Page: 1 2
|
|
Tips from the Tech
Members frequently ask me for help with their computers. They do this because:
A) They feel I am fairly competent in all things digital.
B) They know I am always more than willing to help them out.
and finally...
C) I'm cheap! Cheap and easy...just ask Fam!
Well, this area is where I plan to post regular (hopefully) tips for the most common mishaps as well as a few specific solutions to more complex situations.
---
"There is no point in running yourself down. There are thousands in the world more than willing to do that for you." -Louis Grizzard
|
|
11/15/2004, 2:11 pm
|
Send PM to vaspres
|
|
|
Need some screen shots?
I received this question via e-mail the other day. "How can I take pictures of what I see on the screen and put those in a Microsoft Word document?" Easy!
Press the Print Screen (or PrtScn) key on your keyboard. This places a copy of the entire screen on the Windows Clipboard. To capture only the current active window, press the ALT + Print Screen keys. To paste the image into a document, select Edit from Word's menu and Paste. This tip works in Excel, FrontPage, Outlook, PowerPoint and Publisher, too.
---
"There is no point in running yourself down. There are thousands in the world more than willing to do that for you." -Louis Grizzard
|
|
11/15/2004, 2:16 pm
|
Send PM to vaspres
|
|
|
Add folders to the Send To menu
Folders are easy to add to the SendTo folder. To do this, click Start>>Run. In the text box, enter "SendTo" (without the quotes). Click OK. The SendTo folder will open.
In the SendTo folder, click File>>New>>Shortcut. Click the Browse button and find the folder in which you are interested. Click it and click OK. Click Next and type a name for the shortcut. Click finish. Repeat for each folder you want to add.
The Send To option is used to move files around. If you want to put a file in another folder, right-click the file and select Send To. Then click the folder where you want to place the file. That will put a copy of the file in the second folder, while leaving the original in its place.
You can also use Send To if you want to e-mail the file. Again, right-click the file and click Mail Recipient. This will open your e-mail software with the file already attached. Or you can create a shortcut on the desktop. Click Desktop (create shortcut).
---
"There is no point in running yourself down. There are thousands in the world more than willing to do that for you." -Louis Grizzard
|
|
11/16/2004, 4:49 pm
|
Send PM to vaspres
|
|
|
Windows uses associations to open programs
When you double-click a Word document, Windows opens it with Microsoft Word. It knows to do that because Windows has associated the document with Word. Let's address how that association happens and how it can be changed, if necessary.
The association is made with the file name's extension. If you had a file named Letters to John.doc, the extension would be the "doc" on the end. In Windows, every file has an extension. You can see them in Windows Explorer (Start>All Programs>Accessories>Windows Explorer.) If the files do not show extensions, you can change that in Windows Explorer. Click Tools>Folder Options. Select the View tab. Find "Hide extensions for known file types," and click on the box to remove the check mark. Click Apply>OK.
When you save a Word document, it automatically adds "doc" to the end of the file name. Windows knows what that is, because Word told it to look for that extension when it was installed. Other programs did the same. So Windows knows a long list of extensions and the programs that use them. If you attempt to open a file with an extension Windows does not recognize, it will ask you which program it should use.
Sometimes, you'll need to change an association. For instance, several programs open MP3 (music) files. Let's say that you open (and play) your MP3 files with Windows Media Player. But you want to change to the RealOne Player.
Open Windows Explorer. To make a change in Windows XP, right-click the file name. In Windows 98 or Windows ME, press and hold the Shift key and then, right-click the file name. Click Open With.
You'll get a list of programs; some will work and some will not. Windows Media Player will probably be the recommended program. Scan the list. If the RealOne Player is there, select it. Click "Always use the selected program..." Click OK and the association is changed. From now on, the RealOne Player will open MP3s.
If RealOne Player is not listed, click Browse. Find the correct file (in this case, realplay.exe, located in the Real folder) and click it. Click "Always use the selected program..." Click OK.
The process is similar in Windows 2000, except the Browse button is called Other. Go figure.
---
"There is no point in running yourself down. There are thousands in the world more than willing to do that for you." -Louis Grizzard
|
|
11/17/2004, 4:42 pm
|
Send PM to vaspres
|
|
|
Problems with Windows updates
Q. I installed a Windows XP update from Microsoft. Now the computer is unstable. I called the computer manufacturer, but they say I must deal with Microsoft. Is that right?
A. The manufacturer is correct about updates; it is not responsible for things you install after you purchase the computer. Microsoft does require computer manufacturers to provide support if they install Windows. And manufacturers generally provide support for other programs and hardware they install. But that's it.
In my experience, the Windows updates have worked pretty well. And the fact is, the critical updates are just that--critical. Most recently, many people who failed to install a critical update had their computers invaded by a worm.
But you're not the only person who has had trouble with an update. At least one caused some computers to slow markedly. Some people stopped installing them for that reason.
If you need to get rid of an update, there are a couple ways to do it. The easiest is to simply delete it. To do that, click Start>Control Panel. Double-click Add or Remove Programs. The updates are at the end of the list. Find the one you want to delete, highlight it and click Remove.
If you can't solve the problem through the deletion, try using System Restore. With that, you can return Windows to its state before it was updated. Click Start>All Programs>Accessories>System Tools>System Restore. System Restore does not affect other programs. So, if you installed shareware, for instance, it will not remove that.
Once you have removed an update, I recommend that you reinstall it. I know that is counterintuitive, but these things repair security problems. Without the update, you could have a vulnerable computer. Hopefully, the installation will work better the second time around.
---
"There is no point in running yourself down. There are thousands in the world more than willing to do that for you." -Louis Grizzard
|
|
11/19/2004, 10:50 pm
|
Send PM to vaspres
|
|
|
Windows registration name change
Q. I recently bought a computer that was a floor model. A name was entered as the owner and it pops up when I use the computer. This is annoying. I would like to replace this name with my own.
A. I assume you mean that the name is displayed on the Welcome screen. It should also appear on the menu that pops up when you press the Start button. That name is easily changed. Not only can you change it to your name--you can also add a password and insert your picture.
click Start>Run. Enter "regedit" (without the quotation marks) in the box. Click OK.
In the Registry Editor, drill down to the place where you see
the following:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion.
In the right pane, double-click RegisteredOrganization. In the
box under Value Data, change the name or leave it blank. Double-
click RegisteredOwner. Change the name to your own. Close the
Registry Editor.
Now you have to change the user account. To do that, click Start>Control Panel. Double-click User Accounts. When the User Accounts window opens, find "pick an account to change." Click the one that has the old name. On the next window, click "Change my name." Enter your name and click Change Name.
On the same window where you clicked "Change my name," you also can add a password or change your picture. To add a password, click "Create password." Enter your password twice and click Create Password.
To change the picture, click "Change my picture." This will take you to a window with a selection of 24 pictures. To use one, click it and click Change Picture.
You can also add your own picture. Click "Browse for more pictures." You can use any picture you have on your hard drive. It should be saved as a JPEG--such as Filename.jpg. Click the picture file and click Open.
---
"There is no point in running yourself down. There are thousands in the world more than willing to do that for you." -Louis Grizzard
|
|
11/29/2004, 9:20 pm
|
Send PM to vaspres
|
|
|
A safe way to start Windows
Having trouble with Windows? If Windows won't start, sometimes you can get in there and fix what ails you in Safe Mode. Heck, if you cannot get ScanDisk to ever finish, running it in Safe Mode normally does the trick. When you see the "Starting Windows" message, here are the secret keys to press:
F5 -- Safe mode. This allows Windows to start with its most basic configuration, bypassing Autoexec.bat and Config.sys files and using the VGA driver for video and not loading networking software.
F6 -- Safe mode (like F5) but with the addition of network support.
F8 -- Gives you a menu of different options before Startup. This is a really good one to remember!
---
"There is no point in running yourself down. There are thousands in the world more than willing to do that for you." -Louis Grizzard
|
|
11/29/2004, 9:22 pm
|
Send PM to vaspres
|
|
|
Changing drive letters in XP
Q. In Windows XP, how do you change the letters assigned to the CD and DVD? It was easy in Windows 98.
A. Supposedly, you won't have to do this. The BIOS and Windows take care of drive letters automatically.
But this doesn't always work. I installed two hard drives in my home computer, along with a floppy and a DVD-+RW. The floppy and one hard drive ( A: and C: ) were correct. But the CD drive ended up as D:, and the second hard drive E:. I wanted the two hard drives to be C: and D:, respectively.
Changing them was easy. Click Start>Control Panel. Double-click Administrative Tools. Double-click Computer Management. On the left side, in the Computer Management window, click Disk Management.
On the right side of the window, I right-clicked on the drives I wanted to change. I selected "Change Drive Letter and Paths," and clicked Change. I clicked the down arrow on the box to the right and selected the new letters.
You should have no trouble if you change the letter assigned to a CD or DVD. A hard drive could be a different story. If you change the letter of the disk on which Word resides, for instance, Windows may not be able to find it when it wants to open Word documents. So, use this tool judiciously.
The letters are easy to change in Windows 98 and ME, too. Click Start>>Settings>>Control Panel. Double-click System and select the Device Manager tab. Find CDROM or Disk Drives, depending on what you want to change. Click the plus sign. Double-click the drive.
Select the Settings tab. Find "Reserved drive letters" at the bottom of the window. Click the down arrow next to "Start drive letter." Change the letter. If necessary, change "End drive letter." Click OK.
Last edited by vaspres, 11/29/2004, 9:39 pm
---
"There is no point in running yourself down. There are thousands in the world more than willing to do that for you." -Louis Grizzard
|
|
11/29/2004, 9:38 pm
|
Send PM to vaspres
|
|
|
Annoying Information Baloons in XP
Q. Is there a way to turn off the message notification that originates from the bottom right side of XP? Typically, it's information like "wireless network available," etc.
A. I often get a message that a drive could not connect to the network. It certainly is irritating; as far as I can tell, my drives are working fine.
Windows also uses this area--properly known as the notification area--for other balloon messages. I find the whole thing aggravating.
Some of these messages can be turned off in Windows. But I prefer a Registry hack, which appears to get all of them.
--Click Start>>Run
--Enter Regedit in the box
--Click OK
--In the Registry, drill down to: HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Explorer/Advanced
--Right-click Advanced and click New>>DWORD Value
--Enter EnableBalloonTips
--Double-click EnableBalloonTips and be sure Value Data is 0
--Click OK
--Close Regedit.
Should you decide that you prefer the Balloon tips, double-click EnableBalloonTips and change Value Data to 1.
---
"There is no point in running yourself down. There are thousands in the world more than willing to do that for you." -Louis Grizzard
|
|
1/27/2005, 6:34 pm
|
Send PM to vaspres
|
|
|
Print non-consecutive areas of a document
Q. Is there a way to highlight and print sections of a document that are not consecutive? For instance, if I highlight the first paragraph, but want to omit the second paragraph and then highlight the third, I lose the highlighting on the first paragraph. How can I highlight and print just the ones I want, and not print the others?
A. Windows has an easy way of doing this. Highlight the first paragraph. Then, hold down the Ctrl key and highlight the third paragraph. That will leave both paragraphs highlighted.
Continue on, highlighting just the paragraphs you need. You can use the same procedure to highlight individual words or phrases.
When you print, you must tell the printer to grab only the highlighted portions. Click File>>Print. Click Selection. Then click OK. That's it!
---
"There is no point in running yourself down. There are thousands in the world more than willing to do that for you." -Louis Grizzard
|
|
1/27/2005, 6:35 pm
|
Send PM to vaspres
|
Add a reply
Page: 1 2
Powered by AkBBS 0.9.5b - Link to us
- Blogs
- Hall of Honour
- Chat
Click here to get your own free message board
|
You are not logged in (login)
Board's time is: 11/22/2009, 10:18 pm
|
|
|
