Skip to content

pictures

Successful Searching of the Internet

All too often I hear comments like "I can’t find anything on the Internet" or "I’m afraid of getting viruses from the Internet" or "Where do I start". In today’s meetings, we discussed some tried and true methods of searching the Internet successfully and easily.

Google is the current king of web searching and should be your first stop to start any search.

Boolean searching is probably the single best methodology to learn to improve your searching skills. Here’s how it works in a nutshell:

10 Things you can do with Broadband Internet

Thanks to lower prices and increased availability, broadband (high speed) Internet is starting to over take dial-up services in the United States. Dial-up Internet served us well for the first 10 years of the Internet, but to really take advantage of the Internet today, a broadband connection is a must.

Here are 10 things that you can do with a high speed connection today that you can’t do (as easily) with a dial-up service:

  1. Keep up to date with Windows and Internet security updates automatically
  2. Google Earth
  3. Download music (legally) at sites like Napster, iTunes, and Rhapsody
  4. Receive and make phone calls while on the Internet…without an extra line!
  5. Watch online news or information videos or listen to online music or news casts without waiting and without the choppiness and stuttering of a dial-up connection
  6. I know many people don’t think that speed matters…but with broadband, the Internet becomes much more of a resource tool than a novelty.
  7. Upload pictures to printing services to either be picked up or mailed to you.
  8. Watch movie trailers
  9. Save time…you can do four times as much research or work with a broadband connection in half the time.
  10. Make free or extremely inexpensive phone calls and video phone calls.

Admittedly, many of these functions can be carried out with a dial-up connection, but studies and my experience have shown that people don’t do these things. The reason? Time. For example, a broadband user can download a song in under 3 minutes. The same song takes nearly 25 minutes with a dial-up connection. Services like Google Earth can take up to 10 or more minutes to start with dial-up.

Red X’s in Email Messages

I’m resetting this tip from two or so years ago because we have had so many phone calls and email messages about this topic. 

Have you ever received an email with "red x’s" in a box or just an empty box in the middle of the email? There are three possible explanations for this phenomenon; either you are reading the message offline, your email program is blocking images from appearing in your email, OR more likely the pictures or graphics that were supposed to be in that message didn’t get sent with the message.

First, a quick background on how pictures work in email messages. Email originated as a text only medium, but in the late 90’s it evolved to the point that it was possible to send embedded pictures, colored text and more with email. This is called Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML) email. In English, that means special computer code to display those pictures and formatted text. Essentially, email has become like mini-web pages. One problem with HTML email is that not all email programs or users can read this type of email…they simply see the plain text devoid of pictures and formatted text.

Picasa 2

What can you do with Picasa 2?

Picasa 2 is a free program made by Google that allows you to organize your photos without any effort on your part.

Besides organizing photos it also has some great creativity tools including gift CDs, slide shows, and blogging tools.

HOW TO GET PICASA:

1. Download Either click on this button, or go to www.picasa.com and click on the Free Download button.

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 can do it to any layer (besides the background layer).

Elements 3 Features

What’s New In Elements 3
 

Quirky Features:

Not all of the new features in Elements 3 are extremely useful. Although many of the new features are designed to help the beginner, they are too complicated to be of any use. Some of theses new quirky features include:

1. Create – The most useful of the quirky new features, this feature allows you to make slideshows, greeting cards, photo album pages and more. Don’t expect the versatility of a program like Print Shop though.

Top 10 Digital Camera Tricks

Top 10 Digital Camera Tips:
(in no particular order)

1. Use Rechargeable Batteries:
Make sure your digital camera supports them. Look for at least 1800 mAh. Get more than one set.

2. Save those batteries:
The three best ways to save batteries are…
1. Don’t use your LCD except for macro and composition shots.
2. Don’t over use your zoom lens.
3. Don’t connect your camera to your computer (use a media reader).

Digital Camera Basics

Digital Camera Basics

 

The first place I will refer you to is the link below entitled "The article to end all articles on Digital Photography." 

Or better yet click here.

There are a few differences between 35mm cameras and digital cameras. The following are a few that we discussed.

Shutter delay: There are two types of delay to expect in a digital camera. The first is the delay that the camera needs to auto focus.  The second is the delay that the camera needs to analyze the image and store it on a disk. When you take a picture with a digital camera wait a second or so before you move the camera.

All Rights Reserved © 2024 Rick Castellini
All Rights Reserved © 2024 Rick Castellini