A sure fire way to learn your computer this year!

When I am doing private tutoring on a computer I typically write step-by-step notes while the learner sits in the driver's seat. I think that people learn more by doing than by hearing. However, my method is really only about 60 percent as effective as it could be. The best way to learn is by learning. In other words, having someone sit next to you and walk you through the steps will stick in your memory as well as if you...

How to send an email attachment

We have a few program specific tips on our website about how to send email attachments. Each step is broken down step-by-step.  I am writing this more as a general guide for emailing attachments. I have seen a few mistakes lately that have caused problems for first-time attachment senders. Here are a few tips to help you avoid problems. 1. If you are emailing photos and you use Outlook, Outlook Express or gmail, download...

Proper care and feeding of batteries

I bought a new digital camera the day after Thanksgiving. Following Adam's First Law: Gadgets Yield More Gadgets, I have ordered a new vertical shooting grip and several batteries. When the batteries arrived, I followed Adams 379th Law: Always Read the Instructions. I am thinking seriously about moving the 379th law up to at least 134 because I discovered some interesting information about rechargeable Lithium-Ion...

How to buy a computer book

When teaching my basic computer classes, I often get the question, "What is a good computer book?" This is also followed or preceded by the complaint that the individual's computer did not come with a manual. As strange as it may seem, there is a very good reason why the average computer doesn't come will a full instruction book. The reason is that there is too much to know about a computer to fit in a...

You don’t HAVE to log into AOL or MSN

Many AOL and MSN users have converted to either cable or DSL high speed connections over the last few years. This tip is for all you AOL and MSN broadband users. When I work with a high speed AOL or MSN user, habit guides their mice to the AOL or MSN icon. With a high speed connection, you do NOT need to log in to the service's browser if you just want to look up something on the web. Instead, decrease the time and steps...

Know your Internet options

Picking out an Internet provider in the good ol' days of the Internet was easy. All you had to do was pick a company that wasn't owned by AOL and you'd be OK. Today the choice is much tougher because you must choose between dial-up and broadband. And if you choose broadband, you must choose which type of broadband is best for you. Here is a handy guide to help you decide. Dial-up – Dial-up Internet the...

Computer BIOS

Many times on the show we guide people to the computer BIOS for troubleshooting some problems. BIOS stands for Basic Input Output System. The BIOS, speaking very simply, controls and monitors the hardware on our computers. Keyboards, mice, hard drives, CDROM drives, the date and time (from the CMOS chip), and more all get inventoried and controlled via the BIOS. Think of the BIOS as the parts manager of your computer. The...

Two cool weblinks

I came across this funny article about how even geeks outgrow their geekdom over time. Each new generation creates new uses for technology that make the previous generation's devices seem outdated. Wired Magazine has also put up this cool Geeks Guide to Fireworks .  ...

New Computer Specs

Computer prices continue to drop and get more powerful. I answer the question, "What should I buy?", many times every week. The answer seems to change about every six months. Today, I’m going to list my advice that should hold for at least six months: Primary use is Internet, email, small games, and word processing: Any processor 512MB of RAM Any size hard drive Mimimum CDRW Drive Primary use is...

Picture Slideshows….take a cue from TV

My daughter ‘graduated’ from middle school today. During the ceremony, a group of ambitious students put together a 60-75 slides, using Microsoft PowerPoint, documenting their 8th grade year. PowerPoint and other slideshow making programs give us great flexibility in putting together our pictures like never before. Does anyone use the old slide projectors anymore? These students had a minimum slide time of 20...

Shareware and Freeware – March 2006

We haven’t covered this topic since 1999! Shareware is software that you can “try before you buy”. The developer usually provides the program for free of charge with either some features disabled or a time limit on how long the product can be used. To unlock all the features or use the program past its expiration date, you must pay for a registration number. This type of marketing works quite well for...

Red X’s in Email Messages

I’m resetting this tip from two or so years ago because we have had so many phone calls and email messages about this topic.  Have you ever received an email with "red x’s" in a box or just an empty box in the middle of the email? There are three possible explanations for this phenomenon; either you are reading the message offline, your email program is blocking images from appearing in your email,...

Set up a home network – Part IV

This is our final installment of our networking tips. In this tip, you will learn how to share files and printers between computers on your network. One of the greatest advantages of a network for home users is the ability to use a single printer to service all the computers. Windows XP offers a networking wizard that works quite well for most people to setup a home or small business network. You can find it by: ...

Set up a home network – Part III

This is Part III of our ongoing series regarding home and small-business networks. You can read the first two installments here:  Part I and Part II. In Part II, we discussed how to use a ‘wired’ system with Ethernet cabling to connect your computers and broadband connection. We suggested that you purchase a Wireless Cable/DSL Router with 4 port switch to connect your computers. The reason we suggested a wireless...

Set up a home network – Part II

Last week we introduced you to some networking terms and technologies. This week, we will show you how to start building your network. In these instructions we discuss how to setup a network for sharing the Internet, but if you only want to setup a network for sharing files and printers without broadband, simply leave out the broadband modem and these instructions will still apply. One term we did not define last week was...