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Welcome to this week's edition of the Computer Kindergarten Newsletter.
Today is Sunday, May 7, 2006
In this Issue:
Question: Print Part of a Page
Question: Using Links
Tips & Tricks: Outlook Express Settings
Featured Computer Term: Path
This Week's Topic: Social Networks
Question: Locking Toolbars
Websites of Interest: Gasoline Prices: Comparison Shopping; Copy Kat Recipes; Time Capsules; Used Cars
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Special Feature: Print Part of a Page
Question: I enjoy your email a great deal and learn so much from it. I would like to print certain articles without printing the entire email. Could you tell me how to do this? Thank you.
Answer:
Most Windows programs allow you to print part of a document instead of the whole thing. To print part of a page, highlight the part you want to print by moving the mouse pointer to the beginning of the section, holding down the left mouse button, and moving the mouse to the end of the selection. Make sure it is highlighted - the text will be white on a dark background.
Click on File to open the menu, click on Print, and then choose Selection in the Page Range area of the dialog box. Click the OK or Print button.
In some programs, the Selection choice may not be in the first Print dialog box. In that case, look for a button that says Options. Click on it; you should find the Page Range area in the resulting dialog box. Click the OK or Print button.
Only the part of the document that you highlighted will print.
An alternative to using the Selection feature is to Copy and Paste the text in your word processing program, and then print from there.
To do this, highlight the text that you want to print. Click Edit on the menu, and then click Copy. Switch to your word processing program. Click Edit on the menu, and then click Paste. The highlighted text will appear in the word processing document.
Advantages to copying text into a word processing document: if you want to print two or more nonconsecutive areas of a document, you can copy each block of text into your word processing program, then only have to print the word processing document one time.
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Special Feature: Using Links
Question: I love your newsletter. It has helped me understand so much about my computer. Could you help me with this? You put website addresses in, but I don’t know how to use them. Would you explain? Thanks so much.
Answer:
the addresses you see in this newsletter point you to many worthwhile, informative and fun websites. Here are the instructions on how to use links:
A website address will be used one of two ways, depending on how your email program displays website links in emails.
Some email programs display the address in blue, underlined text; if your email program works this way, all you have to do is click on it and a window with the Website in it will open on your screen.
If your email program displays the link in plain text, you can copy and paste it into the address bar on your browser. Here are the steps:
Highlight the link with your mouse. Click Edit up on the menu bar, and then click Copy from the menu that you just opened up.
Open your browser (click the Start Button, point to Programs, click on Internet Explorer).
click on the address bar. Click Edit up on the menu bar, and then click Paste from the menu that you just opened up.
Press the Enter key on the keyboard and this will take you to the Website.
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Tips & Tricks: Outlook Express Settings
If you have difficulty with Outlook Express, whether it is missing images or many other issues, or would like to make any changes such as using a different font, most resolutions can be found in the Options window.
Click Tools on the menu bar and then click Options. This will open the Options window. You will see tabs for General, Read, Receipts, Send, Compose, Signatures, Spelling, Security, Connection and Maintenance.
Take some time to look through all of those tabs. Chances are you will find a Setting that can be selected or unselected which will resolve your problem or make the change you want.
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Featured Computer Term: Path
A path is a file address, similar to a home address. Your address includes your country, state, city, street, house number and possibly apartment number. A computer file path includes the same thing. It starts with the letter of the disk drive; C, for example, if it is on the hard drive. Then it lists all the folders and subfolders that the file is in and must be opened to find the file.
Here is an example. Let’s say you put songs from your CDs on your computer. One of the songs, which you would like to listen to now is Frank Sinatra’s New York, New York.
You have a folder called My Documents and that folder has a subfolder called My Music. You created a few subfolders in the My Music folder: Classical, Country, Favorite Singers. In the Favorite Singers folder, you created a folder for Frank Sinatra, another for Tony Bennett and another for Dean Martin and so on.
To open and play New York, New York, you have to open the My Documents folder, then open the My Music folder, then open the Favorite Singers folder, then open the Frank Sinatra folder. (A lot of opening, but you are organized!)
In the files path, backslashes are used to indicate subfolders. This is how the path would look:
C:\My Documents\My Music\Favorite Singers\Frank Sinatra\New York New York
Windows automatically puts in the path for you when you create folders, but whenever you look for a file, you have to navigate through folders and show Windows the path to the file.
To learn more about creating and using folders, please visit our newsletter archives:
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/121204.html
Is there a computer term or phrase that you'd like to see an explanation of?
Email it to info@computerkindergarten.com and we'll put the term and its
definition in an upcoming newsletter.
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Today's Topic: Social Networks
The following is an article from WorldStart (used with permission), which provides a good explanation of Social networks. These websites have taken a huge leap in popularity in the last several years, especially among teenagers and middle school kids. Since these websites give children access to all kinds of people all over the world, parents, grandparents and anyone with children in their lives should educate themselves on their children’s’ usage of the computer and the Internet.
Question: What is a social network?
Answer:
That's a great question, because you might in a social network right now and not even know it. A social network is also known as a virtual community and they are related to profile sites. They are just certain Web sites that help bring people together so they can make new friends, chat, share interests, share ideas, etc.
It's amazing how many social network sites are available on the Web today and more and more are popping up each day. As I mentioned above, social networks are related to profile sites, which are sites that allow you to create a profile for yourself for others to view. I know many of you may be thinking that this is an online dating site or something similar, but that's not exactly what a social network is all about. (Online dating sites can be considered social networks, but there's so much more to them than that).
You can make a profile for yourself and include a picture if you want, some of your background information, your hobbies, etc. Other people your age can find you and you can make new e-mail friends all over the world. It's a fun way to spend time on your computer, because you can meet all kinds of different people and learn all about them as well. And, you don't have to tell anyone anything you don't want to. You can be as open or private as you wish.
Some of the more popular social network sites today are:
* Bebo - this site allows you to share photos, stories and even your own journal with friends and family, either privately or publicly.
* Classmates - some of you may have heard of this site before. It helps you find your old friends from high school. You can search for them, find out where they're living, what they're up to and keep in touch with them forever.
* Friendster - this site helps bring people together from around the world who have similar interests
* MySpace - this is one of the more popular sites on the Internet today. You can create a profile here and even post a blog if you want. Other people can also leave you messages on your page. It's pretty neat.
* Yahoo 360 - this site allows you to make your own personal Web page with a journal, pictures, favorite links, etc. You can then share your page with your friends and also view theirs. You do need a Yahoo! ID and password for this site.
Of course, if you don't feel comfortable being a part of a social network, there is nothing wrong with that, but the option is always there if you do change your mind. Also, parents should keep in mind that some of these sites are popular hang out places for predators. As parents, you should always be involved in your child's computer activities and know which sites they are visiting.
If you decide to use one of these sites, make sure you're comfortable with each person you're talking to. These sites are a fun way to meet new people and learn new things, but you can never be too careful.
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Question: Locking Toolbars
In Internet Explorer, the toolbar with the back button is missing. How do I get it back?
Answer:
Click View on the menu, point to Toolbars and then click Standard Buttons. The toolbar will now display on your screen.
If you find that toolbars frequently disappear from Internet Explorer, you can lock them on the screen. This way, they cannot accidentally be moved or removed. Here are the steps:
Make sure all your Toolbars are displayed and in the location you want. Click View on the menu, point to Toolbars and then click Lock the Toolbars. Now the toolbars will permanently be on the screen and in that position. Should you ever want to move or close a toolbar, follow these steps to unlock it and then make your changes.
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Websites of Interest:
Gasoline Prices: Comparison Shopping
How about those gas prices? If you have not yet resorted to riding your bicycle, visit these websites to do some comparison shopping without a lot of driving around
http://autos.msn.com/everyday/gasstations.aspx
http://gasbuddy.com/
Copy Kat Recipes
This website has recipes from popular restaurants. Check to see if your favorite dish is listed.
http://www.copykat.com/
Time Capsules
Enter your birthday and get the top news headlines, songs, toys and books, sample prices and a list of celebrities born on that day.
http://www.dmarie.com/timecap/
Used Cars
The site offers tips for evaluating condition of cars, including its brakes, engine, transmission, etc., where to look for used cars, and how to look into the car's history.
http://www.samarins.com/ |
