Control + F

One of my daily visits brought me to a growing business today. As I waited to work on one of the employee’s computers, I noticed that she spent a good 10-15 seconds scrolling through a medium size spreadsheet looking for a particular entry. I then asked if I could give her a quick tip on how to search through her spreadsheet faster using Ctrl+F on her keyboard. She said, “sure”. When you push Ctrl+F in a...

The Castellini Approach to Internet Security ̵...

EDITORS NOTE:   I originally posted this article in 2007. A lot has changed in 6 years, so I’ve updated the article with new information and links. Please heed the information here to save you time, money and frustration and pass along to your friends and family! This past week I saw way too many people who are not taking advantage of the free information we give out on the show and the web site. Their computers were...

How to use tabs in your browser – Video Tip

One of the biggest additions to the new Internet Explorer is ‘tabbed browsing’. An unbelievable feature that you will wonder how you did without once you start using it. Tabbed browsing was first introduced by the lesser known Opera browser, and brought fully to life with Firefox. Tabbed browsing allows you to open multiple Internet windows without cluttering your taskbar and makes them easy to find with easy to...

Windows 8 Basic Navigation and Customization ̵...

Today’s tip centers around the biggest changes in Microsoft’s newest version of Windows; Windows 8. To say it is different than anything we have seen before from them is a huge understatement. You really have to see it to believe it. In my video tip below, I discuss: The new start screen interface (Metro) basics How to get to a familiar desktop How to customize the new start screen: add, remove, change, and move...

How to print labels the EASY way! – Video Tip

You can learn and start using this tip TODAY to make Christmas card or group mailings a breeze. AND, I’ve included a template for you at the end of the article (below the video). Too many computer users have no idea what a database is, how to use it, and how to merge it with another program to create labels. Since printing mailing labels is only a once per year activity for many of you, learning how to do it again every...

Make reading the web easier than ever – Vide...

Although we now have 19″ and larger monitors on most new desktop computers, the text seems to shrink. Why is that? It has to do with screen resolution (how much information can be displayed). Screen resolutions on today’s monitors are up to 3X that of monitors we used just 6-8 years ago. We can see a lot more information, but often the text is too small to view for some computer users. Never fear. Using this...

How to Install Windows 7 Updates 1 at a time ̵...

Recently, I have found that if Windows 7 users get a little behind on Windows Updates that the update procedure will fail unless you install them manually one at a time. Here are the notes on how to do just that…install Windows 7 updates one at at time so you can successfully get them all installed and get back on...

The Magical Title Bar – Video Tip

The title bar is the long (usually blue in Windows XP or transparent in Vista or 7) bar at the top of each program. The title bar contains three familiar buttons on the right; the minimize button (little bar), the maximize or resize button (middle button) and the often used “X” button to close a program. On the left side of the title bar is a small icon in the far left corner that matches that of the program. The...

5 Steps to Using Online Financial Sites Safely

Every year computer users who use the Internet to check account balances, transactions, and even paying bills grows by nearly 30%. According to one Pew study, more than 50 million Americans use online banking services. 50 million sounds like a large number, but that still reflects less than 50% of online American adults. Bank web sites continue to evolve by becoming easier to use, more secure, and more helpful than ever...

10 Skills EVERY computer user should have (or lear...

I originally posted this list in January 2007. However, through my keen observation skills, I discovered that all computer users have not yet read and digested this information. For this reason, I’m posting it again because I won’t stop working to educate computer users until every computer user knows these 10 skills. Computers have become almost a main stream household appliance. Whether you have been using a...

Changing file-program associations – Video T...

Have you ever wondered how to get your picture files to open directly in your image editing program? Or maybe correct a problem with PDF documents not opening in your PDF reader? Read on to learn how to get your files to open where you want them to when you double-click on them. For example, by default JPEG picture files open with Microsoft Windows Image & Fax Viewer. Maybe you want them to open with Adobe Photoshop...

5 Reasons why YOU should be moving to the cloud

I have written many articles about Web 2.0 or cloud computing. Cloud computing means that you work with programs and/or data that are not installed or saved on your computer. Instead, the programs and/or data live on an Internet connected computer (server) somewhere else in the world. Among other things, these computers/services provide: Security via the password and user name that you choose. Access to the service from any...

How to register for your Avast Free Antivirus Lice...

Adding to my new ongoing series of daily how-tos I write for clients is this one about registering the Free Avast Antivirus I now recommend. Occasionally the registration servers are not working when I install the program for a client, so I created these instructions for her to follow when the servers come back online. This should also help those folks who need to re-register Avast after the first year. Keep in mind that for...

Learn Minesweeper & give Solitaire or FreeCel...

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 (click-and-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...

How to print the contents of any folder in Windows...

Microsoft provides a set of instructions for adding the ability to print the contents of a folder in Windows XP or Vista, but the instructions will be over the head of many computer users. Years ago, I found and added a free folder print utility called FolderPrint to my web site. In all those years, however, I never provided a clear set of instructions on how to utilize that helpful little tool…until now. You can...