Three ways to learn Photoshop

Although Photoshop Elements is the "easy" version of Photoshop, it is still far from intuitive. While this may seem like a bad thing it is actually what makes it a great program. When programs get too intuitive, they begin to think for you and limit options. Photoshop and Photoshop Elements do neither. The newer versions of  Photoshop are much better about guiding you to certain areas and offering better tutorials,...

Know your ports

I often get calls from people who have recently moved or otherwise disconnected their computer only to find that certain features no longer work once it is all put back together. More often than not (probably about 99.9% of the time) this is because thing s were not put back together correctly. There are three common problems I see as a result of mismatched cables. Typically, there are very few mistakes you can make when...

Don’t put folders and files on your desktop

A few days ago one of my clients called me with some strange problems. Suddenly many of her files disappeared from her computer. None of the files seemed to be related. She was missing a few Microsoft Word documents, some photos and her genealogy. After looking around and doing several searches she happened to mention that she used to have a folder on her desktop called "Old Desktop Files." It was a folder with...

Is this a test?

Today I had an appointment that spanned almost every area of what I do on a daily basis. The appointment lasted roughly three hours. In that time I… Helped setup a new iMac. She is making the switch from Windows and wanted some of the features that she was used to in her PC. I set her computer to ask for her password whenever it was turned on or came out of sleep mode so her kids couldn't get online without her...

Stick with HelpMeRick’s trusted security sof...

Some days I seem to face recurring themes. Today's was extortionware. Extortion is when someone forces you into paying money to solve a problem that the person or institution requiring payment caused. If that doesn't make a lot of sense, ask Rick to explain how his "If you want to keep your kneecaps – go get nachos for us," program works during the show on Saturday. We have spelled out our proven...

Secret language of the shadow government

Today's post is for everyone who listens to the radio show via direct feed from Genesis Communications Network. I received this information from a trusted source who received it in a forwarded email chain letter. It appears that the real government uses a special language to communicate on the Internet. You will find this secret language all over the web. Only now that we have Google and Internet searches can we discover...

iPhone cartoon – Yep, this about sums it up

I ran across this cartoon in a random site today. Mac folks are very excited about the iPhone that is due out later this summer. The iPhone is a device that does some things that smart phones have been doing for a long time. Most Treo and Blackberry users have had the features that the iPhone boasts of for almomst a decade. The feature that makes the iPhone so high in demand is the little Apple logo that is found on the...

Windows Vista makes networking maddening

I setup a new Windows Vista machine yesterday on a network with two Windows XP systems. My client wanted Vista to be the main computer that shared files and printers with the other two computers. It only took me 45 minutes to figure out how to set it all up. In Windows XP I can setup a network in less than 15 minutes – probably less than 10. One of the first complaints I had early on with Windows XP was that it was...

Adjust font size in Firefox – Video Tip

I had a client today with a few vision problems. The small fonts and certain colors were difficult for him to see. Hold CTRL+(+ key) to increase font size adn hold CTRL+(- key) to decrease the font size. However, this change is only temporary. To make more permanent changes to the font size go into Tools->Options and select the Content tab. You can make changes on that main screen and under the Advanced button. Oh heck...

Using Picasa to make a CD of your favorite picture...

Lately I have had several people ask me how to make a CD from only certain pictures from several folders. Here is a short video explaining how it's done. The background music came out pretty bad, but the rest of the video should run OK. (click "read more if the video isn't already showing)   ...

Bocaza Nachos – a fair and balanced VIDEO re...

Every Saturday between the first and second hour of the show we grab an order of barbacoa nachos to go from Bocaza. Bocaza is a Mexican grill. We have tried the nachos to go from almost everywhere else in town, but Bocaza is the best for sloppy spicy nachos. The nachos are made up in several layers beginning with the bottom layer… 1. Jack Cheese 2. Frijoles Negros (beans that are black) 3. Spicy, slow simmered,...

Bad tech support: When in doubt, blame a virus

We talk a lot about viruses on the show and here on the site, but in reality, viruses make up a very small portion of day-to-day computer problems. In fact, many (if not most) problems that people blame on viruses are not actually viruses at all. Many of today's computers contain at least 100,000 smaller files. These thousands of little files work together by linking and sharing jobs with each other. Viruses work by...

Rthdcpl.exe – Illegal System DLL Relocation

Once in a while a Windows update comes along that causes a problem that ranges somewhere between a minor irritant and a catastrophic meltdown. I had a couple clients call today who were experiencing an error message on boot up. The error contains the following line "Rthdcpl.exe – Illegal System DLL Relocation" The error is caused by a recent Windows update. There is a simple manual fix or you can download a...

You can tell a lot about a person by the contents ...

Last night I was testing out my new camcorder by recording my office. At this point in time my office is a terrible mess. I put this video up to comfort those people I see every day who feel ashamed and apologetic for the condition of their office space. In this video, look for the following items… A spelling error in the opening title Any 3 Star Wars related items A helicopter helmet A book of Ayn Rand essays 3...

Norton 360 verdict not in yet – don’t ...

Norton has recently released a new version called Norton 360. Symantec claims that they have scrapped 80+ percent of their old code and the 360 version is a totally new program. I have only seen it installed on one computer so far and I couldn't really see if it was any faster or slower than previous versions. Since the system I saw it on was also running Windows Vista, I couldn't tell if the sluggishness of the...