Printing Options-What to print

When you are in any of the office types of software programs (Word, Excel, Power Point etc), the quickest way to print what you are working on is to use the Printer Icon on your toolbar, BUT when you do this, you will print the entire document, spreadsheet or presentation.

Often we want to print just a paragraph/selection, or just the current page, slide or worksheet we are working on – or possibly several different pages or slides, such as page 2, 7-11, and 27.. You can do either of these very easily – you control what is going to be printed…

To control what you are printing when your work is open:
Go to the Menu Bar > File > Print OR in the newer versions of Office (2007, 2010) open the Office Button > Print
The Print Dialog Box opens > In the bottom left side, you can now choose:

• All
• Current Page
• Pages
• Selection (this is only a choice when you have highlighted something such as a paragraph)

On the right side, you can choose:

• Whether you want it collated or not
• How many copies
• In Word, you can choose how many pages you want printed on a page

What is a ZIP file?

.Zip file format is the standard method for "compressing" files on a computer - it allows us to condense large groups of files into one smaller file. If and when someone sends you a "compressed or zipped file" you will need to decompress or "unzip" the files. The most popular Zip program is "winzip" and you can download a free trial version from "winzip.com" or other free programs from many other shareware sites (such as shraeware.com or passtheshareware.com or thesharewareportal.com)

You can also "unzip" a file from Windows Explorer:

• Open Windows Explorer (using the Flag Key + E is the easiest way)
• Now Right click on the folder you are attempting to "unzip"
• Select "Extract to"
• Now choose the folder you want WinZip to decompress the files to.
• Make sure the "Use folder names" box is checked so any specified folders are recreated.
• If the box is left blank, all the different files will be unzipped into the single selected folder

Folders vs. Files – What’s the Difference?

When you are "saving/filing" items on your computer - it is helpful to know the difference between a file and/or a folder... sounds obvious - but to many this is confusing...

FILES – are each individual item on your computer that has a name – so if you take 5 photos, your camera will give them each a name – that “name” is a file – all file names end with an extension that tell us and the computer what the file is most photo’s will end in .jpg or maybe .bmp, .gif, .png, .tif etc.. If you have a music CD you want to copy/download to the computer, and that one CD has 12 music tracks – then there will be 12 different file names – music/audio file extensions might be .mp3, .wav, .wma

FOLDERS – symbolized with a manila folder – are the places where we store/file things of a like nature – PC’s are shipped with common folders - With Windows 98 and XP Operating Systems, the common folder names are: “My Documents”; “My Pictures”, “My Music”, “My Videos”, “My Scans”; in newer Windows Operating Systems, Vista & Windows 7, the word “My” has been dropped in your filing libraries

You can create as many folders, sub-folders, sub-sub folders, etc. as you would like. When you create a new folder - remember that whatever folder is highlighted in Windows Explorer or in the Filing Name Drop Down Box - that becomes the "Parent" to your new folder and therefore your new folder can & will be found "inside" that highlighted folder...

Happy Father's Day

Anyone can be a father,
But it takes someone special to be a DAD
So for all our special dads & grand-dads – here’s to you..
Happy Fathers Day and thank you for being such a wonderful dad…

MY DAD
When I was just a tiny kid,
Do you remember when,
The time you kissed my bruises,
Or cleaned by soiled chin?

You scrambled for the balls I hit,
(Short-winded more than not,)
Yet, every time we'd play a game,
You praised the "outs" I caught.

It seems like only yesterday,
You wiped away my tears,
And late at night I called your name,
To chase away my fears.

Though time has changed your handsome grip,
Your hair is snowy white,
You gait's a little slower now,
Thick glasses help your sight.

Oh, do I thirst for years gone by,
To be that growing lad,
Re-living all of the memories,
Of growing with my dad.

…Author Unknown


Grandfathers Are Fathers Who Are Grand
Grandfathers are fathers who are grand,
Restoring the sense that our most precious things
Are those that do not change much over time.
No love of childhood is more sublime,
Demanding little, giving on demand,
Far more inclined than most to grant the wings
Allowing us to reach enchanted lands.
Though grandfathers must serve as second fathers,
Helping out with young and restless hearts,
Each has all the patience wisdom brings,
Remembering our passions more than others,
Soothing us with old and well-honed arts.

…Author Unknown

PRINTING FROM THE INTERNET Part 2 of 2

The first two options we reviewed in Part 1, are for quick-easy printing directly from the internet. But, many times we want to be able to change/enlarge the Print style or size of what we are printing from the Internet to make it easier to read, especially with articles, directions, and other important information. So that is when this option works well…

Option 3:

• “Highlight” the portion of the Internet item you want to print & change (to copy to Word)
• Be sure pointer is on what’s highlighted then "Right click" on what you have highlighted and an action menu appears - choose/left click on "copy"
• Minimize email/internet; Open Word, NotePad, Works, whatever WP program you use
• Right click again (be sure pointer is on the blank page Word, etc), Left click "paste"
• Now in Word, NotePad or Works, make your print/font style, size changes
• To print, either left click on the printer icon on the toolbar OR
• Left click on "file" on the toolbar, then left click on "print"
• Left click “selection or current page" in page range section & "number of copies you want"
• Left click "OK" and it will now print with all your changes

To Save what you have now worked on, left click on "File", then "Save As", then be sure you are in "C" Drive, then "My Documents" or find your Flash Drive/Memory Stick and choose that - then choose the folder you want to put it in and left click on Save

TIP: try not to use the printer icon on your internet toolbar, because when you print using this ICON, you will print everything on your monitor including the ads, etc..

PRINTING FROM THE INTERNET – Part 1 of 2

When you are reading something on the “Internet” - your email, a newspaper article or something else on a website, you may want to print it for someone else or for your own future reference. There are a few options on how you can do this quickly & easily...

OPTION 1:

• Almost all email and other media websites today show a “Print” icon or “Print view” – formerly known as Printer Friendly Version) usually at the top or sometimes at the bottom of what we are reading.
• When you click on this Print icon, the website will copy what you have chosen, but eliminates almost all unnecessary info/ads from the page so that you only print the article or email – saves a lot of ink and paper.
• Now the print dialog box will appear, choose/left click "selection" in page range section (one of the "print range" choices)
• Then left click "number of copies you want"
• Then left click "OK" and what you have chosen prints without all the unnecessary ads etc.

OPTION 2:

• Another option is to “Highlight” just the portion of the email/article that you want to print
• Left click on "file" on the toolbar, then left click on "print"
• The print dialog box will appear, choose/left click "selection" in page range section (one of the "print range" choices)
• Then left click "number of copies you want"
• Then left click "OK" and "what you highlighted" will now print

TIP: try not to use the printer icon on your Internet toolbar, because when you print using this ICON, you will print everything on your monitor including the ads, etc..

What do the tags mean on websites .com, .net .org

When the world wide web was launched in 1989 the .com and .net extensions at the end of a website were used to help categorize the several hundred websites available at that time - .com meant a commercial website and .net meant telecommunication.. Now there are a growing number of “extensions” and this list will continue to grow as does the number of websites… here are just a few extensions you might recognize…

.arts - Cultural groups
.biz - Used by small business
.com - Commercial
.edu - Educational
.firm - Firms and businesses
.gov - Government
.info - Informational services
.int - International
.mil - Military
.mus - Museums
.name - Individual/personal names
.net - Telecommunication Co’s
.nom - Personal websites
.org - Non-profit Organization
.store - Businesses offering goods
.tv - Entertainment industry
.web - Entities w/ties to the web

Because of the growing use of names/websites, more "tags" are being added and in addition to the standard tags (.com; .net) you’ll begin seeing two (2) letter tags, such as .au, .uk, .de and .jp which relate to a countries & geographic locations - au = Australia; uk=United Kingdom, etc...

What is a PDF document???

PDF: Short for Portable Document Format, a file format developed by Adobe Systems. PDF captures formatting information from a variety of software application programs – including Microsoft Word & Excel, Word Perfect and others, so that it is possible to send formatted documents and have them appear on the recipient's monitor or printer as they were intended. So they are welcome to open, read, save & print the documents – but they cannot change them.. When you and I visit websites, such as the registry of motor vehicles, IRS, medical, insurance and other such websites, forms we download are often done in PDF format so that we can view them, save them, print them as we need them – we just couldn’t modify them or change any information on them. In order to view them however, we need to have the Adobe Reader, which is a free application distributed by Adobe Systems

To download the latest version of Adobe Reader go to this website:
http://www.get.adobe.com/reader/

What is a Firewall??

A firewall is a system designed to prevent unauthorized access to or from a private network. Firewalls can be implemented in both hardware and software, or a combination of both.
Firewalls are frequently used to prevent unauthorized Internet users from accessing private networks connected to the Internet, especially intranets.
All messages entering or leaving the intranet pass through the firewall, which examines each message and blocks those that do not meet the specified security criteria.
Many anti-virus programs contain firewalls which you can turn on or off when you want to download authorized new programs
Your Internet provider has numerous firewalls and other security precautions to protect them and all of us when we are using their Internet services

KEYBOARD - WHAT DO ALL THOSE KEYS DO?

KEYBOARD enables you to communicate with the computer by typing information and instructions into the computer (the type of keyboard we use are used for computers and cell phones as “QWERTY STYLE).

A NUMBERIC KEYPAD is located at the right of the keyboard. It is used like a 10-key calculator.

The top row of keys are FUNCTION KEYS. They perform specific tasks in software applications – such as F5 refreshes your screen when you are on the internet; F11 gives you a full screen for more viewing area.

ESC. or “ESCAPE” on the top left of your keyboard allows you to stop a task at anytime.

The CTRL or “CONTROL” keys are on the bottom left and right corners of your keyboard. They are used with other keys to complete commands.

The ENTER key is on the center row, right side of your keyboard. Use enter to move your cursor down a line.

The BACKSPACE key is on the right end of the row of number keys on your keyboard. Pressing the backspace key moves your cursor one space to the left, and eliminates any typing as it moves.

The 4 ARROW KEYS - up, down, left and right keys on the keyboard allow you to move around your document without destroying your work.
Up = one line;
Down = one line;
Left = one character or letter;
Right = one character or letter

The DELETE key will eliminate any typing to the right of the blinking cursor.

The PAGE UP & PAGE DOWN keys allow you to move up and down on a page of your document quickly.

The HOME key takes you to the beginning of your current line of type.

The END key takes you to the end of your current line of type.

The HOME key with the CTRL key, takes you to the very beginning of your document.

The END key with the CTRL key, takes you to the end of your document quickly.

Fun websites for May

It's Memorial Day Weekend and we thought you'd enjoy checking out a favorite Memorial Day website with lots of helpful information about the holiday and th way it is celebrated.. enjoy

www.usmemorialday.org

When I want to know which websites are “Hot” – we can always check out

www.allmyfaves.com

which we’ve been talking about for a few years now and is on our favorite list..

Another favorite website to visit that lists their opinion of the top “100 websites” is:

www.100bestwebsites.org

Want to travel from the comfort of home, then check out web cams all over the world, including spring tulip farms in Holland, the oil spill in the gulf, cape cod beaches, the Eiffel Tower and many many more:

www.earthcam.com

So check them out - and if you have a favorite website you'd like us to share with everyone - just send it to me and remember to save websites you visit to your favorite or bookmark list so they are easy to visit again in the future..

Enjoy the Internet - where we can learn & explore anytime - anywhere…

NAMING & SAVING WORK

NAME YOUR WORK AND SAVE IT OFTEN

• When you open a document in Word, Works, Excel, Power Point or any type of “creation’ application software – they will have a document or project number until we give them a name of our choice
• The more “new documents, spreadsheets, power point slide show presentations” you open” the higher the numbers get all day
• You want to ALWAYS name your document, spreadsheets, power point slide show presentations, ASAP, so you can find it
• To name to the document to the Menu Bar (or the office button in the newer Office 2007 products) Choose File – Save As – It will open “My Documents” , and either choose or create the folder you want to save your work in
• In class – if you also want to save it to your Flash/Memory stick, repeat the process and once you choose “Save As” remember to go to “My Computer” and find the DRIVE that your flash/Memory stick is on–now open “My Documents” and either choose or create the folder you want to save your work in
• NAME THE DOCUMENT so you can find it in the future – Click Ok or Save

TIPS:

• Once your work is saved – in the future – you can simply click on the SAVE ICON often which will save your additions and changes to the named document you have
• If you are creating a second document, then you would repeat the steps above, giving this work an entirely new name

COPY, PASTE & HIGHLIGHTING TIPS

COPY AND MOVE FILES & FOLDERS:
Cutting, copying, and pasting are essential techniques in working with and organizing files and folders. There are several ways to copy and move objects in Windows Explorer (AND TO OPEN WINDOWS EXPLORER-USE YOUR WINDOWS FLAG KEY + E)

• Copying a file or folder by using the Standard Buttons Toolbar
• Copying a file or folder by using the Menu
• Copying a file or folder by dragging

COPYING A GROUP OF DOCUMENTS, PHOTOS OR MUSIC:

• In the left pane, choose/highlight the drive you want to add items to: C Drive; Removable Drive or CD/DVD (to see what's on it); Right click on it – choose PROPERTIES on the menu list to see how much space is used/available
• Point to the drive you are taking the work/photo’s from, "C" drive, "My Documents", "Your folder".. On the right pane you will see all the sub-folder, highlight the folder/folders (see highlighting tips noted below) you want to copy, Activate COPY command
• In the left pane, Add/create a new folder for the items in the Drive they are going to
• Once created, point/highlight the folder the work is being sent to
• Now activate the PASTE command – you will see them flying over!!
• On the left pane, highlight the new folder and you will see all the work that’s been added on the right pane

To Copy documents from one folder to another, you can select all the documents by either holding down the shift or control buttons, then holding down the left mouse button and dragging the documents into the correct folder.

HIGHLIGHTING TIPS:

• JUST ONE ITEM: Simply left click on it to highlight it
• RANDOM: To highlight “random documents, files, pictures etc.: Hold down your CTRL key on the keyboard, then left click/choose the files you want
• GROUP: To highlight “group of documents, files, pictures, etc” Left click/choose the first picture or file in the group; hold down the SHIFT key on your keyboard, then left click/choose the last photo or file in the group
• ALL: To highlight all of the documents, files, pictures, etc. at once, simply use hold down your CTRL key and the letter A (CTRL+A) or go to the Menu Bar, File, and choose Select All.

HOW TO CUT/COPY & PASTE:

1. Select /highlight what you want to Cut or Copy
2. Then activate CUT or COPY (any of 5 ways)
3. Go to Where you Want what You’ve Cut or Copy to GO-be sure to choose the correct drive, folder and or sub-folder..
4. To find your travel drive-Open my computer & find the right drive Then activate PASTE (any of 5 ways)

Speeding Up Spreadsheet "Excel" Data Entry

When you are using spreadsheet software, such as Excel, and have a lot of data entry work to do for your mailing list or budget - try to use your keyboard instead of reaching for your mouse.

Using the mouse, is the slow way of doing anything on a computer. It's fine if you have only a small amount of data to enter or if you're not in a hurry. To speed up your data entry use the keyboard. Below is a list of keys that you can use when you want to quickly enter your data.

• Enter key: enters the data and moves the active cell highlight down to the next cell in the current column
• Tab key: enters the data and moves the active cell highlight to the next cell in the current row
• Arrow keys: enters the data and moves the active cell highlight to the next cell in the direction of the specific arrow key pressed. For example, if the up arrow is pressed, the active cell highlight moves up to the next cell in the current column
• Esc key: cancels the current data entry

Using Windows Explorer

Windows Explorer is the computers “filing cabinet” allowing you to quickly & easily move and or copy item (s) from one folder and or drive to another..

QUICK & EASY WAY TO OPEN "WINDOWS EXPLORER" use keyboard shortcut: hold down the windows flag key and tap the letter E... This will always open the Windows Explorer no matter where you are on your computer (minimizing anything else you had open)

• The Windows Explorer Screen is divided into two sections/panes: Left & right and divided with separator bar.
• In Windows Explorer - whatever is highlighted on the left column, is what you are looking at on the right side of the screen
• Windows Explorer Left Pane uses plus (+) and minus (-) signs to display or close what is in a folder in older operating systems (XP & older) and in the newer vists or 7, it uses > arrows

TO CREATE A FOLDER (OR SUB FOLDERS) IN WINDOWS EXPLORER:

• Open Windows Explorer – Expand whatever drive or folder you want to put your new folder in
• Be sure on the left that you have highlighted the folder you want your new folder to be in
• In older operating systems (XP or older) you can either right click on the folder/drive you are on or go to the menu bar, File, New, then choose folder - a folder will appear and you now type in the new name for this folder
• In newer operating systems (Vista or 7) you will see on the action bar at the top of your screen - New Folder or Create new folder - again when you choose this, a folder will appear and you now type in the new name for this folder

TIPS FOR BETTER DIGITAL PHOTOS

FIRST AND FOREMOST: Visit your camera manufacturer’s website – whether they will have lots of helpful tips and suggestions specific to your camera and how to take great pictures.. Always check the flash range and how close you can get to your subjects; which vary with every camera

GET CLOSER TO WHAT YOUR ARE PHOTOGRAPHING: The most common mistake we all make is that we are too far away from the person or object we are photographing… Get closer and if you aren’t sure how close – as always check your camera to see what the manufacturer recommends so your pictures are not blurry.

TAKE PHOTOS ON THE SAME LEVEL AS YOUR SUBJECT : Hold your camera at the same levels as who y0u are photographing – whether that is an adult, children or animal… Yes that might mean stooping down – but the results are wonderful… being at eye level improves the quality of your picture…

OFF CENTER HAS ITS ADVANTAGES: Often times if we move our subject to the side of the photo – versus dead center – our photo will have more life & personality… But remember if you have an auto-focus camera you need to lock it so it doesn’t focus on whatever is in the center

LOCK THE FOUCS: You can check the manufacturers recommendations on locking your focus, but usually all you have to do is center the subject and press and hold the shutter button halfway down, then when you are still holding the button, reposition your camera so the subject is away from the center and then pressing the shutter button all the way down to take the picture.

THE MORE SIMPLE THE BACKGROUND THE BETTER: too often our subjects get lost in the back ground – so consider shooting up towards the sky at your subject or have them move so that they don’t have “objects” growing out of their bodies, like chair legs or poles.

WHAT ABOUT LIGHTING?: No doubt, this is critical to great pictures – watch for shadows and don’t hesitate to move or have your subject move and on vacation, when you are attempting to take those great landscape shots, try to take pictures early or late in the day when the light had different tints and can greatly enhance your scenery shots.

SHOOTING IN BRIGHT SUNLIGHT: Consider using your flash to help lighten your subjects faces. Some cameras have 2 choices fill-flash mode or full-flash mode. We use fill-flash mode when the person is within five feet and we use full-power mode for beyond five feet… On overcast days – try your pictures both ways with & without the flash – often times without gives your photos a soft glow..

Digital Camera Terms & Tips

Some common digital camera terms we hear and what they mean:

ISO: Traditionally used as an indicator of sensitivity for film cameras, ISO on modern digital cameras represents the camera’s sensitivity to light. Generally, the darker the scene, the higher the ISO should be set.

APERTURE: The aperture, or “f-stop” to the film purists, is the amount of light the lens lets into the camera. This can be adjusted in single-lens reflex cameras. The aperture is fixed for most point-and-shoots.

IMAGE STABILIZATION: This refers to a part of the digital camera, built into the body or the lens, that prevents “camera shake” in pictures.

DIGITAL/OPTICAL ZOOM:

• OPTICAL ZOOM refers to the manual zoom on a camera, which is located on the lens. Twisting the lens moves it closer to the subject. This is important – they higher the optical zoom the more “zoom” ability you have – 3x optical zoom was common, but today many cameras have 10x & 12x zoom..
• DIGITAL ZOOM is not used by moving the lens, rather it is part of the software of the camera. Most digital cameras – even point-and-shoots – have a form of both. Many consider digital zoom – camera hype…

CONTINUOUS PHOTO SPEED/BUFFER: Every digital camera has continuous photo speed; the number you set it on is the number of photos you can take per second. The faster the camera’s continuous speed, the more photos you can get per second.

Two types of digital cameras

In general, there are two main types of cameras you can buy: the point-and-shoot and the SLR.

SLR MEANS SINGLE-LENS REFLEX, which means you are looking directly through the lens. SLR cameras often bring in a great deal more light and can be used as camcorders, Adams said. They are typically more expensive and are usually the top choice for pros and shutterbugs alike – one of the most popular is the Canon Rebel for about $750

POINT AND SHOOT CAMERA’S, this is by far the most popular type of digital camera sold today - point and shoot means that you are looking at the screen on the back which shows you what is coming through the megapixels on the lens. Some point-and-shoot cameras have their own technological advantages, however. The new Sony Cyber-shot camera, for example, can take panoramic images for you while you simply turn in a circle. It is a 10.2mp and cost about $250. So instead of having to work with, or manipulate the cameras “stitching feature” to accomplish the panoramic photos, the camera does it for you.

BUYING TIPS:
Consider the price - set your budget and stick with it - Camera technology is changing so rapidly that what is new today will be obsolete tomorrow
Consider asking to look at the discontinued models which are often much less expensive - remember yesterday they were "current" so consider buying something that has just been replaced with the newer model and save yourself some money - often as much as 50% or more

Music lovers-check out Pandora Radio – it’s free

Pandora Radio (which is free) is different from other Internet radio sites - check it out for yourself…

At: http://www.pandora.com/

According to Wikipedia.com, Pandora has two subscription plans:

• a free subscription supported by advertisements, and
• a fee-based subscription without ads.

A free account user may reach the streaming limit of 40 hours per month, and continue unlimited streaming by paying $0.99. There are also advertisements in "Pandora Mobile" for mobile phones and the "Pandora in The Home" computer appliance.

As of March 2010, Pandora had 700,000 tracks in its library and 48 million users who listened for 11.6 hours per month on average

To find out just how Pandora works, check out…

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/internet/basics/pandora.htm

How to Create & Printing an Envelope

If you just need just one envelope – be sure you are in a new document or if you have completed your letter: then follow one of the following – steps vary slightly depending on what level of word you may have…
For older versions of Word – Envelopes/Labels are under Tools on the Menu Bar
For newer versions of Word – Envelopes/Labels are under Mailings on the Menu Bar or Word 2007's Tab system - Many of you may have the envelope icon on your toolbar

• Highlight the address in your letter
• Click on the envelope icon (or access it from the Menu Bar or Tab)
• When the envelope dialog box is open - Click "options" to choose the envelope or label size/style you want
• Type in the info for send to (if it doesn’t appear) and return addresses
• Enter the information, Select Print Preview to be sure it is OK
• If you don’t want the return address: leave blank or check the "omit box"
• The dialog box will confirm how to feed your envelope into your printer OR
• Check the printer for the etching in the plastic-paper feed tray to out the envelope in correctly
• Be sure to use the slides in your printer tray to hold the envelope (s) snug
• Click Print

ALWAYS USE THE CORRECT-FULL 9 DIGIT ZIP CODE:
If you don't know what the correct 9 digit zip code is, go to: www.usps.com
and first red tab at the topo their page will help you find the correct zip code
We've been using 9 digit zip codes for many years now, so help your mail get delivered as quickly as possible by always using the correct 9 digit zip code

WHEN YOU USE AN ENVELOPE THAT HAS A BORDER:
Be sure to change the margins when you see the envelope on your screen so that what you have typed doesn’t get lost in the border…