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MS Project Strikelines

15 replies [Last post]
Mon, 2009-11-16 15:08
Bryan Eaton
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I would like to show a ’strikeline’ on my schedule and seem to have some issues with achieving it.

I can get partway there in 2 ways, but would like to know how to do this corretly;

add a graphic line, but that has the drawback of being fixed lenght, and a finite length - I have to add many to get it all the way down the schedule, then if I filter there are many empty pages.
The other way is to set it to show holidays, but then you have to have the timescale set to days to show a one day holiday, they dissapear when you go to weeks, unless you set a whole week as a holiday.

Thanks
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Replies

Thu, 2009-11-19 09:32
#1
Rafael Davila
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Sorry,

Rafael
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Thu, 2009-11-19 09:09
#2
Bryan Eaton
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Rafael and Trevor,

We seem to be getting a little off task here for the question at hand. I appreciate both of your answers to my question, even the opinion that a feature is not necessary is valid - and I can disagree with that, there will be no end to the discussion.

We have all survived long enough to prove that the way each of us works is valued and appreciated by those we work for in our respective industries. Let us use the forums to support each other, not knock the product - it is what it is until it changes.

If it cannot do something, I have to accept it and move on, if its that important to me I will use a different product to achieve what I want - adding more work to my plate. So I will pick my battles to ones that make my customers happy, getting the right balance of data being correct and looking pretty.

I can print to pdf and add a line in there if I really needed to.
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Thu, 2009-11-19 08:34
#3
Rafael Davila
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Trevor,

"and I for one hope that they never do what you ask" spells it as personal.

The functionalities I ask are supplied by all other Schedule Software:

In our business we refer to activities on CPM schedules not by their Task Name or Description but by their ID, many activities such as for example Cement Plaster can have the same Task Name or Description when performed many times in different locations. MS Project whenever you add an activity changes the reference for many of the existing activities.

All other software let you link two activities with more than one link. For laddering a SS and FF relationship is needed. The way around, adding a dummy milestone creates unnecessary clutter.

These are functionalities all other software vendors have determined worth including, seem like there is a real need.

As a planner and scheduler, because of the presence of MS Project I do have a genuine interest on MS Project, even when not my favorite. I believe we have a right to complain and make our voice. And yes my major complaint is how little Microsoft care as I have asked for it on some forums run/sponsored by Microsoft, always getting the same reaction, is not needed, you can live without it, that their unique ID is enough. To me it means they don’t care, is my own experience at those Microsoft run/sponsored sites what makes it a fact.

Best regards,
Rafael
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Thu, 2009-11-19 07:45
#4
Trevor Rabey
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OK, I dread to ask, but please, how is expressing an alternative point of view, and suggesting that assumptions are not facts, making it "personal"?
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Mon, 2009-11-16 20:29
#5
Trevor Rabey
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Bryan, have you tried Format, Gridlines?
I am not sure what you mean by "strikeline", I have never heard the term, and I have been doing this stuff for a long time. From this and your other question, I think that you are trying to do things which aren’t needed and aren’t part of the functionality of MSP (because they aren’t needed). By all means, keep trying if you want to persist, but it might be pointless.
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Tue, 2009-11-17 13:26
#6
Darren Kosa
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Rafael,

Shhhh, don’t let Mike Testro see those SS/FF links ;o)

Regards,

Darren
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Tue, 2009-11-17 14:15
#7
Rafael Davila
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Darren,

It is not the same calling the devil than see it coming at you, but there would be no fun if he does not jumps, it is fun to turn the crank a little bit to see what happens, at times with an 1/8 turn of the crank he jumps. The same way I jump in defense of keeping the option open.

Best regards,
Rafael
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Tue, 2009-11-17 10:52
#8
Rafael Davila
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Vertical Lines in MS Project

Yes I am using 2007, this is a sample job I use to figure out my issues with MS Project, you will notice some out-of-sequence updating. This was a conceptual schedule that latter evolved into a detailed one.
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Tue, 2009-11-17 09:37
#9
Bryan Eaton
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Just to clarify my question:
A "strikeline" would be the same as taking a printout of a schedule and simply drawing a vertical line on a date to indicate a major milestone or constraint, like the end date of the project, end of a phase of work or other deadline.

I have used P3 for years where it is easy to add these things and it has been very useful to Project Managers as a visual aid.

As you say MSP has format gridlines where you can have a number of lines for status, start, finish and current date, but you cannot choose your own dates to have them.

Thank you for your input.
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Tue, 2009-11-17 10:23
#10
Rafael Davila
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Try setting on Tools/Options/Calculation (tab) to Edits to total task % complete by selecting the check box and re-schedule the job. You will get vertical progress lines after re-schedule.

Then under Tools/Tracking/Progress Lines/Dates and Intervals/Display Selected Progress Lines you can select your line dates. Select to display Progress Lines in relation to Baseline. Also under Line Style Tab you can select the option to display date for each line.

Let me know if it works, got the idea from the help file.
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Tue, 2009-11-17 16:49
#11
Bryan Eaton
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Mr Rabey was not so subtle in his cranking, although reading some of his other posts I would tend - overall - to agree with him on many things. Just because MSP does not have certain functionality, dosnt mean it is pointless. As a scheduler of long standing myself, I have learned not to accept what I am offered without challenging it.
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Tue, 2009-11-17 18:29
#12
Rafael Davila
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Bryan,

If there is a capable company it is Microsoft, the day they propose to make MS Project the best software available they will be able to do so at the blink of an eye. I am one of those who complain in the hope Microsoft and Primavera start delivering what they should. I always wanted MS project to accept more than one link to the same predecessor and a unique ID field you can modify the way you can do with any other software. For the moment seems like they don’t care, and whenever I ask for it on MS Project forums the answer is always on the evasive. Also about updating in MS Project I do have my issues but believe MS Project 2010 will handle this issue, but not the unique ID and to accept more than one link to the same predecessor.

Now my software preference is for Spider Project, a software particularly good on resource constraining, and the only that gives you true float under limited resource constraining.

The options should be kept open; my problem is when you as the Contractor, the end user are required to use other tool than yours.

I do have my own crusade against Local and Federal Government agencies that brand specify Primavera against the FAR rules. It is against the law; it is against the principles of free enterprise. Brand specification of Primavera product is preferential treatment.

I am glad to see more people from the US in PP forum, the Britons are quite open minded, as no other. Where else can you see so many different software being discussed? Also some legal issues are discussed here, there are some adjudicators that dare to share their knowlede.

Best regards,
Rafael
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Tue, 2009-11-17 19:09
#13
Trevor Rabey
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Rafael, you assume that MS doesn’t care about your desperate need for the multiple predecessor links or the editable ID business. But isn’t it possible that neither is really needed? MSP is not P3/P6, never will be, never should be, and I for one hope that they never do what you ask.
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Tue, 2009-11-17 19:23
#14
Rafael Davila
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Trevor,

I really don’t know what is your problem, but you must have quite a few with your clients judging from your attitude, again you take it on to the personal level.

I do need multiple predecessors to the same activity for laddering; I do need editable Id as a matter of convenience. Primavera, Asta Power Project, Spider Project and all the rest do provide this functionality it is only MS Project who does not. With Micro Planner you can get the functionality for laddering in a better way through their ladder activities but MS Project does not provide you with this alternative.

Bryan,

Trevor’s attitude is the typical attitude I experienced on most MS Project forums when as an end user I ask for a simple functionality available in all other major CPM products, it is a reaffirmation on my experience.

About cranking I was referring to Mike Testro in response to the previous posting to my answer. We have a never ending debate about relationships other than FS and lag. Mike does believe the use of the other relationships and the use of lag shall not be allowed. These discussions have been very long, but Mike Testro never took it into the personal level.

Best regards,
Rafael
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Tue, 2009-11-17 10:47
#15
Bryan Eaton
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Rafael, Thanks for the suggestion, that certainly has a lot of flexibility in it for regular interval lines and managing the progress lines. I will play with it some - seems like it will help out.
Your example looks like it is in 2007? I am using 2003 menu still has same choices for this feature.
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