Welcome
to this week's edition of the Computer Kindergarten Newsletter.
Today is Sunday, July 12, 2009
In this Issue:
Special Feature: Spyware Removal
Tips & Tricks: Twenty Five Most
Important Rules of Email Etiquette:
25. Avoid "Me Too" Messages
This Week's Topic: Show Headers and
Footers on Printed Web Pages
Question: Missing Recycle Bin
Websites of Interest: Hearing Aids;
RoyaList Online; Glowtxt;
Fruit & Veggies Matter; Fifteen Ways to Save Money
Online: 12. Watch Free Movies
Online
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Special Feature: Spyware
Removal
by Peter May of How Stuff Works
http://www.howstuffworks.com
If,
despite all your efforts, you find your computer has spyware on it, stop
working immediately and disconnect the computer from the Internet to avoid
passing any information to the bad guys. Run a
comprehensive scan using your anti-virus software. It's
also wise to contact the help desk of the company that manufactured your
computer for advice on how to proceed. Your Internet service provider may be
helpful, too.
Updated
anti-virus or anti-spyware software will probably catch the errant program,
display a warning and take care of the problem for you. Again, that's only if
you have a solid protection package in place and are keeping it and your
operating system updated at all times.
If
all else fails, you may have to reformat your hard drive, reinstall the
operating system and software and copy your data back to your drive. While
painful and time-consuming, this solution also serves to clean up the system,
eliminating unused applications and data. This is almost certain to make the
machine run faster and increase the space available on your hard drive. Just be
sure you have a recent, clean backup of your data prior to taking the plunge.
While
the number of threats to computers seems to increase almost daily, the defense
mechanisms available to protect them are also growing in number and
sophistication. Today, most users can protect themselves from spyware through
the vigilant application and maintenance of the operating system and reputable
anti-virus software.
Please
visit our newsletter archives for previous articles in this series.
How
to Avoid Spyware
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/053109.html
Malware
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/060709.html
The
Effects of Spyware
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/061409.html
Avoiding
Spyware
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/062109.html
**************************************************************
Tips & Tricks: Twenty Five Most
Important Rules of Email Etiquette:
25. Avoid "Me Too" Messages
This
is the last article in our series on Email Etiquette. With the help of Heinz Tschabitscher from about.com, we took an in depth look at
email etiquette. We hope you enjoyed
it.
To
read previous editions of this series, please visit our newsletter archives:
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/etiquette.html
The
rules of email etiquette are not rules as much as they are guidelines that help
avoid mistakes (like offending someone when you don't
mean to) and misunderstandings (like being offended when you're not meant to).
These
core rules of email etiquette help us communicate better via email.
Avoid
"Me Too" Messages
I
have seen it many a time already: the ubiquitous "me too" message. It
quotes some opinion that has been posted to a mailing list, only to support it
with the mere words: "Me too!!" You too,
have you seen it?
And even if I, too, have been tempted to produce
"me too" messages, we should avoid them. There's
really little new information and no contribution to the discussion, but a lot
of annoyance in them. You should only support another message when you also
have something new to contribute to the discussion.
To
read previous editions of this series, please visit our newsletter archives:
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/etiquette.html
**************************************************************
Today's Topic: Show Headers and
Footers on Printed Web Pages
Question: A friend gave me a printout of a
webpage. The date and website
address showed up at the bottom of the page. My printouts do not do that. Can I change the settings so mine do
that too? I would find this very
helpful when I want to go back to that site again.
Answer:
Yes,
you can change the Header and Footer settings to print the date, time, page
address and more. To do so, follow
these steps:
Open
Internet Explorer and go to the site you want to print. Click File on the menu. If you do not see the menu, press the
Alt key on the keyboard.
The
Page Setup window will display. In
the middle of the window, you will see an area called Headers and Footers with
a blank text box under Header and another under Footer. You will have to type a
code in the box. Whatever you type in the Header box will print on the top of the page, and what you type in the Footer box will print at the
bottom of the page.
To print the page address at the bottom of the page, type
in &u in the footer box. (See the chart below for a list of
commands).
If you want the address centered at the bottom of the
page, type &b&u&b in the Footer box.
If
you want the address centered and the date right aligned at the bottom of the
page, type in &b&u&b&b&d
Here
is a list of the other codes you can use in your header and/or footer boxes:
To
print this: Type this
Window
title: &w
Page
address: &u
Date
in short format: &d
Date
in long format: &D
Time: &t
Time
in 24-hour format: &T
Current
page number: &p
Total
number of pages: &P
Right-aligned
text (following &b):
&b
Centered
text (between &b&b): &b&b
**************************************************************
Question: Missing Recycle Bin
My
Recycle Bin icon no longer appears on the desktop. I use it all the time,
can I get it back?
Answer:
Yes,
you can. Follow these steps:
If
you are using Windows XP:
Right
click on your desktop and then left click Properties from the menu.
Click
the Desktop tab at the top and then click the Customize Desktop button. In the
middle of the window, you will see some of the desktop icons, including Recycle
Bin. Click on the one for the Recycle Bin and then click the Restore Default button.
Click OK. The Recycle Bin icon
should be back on your desktop.
If
you are using Windows Vista, Right click on your desktop and then left click
Personalize from the menu.
Click
Change Desktop Icons on the left side of the window you now see.
The
Desktop Icon Settings window will display.
In the Desktop Icons area, click the checkbox to the immediate left of
Recycle Bin. Click the OK button.
The
Recycle Bin icon should be back on your desktop.
**************************************************************
Websites of Interest:
Hearing
Aids
From
the U.S. National Library of Medicine, take a look at
this Medline Plus article to learn everything about hearing aids.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/hearingaids.html
RoyaList Online
A guide to the royal genealogy of Britain.
http://www.royalist.info/
Glowtxt
Just
for fun. Enter your text, select
options (style, size, animation type, glow effect etc.) and click on the
“Make text” button to see your glowing text. Scroll down for more
choices.
http://glowtxt.com/
Fruit
& Veggies Matter
This
website can advise you on how much fruit and veggies to eat to maintain a
healthy lifestyle. Check out recipes and much more.
http://www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov/
Fifteen Ways to Save Money Online:
12. Watch Free Movies Online
From
Wendy Boswell of about.com
No
matter what your financial situation may be, it is always a good idea to learn
new ways to save money. Find out how you can utilize the power of the Web to
save money, find good deals, and improve your financial status.
12.
Watch Free Movies Online
Free movies on the Web? Sure,
if you know where to look! There are dozens of high-quality sites where
you can find free movies to watch. Here are a few:
http://www.hulu.com/
http://www.imdb.com/
http://www.spike.com/
http://blip.tv/
http://www.joost.com/
Tip: Some websites may require you to
register to use their features.
When you register at websites, you may be signing up for spam (junk
mail) if the recipient sells email addresses to spammers. There is a way to avoid this and still
be able to take advantage of the great things that site has to offer. Read our article, Minimizing Spam
– Registering Online, at our newsletter archives, to learn how use
websites without getting junk mail.
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/111608.html
Next
Edition: Free Music Downloads
Please
visit our newsletter archives for previous articles in our Fifteen Ways to Save
Money Online series:
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/savemoney.html