CARING FOR YOUR CD’S & DVDS..

So much information comes to us today on CD's & DVD's - so it's important to take care of them properly...

• Handle only at the hub or outer edge. Don't touch the shiny surface with your fingers
• Store in a protective case when not in use
• Don't bend the disc when taking it out of the case
• Be careful not to scratch the disc when placing it in the case or in the player tray
• Make certain the disc is properly seated in the player tray before you close it
• Keep discs away from radiators, heaters, hot equipment surfaces, direct sunlight (near a window or in a car during hot weather) and other destructive forces
• DVD specs recommend discs be stored at a temps between 50 °-90 °F with less than 27 °F variation per hour, at relative humidity of 5 to 90 percent
• Artificial light and indirect sunlight have no effect on replicated DVDs, BUT
• Exposure to bright sunlight may affect recordable DVDs, specifically write-once DVDs (DVD-R and DVD+R) that use light-sensitive dyes
• Magnetic fields have no effect on DVDs, so it's OK to leave them sitting on your speakers

WHAT IS A MEDIA PLAYER?

Basically it is “application software” that we use to play and manage all of our music and video files. By manage, it means that we can format music & video files to various formats; rip and burn our music & video files (so that you can transfer them to & from CD and or DVD) and many offer “visual effects” so when we listen to the music there are various patterns that will flash on our monitors (similar to screen savers).

Microsoft Operating Systems include a media player “Windows Media Player” and many people use iTunes Media Player so that they can synchronize their various iPod devices…

But personally – my favorite is VLC Media Player – which is also free… VLC works on most Operating systems including Windows 98 thru to Windows 7); and it can be installed and run from a flash drive and portable hard drive. I also think it’s one of the easiest media players to use to convert music and video formats and you can take screenshots of video’s you are watching which is a feature many people like… to download go to:

www.vlcmediaplayer.org or www.videolan.org

There are many others and it helps to check out these out at some of the “freeware” websites, such as:

www.download.cnet.com
www.freewarefiles.com
www.freeware-guide.com
www.gofree.com

Enjoy this music video

I hope you will enjoy this ~ One of your fellow students shared this “hyperlink” with me and I thought you might enjoy it…. It is amazing what technology can do today and with the Internet we all get to enjoy so many interesting things…

This “hyperlink” is a video of street singers from around the world being recorded, overlayed and mixed with one another while singing the song "Stand By Me".

It is a marvel to listen to and watch. They all deserve to be heard.

The finished product is tremendous! So click below where it instructs you to "click" and enjoy what some think is an incredible piece of sound engineering
,
So enjoy - turn up your speaker volume and [Click Here]

When it opens the website - you can begin by left clicking on the "play arrow" on the bottom left corner of the screen - and remember to use your F11 key to get the "full screen" impact

Keyboard Shortcuts for Outlook

Some great shortcuts when you are using Microsoft Outlook. Microsoft Outlook is one of the Office programs, which allows us to easily control contacts, calendars, email accounts, tasks, a journal and other daily functions that we maintain on the computer. It is a very popular program used by companies and individuals alike.

If you use keyboard shortcuts a lot like I do, you might want to use these keyboard shortcuts when you are working in your Microsoft Outlook Program, to easily switch from one Outlook pane (subject) to another…. So, if you were in any segment of your calendar, and you wanted to quickly go to your contacts, you would use CTRL+3..

Keyboard Shortcuts when using Outlook to change between Navigation Panes:

• CTRL+1 Mail Navigation
• CTRL+2 Calendar Navigation
• CTRL+3 Contacts Navigation
• CTRL+4 Tasks Navigation
• CTRL+5 Notes Navigation
• CTRL+6 Folder List Navigation
• CTRL+7 Shortcuts Navigation
• CTRL+8 Journal Navigation

What is Picasa Movie Maker?

Picasa is a free “Google” digital photo editing software for anyone who has a PC or MAC. For anyone using Picasa Version 3+, there is a wonderful feature “movie maker” that allows us to quickly and easily convert any photo folder on Picasa into a slideshow/movie..

Picasa software is easy to use, but a few tips on using Movie Maker..

Once the Picasa folder is highlighted, simply choose the “CREATE MOVIE” icon which is:

• located above every Picasa album and also located in the action bar at the bottom of the Picasa screen

Once this icon is selected the movie is created and you can now make other enhancements to personalize your movie...

You can enhance your movie by uploading a song - an audio MP3.
When you add music, you will have several options as to how the music will work with your photos - If you choose ‘fit photos into audio’, Picasa will space your photos to fill the length of the song you have chosen

You can choose various transitions, how your slides will appear on the screen, such as “PAN & ZOOM” seems to be the most popular

You can also rearrange your photos, you can add captions, you can add slides that contain just text AND throughout the process, you can “view” your movie to see how it looks and sounds…

When you are finished you can save it to the computer, send via email, share with Skype, save to your Picasa web albums for easy sharing, or export/upload directly to YouTube or other social networking sites…

Your finished movie is saved and will then be uploaded as a.mov file.

And you can re-edit the movie later if we want to change –remove or add photos..

Try it today – go to www.picasa.com

Name & Save Your Work

Whether you are writing a letter using Word Pad, Word, Word Perfect OR creating a list of items from home or contact list using a spreadsheet software such as Excel OR creating a slide show for a power point presentation - remember when you begin - name your document immediately.
How we name a document is the same, although it varies some based on the version of software you are using...

You will notice when you open a document in Word it will have a Document Number in the title bar; if you open a spreadsheet in Excel it will have a Workbook Number - these will be replaced when you name your work (the more “new documents or spreadsheets you open” the higher the numbers get all day )

We name documents and save them in our choose of specific folders so that we can find them easily when we need them again... Saving work in folders is done in the same way in which we file work in a metal file cabinet...

• Go to File on the Menu Bar (or in newer versions go to the Office Button)
• Choose "Save As"
• In the newer versions of Word/Excel etc - you want to choose "Save as 97-2003" so that it can then be opened by others using these earlier versions
• Be sure you are in the correct DRIVE - at home the C Drive - OR if you are using a flash memory stick-choose that drive; OR at work or in school, choose the drive assigned to you.
• Then open the “My Documents” or "Documents" drawer
• Now choose or create the folder you want your work saved in
• Now NAME THE DOCUMENT, such as 2010.10.18 letter to paul
• Remember you can not use / or \ slashes when naming anything on the computer and numbers always come before letters on the computers filing system
• Once you are done typing the name you can use Enter on the keyboard, or choose OK or save with the mouse
• It is now saved and when you look at the work on monitor you will see the new name at the top on the title bar and on the open button on your task bar

Using a Mouse-Left or Right Click??

The "mouse" allows you to do many things - when you watch your monitor, the mouse control you will see is called the "cursor"...

By default (standard setting) "Mice" are set up assuming the person using it is "right handed" - you can change that default setting by going to: start, control panel, mouse - and changing the setting from right hand to left hand...

In all cases - these will affect whatever your mouse/cursor is on, on the monitor. It can open an application software program for you to use or when you are on the internet it will take you to another website; it can move an icon from one side of the screen to another, or when you right click you will have a list of various actions that you can have occur to whatever is under your mouse/cursor... Key is to know where your mouse/cursor is on the monitor before using your mouse keys...

When you are learning to use the mouse or speaking to a tech support or other person who is explaining something about your computer - the terms they will use for actions of the mouse and what they mean are:

• Pointing: Position the mouse over an item on your monitor
• Clicking: Pressing and releasing the mouse button
• Double-clicking: Press and release the mouse button twice rapidly - usually the left button
  Click n'Drag (or dragging) : Holding the left mouse button down while dragging it, will move or carry w whatever was under the cursor on the monitor
• Left-click: Press and release the “left” mouse button (Makes something happen) to whatever your mouse/cursor is on
• Right-click: Press and release the “right” mouse button (Get an action menu for whatever your mouse/cursor is on)

Internet Browsers

Browser software is free and you can have multiple browsers on your computer – just like you might have different types of salad dressings in your refrigerator; they all have the same purpose but are different… Check these websites out that help you compare the most popular browsers, their differences & features…

And as our Tech Support Guru, Kevin Bachelder, pointed out: Another reason to use a browser such as Google Chrome is because it uses less system resources so sometimes it works better than other browsers on older computers.

Although Microsoft’s Internet Explorer was #1, Mozilla’s Firefox & Google’s Chrome are considered by some to be the best… Try them and decide for yourself..

http://internet-browser-review.toptenreviews.com/

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2365692,00.asp

More about Internet memes - such as "I like it on..."

Further to our blog posting, about what is an "Internet Meme", the following is the article that was on MSN that provoked my curiosity... This particular Meme is intended to raise Breast Cancer Awareness...

'I Like It On': Sexy Status Updates Sweep Facebook
Suggestive Status Updates Intended to Raise Breast Cancer Awareness
~ By KI MAE HEUSSNER - Oct. 7, 2010

Want to know where women "like it"? Check out your Facebook newsfeed. In status updates across the social networking site, women around the world are going risqué with suggestive messages saying, "I like it on the floor," "I like it on the kitchen counter" and even "in the back seat of my car." Despite the naughty-sounding notes, they're not referring to places to pucker up, but rather places to leave their purses

Despite the naughty-sounding notes, they're not referring to places to pucker up, but rather places to leave their purses. The origins of the viral campaign are unknown, but over the past few days potentially millions of women across Facebook have posted the messages in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Though the purse reference itself doesn't seem to bear any direct relationship to breast cancer and has left many men (and maybe women) scratching their heads, crowds of women continue to rally behind the viral message.

This latest Internet meme is similar to the bra color status update that swept Facebook in January. As part of that campaign, women on Facebook randomly posted the color on their bras on their status updates to raise awareness for breast cancer research.

What is an Internet meme????

I read an article this week about a comment that has been "floating" around facebook this last week or so and in the article, the writer used the word "Internet meme" or "meme" several times and I had no idea what she was talking about and assumed I wasn't alone - I know I'd seen the word used before, but now I was curious and determined to learn what it meant....

After a little research on countless sites, I’ve learned that the word "meme" when pronounced rhymes with “dream” or “cream”, but they say that some pronounce it so it sounds like ‘mem’ (from mem-ory)

What it means, seems to vary, but it seems to reference items in blogs or other social networking sites, such as facebook and/or myspace – but the various definitions seems to be:

• An idea that, like a gene, can replicate and evolve.
• A unit of cultural information that represents a basic idea that can be transferred from one individual to another, and subjected to mutation, crossover and adaptation.
• A cultural unit (an idea or value or pattern of behavior) that is passed from one generation to another by nongenetic means (as by imitation); “memes are the cultural counterpart of genes”.

In our next blog posting, I will post the article about the "Internet Meme" ~ "I like it on..." comments that are prevalent this month on facebook (referred to as memes) Why, to raise awareness about breast cancer...

Picasa - Geotagging Photos with Google Earth

You need to have Google Earth and Picasa installed on your computer to use this feature. This feature is not currently available in Picasa for Mac.

Download Picasa - go to http://www.picasa.com/

Download Google Earch - go to http://www.earth.google.com/

The easiest way to match your photos to a specific location is to use Google Maps in Picasa. However, you can also use the original geotag feature in Picasa, which launched Google Earth to accomplish the same thing. Geotagging your photo does the following:
• Embeds location information within your photo.
• Displays your photo on a satellite map rendered by Google Earth.

To geotag a photo, follow these steps:

1. Select the photos in Picasa.
2. Click the Geotag button in the Photo Tray. Google Earth opens up and a small Picasa window appears in the lower-right corner.
3. Navigate and zoom to the location in Google Earth that corresponds with where your picture was taken, and place the yellow cross-hairs on your chosen spot.
4. Click the Geotag button to place the selected photo. You can also click the Geotag All button to tag all of the selected pictures with the same location information.
5. When all of your pictures are geotagged, click the Done button to finish the placement.
6. When you exit Google Earth, click the Yes button to save the geotagged locations in your 'My Places' folder.
7. You'll then be able to access the photos in 'My Places' any time you open up Google Earth.

Picasa will write the longitude and latitude to the photo's EXIF GPS metadata. You can view this data (GPS Latitude and Longitude) by right-clicking (Windows) Control-clicking (Mac) a geotagged image in Picasa and selecting Properties. Geotagged photos are marked in Picasa by a small cross-hair icon on their thumbnails.

LCD Monitors - a few tips

Most Monitors/computer screens today are LCD, but what does that mean?
LCD means Liquid Crystal Display, mostly used in flat screen monitors and laptop screens.

Why should I worry about cleaning my LCD screen?
One of the most expensive components of a computer system or laptop is the LCD monitor or screen. LCD screens are easily susceptible to damage and scratches, so it's a good idea to make sure you clean it correctly.

Can I use any type of cleaning solution on my LCD screen?

NO! using alcohol or ammonia based cleaners repeatedly may cause permanent damage to the LCD. Over time using these types of cleaners could cause the surface of the screen to yellow. It can also make the screen brittle and eventually cause cracking on the screen surface. The following cleaners are unacceptable:

• Acetone
• Ethyl alcohol
• Ethyl acid
• Ammonia
• Methyl chloride

What types of cleaners are acceptable?

• Water
• Vinegar (mixed with water)
• Isopropyl Alcohol
• Petroleum Benzene

What are some of the basic supplies needed to clean an LCD screen?

• A soft cotton cloth. When cleaning the LCD screen it is important to use a soft cotton cloth, rather than an old rag. Some materials, such as paper towels, could cause scratches and damage the LCD screen.
• Solution of water and isopropyl alcohol. This solution can be used along with the soft cotton cloth.
• Computer wipes ONLY if they specifically state on the package they are designed for LCD screens. Computer wipes can come in handy for fast clean-ups or when you want to avoid mixing up a cleaning solution yourself.

How do I clean the LCD surface properly?

• Do not spray any liquids on the LCD screen directly, and do not use paper towels, this can cause the LCD screen to become scratched.
• Always apply the solution to your cloth first, not directly to the parts you are cleaning. You want to avoid dripping the solution directly into your computer or laptop.
• Stroke the cloth across the display in one direction, moving from the top of the display to the bottom.

HOW TO KNOW IF AN ONLINE WEBSITE IS SECURE

Before you put confidential information on line - whether you are on your home or at your computer at work, or on a public computer - make sure you are on a secure page.

So always, before you register on a website, put personal information such as your name, mailing address, phone numbers, birth dates, credit card or checking account information when shopping - anything personal and confidential, always be sure that the information page you are on is totally secure.

How? Watch for these to be sure you are on a secure Website:

• https (vs http) is what you should see in the address bar before giving out confidential information-So always look at the top of your screen where the Web site address is displayed, you should see https://. The "s" that is displayed after "http" indicates that Web site is secure. You might not see the "s" until you actually move to the page asking for confidential info OR
• Look for a closed padlock displayed at the bottom of your screen. If that lock is open, you should assume it is not a secure site OR
• Look for an unbroken key

WHAT ARE THE BEST WEBSITES FOR GENEALOGY?

Without exaggerating, there are thousands of genealogy websites out there on the world wide web - some are free and others can be quite expensive - some are great and others are nothing more than a collection of links to other websites, so talk to friends and family - ask for their recommendations...

Some of the websites that our students enjoy working with in both Arizona and Massachusetts are the following... check them out for yourself - and remember that many public libraries and local community colleges have various genealogy software programs on their computers that you are welcome to use... explore and expand your knowledge of family...

One great resource, for beginners (and it’s free) is: www.olivetreegenealogy.com/beginner

Some others that come highly recommended are…

• http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/ (FREE)
• www.archives.gov/genealogy (FREE)
• http://www.genealogytoday.com/ (FREE)
• http://www.accessgenealogy.com/ (FREE)

This is #1 website by every review, but expensive:

• http://www.ancestry.com/ A US membership in ancestry.com is $19.95 per month, $16.95 a month for 3 months at once and $155.40 if you pay a year at a time – one of their newest & fastest growing services is DNA testing, utilizing the state of the art laboratory, Sorenson Genomics, for its DNA testing services

Websites to help verify information..

These are great websites that will help you find out if stories are true – whether it’s information about when and how often to “defrag your computer” to a scare about certain viruses and other technology stuff:

Snopes and BreaktheChain (http://www.snopes.com/ and http://www.breakthechain.org/) are great websites for tracking annoying chain letters and occasional Facebook-related scares. Before I pass stories or information on to anyone, I always check it out first at one of these websites and recommend the sites to friends & family when they send me “misinformation”…

HowStuffWorks (http://www.howstuffworks.com/) has a special "tech myths" section that deals specifically with some of the more popular misconceptions in the tech world.

PCWorld Forums (http://forums.pcworld.com/) worth visiting – a forum is a website where users with an interest in a specific topic (in this case computers) gather to share stories and advice. You ask the question and you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the quantity and quality of your answers.. A great resource..

WHAT IS VOICE RECOGNITION SOFTWARE…

Voice recognition software, is application software that converts speech to text and it has reached the point where some say you can actually navigate your computer and write documents faster than you could with a keyboard and a mouse – some of the popular software on the market are..

Dragon Naturally Speaking has 2 versions

• 11 Preferred is almost universally regarded in reviews as the best voice recognition software, with potential for 97% accuracy-cost about $80
• 11 Standard edition works with AOL Instant Messenger, MS Word, Internet Explorer and WordPerfect, but not Excel and this doesn’t support portable voice recorders-cost $45

Windows Vista and Windows 7 include Windows Speech Recognition at no additional charge. Though the program was originally rife with issues, it now performs extremely well -- almost as well as Dragon Naturally Speaking

Mac Speech Dictate gets top review as the best speech recognition choice for those with Apple Mac operating systems about $150

Computer Classes Begin October 5th

OCTOBER… Can you believe September is almost over, so don’t “fall behind” now’s the time to “master your computer, digital camera & more” Now that classes are back in session, upcoming class updates for the next few weeks will be on the blog every Sunday - so check in often... and remember MCC offers avery wide variety of other classes-so check them all out at http://www.mohave.edu/

These are the computer classes I will be teaching the first few weeks in October … To reserve your seat, Call Registration 928-855-7812 or 453-1139.. Consider signing up with a friend – coming to class with someone else gives you the motivation to practice and the more people in each class the more is learned from questions....

For those of you who won’t be returning to Lake Havasu until after the holidays ~ don’t fret ~ these and others classes will be scheduled January thru April and as always we will look forward to seeing you..

COMPUTERS FOR THE FUN OF IT LSC062-121, OCT 5 & 6 Tues & Wed mornings, 8:30am-12:20pm, or LSC 062-122 Oct 25 & 27 Mon & Wed mornings, 8:30am-12:20pm, Two 4 Hour classes reviewing computer hardware, software, printing tips, keyboard shortcut tips, customizing desktop-changing backgrounds, create shortcuts, using quick launch bar, Start Menu, Task Bar, control panel & much more… Bring your questions..

DIGITAL CAMERA BASICS LSC100A-121 Oct 6 & 8 Wed & Fri afternoons 1pm-4:50pm
Two 4 hour classes-intro to digital cameras; pixels, camera lingo, basic how to’s, move photo’s to your pc with memory card & memory card reader, organize photos on your pc using windows explorer; save photos to portable drives - Bring your digital camera to class

HOW TO BUY & SELL ONLINE LSC101-121 Oct 8 & 15 Friday mornings, 8:30am-12:20pm, Two 4 hour classes-Buy and Sell on Line, find what you want; searching, making travel arrangements, general shopping tips, intro to online sales with sites such as eBay; eBid; craigslist & others: shortcuts, security

INTERNET AND IT'S MANY USES LSC071-121 Oct. 12 & 13 Tues & Wed mornings 8:30am-12:20pm, Two 4 Hour classes with lots of internet tips & lingo, such as ISP, browser, blogger and more; when & why to use F5 & F11; understanding websites & hyperlinks, basics of email, using “Google & Bing” to search web, images, news; translating to & from different languages; blogging

LIST AND DATA MANAGEMENT WITH EXCEL LSC069-121 Oct. 12 & 13: Tues & Wed Afternoons 1pm-4:50pm, Two 4 hour classes-Learn to work with a spreadsheet for numbers and list management “text” (budget, contact lists for mail merges) Workbook vs. worksheet; cells, columns, rows, auto-formats; margins, grid lines, sorting numbers & data & print basics - Bring an address book or contact list to class

CREATE GREAT LOOKING DOCUMENTS LSC068-121 Oct. 18 & 19 Mon & Tues afternoons, 1pm-4:50pm, Two 4 hour classes-reviewing the basics to open, create, save documents; highlight; cut-copy-paste, set & change margins; create letters, envelopes, labels & use clip art, word art to enhance documents, create flyers & invitations & lots of printing tips

FIND/ORGANIZE WHAT’S ON YOUR PC LSC062-123 Oct. 19 & 20 Tues & Wed Mornings, 8:30am-12:20pm, Two 4 hour classes to find what you’ve saved on your PC; organize your work, files & photo’s to find them quickly & easily. Learn to back up your pc, photo & documents with portable flash & hard drives, memory cards and memory card readers..

POWER POINT LSC069D-121 Oct. 20 & 27 Wednesday afternoons, 1pm-4:50pm, Two 4 hour classes to show you how to create a basic Slide Show presentation and enhance your presentation with text, photos & clip art, animation, transition & timing features Bring photos to class (on your camera or flash drive)

Is there something you are interested in learning that you don't see in our class listings - let us know...

Should you have many different passwords to get into your accounts?

NO – the more passwords you have the more likely you are to forget them. Consider having 2 or at the most 3 different passwords, but be sure they are strong (combination of numbers and letters work best). Consider

• 1 password for getting into each of your email accounts
• 1 password for getting into your financial accounts
• 1 password for getting into all other accounts you register with

TIPS:

• Keep your primary email addresses, user names and passwords on an index card with your other important papers.
• Don't share your passwords on the Internet, over email, on the phone or in the mail with something sent to you-only when you generate the contact. Internet Service Providers (ISP) and reputable companies will never generate calls, emails or correspondence asking for your password or other confidential information. If it doesn't feel right - don't respond!!!!
• Passwords are always case sensitive
• Never use your email password for anything but your email account
• Create another password (minimum 8-20 characters) a word & phrase with 3 or 4 numbers (be sure the numbers & letters are not consecutive, that you use for all other Internet accounts. If you need to change it, reverse the order (i.e. 4378david or david4378 or DAVID4378 or 4378 DAVID)

INCREASE YOUR LAPTOP BATTERY'S LIFE

Without fail, the battery on our laptops – notebooks or netbooks, always stop working and run our of juice at the most inconvenient time – in the middle of that rush report or when you are on a flight and watching a DVD movie

Laptop screens take up significant amount of power and we usually don’t require maximum brightness, so check your system and decrease the screen brightness it to a comfortable point.

Stop your wireless signal when you aren’t using it - After turning off your Laptop, right click on your WiFi control signal and be sure it is off to save a considerable quantity of battery power

Check your power plans - Windows XP has several predetermined power plans to control settings like how rapidly your laptop turns off and when your screen saver boots in. You can change your laptop power scheme by choosing Control Panel, then choose Power Options. For maximum battery life from the “Maximum Battery” option from the "Power scheme" and decline the list. Other good choices might be "Low Power Mode" and Portable /Laptop – they may not conserve as much power as Max Battery, but they still help. After choosing the power scheme, click Ok to finish the process.

How to find a lost file on your Computer?

If you are using Windows XP – this is a quick way to find lost files on your computer.

Open the “Start Menu" (either left click on the Start Button left side of the Task Bar OR tap the Windows Flag Key on your keyboard)

When the Start Menu appears, choose “Search” and the Search Dialog Box Opens, with 3 search options:

1. All or part of a file name
2. A word or phrase in the file
3. Look In

Use Option 1 when you know all or part of the document-file name, but you can also add the file extensions (for example for word file, type *.doc, Excel *.xls, Acrobat *.pdf, *.ppt and *.exe for executable files.

Use Option 2 when you don't know the name of file but know that it contains a string of text, by typing the text you want to find from any file or folder. This is time taking process but creates very precise result.

Use Option 3, Look In, to Look in Specific Drives, Folders or Networks that you want to Search for what you put in Option 1 or Option 2 In Look in, click the drive, folder, or network you want to search.

To save time, always select the specified drive or location instead of whole computer
Click Start Button, point to Search, and then click For File or Folders, a Search Results dialog box will appear.

In Search for files or folders named, type the file name or folder name you want to find in containing text.

To specify additional search criteria, click Search Options, and then click one or more of the following options to narrow your search:

• Select Date to look for files that were created or modified on or between specific dates
• Select Type to look for files of a specific type, such as a text or WordPad document
• Select Size to look for files of a specific size
• Select Advanced Options to specify additional search criteria
• Click Search now.