Frequently asked questions

Every guide is a digital download. Right after payment, a download link is sent to the email address you used at checkout, and the same link is shown on the order confirmation screen. The download is a single .zip file. Nothing is shipped. See the Delivery Policy for details.

Each .zip contains two things:

• The PDF guide. It walks through each skill step by step with annotated illustrations, followed by practice exercises with worked solutions.
• The practice files. These are the starter documents, spreadsheets, datasets, footage or project files the exercises use.

The Complete Software Skills Library contains all seven guides, each in its own folder with its PDF and practice files.

The email is sent immediately after payment. If it hasn't arrived within an hour, check your spam or junk folder first. If it isn't there, contact us through the Contact page with your order number and the email address you used at checkout, and the link will be resent.

A program that can open .zip files (most computers can do this without anything extra), a PDF reader for the guide, and the software the guide covers for the practice files.

No. The guides do not include any software. Each guide's page has a "Software required" section that names the program the guide uses. You need your own copy or access, obtained separately from the software's maker, and your use of it is governed by that maker's own terms.

Each guide is written for the current release of its program at the time the guide was written or last revised. Software makers update their programs over time, so menus and button locations can change between versions. The core techniques usually stay the same, but a menu may move or a button may be renamed.

When an update changes the steps in a guide, the guide is revised. Updated files are free to anyone who bought that guide: contact us through the Contact page with your order number and the updated .zip will be sent to you. Until a guide is revised, some steps may look slightly different in a newer version of the program.

Yes. Spreadsheet Formulas & Functions and Data Analysis with Pivot Tables & Charts are written for both Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets. Professional Document Formatting is written for both Microsoft Word and Google Docs. Where the steps differ between the two programs, the guides show both.

Start with the program you already use or plan to use. Each guide is complete on its own. The one exception is spreadsheets: if you are new to formulas, start with Spreadsheet Formulas & Functions before Data Analysis with Pivot Tables & Charts, which assumes you are comfortable with basic formulas and cell references.

Beginner guides assume no experience with the program. Beginner to intermediate guides start from the basics and go on to techniques for people who already know their way around. Intermediate guides assume you are comfortable with the program's basics.

No. The guides are self-study material. There is no video, no live instruction, no tutoring, and no feedback on your work. You read each step, carry it out in the software, then do the exercises and check your work against the worked solutions in the guide.

Yes. You can print copies of the guide for your own use. See the Terms of Service for the full personal-use license.

A standard purchase is a personal-use license for one person. It doesn't cover sharing the guides or practice files with a class, students, coworkers or a team. If you'd like to use the guides with a group, contact us through the Contact page about a separate license, and include your organization's name and roughly how many people would use the materials.

No. Please don't share, resell, redistribute, or upload the guides or practice files to file-sharing sites. Each person who uses them needs their own purchase or a group license.

You can get a full refund on any purchase if you ask within 14 days. No reason is needed, and nothing needs to be returned. Contact us through the Contact page with your order number. Refunds go to your original payment method and are issued within 5 business days of your request; your payment provider's processing time may add a few days. See the Refund Policy.

Contact us through the Contact page with your order number and a short description of the problem. If you'd prefer a working replacement instead of a refund, a replacement file will be sent to you.