Q:
I just got a new computer and I’m having a problem with my Favorites. Seems like if I don’t visit a site often enough, they disappear from the menu! Why is this?.
A:
Newer versions of Internet Explorer use a Favorites menu that “remembers” the sites you visit the most. So, when you click your Favorites menu, you may only see 5 or 6 of your favorite sites… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: Using The Internet |
Shifty Little Tabs
Most people know if they hit the Tab key, they can hop from control to control in a program. What most don’t realize is that if they hold the Shift key while they Tab , they can go backwards through the controls.
Now, before you ask… Controls are the “objects” you interact (play) with in a program. Stuff like buttons, checkboxes, text boxes, lists, etc. are all… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: Using The Internet |
Limit System Restore in Windows ME
Last month Kyle told us how to limit the System Restore feature in Windows XP (see July 17, 2003 Computer Tips ). He mentioned that Windows ME also had System Restore, but it turns out that the process for adjusting it was different. But have no fear ME users—you too can limit your System Restore.
As you may know, your system… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: System Tune-Up Help |
OK, I know there are several ways to view the contents of your hard drive (normally drive C), but here’s another one that I thought was kinda cool.
First, hit your Windows Key and the letter R (Win+R). (The Windows key is located between the Alt & Ctrl keys).
You should now have the Run dialog box sitting
Comments | Filed under: Shortcuts & Keyboard Tricks, Windows Explorer |
Many of Worldstart’s tips will refer to the Windows Desktop at one point or another. If you don’t know what it is, that’s okay, because we’re here to help!
So here we go!
The Desktop, basically, is where all your icons live (stuff like the Recycle Bin sit on the Desktop).
It’s the “background” area you see when your computer first… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: Computer Terms, Desktop Enhancement |
Control Windows Explorer Focus
Ever wish you could control the folder or drive that Windows Explorer opens to? Well, you can and here’s how:
Right-click the Desktop and select New , Shortcut.
In the command line box, put in one of the commands below:
1. To have this shortcut open Explorer with focus on the My Documents folder, use this in the command line (probably a good… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: Windows Explorer |
Q:
What does ASCII mean?
A:
ASCII is short for “American Standard Code for Information Interchange.”
This is what an ASCII chart looks like:
ASCII is basically a non-formatted text document that can be read by any application that can read text, unlike say, a Word document. If you have a Word document, you have to open it… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: Computer Terms |
Fake PayPal Email
Do you use PayPal? If so, you need to be extremely careful. We’ve been seeing a lot of fraudulent e-mails that appear to be originating from PayPal, but are in fact from an unscrupulous 3rd party.
Oh, and for those who don’t know, PayPal is an online payment system—a really good one too (I like it 
. They are not part of this scam, more like a… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: Security Help |
Ahh, I’m losing my mind, I mean, my mouse!
Yes, I hear that cry daily… You’re typing along, life is good, then you need to click on something and you can’t find your mouse. Despite moving that little critter all over your desk, your eye can’t seem to locate the pointer. Ugh!
Well, here’s a quick solution for you Windows XP users:
Click on Start , select Control Panel … Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: Hardware & Peripherals, System Tune-Up Help |
Q:
I am finally going to cancel AOL but I have some very valuable emails in my filing cabinet on AOL. Is there a way to save them?
A:
Finally, an AOL tip! Ironically though, it is a reply to someone escaping from AOL island.
One way to save those precious emails would be to go through each email and forward the ones you want to keep over… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: E-Mail Help |
If you have a mouse with a scroll wheel on it, you can do some cool tricks…
Shift & Spin
Ever wonder what happens when you hold down the Shift key on a web page and spin the wheel on your wheel mouse? Explorer goes either back or forward, depending on which direction you spin.
Give it a try. Open up Explorer and follow a few… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: Hardware & Peripherals, Using The Internet |
Q:
Is there anything I can do about web pages with fonts that are too small to read or so large that they waste browser space?
A:
Yes, there is hope. You can avoid eye strain or the loss of vast amounts of browser real estate. You can increase / decrease the font size of your browser. Here’s How:
Internet Explorer & Outlook Express Users:
Click your View
Comments | Filed under: Using The Internet |
Q:
What is BIOS?
A:
BIOS (basic input / output system) is basically the “software” the computer uses for it’s most basic operations (accessing memory, disks, processors, etc.). This “software” is built into the computer’s motherboard, so don’t worry about losing it if your hard drive crashes.
Note that these are NOT Windows
Comments | Filed under: Computer Terms |
Older versions of Windows had the MS-DOS prompt conveniently located in the programs file. For some reason, Windows 2000, XP, Vista and 7 buried it in Accessories and renamed it “Command Prompt”. So, how do we get there from here?
Simple!
To get a DOS prompt in Windows 2000, XP, Vista or 7, you can go the long way… Start>Programs>Accessories, and select ” Command
Comments | Filed under: System Tune-Up Help, Uncategorized |
Q:
I was installing a program and it told me disable my anti-virus software. How do I do that?
A:
On the right side of your taskbar is your system tray . In it you can see the programs that are currently running.
Move your cursor over an icon and you should get a little text line telling you what the program is… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: System Tune-Up Help, Uncategorized |
E-mail forwarding
Are you one of the many people who forward our Computer Tips newsletter to friends and family? Do you receive email from a particular sender at work that you always forward to your personal account? If you are an Outlook/Outlook Express user you can have this done automatically! Here’s how:
Go to Tools / Message Rules then Mail . Choose New .
Select “Where the From line contains… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: E-Mail Help |
Purge Your Clipboard of Large Files
When you use the “copy” or “cut” command, it copies information to your Windows clipboard . That information is kept in your RAM memory until it’s replaced by something else.
Unfortunately, if you’re copying large items, this can adversely affect your computer’s performance. How? Well, that large file, picture, object, or whatever it was that you copied is floating around… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: File & Disk Management |
Q:
What is the Windows Clipboard?
A:
The Windows clipboard is used to temporarily store stuff. This “stuff” can come in the form of just about anything. Images, files, documents, etc.—they can all be placed on the clipboard. Once something has been copied to the clipboard it can be pasted into another location.
The clipboard isn’t a program you can actually access and play with. It’s a built-in… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: Computer Terms |
Rename Several Files at Once
Have you ever been working on a project with information on several files? Maybe it was an annual report with files from different departments. Or perhaps you unloaded the pictures from your camera and would like to find the ones of your grandchildren easier. This tip works with every type of file and will help you give them all the same name. I’m sure you… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: File & Disk Management |
Add an Online Picture to an Email
Have you ever come across a cool graphic at a website and wanted to include it in an email? One way is to save the graphic to your hard drive and send as an attachment or insert it into the body of an HTML email (as demonstrated above). But that takes up space on your hard drive or in the email. So, is… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: E-Mail Help, Using The Internet |
Have Excel Help With The Proofreading
So, you’ve just entered a formula into an MS Excel cell and you get this…
#NAME?
Now what’s that?
Well, it turns out that you’re looking at Excel’s way of letting you know that you’ve used a name Excel doesn’t recognize.
For me it most commonly means that I’ve entered the name of a function with a typo and now Excel is confused.
If… Continue reading
Need More Data?
Are you an MS Outlook user who often finds yourself wishing for more Contact fields? That is, maybe you’re looking to enter data that has no “pre-made” location?
Frustrating isn’t it?
What do you do?
I mean, you want the data recorded for future use, but where?
Let’s fact it, if you “slide” it into another field just to have a record of the information you could… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: MS Outlook |
Zoom, Inbox — Zoom, Outbox
Do you work in MS Outlook and find that you seem to flip between the Inbox and the Outbox frequently?
Tired of needing the mouse to jump back and forth between the two?
Yeah, me too.
So here’s just the key combinations you need to zoom from one to the other…
Ctrl + Shift + I will take you immediately to the Inbox.
Ctrl +… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: MS Outlook |
Going To The Edge
Are you an Excel user who often works with huge ranges of data?
Sort of annoying when you’re trying to move from one end of the range to the other, isn’t it?
You can scroll for what feels like an eternity (and then probably pass the end of the data up anyway) or hit the Page Up / Down key about “a million” times. But no… Continue reading
Wait — That’s Not What I Want!
Have you ever found yourself frustrated with the AutoCorrect feature found in the MS Office suite programs?
Yeah, I’m sure you have.
Most of the time they’re helpful little changes in spelling or things like capitalization and we’re thankful to have the program looking out for us.
But… what about the times when AutoCorrect is making changes that we really don’t want or… Continue reading
Comments | Filed under: MS Office Help |
MS Excel Worksheets on Demand
Ever notice that an Excel workbook opens with many worksheets? (I believe my program was initially set somewhere around 10 sheets.)
Have you ever wished that a new workbook would open with more worksheets? Less?
Yep, you’ve got it. There’s a way to change the default number of worksheets. Another one of those “That was so easy, why didn’t I know about that before?” items.… Continue reading
Question: I hear the terms “workbook” and “worksheet” used frequently when people discuss MS Excel. What exactly is a workbook? A worksheet? Is there a difference?
Well, to begin with, there is definitely a difference. (But you knew that, didn’t you?)
A workbook is the MS Excel file in which you enter and store related data.
A worksheet (also known as a spreadsheet) is a collection of cells on a… Continue reading
