, check out our home page.

      Join the Milestones Professional Users LinkedIn Group

      For anyone interested, there’s a free Milestones Professional user group on LinkedIn you can join to share best practices, network with other users, and maybe learn some tips along the way from other experienced Milestones users. To join, head over to the following website and click Join: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=6796817

      Note: This user group is an unofficial group run by Milestones software users, and is not managed by KIDASA Software, Inc. A free LinkedIn account is required to join the group.

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        September 2023 Newsletter

        Milestones Professional Program Options: Tools Tab

        Check out some of the more common options that people change in the Tools Tab in Milestones Professional. Who knows, maybe you’d like to change some options!

        Check out our Videos page to see all of our available videos. You can also directly go to our Youtube Channel to see them as well.

        Be sure to Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for all the latest and greatest Milestones software videos!

        September 2023 Tips and Tricks

        For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for September 2023

        Trouble Refreshing or Importing from Project
        The connection to Project seems to be broken.  I am unable to refresh or import any Project schedules into Milestones.

        Microsoft Project files close when using a refresh list
        Milestones is closing Microsoft Project files when I refresh from Project Server with a refresh list.  Can we have an option to not close the files when using a refresh list?

        Sideways text
        I want to show a title to the left of my schedule.    Is this possible in Milestones?

        Only page 1 available when copying to clipboard
        Whenever I use the Copy Schedule to Clipboard (OLE) function it only copies page 1, even if I move to pages 2 or 3.  Is this a defect?

        Override legend colors
        I used the color override option for some connectors and symbols placed on my schedule. How can I define those in the legend, using the same color override?

        Percent complete pie color
        When using the Percent Complete SmartColumn, how do you change the color of the pie chart that appears?

        Picture disappears
        I added a picture to my schedule.  However, as soon as I add the picture it disappears before I have a chance to re-size it.

        Print an extra large schedule
        My schedule’s page size is set to 24 inches wide by 8.5 inches high.  I would like to print it in sections on my laser printer and later tape them together to build a large schedule.

        For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for September 2023

        Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional

        Click here to Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional using your serial number (if you already own any version of Milestones Professional).

        To see what has changed, check out our home page.

        Join the Milestones Professional Users LinkedIn Group

        For anyone interested, there’s a free Milestones Professional user group on LinkedIn you can join to share best practices, network with other users, and maybe learn some tips along the way from other experienced Milestones users. To join, head over to the following website and click Join: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=6796817

        Note: This user group is an unofficial group run by Milestones software users, and is not managed by KIDASA Software, Inc. A free LinkedIn account is required to join the group.

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          August 2023 Newsletter

          Import or Link to MS Project Overview

          Check out this video where we cover most of the options for linking your MS Project file over to a Milestones Professional schedule.

          Check out our Videos page to see all of our available videos. You can also directly go to our Youtube Channel to see them as well.

          Be sure to Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for all the latest and greatest Milestones software videos!

          August 2023 Tips and Tricks

          For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for August 2023

          Thicker outline for a symbol
          I want a thicker line around my diamond symbol.  How do I set this up?

          Show curtains on top of grid lines / shading
          I have several curtains on my schedule but they aren’t showing up on some of the rows.  It looks like they don’t appear when there is row shading.  How can I fix this?

          Add date range shading (curtains) to individual task rows
          I know how to set up curtains for a schedule, to shade a date range.  How can I shade only certain task rows?

          Customize task cells
          I want to color the individual entries in my main column.  How is this done?

          Add multiple milestones on different levels
          How do I stack more than one timeline on the same row? When I create it centers in the middle of the row and I can’t move it.  I want to show, develop, design, test, etc. all on the same row. The dates overlap each other. When I try to create a separate timeline it lays on top of the previous one.

          Appendix instead of Page
          Can Milestones display the page numbering other than with the word “Page”? When I include a Milestones schedule in my report, it is in the appendix. Thus, I would like the pagination to say “Appendix” instead of “Page.”

          Add many symbols above and below a bar
          I want to show milestones above and below the task bar so I can have a condensed presentation format.  Please advise the steps on how to show symbols above and below the task bar.

          Working remotely
          I started working remotely last month.  Can I use my Milestones license on my personal laptop?

          What is the red line which zig zags down my schedule?
          What is the red line which seems to go in and out from the current date line?

          Want a different triangle shape
          Is it possible to get a different triangle symbol?  I see there are several to choose from but I have a specific requirement.

          For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for August 2023

          Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional

          Click here to Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional using your serial number (if you already own any version of Milestones Professional).

          To see what has changed, check out our home page.

          Join the Milestones Professional Users LinkedIn Group

          For anyone interested, there’s a free Milestones Professional user group on LinkedIn you can join to share best practices, network with other users, and maybe learn some tips along the way from other experienced Milestones users. To join, head over to the following website and click Join: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=6796817

          Note: This user group is an unofficial group run by Milestones software users, and is not managed by KIDASA Software, Inc. A free LinkedIn account is required to join the group.

            Sign up for our newsletter!

            July 2023 Newsletter

            Check Out our Recent Milestones Professional Videos

            Be sure to Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for all the latest and greatest Milestones software videos!

            July 2023 Tips and Tricks

            For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for July 2023

            No change or unexpected changes after schedule refresh
            Nothing is happening when I refresh my master schedule.  I previously refreshed from multiple MS Project files but now I want to pick just one MS Project file.  How can I resolve this?

            Set up a default format and toolbox
            I want all new schedules to be in a certain format, with only the symbols and connectors I use displayed in the toolbox.  Is this possible?

            Shade holidays
            How do I shade holidays?

            Share import filter with others
            We are using Excel to enter information that we import into Milestones Professional.  We have several Excel users who are entering the information.  I have a filter that works for me when importing with our Excel spreadsheet.  How can I share my filter with other Excel users who also use Milestones?

            Share schedules with those who do not have Milestones
            I have Milestones but many of my co-workers don’t have the software.  I want to be able to share my schedules with them.  What are my options?

            For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for July 2023

            Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional

            Click here to Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional using your serial number (if you already own any version of Milestones Professional).

            To see what has changed, check out our home page.

            Join the Milestones Professional Users LinkedIn Group

            For anyone interested, there’s a free Milestones Professional user group on LinkedIn you can join to share best practices, network with other users, and maybe learn some tips along the way from other experienced Milestones users. To join, head over to the following website and click Join: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=6796817

            Note: This user group is an unofficial group run by Milestones software users, and is not managed by KIDASA Software, Inc. A free LinkedIn account is required to join the group.

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              May 2023 Newsletter

              Video: Bring over Symbol Text from Excel

              Did you know there’s two ways to bring over Symbol Text if you’re importing from Excel? The first method involves using a column, and the second method involves linking the text directly back to Excel during Refresh!

              Check out the video today!

              Be sure to Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for all the latest and greatest Milestones software videos!

              May 2023 Tips and Tricks

              For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for May 2023

              Add a horizontal bar and symbol to an existing symbol
              I have a symbol on my schedule and would like to add another symbol with a bar between them.  How do I accomplish this?

              Want solid connector (not dashed) after status date
              How do I make the horizontal connector between the triangles solid and not dashed after the status line?

              Work with a schedule with no columns
              My schedule has no columns.   How can I select a task row?

              Working with color themes
              I’m interested in Milestones Professional’s color themes feature.  Where can I learn more

              Eliminate the date stamp
              How can I eliminate the Date that appears near the upper right corner of the schedule?

              Suggested symbols and bars for “Birds on a Wire” charts
              I like the “Birds on a Wire” charts I have seen made in PowerPoint.  I know these are easier in Milestones. Can you give me a clue how to make mine look like this with Milestones (sample made in PowerPoint)?

              Stoplight status indicators
              How can I create a schedule with stoplight status indicators without reading the manual?

              Start every schedule with the same toolbox
              I have spent a lot of time working on my perfect toolbox.  How can I have all my schedules start up with this same Toolbox?

              For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for May 2023

              Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional

              Click here to Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional using your serial number (if you already own any version of Milestones Professional).

              To see what has changed, check out our home page.

              Join the Milestones Professional Users LinkedIn Group

              For anyone interested, there’s a free Milestones Professional user group on LinkedIn you can join to share best practices, network with other users, and maybe learn some tips along the way from other experienced Milestones users. To join, head over to the following website and click Join: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=6796817

              Note: This user group is an unofficial group run by Milestones software users, and is not managed by KIDASA Software, Inc. A free LinkedIn account is required to join the group.

                Sign up for our newsletter!

                April 2023 Newsletter

                Video: Outline Levels and Summary Bars

                Sometimes your schedule can be full of hidden or invisible symbols. This video goes over a few different ways that there might be extra symbols on your schedule that you might not know about, and what they mean.Check out the video today!

                Be sure to Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for all the latest and greatest Milestones software videos!

                April 2023 Tips and Tricks

                For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for April 2023

                Task outline levels
                I would like to outline my schedule.  Where do I start?

                Set symbols and other properties by summary level
                I have a project with several outline levels.  Can I use different symbols for the different outline levels?   Can I change the shading too?

                Always use transparent text

                Is there any way to set up Milestones so that all the symbol text and dates are shown transparent (not opaque?)  I have to change them constantly and would like to know how to set the default up permanently.

                Eliminate gray bars in roadmap format
                I have just imported from Microsoft Project using the Roadmap format.  Can you tell me how to eliminate the gray bars in the resulting Milestones Professional file?

                Create a template to use in with Microsoft Project
                I want to create a single template I can use for multiple Microsoft Project files. Can I do this or do I have to have a template for each Microsoft Project file?

                Exclude hidden tasks when filtering
                I am making an upper level schedule, and am using the Split Summary Bar setting.  I would like to filter the schedule so that I can exclude certain tasks and then show just the tasks I want on the summary bar.  The problem is that when I filter, the summary bar is still showing the unwanted tasks.

                For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for April 2023

                Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional

                Click here to Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional using your serial number (if you already own any version of Milestones Professional).

                To see what has changed, check out our home page.

                Join the Milestones Professional Users LinkedIn Group

                For anyone interested, there’s a free Milestones Professional user group on LinkedIn you can join to share best practices, network with other users, and maybe learn some tips along the way from other experienced Milestones users. To join, head over to the following website and click Join: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=6796817

                Note: This user group is an unofficial group run by Milestones software users, and is not managed by KIDASA Software, Inc. A free LinkedIn account is required to join the group.

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                  March 2023 Newsletter

                  Video: Finding Hidden / Invisible Symbols in your schedule

                  Sometimes your schedule can be full of hidden or invisible symbols. This video goes over a few different ways that there might be extra symbols on your schedule that you might not know about, and what they mean.

                  Check out the video today!

                  Be sure to Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for all the latest and greatest Milestones software videos!

                  March 2023 Tips and Tricks

                  For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for March 2023

                  Highlight Changed Dates when Refreshing
                  Is it possible to highlight the milestones which have changed after running a Milestones refresh to update my presentation schedule with dates from Microsoft Project?

                  Locked Symbols
                  I have attached a chart that I created in Milestones Professional.   This is a chart that is used for a lot of briefings for the government.  Unfortunately my engineer and I opened it to make some changes and if you try a lot of the bars are locked and I cannot change the links or delete.

                  Copy a column of text from Milestones to Excel
                  I’m seeking help on how to export a column of text (Task Names) from Milestones Professional to Microsoft Excel.

                  Show only the month with the symbol
                  How can I make the symbol date show only the month?

                  Move a master schedule
                  I have moved a master schedule and its slaves to a different folder on my PC. How do I get it to update the links for the slave schedules so that the point to the new folder I’ve moved them too?

                  Angled symbol text
                  How can I show some of my text at an angle so I can get more information onto my crowded schedule?

                  No numbers below DataGraph
                  I have two data graphs on my chart.  Since my timeline covers about 2 years, the data table associated with the graph is not legible.  I would like to have only the graph with no data table.  From what I can tell, the only options I have are Data Above the Graph or Data Below the Graph.  However, I want to leave out the numbers entirely.

                  Using substitutable text strings and default symbol text
                  I’m making a “no-columns” presentation schedule.  Is there an easy way to attach my task names as symbol text?

                  For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for March 2023

                  Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional

                  Click here to Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional using your serial number (if you already own any version of Milestones Professional).

                  To see what has changed, check out our home page.

                  Join the Milestones Professional Users LinkedIn Group

                  For anyone interested, there’s a free Milestones Professional user group on LinkedIn you can join to share best practices, network with other users, and maybe learn some tips along the way from other experienced Milestones users. To join, head over to the following website and click Join: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=6796817

                  Note: This user group is an unofficial group run by Milestones software users, and is not managed by KIDASA Software, Inc. A free LinkedIn account is required to join the group.

                    Sign up for our newsletter!

                    October / November 2022 Newsletter

                    Video: Link to Active MS Project Task

                    Do you already have a Milestones Professional schedule, and you want to grab some tasks from an existing MS Project file quickly?

                    You should try “Link to Active MS Project Task” to bring over tasks easily from MS Project. Check out the video below:

                    Be sure to Subscribe to our Youtube Channel for all the latest and greatest Milestones software videos!

                    October 2022 Tips and Tricks

                    For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for October / November 2022

                    Help finding “invisible” symbols
                    I have deleted some symbols from a schedule , but there are several blank symbols scattered around and I’m having trouble finding them.

                    Vertical connectors in the legend
                    Can I show a vertical connector in the legend?

                    Want the line to appear on top of the bar when graphed
                    I would like to have the red line appear on top of the blue bars.  How is this accomplished?

                    Hide indicator symbols on blank lines
                    I have indicator symbol values that are “0”. How do I get Milestones Professional NOT to draw an indicator symbol on lines that are blank?

                    Add, Move, and Delete Freeform Text
                    Is there a way to add another header to the chart other than the title?

                    Copy the structure of a schedule only
                    Could you tell me if it is possible to copy the structure of a schedule without the data?.

                    Unidentified blue box

                    Specifying print size
                    I have the chart size set to 7.5″ horizontal and 5.5.” vertical. However, when I print the chart, it fills the entire page, rather than printing at the size I have specified.  How can I get it to print using my specifications?

                    Standard curtains for all my projects
                    I would like the same curtains to appear on all of my schedules.  How can I do this?

                    Special symbol needed
                    I would really like to show a symbol that looks like this one on my schedule.  Is it possible?

                    Show percent symbol on a task row
                    I see that it is possible to add a pie symbol to a task row as a normal symbol.  Can you tell me how to set this up?</p
                    For these and more, view Tips and Tricks for October / November 2022 

                    Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional

                    Click here to Upgrade to the latest version of Milestones Professional using your serial number (if you already own any version of Milestones Professional).

                    To see what has changed, check out our home page.

                    Join the Milestones Professional Users LinkedIn Group

                    For anyone interested, there’s a free Milestones Professional user group on LinkedIn you can join to share best practices, network with other users, and maybe learn some tips along the way from other experienced Milestones users. To join, head over to the following website and click Join: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?home=&gid=6796817

                    Note: This user group is an unofficial group run by Milestones software users, and is not managed by KIDASA Software, Inc. A free LinkedIn account is required to join the group.

                      Sign up for our newsletter!