Classes March & April 2011

This week, Spring Break is in full swing and the entire staff at Mohave Community College is enjoying a little time off, but Monday-March 21st the college reopens and we have lots of “for fun” classes scheduled..

When you aren’t taking classes at MCC, there is always something going on in Havasu and more often than not, there is so much going on you can’t do everything you’d like to…So check out these websites…

www.golakehavasu.com

www.bullheadchamber.com/forms/CalendarofEvents2010-2011.pdf

Computer class sizes tend to be a little smaller this time of year, so lots of extra personal attentiont – so call today and join us to make full use of your computer, digital camera and all those wonderful photos you are taking…Call Registration Monday and sign up 928-453-1139 or 855-7812…And remember to ask about our 25% off senior discount!!! If you aren't sure what class might be right for you just contact me and we'll make sure you choose the right class cherie_houston@hotmail.com


SOCIAL NETWORKING-FACEBOOK & BLOGGING LSC080-122: Two 4 hr. classes on Mar 22 & 25: Tuesday & Friday afternoons, 1pm-4:50pm

LAPTOP BASICS LSC100-122: One 4 hr. class on March 23, Wednesday morning, 8:30am-12:20pm

DIGITAL CAMERA BASICS LSC100A-222: Two 4 hr. classes on Mar 24 & 25: Thursday & Friday mornings, 8:30m-12:20pm

COMPUTERS BASICS LSC062-123: Two 4 hr. classes on Mar 28 & 30: Monday & Wednesday morning, 8:30am-12:20pm

FIND & ORGANIZE WHAT’S ON YOUR PC WITH WINDOWS EXPLORER LSC062-126: Two 4 hr. classes on March 28 & 30, Monday & Wednesday afternoons, 1pm-4:50pm

HOW TO BUY & SELL ONLINE LSC101-122 : Two 4 hr. classes on March 29 & 31, Tuesday & Thursday afternoons, 1pm-4:50pm

INTERNET & IT’S MANY USES LSC071-123, Two 4 hr. classes Apr. 4 & 6, Monday & Wednesday mornings8:30am-12:20pm

POWER POINT SLIDE SHOWS LSC069D-121: Two 4 hr. classes on April 4 & 11, Tuesday afternoons, 1pm-4:50pm

CREATE GREAT LOOKING DOCUMENTS USING MS WORD: LSC068-123: Two 4 hr. classes on April 5 & 12, Tuesday mornings, 8:30am-12:20pm

EXCEL LIST AND DATA MANAGEMENT LSC069-122: Two 4 hr. classes on April 5 & 12, Tuesday afternoons, 1pm-4:50pm

CREATE A BOOK WITH DIGITAL PHOTOS LSC100A-225: Two 4 hr. classes on Wednesday afternoons, April 6 & 13, 1pm- 4:50pm

MOVIE MAKER LSC100A- 227: Two 4 hr. classes on April 7 & 14, Thursday afternoons, 1pm-4:50pm

PICASA PHOTO EDITING LSC100A-123: Two 4 hr. classes on April 11 & 13, Monday & Wednesday morning, 8:30am-12:20pm

The History of St. Patricks Day

Today is March 17th and for many that means “wearing green” and celebrating the Irish St. Patrick… So Happy St. Patrick's Day to you all...

Some say that everyone is at least a little Irish on St. Patrick’s day..

St. Patrick’s Day is an Irish holiday celebrated all around the globe to honor the patron saint of Ireland, Saint Patrick. St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated each year on March 17. It is believed that he died on March 17 in the year 461 AD. It is also a worldwide celebration of Irish culture and history. St. Patrick’s Day is a national holiday in Ireland, and a provincial holiday in the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Thirty-four million Americans have Irish ancestry, according to the 2003 US Census. That’s almost nine times the population of Ireland, which has 4.1 million people

So we hope you enjoy your day and thought you might enjoy a few websites that explain better than we can the history of the holiday…

http://www.theholidayspot.com/patrick/historyofpatrick.htm

http://www.history.com/topics/st-patricks-day

http://www.history.com/topics/st-patricks-day

http://www.alphabet-soup.net/hol/sphist.html

What is the ESC Key and why is it used?

The ESC Key (normally in the upper left hand corner of a standard QWERTY keyboard and on many laptops) is a Microsoft Windows shortcut in dialog boxes for these actions:

• No
• Quit
• Exit
• Cancel
• Abort

The ESC Key is also a common shortcut key for the Stop button in many Internet web browsers

Should you upgrade to Windows 7?

So many of you ask – should you upgrade to Windows 7 Operating System (which came out in October 2009) from your current Windows XP or Windows Vista??

If your system is running perfectly well and you are happy with it – I wouldn't be in a hurry to make the change - but now that Windows 7 has been out for a while many would say "absolutely-upgrade"; it’s a personal choice.

Remember, if you purchase new application software - always check the back of the packaging to determine what the minimum operating system requirements are, because you might find that it will only run on Windows 7, so that will help to force your hand…

Before you do anything, go to the following link at Microsoft that will help you evaluate your current hardware and whether or not it is capable of making the upgrade. The most common change needed is having to increase the Random Access Memory (RAM)…This advisor link will walk you thru making your decision…

http://www.intowindows.com/download-windows-7-upgrade-advisor-check-if-your-pc-can-run-windows-7/

If and when you plan to upgrade – there are a few things you will want to have on hand first…

· An external hard disk. You'll need to move your files off of your PC before you install Windows 7. To make this easier, we recommend a free download called Windows Easy Transfer, which will require an external hard disk. They're readily available at electronics and office supply stores, and they provide an easy way to add additional storage space to your computer.

· The original installation discs or setup files for the programs that you want to use with Windows 7. You'll need to reinstall your programs by hand after installing Windows 7. When you run Windows Easy Transfer you will get a report that lists the programs that you are currently using with Windows XP or Vista

Most of Arizona doesn't change our clocks this weekendOUR CLOCKS THIS WEEKEND

Before you call family elsewhere in the country this Sunday March 13th 7th, remember the time difference between them and those of us here in Arizona is probably different than it was on Saturday...

This weekend on Sunday morning, March 13th at 2am, Daylight Savings Time will end and most states in the US will revert back to Daylight Savings Time - so before they go to bed Saturday evening, March 12th, 2011, most people in this country will set their clocks, watches and other time pieces AHEAD 1 HOUR.

Most computers and cable boxes will make this change automatically without our help..

Several states, including most of us here in Arizona (except some Indian Reservations), Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and American Samoa have chosen not to observe Daylight Saving Time so they, like us, do not change their clocks at anytime during the year.

Want to know when clocks change in other parts of the world - check out this website...

http://www.timeanddate.com/time/dst/2011.html

Greetings from MCC Hodel Library

Hello again from Hodel Library at MCC Lake Havasu Campus!

We were happy to have so many folks from Spring Frenzy come over to sign-up for free library cards and we’re looking forward to meeting more of you. We can show you how to look at Consumer Reports on your computer. We have access to a wonderful database called NoveList where you can read book reviews, get ideas for books you might enjoy based on the authors you like, and look at book club discussion ideas. Currently, we also have access to a trial version of A to Z World Travel which is an in-depth and easy to use database about things you should know before you vacation in different countries.

The best part? It’s all free! For more information, call or email us at the Library..
Thanks, Wendi Birkhead, Campus Librarian

Wendi Birkhead, MLS
Campus Librarian, Hodel Library - Lake Havasu City Campus
Mohave Community College, 1977 W. Acoma Blvd, Lake Havasu City, AZ 86403
Tel 928-453-5809 - Toll Free: 1.866.664.2832
wbirkhead@mohave.edu
www.mohave.edu/library

Converting File Formats - Music & Videos

Making sure files are in the correct format is very important when we are “inserting” them into projects such as videos and music into PowerPoint Presentations, MovieMaker, PicasaMovies and others..

That includes when you want to download a YouTube video for use in either a MovieMaker project or PowerPoint.

This free software/tool does everything you need and much more and also has great additional conversions for all types of applications and is one of my personal favorites… It is a great program “free” to convert music, videos (even YouTube Videos) and much more for use in numerous applications including Movie Maker, PowerPoint presentations etc…

Remember with many of the free & other programs, it is advisable to use the smallest files possible, such as MP3 for music vs. mp4 and this software helps you with all those conversions..

Download from www.dvdvideosoft.com

1. Chooser to install all programs – FREE STUDIO 5.0.4
2. This way you can then do various types of conversions for all types of projects
3. Once installed it will put a great shortcut on your desktop-called Free Studio Manager. This is the complete interface for the suite of programs that are available from dvdvideosoft.com.

Note for Power Point Users: While it is faster to simply link to a YouTube video that will play in your PowerPoint presentation, the down side of this is that you must have a live & fast internet connection for the YouTube video to play.

Here is a link to a youtube video that walks you thru inserting the link directly into the PowerPoint if you have a good internet connection:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RApFAXMtero

When you are unsure about the internet connection where you are going to do your presentation with, you can embed the YouTube video right into your PowerPoint presentation. No internet connection needed.

And also refer to updates & video tutorials which are referenced on our class blog to make this easier.. Using this and other programs simply takes a little practice – so play & enjoy…

Google Docs - Part 2 of 2

For anyone who is using Google Doc's - Google has a great new software plug-in “Cloud Connect” that easily will move any and all of our Office Word, Excel and PowerPoint files to Google Docs.

Cloud Connect, was released by Google on Thursday Feb 24^th, 2011 and it will allow users to save our files to save their files to "the cloud," which in this case is on Googles servers.

That means that once our files are saved in Google Docs, we can then edit files in Microsoft Office and sync them up to the clouds. This will also mean that it will be much easier if and when we want to collaborate on documents and will eliminate the confusion as to which version of a document is the most recent one.

"For example, you can edit a Word document's Opening Page of Grandma’s Life Story from Lake Havasu, AZ, while your sister in Quincy, MA is adding the family tree and your brother in Weymouth, MA is making other revisions.. This way, instead of having to send emails with tons of attachments, your whole family or group can work together."

And the great news is that Google will save every revision of any document users of Cloud Connect make, whether those edits take place in Office or Google Docs. And files can be shared in a view-only form via Google Docs as well with each document getting a unique Web address (just in case you don’t want someone make changes).

Cloud Connect is free and works with Office 2003, 2007 and 2010 on Windows PCs. Cloud Connect, however, won't work with Mac versions of Office. Sorry – it’s not available for Mac Users yet, but Google indicates it’s working on it, so no doubt it will be in the near future….

Check it out for yourself…

http://tools.google.com/dlpage/cloudconnect

What are Google Docs - Part 1 of 2

Have you tried Google Doc’s yet? Check it out - if you have Internet access, you can use the various aspects of Google Docs, which include Documents (Word Processing); Spreadsheets; Presentations, Drawings and Forms..

Google Docs is great for:

• anyone who travels so you can access your documents anytime anywhere


• groups who want to collaborate on various projects


• those who only use word processing software once in a while and don’t want to buy and download software on their computer...

Why Google Doc's is becoming so popular:

• You store your documents online, so you can access your documents from any computer


• No need to transfer documents to flash or portable drives or "synch" anything


• Works great with all Microsoft Office products, such as Word, Excel & PowerPoint, as well as OpenOffice, so you can upload or download your files.


• You can export documents as PDF files, so if you have Office 97-2003, this is a great/free way to convert documents to PDFs without having to upgrade to Office 2007 or 2010, or use other plug-ins


• Easy to collaborate on projects-you can make a document public or show it to others by sending a link. If you want to allow others to work on the document, you can send out an email to others notifying them that they can access the document.

Use your existing email account to sign into & set-up a Google Account-this video on YouTube explains just how to do that:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJpkRbNto7E

Google's How To Videos

One of my favorite Boston based tech support people, Kevin Bachleder, recently shared with us a wonderful website that we should all add to our favorites/bookmarks…

http://www.teachparentstech.org/

This great website, provided by GOOGLE, shares with us their new 54 how-to videos tutorials produced and hosted by their Google employees. Each of the video tutorials runs for just under a minute on a wide variety of topics to help us better understand some of the new (and old) computer technology..

These video tutorials are a wonderful way to reinforce the “how to steps” on a variety of topics that we ask others to help us with each and every day… They cover such basics as "how to attach a file to an email" or "how to copy and paste" through to "how to find cheap flights."

So, like our other favorite Google website: http://www.allmyfaves.com/

This new one is a great addition to our favorites/bookmarks..

And if you’d like to read a little more about the new Google video help site, read the article in December 2010 PC Magazine:

www.pcworld.com/article/213621/send_your_parents_a_care_package_of_howto_videos.html

Skype - Version 5

With Skype you can make free video & voice calls over the Internet to other people anywhere in the world on Skype for as long as you like, wherever you like. Some features of Skype include free Skype-to-Skype calls, free video skype to skype calls, conference calls, instant messaging, SMS messaging and the ability to forward all calls to your mobile phone when you're offline. Skype to Skype is totally free.

Skypes “free software” must be downloaded on the computer you are using, to use Skype to make free calls or video calls.

The newest version of Skype is their 5.0 version, and the main feature that I can see is allowing group video calls. I've used Skype for more than 6 years but originally it was just a voice service for free calls from one computer to another..

We are also seeing that Skype and Facebook are working together so if friends and family have Facebook, you can make free Skype-to-Skype calls and send them “text” messages to their cell phones.

To download skype or check them out, go to www.skype.com

Skype was launched in August 2003 and it’s reported that Skype has almost 15% of the international voice market and 40+% of the video call market – so they seem to be doing something right. On Skypes Blog, they’ve stated that the word Skype is a Chuvash word ... meaning "The whole world can talk for free"

Working With Bookmarks/Favorites In Chrome by Google

FOR THOSE OF US WHO USE “CHROME" GOOGLE'S WEB BROWSER, use the bookmark manager to organize your bookmarks and folders. Remember "Website Favorites" are called "Bookmarks" in Chrome & other browsers.. To open the manager, follow these steps:

1. Click the wrench icon (in the upper right hand corner of your chrome web page screen) on the browser toolbar. Mac users: If you don't see the wrench icon, go to the menu bar at the top of your screen and click Bookmarks.
2. Select Bookmark manager.

Here are a few tips for using the manager:

• Move bookmarks or folders around
  Simply click the item you want to move and drag it to its new destination within the folder list on the left.
• Edit the name or web address of a bookmark, or a folder name
  Select the item you'd like to edit, click the Organize menu, then select Edit. You can also easily edit bookmarks and folders from the bookmarks bar by right-clicking the item in question and selecting Rename.
• Search bookmarks
  Use the search box at the top to quickly find a bookmark within the manager.
• Add a new bookmark folder
  In the folder list on the left, right-click the location where you want the new folder to reside and select Add folder
• Delete a bookmark or folder
  Right-click the item and select Delete.

WORKING WITH FAVORITES IN INTERNET EXPLORER:

To organize your list of Favorite Websites:

If you have added to your list and didn’t put addresses into specific topic related folders you can do it anytime to make it easier to find items of similar interest… To do so…

• Left Click on FAVORITES
• Left Click on ORGANIZE and your list will appear
• To move a web address to a folder, left click on the site which highlights it
• Then left click on “MOVE TO FOLDER”; then left click on the FOLDER to put it in, OR
• CREATE NEW FOLDER” and then repeat the process and “MOVE TO FOLDER”.
• When you are finished left click OK

To alphabetize your Favorite List:

• Left click on FAVORITES on the menu bar (not the toolbar icon)
• Point to and highlight any item on the list – then RIGHT CLICK on that item
• A menu will appear – toward the bottom of the menu – choose “SORT BY NAME”
• Left Click “SORT BY NAME” - all items in your Favorite List are alphabetized
• Addresses not put in specific folders are always at the bottom of the list

President’s Day ~ Washington's Birthday

A little trivia about President’s Day, which is celebrated today Monday, February 21st this year and Presidents in general.. Did you know that:

THE THIRD MONDAY IN FEBRUARY is designated in the United States as Washington's Birthday, but now commonly known as Presidents Day.

1885 IS WHEN WASHINGTON’S BIRTHDAY BECAME A FEDERAL HOLIDAY – although many across the newly formed United States celebrated Washington's Birthday in the 17th century while George Washington was still alive, it didn’t become a federal holiday until 1885 when Chester Arthur signed the official bill

BARACK OBAMA IS OUR 44TH PRESIDENT, but there actually have only been 43 presidents: Cleveland was elected for two nonconsecutive terms and is counted twice, as our 22nd and 24th president.

EIGHT PRESIDENTS WERE BORN BRITISH SUBJECTS: Washington, J. Adams, Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, J. Q. Adams, Jackson, and W. Harrison.

NINE PRESIDENTS NEVER ATTENDED COLLEGE: Washington, Jackson, Van Buren, Taylor, Fillmore, Lincoln, A. Johnson, Cleveland, and Truman. The college that has the most presidents as alumni (seven in total) is Harvard: J. Adams, J. Q. Adams, T. Roosevelt, F. Roosevelt, Kennedy, G. W. Bush (business school), and Barack Obama (law school). Yale is a close second, with five presidents as alumni: Taft, Ford (law school), G.H.W. Bush, Clinton (law school), and G. W. Bush.

PRESIDENTS WHO WOULD BE CONSIDERED "WASHINGTON OUTSIDERS" (i.e., the 18 presidents who never served in Congress) are: Washington, J. Adams, Jefferson, Taylor, Grant, Arthur, Cleveland, T. Roosevelt, Taft, Wilson, Coolidge, Hoover, F. Roosevelt, Eisenhower, Carter, Reagan, Clinton, and G. W. Bush.

MOST COMMON RELIGIOUS AFFILIATION among presidents has been Episcopalian, followed by Presbyterian.

ANCESTRY OF 42 PRESIDENTS is limited to the following seven heritages, or some combination thereof: Dutch, English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Swiss, or German.

BARACK OBAMA IS THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN to be elected president of the United States. He was also born in Hawaii, making him the first president not born in the continental United States.

OLDEST & YOUNGEST PRESIDENTS: The oldest elected president was Reagan (age 69); the youngest was Kennedy (age 43). Theodore Roosevelt, however, was the youngest man to become president—he was 42 when he succeeded McKinley, who had been assassinated.

THE OLDEST LIVING FORMER PRESIDENT: was Gerald Ford, who was born on July 14, 1913, and died on Dec.27, 2006, at age 93. The second oldest was Ronald Reagan, who also lived to be 93 years.

TALLEST & SHORTEST PRESIDENTS: The tallest president was Lincoln at 6'4"; at 5'4", Madison was the shortest.

EIGHT LEFT-HANDED PRESIDENTS: James A. Garfield, Herbert Hoover, Harry S. Truman, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama

These trivia facts were from the following websites:

http://americanhistory.about.com/od/holidays/tp/presidents_day.htm

http://www.infoplease.com/spot/prestrivia1.html

Tips to use your mouse effectively

USING YOUR MOUSE CORRECTLY

• Left Click – Makes something happen “gives the computer a command”
• Right Click – Will always show you an action menu list of commands to choose from, based on whatever your mouse/cursor is on…

MOUSE SELECTION “HIGHLIGHTING” SHORTCUTS

TO SELECT A LINE OF TEXT: Place the mouse pointer in the left gutter area (the mouse will turn into a right facing arrow). Now left click the left mouse button once.

TO SELECT A BLOCK OF TEXT: Place the insertion point at the beginning of the block of text you want to select, Hold down the SHIFT Key, Place the I-beam at the end of the block of text and left click the left mouse button.

TO SELECT THE ENTIRE DOCUMENT: Left click Edit on the menu bar and Choose Select All, OR Hold CTRL Key + A

TO DE-SELECT (or unselect) ANYTHING HIGHLIGHTED/SELECTED: Left click anywhere in the white space of your document.

Warning-Phone Numbers on Facebook!

Do you, your friends or family have a facebook account?? Then it's possible your home, cell, work and other telephone numbers are listed on Facebook?

Yes that's right - If you or your friends or family, has a friend on Facebook that posts or reads posts on Facebook using their iPhone app (on any smartphone) to access Facebook, then it ‘s more than likely that your private phone numbers (home, work, cell and any others they have noted in their contact list) and those for everyone else in their contact list that has a Facebook accounts - will all be matched up and listed on Facebook!

How & Why?? Because Facebook's "Contact Sync" feature, which synchronises friends' Facebook profile pictures with the contacts in their phone. So it imports/uploads all the names and phone numbers you have on your (smart)phone, uploads them to Facebook's Phonebook app and then matches them up with all users on your account and so on & so forth...the implications are overwhelming on our personal information being shared..

Be sure to check your friends & change your Privacy Settings:: When you are on your Facebook Account, go to the top right corner of your screen, click Account, then Edit Friends. Go to the left side of your screen and click phonebook. Everyone's phone numbers are now being published.

Let friends and family know this, so telephone numbers can be removed.

To change privacy settings: go to Privacy settings, then to phone, then to customize and choose "only me"

Remember - options change in your privacy settings, so check them often to be sure of what is and isn't activated...

Weekend happenings & MCC classes

So much to do and so little time… When you aren’t taking classes at Mohave Community College - there is always something going on in Havasu and more often than not, there is so much going on you can’t do everything you’d like to…So check out these websites…

http://www.golakehavasu.com/

www.bullheadchamber.com/forms/CalendarofEvents2010-2011.pdf

This weekend
Thursday-Sunday, February 17-20th, WinterBlast..Sara Park, Visit website: www.westernpyro.org

Thursday-Monday, February 17th-21st, Havasu Pocket Cruisers - A gathering of sailors and their trailerable sailboats from across the country - Daytime sailing events on the Lake

Friday-Sunday, February 18-20th, Rockabilly Reunion - Pre ‘68 vintage car and motorcycle show, carnival, food and beverage vendors, beer garden, pin-up girl contest, swap meet, vendor village, giveaways, 1950s hair salon and barber. Gate entry $5-Windsor Beach, London Bridge Road

COMPUTER CLASSES:
Learn something new - lots of fun classes at MCC begin every day - Interested in computers or doing more with your digital photos, there are seats are still available in some of our late February-early March classes, so be sure to call Registration and sign up today 928-453-1139 or 855-7812…And remember to ask about our 25% off senior discount!!!

MOVIE MAKER LSC100A- 125: Two 4 hr. classes on Feb 28 & Mar 7, Monday mornings, 8:30am-12:20pm

INTERNET AND IT’S MANY USES LSC071-122: Two 4 hr. classes on Feb 28 & Mar 2: Monday & Wednesday afternoon, 1pm-4:50pm

FIND & ORGANIZE WHAT’S ON YOUR PC WITH WINDOWS EXPLORER LSC062-125: Two 4 hr. classes on Tuesday & Thursday afternoon, March 1 & 3, 1pm-4:50pm

POWER POINT SLIDE SHOWS: LSC069D-121: Two 4 hr. classes on Tuesday & Wednesday morning, March 1st & 2nd, 8:30am-12:20pm

WORD – WORKING WITH TABLES LSC100-124 : One 4 hr. class on Thursday morning, March 3rd 8:30am-12:20pm

PICASA PHOTO EDITING: LSC100A-122: Two 4 hr. classes on Tuesday & Wednesday mornings, March 8th & 9th , 8:30am-12:20pm

CREATE A BOOK WITH DIGITAL PHOTOS: LSC100A-224: Two 4 hr. classes on Wednesday afternoons, March 9th & 23rd, 1pm- 4:50pm

CREATE GREAT LOOKING DOCUMENTS USING MS WORD: LSC068-122: Two 4 hr. classes on Thursday & Friday mornings, March 10th & 11th 8:30am-12:20pm

EMAIL HOW TO’S-BASIC & ADVANCED: LSC071-124: Two 4 hr. classes on Thursday afternoons, March 10th & 24th 1pm-4:50pm

All MCC campuses will be closed Saturday-Sunday, March 12th thru 20th for Spring Break... All classes will resume on Monday, March 21st...

We'd enjoy hearing your comments on our new "blog" design....and as always if you have questions you'd like answered just email me at cherie_houston@hotmail.com anytime..

How to change what programs run at Start-up

How & why to change what programs run at “start-up” when you turn your computer on..Many of the programs installed on your computer, automatically “RUN” as soon as we start our computer each time and stay running the entire time our computer is on – Most run with or without our permission and can slow our computer down considerably…

We can control which programs run and which don’t when we start-up our computer and it’s easy to do this… When you want to see what is running at Start-Up, Open your Start Menu (Windows Flag Key) and you can then modify ~ add or delete ~ the programs in your Microsoft Configuration Utility…

• Open the Start Menu (either click on Start or the Windows Icon, or Tap your Windows Flag Key on the keyboard)
• At the bottom of the start menu, type "msconfig" into the search bar.
• Press "Enter" and then open the "Startup" tab of the window that appears. Programs that run at startup have checks next to their listing.
• Uncheck the boxes next to programs you don't want to run at startup.
• Check the boxes next to programs that you do want to run at startup.
• Click "Apply" and "OK."

Valentines Day Trivia & Fun & Recipe websites…

Happy Valentines Day everyone… What a wonderful holiday to break the long winter months…

Every February we celebrate Valentine's Day by giving flowers, candy and cards to those we love and we all remember those days when we were young and eagerly awaited the valentine celebrations when we first started school.

This celebration is in honor of Saint Valentine. But here are a few trivia facts you may not know…about Valentines Day and St. Valentine"?

• The history of Valentine's Day — and its patron saint “St. Valentine” are shrouded in mystery. But we do know that February has long been a month of romance. St. Valentine's Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition
• According to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated one billion valentine cards are sent each year, making Valentine's Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year. (An estimated 2.6 billion cards are sent for Christmas.)
• Approximately 85 percent of all valentines are purchased by women. In addition to the United States, Valentine's Day is celebrated in Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France, and Australia
• Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages (written Valentine's didn't begin to appear until after 1400), and the oldest known Valentine card is on display at the British Museum. The first commercial Valentine's Day greeting cards produced in the U.S. were created in the 1840s by Esther A. Howland. Howland, known as the Mother of the Valentine, made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colorful pictures known as "scrap.
• Another valentine gentleman you may be wondering about is Cupid (Latin cupido, "desire"). In Roman mythology Cupid is the son of Venus, goddess of love. His counterpart in Greek mythology is Eros, god of love. Cupid is often said to be a mischievous boy who goes around wounding both gods and humans with his arrows, causing them to fall in love.

www.holidays.kaboose.com/valentines-day

www.allrecipes.com//Recipes/holidays-and-events/valentines-day/Main.aspx

www.foodnetwork.com/valentines-day/package/index.html>

You know more than you think about computers...

I want to thank one of our students in AZ, Patti W for sharing these-thought you'd enjoy them...they might just make you feel better about your computer skills!

Tech support: What kind of computer do you have?
Customer: A white one...

===============

Customer: Hi, this is Celine .. I can't get my diskette out.
Tech support: Have you tried pushing the Button?
Customer: Yes, sure, it's really stuck.
Tech support: That doesn't sound good; I'll make a note.
Customer: No, wait a minute. I hadn't inserted it yet... it's still on my desk... Sorry...

===============

Tech support: Click on the 'my computer' icon on to the left of the screen.
Customer: Your left or my left?

===============

Tech support: Good day. How may I help you?
Male customer: Hello... I can't print.

Tech support: Would you click on 'start' for me and....
Customer: Listen pal; don't start getting technical on me! I'm not Bill Gates.
===============

Customer: Hi, good afternoon, this is Martha , I can't print. Every time I try, it says 'Can't find printer'. I've even lifted the printer and placed it in front of the monitor, but the computer still says he can't find it.

============== =

Customer: I have problems printing in red..
Tech support: Do you have a color printer?
Customer: Aaaah.....................thank you.

===============

Tech support: What's on your monitor now, ma'am?
Customer: A teddy bear my boyfriend bought for me at the 7-11.===============

Customer: My keyboard is not working anymore.

Tech support: Are you sure it's plugged into the computer?
Customer: No. I can't get behind the computer.
Tech support: Pick up your keyboard and walk 10 paces back.
Customer: OK
Tech support: Did the keyboard come with you?
Customer: Yes
Tech support: That means the keyboard is not plugged in. Is there another keyboard?
Customer: Yes, there's another one here. Ah, that one does work.

===============

Tech support: Your password is the small letter 'a' as in apple, a capital letter V as in Victor, the number 7.
Customer: Is that 7 in capital letters?

===============

Customer: I can't get on the Internet.

Tech support: Are you sure you used the right password?
Customer: Yes, I'm sure. I saw my colleague do it.
Tech support: Can you tell me what the password was?
Customer: Five dots.

===============

Tech support: What anti-virus program do you use?
Customer: Netscape.

Tech support: That's not an anti-virus program.
Customer: Oh, sorry... Internet Explorer.

===============

Customer: I have a huge problem. A friend has placed a screen saver on my computer, but every time I move the mouse, it disappears.
===============

Tech support: How may I help you?
Customer: I'm writing my first email.
Tech support: OK, and what seems to be the problem?
Customer: Well, I have the letter 'a' in the address, but how do I get the little circle around it?

===============

A woman customer called the Canon help desk with a problem with her printer.
Tech support: Are you running it under windows?
Customer: 'No, my desk is next to the door, but that is a good point. The man sitting in the cubicle next to me is under a window, and his printer is working fine.'

===============

And last but not least...

Tech support: 'Okay Bob , let's press the control and escape keys at the same time. That brings up a task list in the middle of the screen. Now type the letter 'P' to bring up the Program Manager.'
Customer: I don't have a P .
Tech support: On your keyboard, Bob .
Customer: What do you mean?

Tech support: “P” - on your keyboard, Bob
Customer: I'M NOT GOING TO DO THAT

How to get better digital photos & videos

First ~ be sure you have visited the specific website for your camera – this is the quickest and easiest way to learn all the specific features of your digital camera and all that it can do. Most camera manufacturer’s websites have tutorials that will teach you- via video – all the specific features unique to your camera; once there, save it to your favorites and visit the site often…

Second ~ go to your favorite search engine - Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc.. and search for your digital camera or camcorder model + tutorial, many times tutorials are created by users like yourself, who love their camera and have wonderful tips to create better photos and make the most of your new camera and all that it has to offer.
Third ~ The following are some popular websites to help you improve the quality of the photos and videos that you take and to learn more about “digital photography” from the comfort of your home… explore and enjoy:

• http://www.better-digital-photo-tips.com/
• http://www.dcresource.com/
• http://www.digicamhelp.com/
• http://www.digital-camera-help.com/
• http://www.digital-cameras-help.com/
• http://www.digitalphotography.tipcentral.net/
• http://www.digital-photography-school.com/
• http://www.digital-photography-tips.net/
• http://www.digitalphototipsandmore.com/
• http://www.homephotog.com/
• http://www.photographycourse.net/
• http://www.takegreatpictures.com/

Puzzle & game websites

Free Puzzle Websites, including crossword and word search puzzles and if you are looking for more games – remember to use http://www.allmyfaves.com/ for great websites on any topic you can think of…

http://www.webcrosswords.com/

http://www.wordgames.com/

www.puzzles.about.com/popular.htm

www.nytimes.com/pages/crosswords

Spring Frenzy 2011 Begins Tomorrow Feb 7th

Spring Frenzy is a week long event in Lake Havasu City geared for adults - local and visitors alike and will be held Monday – Friday February 7-11th…

There are over 100 classes and activities offered - many at the Aquatic Center, but others in the community including at Mohave Community College. Every class you can think of is offered from - swimming, floral arranging, wine tasting, etc..... The week ends with a dinner and dance. Cost is only $4 per class; $10 per day or $30 per week

I will be teaching 1 hour computer classes on a variety of topics Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9am-5pm - so if you haven't registered already stop by the Aquatic Center and sign up...

Spring Frenzy began “10 years ago” in 2001 with 92 people participating – this year LHC expects more than 1,500 people to participate. Now that’s a success story thanks to the hard work and dedication of LHC’s Park & Recreation Dept. at the Aquatic Center and all of the businesses throughout the city that participate, including Mohave Community College…

For “what’s happening” in Lake Havasu City or Bullhead City, be sure to check out these websites… there is always something going on and more often than not, there is so much going on you can’t do everything you’d like to…

http://www.golakehavasu.com/

www.bullheadchamber.com/forms/CalendarofEvents2010-2011.pdf

And remember - next weekend Saturday & Sunday, Feb. 12th and 13th is Winterfest on McCulloch Blvd McCulloch Boulevard - from Acoma to Smoketree - is transformed into a giant street fair complete with food and merchandise vendors, music and entertainment. There is something for every age. There are RVs and offroad vehicles for adults to look at and pony rides and inflatables for the children

GREAT WEBSITES FOR SUPER BOWL SUNDAY….

This coming Sunday, February 6th, 2011 is "Super Bowl" Sunday. No doubt this is a fact known by every die hard football fans and everyone around them... Thought you'd enjoy checking out the NFL's 45 Super Bowl Website and we also found some great websites for Super Bowl Recipe ideas... So enjoy...

45th NFL SuperBowl Website:

www.nfl.com/superbowl/45

Super Bowl Recipe Idea Websites:

www.delish.com/entertaining-ideas/party-ideas/superbowl-food

www.cooksrecipes.com/holiday-recipes/super-bowl-party-recipes.html

www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Holiday---Celebration-Recipes/Super-Bowl-Recipes

Tutorial for Picasa's many features

There are so many wonderful features to use in Picasa ~ a great free software program from Google, that allows you edit and be creative with your digital photos..

If you don't already have Picasa on your computer, just go to their website and download the free software - it's easy and only takes a minute... you may be pleasantly surprised by all the photos it finds on your computer that you knew you had but couldn't find!!

www.Picasa.com

For those of you who do have Picasa and are confused or not sure how to use some of the many features - such as their new picnic editing; name tags which recognizes faces; creating a movie; using web albums to share entire photo folders, geotagging and much much more - Google has a great tutorial website that will work with you on all these wonderful features... This is definitely a website that should be in your favorites...

www.picasatutorials.com

So if you are bored on these cold winter days... experiment with your digital photos and videos and you'll be amazed at all you can do and how easy it is...

Tutorials for Windows Movie Maker 2.6

Windows Movie Maker 2.6 (which is an older version than the new Windows Live Movie Maker) but is more enjoyable to use. Movie Maker 2.6 allows you to be more creative has more options to work with your digital photos, music and video when "creating" your new movie...

There are many websites you can go to to download Windows Movie Maker 2.6, but this one is quick & easy and much less confusing - it only takes a few moments to download it and you will then find it in your start menu and/or in your Program Listing...

Windows Movie Maker 2.6 free software download
http://en.kioskea.net/download/download-124-windows-movie-maker

The following websites at Microsoft will help you when you forget what you've learned in class... Check out each of these websites and save them to your favorites for future reference..

Let Movie Maker create a movie for you
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/moviemaker/getstarted/movies.mspx

AutoMovie, a feature of Movie Maker, automatically creates a movie for you using a theme, title, and background music of your choosing. AutoMovie is the best way to quickly see what Movie Maker can do. This article shows you how to use AutoMovie to create an exciting movie in just a few minutes.

Create and trim video clips
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/moviemaker/getstarted/clips.mspx

Movie Maker can automatically split your home movies, which might be an hour long on a single tape, into smaller clips that are easier to edit. You can also manually trim your video clips to show just the most interesting moments. This article shows you how to use Movie Maker to automatically split movies into short clips and then how to manually divide those clips.

Work with Movie Maker Collections
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/moviemaker/create/collections.mspx

Movie Maker organizes your video, music, and pictures into collections. You can then drag items in your collections to your storyboard to make a movie. This article shows you how to add items to your collections, edit items, and add them to your storyboard.

Use special features to polish your movie
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/moviemaker/create/polish.mspx

Once you add video clips to your storyboard, you can make your movie more fun and professional-looking by adding transitions, special effects, background music, narration, titles, and credits. This video and series of articles show you how.

Save your movie in different formats
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/moviemaker/create/formats.mspx

Once your movie is polished, find out how to save it and share it with your friends.

Enjoy the Library at MCC

Hello everyone and greetings from the Hodel Library at Mohave Community College-Lake Hsavasu City Campus..

I would like to invite anyone who is interested to visit the Library for a one-on-one demonstration of the online databases, so:

• If you are hunting down branches of your family tree, we can show you how to access Ancestry.com or Heritage Quest.
• If you are a quilter or collector, you might enjoy reading articles from the Hobbies and Crafts Reference Center.
• If you have a question about a medical issue, you can get up-to-date information (and sometimes videos) with Consumer Health Complete.
• If you need to use a computer - we have a complete computer lab with printers for your use (an no time limits)

Just ask for Wendi or Mary Jo at 928-453-5809 or 928-453-5809. Or, you can come on by and visit with us in person at Mohave Community College 1977 Acoma Blvd. West (we’re located toward the back of the campus, not far from the 500 Computer Class Building).

Check us out online: www.mohave.edu/library

Remember, the Hodel Library is open to everyone in Lake Havasu City!

Wendi Birkhead, MLS, Campus Librarian
Hodel Library - Lake Havasu City Campus
Mohave Community College
1977 W. Acoma Blvd
Lake Havasu City, AZ 86403
wbirkhead@mohave.edu

Who is PayPal and why would you use them?

Wikipedia's description of PayPal: PayPal is an e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet..

But to me: PayPal is simply an easy and safe way to pay for things that I buy online…

Many say that PayPal is:

• the fastest, safest easiest way to pay and get paid
• the most popular online payment source in the world today
• lets us send money to anyone with email
• free for consumers
• works very easily with our existing credit cards and checking accounts
• easy to join-it takes just a few minute to set-up your free online account

Personally, I like the fact that I can shop online and not share my financial information with the company I am buying from (credit or debit card or checking account information with anyone other than paypal). Everyone seems to agree that PayPal uses the newest and best anti-fraud technology to help protect us and our financial information… so that if a companies information is compromised my account information isn’t…

With PayPal it’s also easy to transfer money to anyone, anytime, anywhere in the world from whatever computer you may be at.

You can pay most retailers on the internet with PayPal and in some cases that is the only payment form they accept.

If it’s free than how does Pay Pal make it’s money. Easy, they charge the sellers for each transaction. So for “sellers” the rumblings are that PayPal’s fees are increasing much too high and much too quickly!!

Visit their website for more information: www.paypal.com

What are Internet Cookies?

Cookies are helpful, because they make it easier for us to “move around” when we revisit a website again in the future..

Cookies are pieces of information that actually create a very small “text file” which is placed in a folder on the hard drive of our computer - they are generated/created when we visit a website, by the server that the web page is on. Some people say it’s like “our id card” so that when we go back and revisit a website, it tells that website that we are back – not us really, but that the computer we are using is back visiting the website again!!!

We can delete or change the way in which cookies and/or temporary Internet files are saved by changing our Internet settings. The way we change our Internet settings varies depending on the Internet Browser and level of Browser that we use…Remember there are different browsers (all of which are free) and different members of a family might use different browsers..

Some of us might use Internet Explorer 7, 8 or even 9 (Microsoft products); some might use Chrome by Google; others might use FireFox by Mozilla, while others who have an Apple Mac might use Safari.. and the list goes on…

If you aren’t sure how to change your Internet settings, for your specific browser software and level, you might want to visit this website and save it in your favorites…

http://www.aboutcookies.org/

Excel 2010 - Create an "Auto Fill List" Office 2010

EXCEL 2010 - HOW TO CREATE/ADD YOUR OWN CUSTOMIZED “AUTO FILL LIST” (this has changed a little since earlier versions of Excel)

If you have a list/header row already typed on a spreadsheet – skip this step

“Type your list either in the first row or the first column” of an Excel spreadsheet

• Highlight this customized list that you want to add to the Auto Fill Master list
• Now, go to the File Tab & choose “Options”
• In the Options list – in the left column, Choose Advanced
• Bring the scroll bar on the right down almost to the bottom.. until you see the button “EDIT CUSTOM LIST” (to the right of “create lists for the use in sort 7 fill sequences”)
• That Opens the Edit Custom List Dialog Box – toward the bottom right, left click in the button Import
• Now you will see your list in the right column-“List Entries” and in the left list “Custom Lists” – Click OK

Notes:

• If you have a list in another program (word, word perfect, email, etc) – simply highlight and copy the list in that program, open the Edit Custom List Dialog Box, right click and choose paste – the list will not be in the “List Entries” and when you add it – it will be added with the commas after each word/phrase.
• To change this list in the future (add or remove titles), come back to this dialog box, left click on the custom list on the left side that you want to change – the list will appear in the “List Entries” on the right – make the change and then click on ADD, then click OK
• You can only change “custom lists” you’ve created, not ones that came with your software..

INTERNET – EVERYTHING IS SO SMALL..

When what you are looking at on the Internet is too small – simply change the size… not just the text size.. but by “zooming” you can enlarge or reduce everything you see on the monitor including the text, photos, icons etc…

There are several different ways you can do this quickly and easily, including keyboard shortcuts:

• TO ENLARGE: Hold the CTRL button (bottom left & right corner of your keyboard) and tap the plus “+” sign (far right of the keyboard row with the numbers)
• TO REDUCE: Hold the CTRL button (bottom left & right corner of your keyboard) and tap the minus “-“ sign (far right of the keyboard row with the numbers)

OR

• TO ENLARGE AND REDUCE: Hold the CTRL button (bottom left & right corner of your keyboard) and roll the wheel on your mouse up to enlarge and down to reduce

OR

For those who use Internet Explorer:

• Use your status bar – bottom right corner of your screen, is the zoom list – which allows you to choose or customize screen – OR
• On your I.E. command toolbar, choose Page, and when the drop down list of actions appear – choose Zoom – then choose or customize the size you want.

Who and What is spokeo.com

In the last few weeks, many facebook & myspace users have been posting the following information about the website spokeo.com in their status to make others aware of this website and their concerns…

Spokeo.com is an online USA phone book w/personal information: everything from pics you've posted on Facebook or other websites, your approximate credit score, home value, home address, income, age, marital status, names & ages of your children, etc.

You can remove yourself by first searching for yourself on their site to find the URL of your page, then going to the Privacy button on the bottom of their page to remove yourself – HOWEVER many people have commented that using this privacy button, is how spokeo and other similar companies are getting our email addresses, so be careful – Overwhelmingly the comments on the message boards and forums are indicating that the data they publish is more incorrect than accurate..

According to wikipedia.com – Spokeo.com’s headquarters are in Pasadena, CA founded by Harrison Tang and launched in Dec. 2006 and now becoming “popular”. They are a social network “aggregator” website (similar to zabasearch.com that was popular a few years ago doing the same thing). They accumulate information from a wide variety of information gathered online and offline from “public” resources (such as phone books, social networks like facebook, myspace and others, , marketing surveys, mailing lists, government censuses, education real estate listings, and business websites). This information might include demographics, education and career information, photos from on line photo albums, estimated property and personal assets, email addresses and other usernames for sites such as facebook, and much much more.. Recently they announced their ability to scan social networks, blogs, photo albums, dating sites, music networks, video sites, ecommerce stores, and other web services in real-time to help find online profiles with similar usernames..

Most information seen for free is very basic, but of course then you can sign up and pay for additional information, which again, many people report is totally inaccurate. Users report problems with removing their listings, and some independent reports verified that the removal process was "spotty."

For more information you can check them on www.breakthechain.org or www.snopes.com - Here is the direct link to snopes comments about them...
www.snopes.com/computer/internet/spokeo.asp

HOW TO GET PHOTOS FROM YOUR CELL PHONE TO YOUR COMPUTER..

You’ve taken photos or videos with your cell phone, but how can you get them to your computer so you can print or email them… There are several ways, depending on the type and model of your cell phone – use one of the following tips or check your cell phone manufacturer’s website for their tutorial instructions for your specific cell phone..

CABLE FROM CELL PHONE TO COMPUTER: Some phones, come with cables that have a connection for the phone and the other end has a USB port connection – if you phone has this, you will copy and paste the photo’s from your cell phone to your computer, the same as you would from a flash drive/memory card to your computer.. For example, if you have a Motorola phone you can use a tool called Motorola Phone Tools-It isn't free but comes with a USB cable you can directly connect to the computer

FOR CELL PHONES WITH TEXTING CAPABILITIES: Then you can simply “email the photo’s to yourself or anyone else with an email address” just like a text message; instead of a phone number you would send it to the “email address”

FOR CELL PHONES WITH MEMORY CARDS: Before you take pictures with your cell phone, be sure you have a memory card in the slot and that your camera setting is set to save all photos & videos that you take, and other information you’d like, to the memory card. Refer to your user manual to make sure you buy the right kind of memory card for your cell phone If your cell phone didn’t come with one. Common cell phone memory card formats include: TransFlash MicroSD, MiniSD, Sony MemoryStick but, the most popular is MicroSD (remember "MiniSD" and "MicroSD" are not the same kind of cards)..

Small memory cards require a larger adapter to insert in a computer memory card reader.
Once your small memory card is in the adapter, insert the memory card adapter into a memory card reader or into your laptop/computer/printer’s built in memory card reader..

Now it is ready to be “read” - Open Windows Explorer (Windows Flag Key & E), you will then see your memory card with an assigned drive letter – typically E or F. When you left click on that drive, look to the right side of the screen and you will see the photos and or all information on the memory card.

1. Highlight the photos you want to put on the computer
2. Choose COPY
3. Now go to or create a new folder for the picture
4. Once you are in the correct folder, choose PASTE

Your photos are now on your computer in the folder you have chosen or created…

Everyone is invited to visit the MCC Library

Hi All! My name is Wendi Birkhead and I am the campus librarian of the Hodel Library on the Lake Havasu Campus of Mohave Community College. I want to invite you to visit us and find out about all the wonderful books, DVDs, audiobooks, and electronic materials we have to offer.

Many people don’t realize that we are open to everyone – students and non-students, alike – and anyone can get a library card for free.

We carry bestsellers, fiction and nonfiction. Through the computers in our library or when you access our website:
www.Mohave.edu/library (listed on this blogs list of favorite websites), you have access to fantastic databases such as Ancestry.com, Heritage Quest, Consumer Health Complete, the Hobbies and Crafts Reference Center and more.

We have plenty of computers for your use and we don't have a time limit on how long you can use them. You also can use our databases to look at articles from journals such as Consumer Reports, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, PC World, U.S. News and World Reports, etc.

Please give us a call at 928-453-5809 to ask for more information. You can also come on by and visit with us in person at Mohave Community College 1977 Acoma Blvd. West. We are located toward the back of the MCC campus, just behind the 500 Building, where the Computer Classes are held.

Let us know how we can help and we look forward to meeting you.

What is Twitter & What are Tweets!!!

Twitter began in 2006 and is a website, owned and operated by Twitter Inc. and based in San Francisco, CA, but has several other locations in the US including San Antonio, TX and Boston, MA.

Twitter is another free social networking site (like facebook) where users can send and receive “tweets”.

A “tweet or tweeting” is a text message/post with up to 140 characters and all you need to use Twitter is an Internet connection or a mobile phone. You can follow many different tweets and followers can follow you..

You must join Twitter - which is free and you will be required to “sign up” and create a username and password as you do with all Internet accounts..

Twitter is used world-wide by individuals, celebrities, businesses from breaking world news to updates from friends …

Check it out for yourself at http://www.twitter.com/ - Twitter website makes it easy to join and offers lots of helpful tips for those of you who are learning to use their service. And again, it's free and simply another new way to "stay in touch"

Free Typing Websites

Ready to improve your typing skills – there are plenty of wonderful websites that offer you “free” tutorials to test and improve your typing skills..

The following are just a few online “free websites” that can help you with your speed and accuracy.

For those of you who are accomplished typists, take a typing test on any of these to see how your skills are..

Try several of them until you find one that you enjoy – and then use it often – even a few minutes a day can make a big difference… Enjoy

www.learn2type.com

www.typingweb.com

www.powertyping.com

www.freetypinggame.net

www.learntotype.org

BACKING UP YOUR COMPUTER AND INFO? Part 2 of 2

Our last blog posting stressed the importance of "backing up" our computer hard drive - losing a document or one photo can be upsetting - but if your computer crashes and you lose everything that can be overwhelming and costly... Believe me it's not pleasant - as much as I preach the importance of backing up, I know how busy we can all get and it's easy to forget, so the last time I lost information I decided it was time to do something where I don't even have to think about it... So for me - an outside company - was the best choice and I choose carbonite.com which offers unlimited storage...

HOW CARBONITE WORKS – IT’S EASY & GREAT ADVANTAGES..
Install Carbonite – then your Back-Up is done each time you are on your PC/Internet ; Relax it’s secure; Restore lost files easily & Remote Access

WHAT CARBONITE IS AND WHAT IT ISN'T...
Again, with Carbonite you get unlimited backup of the irreplaceable files on your computer. That said, your Carbonite subscription does NOT include some services often confused with backup.

• Online/offsite file storage. Carbonite is NOT a place to move files from your hard drive, to free up space on your hard drive. If you remove any file from your hard drive, Carbonite waits 30 days for you to recover it, and then we delete that file from our servers, too.
• Program or system backup. Carbonite backs up the irreplaceable files on your computer – user-generated content such as photos, documents, music, etc. Carbonite does not back up software programs, temporary files or system files
• External Hard Drive backup. Carbonite consumer products does not allow you to back up your external hard drive, unless you purchase their external hard drive support with as a small business
• Archiving. Carbonite does not keep every version of every file you’ve ever created. Carbonite's PC product offers versioning, which allows you to recover some versions of your files, going back up to 90 days

Check them out www.carbonite.com

BACKING UP YOUR COMPUTER AND INFO? Part 1 of 2

A great New Years Resolution when it comes to your computer – is to “back-up” your information on a regular basis so that no matter what happens – all your data is protected…

Whether you back-up using CD’s, a Large Flash Drive, Portable or External Hard Drive or use a company like I do “carbonite.com” or Mozy.com or use your internet provider (many offer back-up services) – Backing up on a regular basis is critical. This is especially important for those of us with older computers or if you have large document, photo, music or other media files…

If you use one of the services – remember to ask how much space is included and what the charges are for additional storage (personally that’s why I like carbonite.com-it offers unlimited storage)

If you decide to use an external hard drive – there are many on the market, so watch the sales flyers – this one was recently advertised and has more storage than most of us would ever use… so a great investment:

• Office Depot’s “Clickfree" HD1035 Backup External USB Hard Drive, 1000GB”, which Automatically backs up your computer without any confusing software to install
• Back up your computer in just 1 step-No software to install or set up and incremental backup lets you save only the files changed since the previous backup – About $135.00

Our next blog will talk about using a company, like I do… www.carbonite.com

HAPPY NEW YEAR - 2011

On behalf of our entire staff at Mohave Community College and myself, we want to wish you and yours a healthy, happy New Year full of blessings and joy ~ May this year "2011" be the best year of your life! Cherie Houston

~ William Arthur Ward quotes (American dedicated scholar, author, editor, pastor and teacher)

ANOTHER NEW YEAR

“Another fresh new year is here . . .

Another year to live!

To banish worry, doubt, and fear,

To love and laugh and give!

This bright new year is given me

To live each day with zest . . .

To daily grow and try to be

My highest and my best!

I have the opportunity once more

To right some wrongs,

To pray for peace,

To plant a tree,

And sing more joyful songs!”