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Shopping for a computer? Choose a Chromebook or iPad instead

Black Friday and holiday shopping deals are a week away, if you are still ONLY looking at Windows or Apple computers when you are shopping for a new computing device or upgrade, you are limiting your choices and increasing the complexity. Take this short quiz (click yes or no) and then keep reading: If you chose the ‘perfect…’ answer more… Read More »Shopping for a computer? Choose a Chromebook or iPad instead

Easy File Management – Video Tip

You can easily delete and rename files from within almost any computer program. 

To delete a file or folder:

  1. Click  File from the menu of any program
  2. Click  Open
  3. In the window that pops up, click ONCE on any document you want to delete
  4. Push Delete on your keyboard.  Repeat as many times as you would like.

Learn Minesweeper & give Solitaire or FreeCell a Break – Video Tip

Solitaire seems to be a game that is synonymous with computers. Microsoft planted the game in Windows not only for entertainment, but also for new computer users to learn mouse skills (drag, double-click, etc). Some computer users have branched out to FreeCell and like it better than Solitaire.

However, have you tried playing Minesweeper?

Minesweeper appears difficult upon first look. And yes, it does require some brain power, but isn't that partially the purpose of our computers…to use our brains? If you do like a challenge and using logic and something different than clicking on cards or sitting in front of a TV, give Minesweeper a try.

The object of the game is to avoid the 'mines'. You do this by first making a random guess and clicking one time on the board. If you are lucky, you didn't hit a mine. Now you have to use the clues the game gives you to figure out where the other ones lie. The clues come in the form of a number (usually 1-5). The number indicates how many mines border that particular square. One hint to commit to memory is that one square (if it isn't along the edge), borders eight other squares. Keep that in mind and like FreeCell, every game is winnable. (see the video below for a video lesson on this fun game.)

Give it a try. My best time so far on the beginner level is 29 seconds and 326 seconds on intermediate level. Call us up and let us know what your best times are, leave a comment here, but most of all have fun!

You can change your Internet Home Page – Video Tip

When you buy a new computer, the Internet browser comes pre-configured with a home page (first web site you see when you start your web browser). For PC’s, it is usually MSN. For Mac’s it is Apple.com. If you download Firefox (which everyone should be using), its default home page is a Firefox branded Google page. Sometimes your Internet provider’s web site takes over as your home page if you run one of their setup disks.

Through all of this, you had no say so as to what your home page is. Fortunately, it is a simple procedure to change the home page to anything you want. Here’s how to change it no matter what web browser you use (except Internet Explorer 7):

  1. Pull up the web site you want to see first when you start Internet sessions
  2. Click and drag the little icon next to the address of that site to the Home icon (looks like little house)
  3. Click Yes on the confirmation dialog box asking if you really want to change your home page

That’s it. Now if you are one of the many unfortunate souls who is using Windows Vista, watch how “elegant, quick and streamlined” Microsoft has made this process with Internet Explorer 7:

  1. Pull up the web site you want to see first
  2. Click the drop down arrow next to the Home icon…no not the one at the end of the toolbar, the one righ next to the Home icon
  3. Click Add or Change Home Page
  4. Read and decide whether you want to “use this page as your only home page” or “Add this web page to your home page tabs” (a question which will befuddle many computer users)
  5. Click the option of the answer you chose
  6. Click Yes 

See, that’s DOUBLE the intuitive steps that we have used for more than 10 years and all other browsers use! That’s Microsoft progress! That’s Vista! But Vista sure is purdy.

To see these steps in action, watch the video below:

Microsoft Word’s AutoComplete and AutoCorrect Functions – Video Tip

If you use Microsoft Word, you may notice that at the end of a letter, if you start typing ‘Sin’, a little yellow box flashes up with ‘Sincerely’ in it. Likewise, if you start a letter with ‘To whom’, the box flashes at you with ‘To whom it may concern’.

These little yellow boxes are part of Word’s Auto-Complete and Auto Format functions. Microsoft Word tries to guess what you are going to type next and flashes suggestions to you. If the suggestion is correct and you press Enter on your keyboard, Word quickly enters the word or phrase in your document.You also notice it when you mistype the as hte and Word corrects it for you.

How to rename files or folders in Windows – Video Tip

I answer this question a lot throughout my week both in person and in email, so I thought it was a great one to start with today. Remember that this tip applies to both files and folders. Enjoy and let me know what other quick tips you would like to see!

Wrap text around pictures in Microsoft Word – Video Tip

If you use Microsoft Word to create any kind of document that includes pictures, wrapping text around a picture can be frustrating. Today's tip will give you some easy to follow steps that will have you wrapping text like a pro. A bonus of using this tip is that you can also move your pictures around your document to almost any position.

As is my cardinal rule of word processing, type all your text in first then add pictures after your text is finished. To insert a photo or other image into Word:

  1. Position the cursor where you want the picture to appear
  2. Click Insert –> Picture –> From File (note that you can also scan pictures directly in at this point also)
  3. Navigate to your photo
  4. Click

Creating Tables in Microsoft Word – Part II – Video Tip

In Part I of my "Creating Tables" tip, I discussed what a table was, how to create them, and some basics on how to customize them. In Part II of the tip, I discuss how to use reverse text, cell coloring, sorting, formulas and create a form all with tables. The video takes a few minutes to load (may be too slow for dial-up), but the wait is worth the knowledge.

Easily create labels with Microsoft Word

Printing labels can save you a lot of time and energy IF you approach the job correctly. Since Microsoft Word is still the leading word processor, I will discuss how to print labels with it. Today's tip will not discuss Mail Merge, as that is another can of worms for another day. For printing mail merge style labels, refer to this tip .

This tip will help you print a single label or a full sheet of labels with the same address or text.

Word Label dialog box
  1. Start Microsoft Word.
  2. Click Tools —> Envelopes and Labels from the menus (in the newest version of Word, you will find it in the Letters and Mailings section of the Tools menu).
  3. Click the Labels tab in the box that pops up.
  4. Type the address you want to print on the label (see #1 in the illustration).
  5. Click the Options button (see #2 in the illustration) to choose the type of label you are printing (try to purchase Avery labels or labels that have Avery compatible numbers on them).
  6. Click whether you want a full sheet of labels or just a single label (see #3 in the illustration).
    • If you are printing a single label, you can reuse a sheet of labels over and over by choosing the appropriate row and column that is next to print on your sheet.
  7. Before clicking Print, check to see if the address has spilled over onto the next line (in #1). If so, that indicates that the font size is too large for the chose label type. To correct this, highlight the entire address with your mouse, the RIGHT click it and choose font to make adjustments.
  8. Click New Document to see how the labels will look.
  9. Now print the labels on a regular sheet of paper and hold them up to a blank sheet of labels to make sure they will print appropriately. If it does, then load your labels in the printer tray (remember to load them the proper direction).

When finished printing, you can close and save the document if it is a sheet that you will use again in the future. Otherwise, just close and don't save the document.