For those looking for a way to create PDFs in Ubuntu – this seems to be the most popular solution.
Posts Tagged: PDF
22
Oct 07
The string theory of personal computers
One of the most common questions I get as I work on other peoples’ home computers is, "Where did you learn all of this stuff?’
Today I setup a large office copier on a business network. It is the first time I have ever set up such a thing.
It seems like at least two or three times per month, I fix a problem that I have never seen before. It is the ultimate in on the job training, however it is not voodoo or a vast supply of knowledge that allows me to do theses miracles.
Over the years I have discovered the string theory of personal computing.
The string theory is a building block in what is often called the theory of everything. Without taking the analogy too far, the string theory essentially claims that everything is made up of strings essentially make physics work.
I have found in personal computers that there are only a few actual processes, probably less than 100. Processes such as printing, saving, network setup, creating a directory, etc. If you learn each of these processes, which usually can be easily broken down into steps, you can fix almost any problem or teach any skill.
Today I was setting up a huge copier to turn a document into a PDF then email it through an SMTP. Tomorrow, who knows, but I am sure the solution will likely be made up of several routine processes that I do on a daily basis.
Maybe I should write a book about his – I would call it, The World’s Most Boring Book.
8
Aug 07
Firefox Extensions – August 2007
Extensions are small add-on programs that either enhance your Internet browsing experience or give you new tools that give you quicker access to information you already search for using the Internet. Mozilla Firefox gives you the most options at customizing your browsing your experience. In addition to being, what I believe, is the smartest and safest web browser around, Firefox extensions make Firefox a browser that is second to none.
To find Firefox extensions, Click Tools –> Add Ons –> Get Extensions from your Firefox menu.
Once you arrive at the Firefox extension page, you can search through what is available, and install the ones you feel might be helpful. Like almost everything in life, too much of a good thing can be bad, however, so install extensions judiciously so you don’t end up with a browser that has SO many extras that it takes a long time to load and slows down your entire experience.
Once you find an extension you want to try:
- Click the large, green “Install Now” button
- Click “Install Now” again on the next screen
- Restart Firefox if necessary (many extensions do require a restart).
My favorite extension is extending the capabilities of the built-in search box in Firefox. On installation, Firefox automatically gives you a search box that has Google, eBay, Amazon, Wikipedia, and a few other search engines. If you click the little arrow next to the search box and then “Manage Search Engines” and finally “Get more Search Engines”, you can add as many search engines that are relevant to your needs.
To remove an extension that you may not like or use, follow these steps:
To find Firefox extensions, Click Tools –> Add Ons –> Get Extensions from your Firefox menu. Click the extension you want to remvoe, then click the “Uninstall” button.
Here is my list of favorite Firefox extensions (other than customizing the search box):
Forecastfox – Great weather add-on including radar button
Google Browser Sync – If you have more than one computer, this tool keeps your history, bookmarks and passwords the same on all your computers. GREAT!
PDF Download - Firefox supports reading PDF (Adobe Acrobat) files in the browser quite well, but this tool gives you more options as to what to do with PDF files.
Firefox Showcase - See all your open tabs in a single screen
IE Tab – Most sites look and act great in Firefox, but occasionally a site requires Internet Explorer. This tool allows you to open that site within Firefox by putting IE in a special tab.
There are hundreds of other Firefox extensions, and you can find them as I described above, but again, don’t over do it! I have provided a video tip of today’s topic as well that you can see below.
11
Apr 07
Understanding FIle Management – April 2007
Click here to get the PowerPoint handout for today's meeting.
2
Dec 06
Open Adobe PDF files in Firefox
Adobe Acrobat files (PDF) don't open properly in the Firefox browser window. However, one of the main advantages of Firefox is the vast library of add-ons to the browser called extensions. Here is a great one called the PDF Download extension you need if you use Firefox.
8
Nov 06
Open Office 2.0 — FREE Alternative to Microsoft Office
In today's meetings, we downloaded, installed, and worked with Open Office. The FREE altnernative to Microsoft Office. To read why the software is free, read this information from their web site .
OpenOffice programs are completely compatible with Microsoft Office programs and allows you to read, edit, and create Office documents without owning the Microsoft Office suite. Here is a list of the programs and their functions in Open Office:
First, you need to download the product by clicking here . You will be asked if you want to donate to the project…this is completely voluntary, and you can simply click "Continue to Download" if you don't want to donate. After the download finishes (less than 15 minutes for cable users, about 30-40 minutes for DSL users, and more than 5 hours for dial-up users), you will see the following icon on your Desktop or wherever you chose to save the file:
- Double-click on the file you just downloaded, wait for the installation to start then:
- Click Next
- Click Unpack
- Wait a few moments
- Click Next
- Click the "I accept" button
- Click Next
- Type your name in the "Name" box
- Click Next
- Click Next if you want to install ALL programs (OR click Custom, then Next if you want to choose which programs to install)
- On the screen presented below, check all the boxes IF you don't currently have Microsoft Office installed OR you want to make OpenOffice your default word processor, spreadsheet and presentation manager.
- Click Next
- Click Install
- Wait a few moments
- Click Finish
The install is finished, the first time you open any of the OpenOffice.org programs, you will need to answer a few more questions…again, this is one time only:
- When the Welcome screen appears, click Next
- Scroll down to the bottom of the license agreement to make the Next button clickable, then click Accept
- Type your Name and Initials if they don't appear already
- Click Next
- Choose whether or not you want to register (it's not necessary)
- Click Finish
You are now ready to start using Open Office!!
One quick tip for the Word Processor and Spreadsheet programs, when you open them the first time Click Tools —> Options from the menus, then:
- Click the the "+" next to Load/Save
- Click the "Always Save As" box and choose the "Microsoft Word 97/2000/XP " option
- Click OK (these settings are illustrated below)
Setting this option allows you to save all your documents as Microsoft Word documents so that it is easier to share them. Do the same thing in the OpenOffice Spreadsheet (Calc) and change the save option to Excel.
One other tip we pointed out in the group today is that OpenOffice has a built-in function to create an Adobe Acrobat (PDF) file out of any document you create in OpenOffice.
21
Sep 06
OpenOffice – Revisited
I wanted to give a quick update on a product that we started talking about on the show about four years ago. It's called OpenOffice . OpenOffice is considered an open source project which means that no one entity owns it (although Sun Microsystems pushed it hard in the early going), and anyone can use it for free. OpenOffice, as the name implies, is a productivity software. It contains a Microsoft Office compatible word processor, spreadsheet, presentation manager and database. I installed it for my kids almost a year ago and have been rolling it out for more and more clients. I can honestly say that I'm impressed with the product.
OpenOffice opens and edits any of the Microsoft products and can save in the Microsoft format. Therefore compatibility is nearly seamless. Some smaller government jurisdictions are giving the expensive licensing fees attached to Microsoft Office in favor of the free OpenOffice. If you are looking for an alternative to Microsoft Office products, take another look at OpenOffice . I think you will be pleasantly surprised.
10
May 06
I love PayPal
I have been raising a little money by selling stuff on eBay so I can buy my wife a Ferrari for Mothers day. As it turns out, the items I sold only went for about $50, so I will have to find her something else.
EBay is amazing, but PayPal is amazing-er (a little Bushism).
Both items closed yesterday and by this morning I had the money in my PayPal account. I took the items to the post office and I used my PayPal debit card to pay for the shipping.
When I got home I took a look at my PayPal balanced and saw that I was earning 4.62% on my PayPal money market account which requires no minimum balance and has no limits on withdrawls.
I then made a PayPal donation button for my site and enabled a few settings that will make it easy for me to take credit card payments from my clients.
I feel so powerful!!
28
Mar 06
Dude, where’s my shotgun?
Rick pointed out to me tonight that I haven’t put up any shotgun articles for a few days. It was at that exact moment that I realized that I hadn’t written any shotgun articles for a few days.
I have some catching up to do so consider this article one of the most important articles I have written for several days.
When I fix a computer I try to always approach the computer and the situation as if it were my own. I work hard at using techniques that allow me to get the best job done in the least amount of time. I ask myself three questions to determine the approach that I want to take.
1. How long will it take to fix the problem?
2. Is this problem worth fixing?
3. Are there tweaks or workarounds that can be done to make the problem less of an irritant?
If a person is trying to get their digital camera to work with their Windows 95 computer, I usually recommend that they throw in the towel and get a new system.
Occasionally, I have a client who has a very small problem that they have allowed to become a major irritation. For example, I once had a client with a Solitaire program that would no longer remember high scores. That is what she called me about. I worked on it for an hour. I researched the problem on the Internet, I installed and uninstalled Solitaire. Nothing worked. I told her that I couldn’t do anything about it. I felt terrible. I would consider this problem not worth fixing, but she felt otherwise. She did change her mind though once I explained (in a nice way) how my hourly wage worked.
Just today I saw a client who couldn’t view PDF files on one specific website using Internet Explorer. I installed Firefox and it worked just fine. While I could have spent an hour trying to figure out why IE wasn’t working, the Firefox solution was faster and made more sense.
Probably the most common decision I have to help people make where the ends must justify the means is whether or not to totally reformat the computer and start over.
I charge 2.5 hours of labor to reformat a computer and start over. Often when you try to troubleshoot a big problem like spyware or a nasty virus, it can take more than 2.5 hours to get rid of it. Even at that point it has often done enough damage that the computer will never run the same as it did pre-virus.
If I spend half an hour on a computer and can’t see any progress I usually begin considering whether the reformat would be a better option than picking at the problem. When you erase a computer, you erase all software problems and replace them with a fresh new setup.
I am not as much of a computer repair guy as I am a computer therapist.
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