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Welcome to today's edition of the Computer Kindergarten Newsletter.
Today is Monday, October 8, 2001
In this Issue:
Featured Computer Term: Download
Topic: The Right Mouse Button
Progressive Learning Series: Copy and Paste
Featured Website: The Foliage Network / Leafpeepers.com
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Today's Featured Computer Term: Download
Thanks to newsletter subscriber Lorraine for the following question:
Can you please explain what "to download" means?
Download means to copy data (usually an entire file) from a main source to a peripheral device. The term is often used to describe the process of copying a file from an online service or bulletin board service (BBS) to one's own computer.
In order to be able to use the file (read it, view it, edit it, or run it), the file must be downloaded to the computer it is to be used on.
The opposite of download is upload, which means to copy a file from your own computer to another computer.
To see the graphical directions for How to Download a File, go to http://www.stsico.com/html/download.html
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Today's Topic: The Right Mouse Button
Thanks to newsletter subscriber Lillian for the following question:
I don't know when to use the right mouse button. Could you please give a brief overview?
One of the best (and least known) features of Windows since Windows 95 is the expanded capability it gives to the little-used right button on the mouse and other pointing devices.
While two-button mice have always been the norm for Windows-based computers, only since Windows 95 have software applications taken full advantage of that second button. From quickly changing the desktop background to copying and pasting text within or between applications, the right button (or left, if the functions of the buttons are switched for left-handed users) can simplify common or occasional tasks.
Here's a sampling of some useful right-button features:
* Change the desktop background or screen-saver without going through the Control Panel: Right-click an empty spot on the desktop and choose Properties to bring up the Display settings.
* Quickly cut/copy and paste, change the font, or modify the data's appearance: Right-click after highlighting a block of text in Microsoft Word or a row of cells in Microsoft Excel.
* Quickly open/copy/format: Right-click any program, document or folder icon in Windows to quickly open, explore or copy the item, create a desktop shortcut to commonly accessed folders, or format the diskette in the floppy drive.
* Delete/Un-delete Shortcuts: Right-click the Recycle Bin to quickly delete files. Right-click an empty spot on the desktop or folder after moving a file to the Recycle Bin to quickly undo the delete.
Right-clicking the mouse can yield numerous shortcuts and other surprises. The best way to discover the right- button menus and options available is to right-click any window, icon or toolbar and see what happens!
Note: to close a right-click menu without making a selection, point on a blank spot outside of the menu and click the left mouse button one time.
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Progressive Learning Series: Copy and Paste
Computers are superior to typewriters in many ways. For example, whenever you write something, you may want to rearrange the words or change the order of what you've written. Besides the many formatting options in most programs, you can reorganize the contents of your document in any way you wish by using the Cut and Copy functions.
These commands put the piece of data in a temporary location. In word processing, for example, copying refers to duplicating a section of a document and placing it in a buffer called a clipboard. The term copy differs from cut, which refers to actually removing a section of a document and placing it in a buffer. After cutting or copying, you can move the contents of the buffer by pasting it somewhere else.
Cut and Paste is used to move a block of text, a sentence, paragraph, page or column to another location in the same document or another document. Copy and Paste leaves text in its original location while placing a duplicate in a different location in the same document or another document.
The Clipboard is an area of memory reserved for temporary storage of text or graphics being transferred within the same file, between files in the same application program, or between applications. Material placed on the clipboard remains there until it is replaced by another selection, or the computer is turned off or restarted.
The Four Steps
1. Select text to be moved
2. Click Edit, Click Copy or Cut
3. Move insertion point to location text is to be moved to
4. Click Edit, Click Paste
Using Copy, Cut and Paste
1. Open the document and select the section that you want to copy. (Note: to select text, point to the first character to be selected, hold the left mouse button down, and drag across text. To select a graphic, right click on the graphic, left click on copy in the resulting menu. To select a graphic you created, click Edit, Click Select All.)
2. While the section is selected, open the Edit menu and click Copy or Cut. This copies the selected material into a special area of the computer's memory, called the Clipboard. (Note that with Copy, the selection also remains where it was in the document; it doesn't disappear.)
3. Move your cursor to the place or document where you want to paste the material that is now in the Clipboard. Click when your cursor is in the correct spot. A flashing line will appear where you clicked.
4. Open the Edit menu and click Paste.
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Today's Featured Website:
The Foliage Network.com
At any moment now, autumn is set to arrive in all its brisk, invigorating glory. And for many parts of the U.S., that means a lovely display of colorful leaves (and raking, but let's keep this upbeat).
So you can plan your falltime road trips accordingly, the Foliage Network keeps you abreast of the changing palette from around the country with weekly updates. And if your kids--or you, for that matter--are wondering why the leaves change colors, then you'll find the answers in the About Foliage section, along with ways to preserve the pretty leaves you collect.
Be sure to visit the Pictures section and enjoy a colorful tour.
Leafpeepers.com
Autumn is officially here and it's time to plan those road trips to check out the gorgeous scenery and spend a day enjoying the cooler weather. Before you head out, check out the information on this site. It features fall foliage reports and resources for New England, the Midwest, Rockies, West, and South. Each region has a hotline number, plus links to state foliage reports, photos and live cams. or see below for a link for AOL Users |
