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Computers 101

Q:
What are Wave (WAV) files?

A:
They are basically files on your computer that have gotten moisture in them. The theory being that if you collect enough of this moisture, you'll get tiny "waves" on your hard drive as a result.

JUST KIDDING - I couldn't resist. Sorry.

Wave files (they have a .WAV extension) are sound files. They can be anything from a little beep to a full blown song. They are also the default type of sound file for Windows. Today's Cool Site has lots of these to play with.

Tip of the Day

Changing Windows Sounds

Web link - http://www.worldstart.com/tips/changesounds.htm

If you don't like the dull, boring, simple little sounds that Windows typically produces, you can change them. Here's how:

First, click your Start button, Settings, Control panel (XP users, hit the Start button, Control Panel). You should see an icon for either Sounds or Sounds & Audio Devices. Double-click it.

(XP screen shot - older versions of Windows will just say Sounds:)

A screen should pop up that lets you change your sound scheme or create one of your own. With XP, you'll need to hit the Sounds tab in order to get to this section.

Any of the items (events) you see that have a little speaker by them currently have a sound assigned.

Click (select) one of them and click the "preview" or "play" button to hear it.

If an event has a sound and you wish it didn't, just click the event and select "none" from the "Name" or (if you're using XP) the "Sounds" drop down box (you'll find "none" is at the top of the drop box).

What if you have an event you want a sound for, but the current sound is really, really annoying? Ahh, not to worry!

You can change individual sounds by selecting the event you want and clicking the Browse button. XP users can choose sounds from the Sounds drop box too.

Of course, you can choose a completely new set of sounds from the Sound scheme drop down box if you like. That's always fun too.

One more thing. Windows uses WAV files for its sounds, so you can easily customize Window's sounds to your liking, assuming you have extra WAV files laying around. I'll show you how to get more tomorrow.

Amanda's Cool Site of the Day

Free Audio Clips

A consortium of sound clips awaits you. Well you want to change the sound events on your computer? Personalize them to suit you? You may be able to find just what you are looking for here at Free Audio Clips. In fact this site even has a search engine to help you wade through the thousands of sound clips they provide, and best of all it's free.

http://www.freeaudioclips.com/list.php?subcatid=41&subcat=System+Events&cat=10

Do you have a cool site that you want to share? Send it to Amanda! Here's her address:

amanda@worldstart.com

Oh, and we're looking for non-commercial sites. We generally don't run sites that are strictly for shopping.