Rick

Woo Hoo…new feature in Microsoft Office 2007 – French Spell Checker!

Rick
1 min read

I ran into a strange problem today with a client using Windows XP and Outlook Express. They had to install a new copy of Office 2007 because they lost their certificate of authenticity for their old copy (don't lose those folks). Subsequently, their spell checker in Outlook Express now only uses the French dictionary. Thanks Microsoft!! Once again, fabulous upgrade to the "new" Office 2007.

After some investigation it turns out that the only viable option for Windows XP users using Outlook Express and Office 2007 is to download a free spell checker for Outlook Express. We have been recommending this one for years . Click here to download and install the spell checker and your Outlook Express spell checking errors will be history…unless you are French.

The Incredible Wikipedia

Rick
4 min read

Wikipedia

What is a Wikipedia ? In the words of the Wikipedia web site, ?imagine a world in which every person has free access to the sum of all human knowledge. That's what we're doing [at Wikipedia].? Sound amazing? It is incredible. Wikipedia, in everyday terms, is an online encyclopedia that is free to access, unlike paid services from Britannica.com and Encarta.com.

Wikipedia plays on a term from the Hawaiian language, wiki wiki, which means super fast or quick. The Internet adopted the term ?wiki? to mean a web site where anyone can edit or contribute to its content. So putting the terms together you get an online encyclopedia that is free to access and open for anyone and everyone to contribute to and

Simple things to check before you call your computer guy

Rick
2 min read

People always apologize all over the place whenever a problem turns out to have a simple fix. Small problem or not, I typically charge a small fee just to cover the higher gas prices and time I blocked out for the appointment.

To avoid the small fee or feeling silly, here are a few things to try before calling your computer guy whether you have to pay him or not.

1. Turn the computer off and back on.

2. If you are on broadband Internet and it isn't working (You can't get Internet OR email) unplug the power from your modem then plug it back in. If you are going through a router, do the same with the router.

STOP BUYING NORTON PRODUCTS!!

Rick
1 min read

We write a lot about this subject because we continue to see friends and family members trying to help their parents, neighbors, siblings, etc with their computer security by buying Norton security products. We have proved over and over that Norton products don't protect as well as our current recommendations of AVG or Avast Antivirus, plus they slow down computer systems tremendously and in some cases lock them up so they aren't usable.

So, PLEASE do not buy Norton products for yourself and help your tech buddies and families by recommending that they not pollute their systems with these inferior products either.

Use copy and paste to enter long passwords

Rick
1 min read

One technique I use to enter long, complex passwords (which we should all be using) is to open Notepad from the Accessories menu and type the password there. Since we only see the asterisks (*) when we enter passwords, it can be extremely difficult to accurately type in some passwords with mixed case, numbers and other characters. The problem doubles when we have to enter a password two times in a row. Here's how I use the Notepad trick to circumvent this sometimes frustrating procedure:

1. Open Notepad from the Accessories menu

2. Type out the password and verify its accuracy

Compare online map services

Rick
1 min read

I was home sick for the day so I had a lot of time to stumble around the Internet. I found this great site that lets you compare all of the big online mapping services like Yahoo, Google, Ask.com and NASA. I think Google won every time but the site is interesting.

Left hand digital cameras

Rick
1 min read

canon tx1 A caller made us aware of a problem with most digital camera designs. She has a friend who is missing his right hand. Most digital cameras have the shutter release on the right side.

Is there a solution?

Yes. There are a small number of upright digital cameras on the market.

This is a picture of the new Canon TX1. While this camera is a little pricey, there are cameras with similar designs made by Panasonic, Sany and Aiptec.

Quickly sort your start menu items – VIDEO TIP

Rick
1 min read

Finding the right program in your Start menu can be difficult if the items are all out of order. Here's how to sort them alphabetically.

1. Click Start -> (All) Programs

2. Right-click on any item in the Programs area

3. Click Sort By Name

If you need any more help with it, just watch this quick little video tip.