Digital Darkroom Basics Revisited

DIGITAL DARKROOM BASICS (revisited)   This was the topic of our first meeting. I was nervous and talked faster than usual (yes it’s possible). As Rick Castellini sat on the side lines watching me ramble he just kept reminding me to take a breath once in a while. The user group has grown since then and I am much more comfortable teaching the group. This month should be a much better meeting than that first one...

Fun with Photoshop Elements

Fun With Photoshop Elements Photoshop Elements is great for making pictures look better, but there are a number of tools within Photoshop Elements that you may not know about. Some are practical, others are just fun. Give layers beveled or glowing edges: This is especially fun with text, but it can also be a handy skill for scrapbook pages or photo collages. This technique works especially well with text – but you...

Digital Camera Mini Lab

Digital Camera Mini-Lab Important Camera Features The zoom lens: The zoom lens does much more than just bring the subject closer. It can also compress the photo, bringing the subject and background closer together. -NOTE: This effect does not work with digital zoom. Macro Lens: This feature, found on most cameras, allows the photographer to take extremely close-up shots. Some cameras have a macro that works fractions of an...

How to Format Your Hard Drive and Reinstall Window...

WARNING:  I have done my best to outline the steps in this somewhat arduous task, but undertake this procedure at your own risk. Because of the vast differences in hardware and software, I cannot possibly cover every nuance. Please use this Tip as a guide and not the end all. AND BE SURE TO BACKUP ANYTHING YOU DON"T WANT TO LOSE PRIOR TO UNDERTAKING THE TASK! Since many of the sites that I used to refer...

Citing Internet Resources

With kid’s of all ages returning to school this month, it is important to know how to use the Internet as a research tool.  But the basic premise remains the same as with library research: give credit to the author and provide the information necessary for the reader to locate the source. The most important part of an Internet citation is its URL (web address). Using the URL, the source...

Keep your system running clean

It’s easy to become a digital pack rat. However, using all this space on your computer can contribute to slower performance. Here are some tips of how to keep your system clutter free. * Use the Disk Cleanup utility (Windows 98 and Me users) to delete temporary windows and Internet files. * If you use a digital camera or scanner, archive your older images on a ZIP disk or CDR (also important for backups). *...

Utilize ALL of Your Screen Real Estate

DISCLOSURE: If you don’t feel comfortable making adjustments to your system, please don’t proceed with this tip. Take a look at your monitor right now… Do you see a black border surrounding the screen? If so, you can quickly and permanently regain that extra viewing area by following this week’s tip. Because there are many different types of monitors and manufacturers, I can’t be specific to your...

Laptop vs. Desktop Computer II

Starting this week and for the next month, millions of students will be returning to school. Some of these students go to college, some to high school and some are adults going back to school part-time or nights. All these students can benefit from a computer. For the mobile lifestyle of students, I recommend getting a laptop. Laptops can not only be toted to class, the library or your home, more and more they can be...

Flat Panel and Laptop Monitors – Comfortable...

Flat panel monitors (those diminutive, skinny, sexy monitors no thicker than a couple of inches) now come packaged with many new computers. Their price drops over the past year make also them attractive upgrades for existing systems. Flat panel monitors use the same technology as the monitors laptops use..LCD (Liquid Crystal Display). These monitors look great and cause much less stress to our eyeballs, but sometimes the text...

Customizing the Windows XP Start Menu Part II

If you RIGHT click on your Start button in Windows XP and click properties, you will be presented with the “Taskbar and Start Menu properties” box.  From here, you can further put your own personal touches on the new Windows XP start menu. Fist click on the “Customize” button next to the Start menu option. From this screen, you can choose either large or small icons for Start menu display, select...