Julie's computer tips and tricks. Volume 1

Right Click For Fun

Let's start with some easy fun stuff.
I will be assuming some level of competence as you obviously were able to get to this page. If I use any terms you are unfamiliar with or if you feel lost please e-mail me immediately at so that I can fix it for everyone else.

Right Click (no silly not write click):

Most of you have mouses (mice meeses) with at least 2 buttons and a wheel.
The button on the left is the one you are most use to using to select things on your computer. Most computers are set up so that you have to click twice called "double click" to select something. This prevents accidentally opening files and starting programs running.
The button on the right does new and interesting things... BUT you only have to click once and then you will get a menu with some choices. When you click the right side button it is called right click. Right click anywhere on your desktop where there are no icons. You will get a menu with some choices.
The first is almost always: Arrange Icons By: when you let your pointer rest over this a sub-menu appears with more choices. Try them all out. None of them are permanent and you will not be removing anything.
Now move your pointer down to New: when you let your pointer rest over this a sub-menu appears with more choices. When you select one of these it puts a new one on your desktop.
Now move your pointer down to properties: when you select this you display properties box appears (usually found in settings under control panel). You can play with this box as much as you want to change the look of your display. Stay away from the advanced buttons for now unless you are feeling brave today.
Right clicking on an Icon will bring up a menu of choices. Most of them are self explanatory.
Right clicking on images in documents or on the internet will allow you to save pictures as jpg files. These can be fun to use or even educational. Play around with right click and see how many new things you can do. If you find something you want to try but are unsure of what it does, send me an e-mail and I will post your question here for all to see and learn from.

Julie

Julie's computer tips and tricks. Volume 2

All About Pictures

I will be assuming some level of competence as you obviously were able to get to this page. If I use any terms you are unfamiliar with or if you feel lost please e-mail me immediately at so that I can fix it for everyone else.

All about pictures

First some basics. In order to look at a file, whether it is text or pictures your computer needs to run a program to change the digital data (ones and zeros) into something that the average human can make sense of. Some programs for looking at text include MS word (.doc), MS notepad (.ini), acrobat reader (.pdf), MS excel (.xls), MS PowerPoint (.ppt) and all programs that process e-mail such as outlook and thunderbird. Just about all of these programs can also display pictures, but that is not what they are designed to do and they don't do it very well. If you save pictures with one of the programs listed above, in time (the more you use it) your picture will degrade and become fuzzy and out of focus.
Some programs designed for pictures are MS paint Adobe Photoshop Adobe Photo Deluxe. And just about any program that came with your camera or scanner has a picture running program. These programs will allow you to save programs in different formats such as Bitmap aka bump (.bmp) Joint Photographic Experts Group aka JPEG (.jpg) Graphics Interchange Format aka GIF (.gif) Tagged Image File Format aka TIFF (.tif) [avoid PNG for now.]
The definitions are below but the short answer is this:
Save images as Bitmaps or bumps because they will never degrade, but they do take up disk space so consider burning disks or saving on a portable hard drive to keep them forever. JPEGS are small enough to email and use in projects but will also degrade and get fuzzy with use. Gifs and Tiffs are to send to the printer for quality hard copy images.

To save an image in a particular format follow these steps:
1) right click on your image whereever it is.
2) select save as picture from the menu that appears
3) select a location to save the picture from the buttons on the left or the dropdown menu at the top
4) at the bottom where it says file name, type a name for your picture
5) under the name box select save as type from the drop down menu and select jpeg, or bmp or whatever you need.

Definitions
Bitmap or a raster image corresponds bit for bit with an image displayed on a screen, probably in the same format as it would be stored in the display"s video memory.
JPEG is a commonly used standard method of compression for photographic images.
GIF image employs lossless data compression so that the file size of an image may be reduced without degrading the visual quality
TIFF is a file format for mainly storing images, including photographs and line art.

Julie

Julie's computer tips and tricks. Volume 3

Files unzipped

I will be assuming some level of competence as you obviously were able to get to this page. If I use any terms you are unfamiliar with or if you feel lost please e-mail me immediately at so that I can fix it for everyone else.

What is a Zip File?
A Zip file is sometimes called an "archive" file. The Zip file itself is really just a container... it holds the real files inside it. The purpose behind the Zip file is transportation and storage. The Zip file acts like a ziploc sandwich bag - it holds contents inside for easy transporting and storage. This makes Zip files (and their counterpart Rar files) very valuable to file sharers and downloaders.

How Do Zip Files Work?
A Zip file achieves three things:

1. It bundles one or more files into a single container file.
2. It compresses (archives) its contents to be as much as 90% smaller size.
3. It can provide an optional password padlock on its contents.

Is 'Zip' the same as 'WinZip'?
Although many people confuse the two, they are technically different.

1. "Zip" is the generic file format of a compressed archive.
2. "WinZip", like "WinRAR" or "PKZip", is specialty software that creates and manages Zip files.

"Do I Need WinZip Software to Use Zip Files?
No, you can use multiple different software products for Zip files. In 2006, the two most popular Zipping products are WinZip and WinRAR. Either product will open, unzip, and create Zip files for you.

Julie's computer tips and tricks. Volume 4

Register or Renew WOCN, PCR membership

Julie's computer tips and tricks. Volume 5

The Polaroid Healthcam and grid film are no longer manufactured.

The Polaroid Healthcam and grid film are no longer manufactured.

In order to go digital you want something nurse-proof, fast and easy to use and a dedicated photo printer dock at each nurses station.
Some possible digital alternatives under $200 include:

Any of the Kodak EasyShare cameras with an EasyShare printer dock for charging and printing out photos the V1003 and the V1253 have gotten good reviews and have more than 10 megapixels for clearer printouts and photos

HP Photosmart products frequently come as a set with printer and camera together. These usually run in the 5-7 megapixel range the A445 has some good reviews although I did not think the images were as good as the other brands

Canon Powershots have good reviews if you can find the right combo of camera and docking printer. The Canons are a little larger than the rest, the Pro being it would be harder to pocket and take home, and the con being that they look a little more technical than the rest.

More to come as I collect more data, but I wanted to get this out to you all as fast as I could

Julie

Julie's computer tips and tricks. Volume 6

How to update or change your WOCN and PCR contact information

Julie's computer tips and tricks. Volume 7

How do I clear my cache?

To clear your cache in Internet Explorer 6.x:

1. Log out of your Gmail account. Close all other open browser windows.
2. Click the Tools menu at the top of your browser, and select Internet Options.
3. Click the General tab at the top of the dialogue box.
4. Click Delete Files underTemporary Internet files.
5. Select Delete all offline content by checking the box.
6. Click OK.

To clear your cache in Internet Explorer 7:

1. Log out of your Gmail account and close all other open browser windows.
2. Click Tools > Internet Options.
3. Select the General tab.
4. Click Delete under Browsing History.
5. Under Temporary Internet Files, click Delete Files.
6. Click Delete Cookies.
7. Click OK.

To clear your cache in Mozilla Firefox:

1. Log out of your Gmail account and close all other open browser windows.
2. Click the Tools menu at the top of your browser and select Clear Private Data...
3. Select the Cookies and Cache checkboxes.
4. Click Clear Private Data Now.

To clear your cache in Mozilla and Netscape:

1. Log out of your Gmail account. Close all other open browser windows.
2. Click the Edit menu at the top of your browser, and select Preferences.
3. Click the + next to Advanced.
4. Select Cache under Advanced.
5. Click Clear Cache.
6. Click OK.

To clear your cache in Safari:

1. Log out of your Gmail account. Close all other open browser windows.
2. Open the Safari menu on your browser's toolbar.
3. Select Empty Cache.
4. Click Empty in the dialogue box.

In some cases, it may be necessary to clear your cache more than once.