7 8 08 System Tools *

(The 800 lb Gorilla.)

Dear Classmates,

Tuesday, July 8 at 7 pm, we will have our Windows XP/Vista Workshop.

Special treat: Bob Brown will do a comparison of Windows Vista and Windows XP. He will review the most significant differences and search for the reasons why Vista has such a bad reputation. Is it possible that Vista is not really all that bad?

Also, he will have a schedule of Microsoft's support for various

Windows releases and a few rumors about the next version of Windows

coming someday.

Also he will do a brief demo of home networking.

After Bob Brown's presentation we will have our Question and Answer period and we will discuss and demo:

1. Disk Cleanup: It deletes; Temporary Internet Files, Temporary Files,

Recycle Bin, Offline Web Pages, etc.

2. Error Checking (Scan Disk); (removes errors from your hard drive.)

3. Defrag. (rearranges your data for faster access) As you add and delete programs and files your, it is scattered all over the hard drive Defrag rearranges your data so there are no empty spaces and the programs and data you use the most are put into the fastest accessible portion of your hard drive.

4. System Info. Tells you all about the Hardware and Software

on your computer. (More than you want to know).

5. System Restore: Restores your system to a previous date.

Say you installed a new program today and your computer

went haywire, use System Restore to restore it to yesterday.

6. Files and Settings Transfer Wizard. (you can have problems with this)

7. Security Center: Manage security settings for Automatic

Updates, Internet Options, and Windows Firewall.

(Notice, there will be no meeting in August.)

Kindest regards,

joe isaac

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Control + H will bring up History in either Netscape

or Internet Explorer.

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LOST CLUSTERS- When you scan your hard drive, it will save

lost clusters with the extension of .CHK (They are named and

numbered this way: File0000.chk - File0001.chk, etc.)

This is just me, but I always delete them.

.chk = Misc File fragments saved by ScanDisk.

BACKUP FILES- These end in .OLD or .BAK and are older

versions of files that a program has changed

TEMPORARY FILES- Files that end in .TMP or have a $ or ~ in their

extensions or in their names are usually temporary files that can be

safely removed.

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After the accident, I told the police officer I thought the driver

of the other vehicle was drunk.

He told me the other vehicle was a cow.

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Make your Email Text Bigger

In Outlook Express and Windows Mail: click on VIEW, Text Size.

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COOL Computer Tip.....for Scroll Wheel Mouse Users:

Having trouble reading a webpage) because the type is too small?

You can change the size of the text!!!

Hold down your Ctrl key and spin the wheel. It makes the
text larger or smaller depending on which way you spin.

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The most common ways to get a virus:

E-mail attachments and Internet downloads.

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If you have something you need to clean and everything you've

tried isn't working, you can always check out this site.

http://www.howtocleananything.com/

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TRY IT YOU'LL LIKE IT!

Stocks (Google Stuff)

Put a stock symbol in Google. For example, to view information for Microsoft or Intel, you would type in msft and it will bring up Microsoft

or intc and it will bring up Intel.

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Definitions: (Google Stuff)

Type Define: and any word you wish to know, like Define computer

it is amazing.

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Deciphering Centrino:

Centrino consists of: For laptops only.

An Intel Processor.
A compatible motherboard chipset.
A wireless component.

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Best of online Museums:

Computer History Museum:

www.computerhistory.org

Tech Museum of Innovation:

www.thetech.org

U.S.Army Military History:

http://ftp.arl.army.mil/ftp/historic-computers/

Smithsonian:

www.americanhistory.si.edu/index.cfm

Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village:

http://www.hfmgv.org/

U.S.Library of Congress:

www.loc.gov

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Daily Fun Site:

Phrases

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. It's better

to light a candle than curse the darkness. These are

phrases we've probably all heard of and a lot of us use.

Did you know there was a site you could go to in order to

find out about their origins and histories?

http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/index.html

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Q. Hi Joe I've got Vista and you'd think it'd have Power

Point, but I got an email on pictures of animals from a

former work buddy and my PC says "can't perform requested

activity"?????

How do I initate Power Point on Vista? Thanks.

A. All you need is the PowerPoint Viewer that is on the TIPS 2008 CD.

Or you can download it from:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=428d5727-43ab-4f24-90b7-a94784af71a4&displaylang=en

Let me know if this works.

Response: It worked. Thanks a million!

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From Norm Severin:

" The American Indians found out what happens when you

don't control immigration."

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Response to the Vista $20 class email:

Geez Joe.....I'm still trying to learn XP!!!!

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Q. Joe, I'm still in XP, and recently when ever I return to

the desktop, I get the following message:

IEXPLORE.EXE - Application Error

X The instruction at "0x02802bf2" referenced memory at

"0x02da6c38". The memory could not be "read".

Click on OK to terminate the program.

A. I don't really know but I have 3 suggestions:

1. Go to Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools,

System Restore, and go back to a date when you computer

was working OK. If it was recently.

2. Download Internet Explorer 7.0 and see if that will fix it.

3. Google it and see what they say.

Response:

Thanks for the quick response Joe. I shoulda thought of

System Restore......old age sure ain't for sissies, is it.

Thanks again.

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Your new Vista computer should have:

AMD or Intel Core 2 Duo Processor rated at 2.0 GHz or more

Memory 2 or 3GB

120 to 350 GB Hard Drive

19" LCD Monitor

(DVD- RW Drive To burn CD's and DVD's.)

128 MB graphics card, 256 MB is better.

Digital Media Reader for your Digital Camera memory card.

Windows Vista Premium (comes with a Firewall and

Windows Defender, an AntiSpyware program.)

Speakers with a sub-woofer

Good Surge Protector

Optical Mouse

AntiVirus Program

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Q. I just returned from a European trip and took over 500 pictures

with my digital camera. If I put these on my computer and

then to a cd and then delete them from the computer, will

the space used up for the photos be returned or does it

just look deleted but is really still there?

A. They are in your Recycle Bin, you must delete them from the Recycle Bin, then the space used by the photos will be returned.

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100 words most often misspelled.

http://www.yourdictionary.com/library/misspelled.html

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Untouched Amazonian Tribe Caught On Camera:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16fvTonR_gA&eurl

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From: Myra Engle

Sent: Wednesday, June 11, 2008 10:52 PM

You wrote this in another email earlier. That statement is why I now

own a new laptop with Vista. :)

In a message dated 6/11/2008 12:08:33 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,

joeisaac@insightbb.com writes:

We also discussed the Snipping Tool in Vista, to me it is one on the

great new programs within Vista. I don't care what you see on your

monitor, web site, email, pdf file you can capture any part of it by

using the Snipping Tool and save it as a jpeg file. Now you can

insert it in an email or word document.

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From: Wanda Green

Sent: Wednesday, May 28, 2008 6:21 AM

Subject: Thank you

Joe,

I am happy to see someone who likes Vista and has some positive

information to help Vista users. I have been using it on my

clients' computers, and bought 1 new computer with Vista for our

company. It has been a real challenge for me and I have been one of

those complainers. I sincerely appreciate your positive

emails--this will help me.

Thank you.

Wanda Green, QuickBooks Certified ProAdvisor

Fifth Point Enterprises, Inc.

Payroll, Bookkeeping, and all things QuickBooks

859.263.8237

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Microsoft is offering free support for Windows XP, SP3 problems:

http://support.microsoft.com/oas/default.aspx?ln=en-us&prid=11273&gprid=522131

Bob Brown reported that Microsoft's support for XP will end

April 8, 2014.

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Excellent information From Laurie Barnett:

Upgraded to Vista? Frustrated?

These Quick & Simple Steps May Help!

1) For your information, in Vista the word "My" has been dropped

from the titles My Computer, My Documents, My Pictures, etc.

2) Every time I change a setting, I'm prompted to grant permission

to allow the system to make the change. This is annoying!

This User Account Control feature in Vista is a good one. It is

intended to make the Administrator of the computer aware of all

changes to the system (such as installing new software, changing

settings to the Start Menu, etc.) and helps prevent malicious

software from being installed on the computer. When a user (who is

not the Administrator) decides to change a setting, they are

prompted for the Administrator to enter a password. When the user

is the Administrator, however, the User Account Control can be

annoying, especially when customizing Windows and installing

software after first installing Vista. During this time the

Administrator is continually prompted to grant permission. When

this happens, the Administrator may want to temporarily turn off

the User Account Control while configuring the computer to their liking.

Before turning off the User Account Control, ensure that you have

antivirus, spyware, malware and firewall protection. To turn off

the User Account Control, open the Control Panel and go to User

Accounts. Click on Turn User Control On/Off and then uncheck the

box labeled Use User Account Control (UAC) To Help Protect Your

Computer. Reboot your computer. A red shield with a white cross

will appear in the Notification area of your Taskbar alerting you

that the UAC has been turned off. To turn the UAC back on, simply

take the same steps but instead of unchecking the box, place a

checkmark inside the box.

3) Where's the Menu bar (File, View, Help, etc. buttons) on the

Windows Explorer screens, e.g., Computer, Document, etc?

The Menu Bars in Vista are hidden by default because most of the

tasks are found on the Toolbar or on menus when you right click on

a file or folder. To temporarily reveal the Menu Bar, press the

Alt key and the Menu Bar should appear. Selecting an option from

the Menu Bar will make it disappear, or press the Alt key again.

To permanently display the Menu Bar, click the drop-down arrow on

the Organize button on the screen and go to Layout and then click

on the Menu Bar option. The Menu bar should now be displayed.

4) Windows Flip 3D is a new visual effects feature in Vista that

helps a user quickly scroll between windows and tasks; however some

may consider the scrolling too distracting. This feature can be

disabled if you like. You can always enable it after you've become

accustomed to Vista. To disable it, right click on Computer and

select Properties. Click on Advanced System Settings. Click on

Continue. Select the Advanced tab and then press the Settings

button. Select the Visual Effects tab. You will be presented with

the following options:

- Let Windows Choose

- Adjust for Best Appearance

- Adjust for Best Performance

- Custom

Select Custom and scroll through the list until you see the setting

for 3D and uncheck it.

When you have changed the setting, click OK for the change to take

effect.

While scrolling through the list in Custom, take the time to become

familiar with the other settings that you have control of. At some

point you may decide you want to change some of them.

5) Whenever I turn on my computer the Welcome Center screen

displays. This is annoying!

To stop the Welcome Center screen from displaying each time you boot

up your computer, locate the box labeled Run at Startup in the

lower-left of the screen. Uncheck the box and close the Welcome

Center screen. Next time you boot up your computer, the Welcome

Center should not display. If needed, you can access the Welcome

Center by clicking the Start button and select the Control Panel

and then click System & Maintenance and then select Welcome Center.

6) Where's the Run command on the Start Menu? I miss it.

You can access the Run command by pressing the Windows logo key in

conjunction with the letter R. If you prefer to place the Run

command on the Start Menu, right click the Start button and select

Properties. Go to the Start Menu tab and click on the Customize

button. Scroll through the list and place a checkmark in the Run

Command box. Click OK for the change to take effect.

7) To the right of my desktop is a Windows Sidebar with Gadgets. I

prefer to have a "clean" desktop. How do I remove the sidebar?

Right click on the word Gadgets located in the upper-right corner

and select Close Sidebar.

8) Can't find something? Vista has a search feature called Instant

Search to help you locate applications, email, any file, document,

photo, Internet Favorite or History, etc. It searches not only by

name but inside the file or document as well. It also searches by

date or a property of what you are trying to locate. At the bottom

of the Start Menu is a text box. Inside the box, type the word,

phrase, date or property of what you are looking for. As you begin

to type, the computer immediately begins to search and return all

relevant matches. Double-click the specific item you are looking

for in order to open it. This Instant Search box is also located in

every Windows Explorer window, e.g., Computer, Documents, Music, etc.

9) Where is Log Off, Shut Down, Restart, etc.?

Click on the Start button. At the bottom of the Start Menu to the

right of the Instant Search, box, you will see the Power button (an

icon of a circle broken at top). The default for the Power button

is Sleep! To the right of the Power (sleep) button is the Lock

Button Menu. Log Off, Restart, Shut Down, etc., can be found on

the Lock Button Menu (Click on the arrow to reveal the Lock

Button's menu).

10) Do you find the Start Menu too confusing? Wish it looked like

it did in XP? Change it to Classic View! To do so, right click on

the Start button and select Properties. Go to the Start Menu tab

and select the option for Classic Start Menu and then click OK.

Microsoft has promised to continue security updates and technical support for Windows XP until April 2014.

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To create a one-click shortcut to shutdown Vista, right click on

your desktop and then select New.

Click on Shortcut. In the textbox, type: shutdown -s -t 01

Click on Next when done.

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Q. How do I increase the size of my font in Vista?

A. Right click on your desktop and choose Personalize. Then on the left side, click on the "Adjust font size (DPI)" link. Next, click the option that says "Larger scale (120 DPI) - make text more readable." When you're all finished, click OK.

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Microsoft VP Confirms Windows 7 Ship Date: January 2010

(You know how well Microsoft does dates.)

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Joe, I bought Office 2007 Student & Home Edition on your information

and I must say I want to thank you, thank you, thank you. I have

never owned Office, just had Word as a part of the Works Suite. I

have never been too fond of Word till now. I love it. It is absolutely fantastic. And I love Power Point too. I haven't opened Excel and may not use it because although I use a spreadsheet a lot, I just need the simple Works ss.

But again, I thank you so much for recommending the program and at

that price.

Frankie

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GET REAL-TIME STOCK QUOTES FOR FREE In today's volatile market,

you're probably keeping a closer eye on your stocks and investments.

Traditionally, it has been difficult to get free real-time stock

information online. Stock quotes are typically delayed 15 or 20

minutes. This can make it difficult to buy low and sell high.

This week, Google added real-time stock quotes from NASDAQ and

the New York Stock Exchange.

For real-time sale prices, visit Google Finance.

http://finance.google.com/finance

Or, simply enter the ticker symbol on Google's search page. Keep the page open to have the quotes updated automatically.

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Q. Joe, I installed the latest version of AVG (8.0) and now it tells me

that the connection with the update manager has failed and therefore

I'm not protected. But what can I do to correct this? The only thing I can think of is to uninstall and reinstall. I'd appreciate any suggestions.

A. That is what I would do.

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