|
Welcome to today's edition of the Computer Kindergarten Newsletter.
Today is Tuesday, August 21, 2001
In this Issue:
Featured Computer Term: Freeze
Topic: When The Mouse Freezes
Progressive Learning Series: Fonts: Quickly Changing Point Size
Featured Website: The Official US Time Clock
***********************************************************************
Today's Featured Computer Term: Freeze
A Freeze is an error that can appear on computers running in a Windows' environment. This includes even the earliest versions of Windows such as Windows 3.0 and 3.1, and still occurs in later versions such as Microsoft Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT, and Windows 2000 and ME.
A freeze usually causes the computer to stop working and accept no commands from the user.
Jokingly called the blue screen of death because when the error occurs, the screen sometimes turns blue, and the computer almost always freezes and requires rebooting.
***********************************************************************
Today's Topic: When The Mouse Freezes
Occasionally (especially if you're using Windows ME), the mouse will freeze up. Since it's always better to use the Shutdown command instead of just pushing the on button, the first step would be to try to give commands with the keyboard.
You can use your keyboard to access the start menu when the mouse fails. Notice the button on the bottom left of the keyboard with the Windows logo on it (it's usually between the ctrl key and the alt key). Press that and the Start menu opens. From there you can use the arrow keys (on the right side of the keyboard) to move up to Shut Down; press the Enter key on Shutdown and then press Enter again for OK (or yes, depending on Windows version).
***********************************************************************
Progressive Learning Series: Fonts: Quickly Changing Point Size
Word provides a way to quickly change the point size of a selection. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Select the text whose point size you want to decrease.
2. Press and hold the Ctrl key and tap [ to decrease text size or Ctrl ] to increase text size.
Every time you press Ctrl + [ or ], the point size of the selection will decrease or increase by one point. If you want more precise control over the point size (for instance, making something 11.5 points), you must use the Font dialog box by choosing Font from the Format menu.
***********************************************************************
Today's Featured Website: The Official US Time Clock
At The Official US Time Clock Web site, you'll find a giant Java-animated clock with the current time as agreed upon by the United States Department of Commerce, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the US Naval Observatory.
The site claims that "The time maintained ... should never differ by more than 0.0000001 seconds from Coordinated Universal Time."
time.gov |
