TECH TIPS
from the Technology Committee [click to view their home page]

Edition 3  |  Edition 4  |  Edition 5  |  Edition 6

This Edition's Categories:

Web Browsing / Email     |     MS Power Tips     |    Computers & Hardware

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Web Browsing / Email

Safeguard your Internet Privacy

Browsing the Internet can be dangerous without adequate protection. If you wish to better safeguard your privacy, you can use an 'online anonymous browsing service.'

Do you ever wonder why you can get travel ads on non-travel related websites after visiting other travel sites? It’s because cookies can track and reveal your past browsing history. Anonymous browsing services can protect your identity and privacy, by hiding your true identity from the website you visit. Anonymous services can also protect you from spyware and web-based viruses. (Online banking usually works with these services, although sometimes you may have to disable it to use online banking.) Examples of services are www.anonymizer.com, www.the-cloak.com and www.Anonymouse.org.

Sam Giraffe, Giraffe Tech LLC — www.giraffetech.com

Email Shortcuts

Here’s something you might not have know you can do with shortcuts. Are there people you email all the time?  Create a shortcut to send them an email. One click of the shortcut and your default mail program will open up a message to that person, pre-addressed and ready to send.

To make an email shortcut, right click an empty area of the desktop or folder where you wish to create the shortcut and hit ‘new\shortcut.’ Once the shortcut wizard comes up, type ‘mailto:' followed by the person's email address.  (E.g. mailto:yourcontact@yahoo.com) Click ‘next’ and give the shortcut a name. From now on, clicking your new shortcut will open up an email to that recipient.

Michael DeCamillis, Dolvin Consulting — www.dolvin.com

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MS Power Tips

Windows Updates

Windows XP and Vista have an Automatic Windows Update feature that will scan for and download critical updates to Windows as they become available. This feature can protect your computer with up-to-the-minute fixes as problems are identified and solved. If the updates are causing interruptions in your work, however, you can switch off this feature, or set it to run at a time that you are not usually working on your computer. You can access the Automatic Updates control panel by right clicking on My Computer and selecting Windows Updates. (Disabling updates can affect your computer's security ─ please check with your I.T. administrator before making changes.)

Jonathan B Bayer, Bayer Technology Group — www.bayertechnologygroup.com

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Computers & Hardware

Play nice with older Office versions

Because not everyone immediately updates their software when a new version is released, you may expect to run into problems when sharing 2007 documents with those using Word 2003 or earlier. Luckily, Microsoft anticipated this and included functionality to ensure that 2007 documents play well with others: Compatibility Mode and the Compatibility Checker. When you open a Word document created in an earlier version in 2007, Word automatically switches to Compatibility Mode in which Word turns off the options that only work with 2007. For instance, you can't apply a 2007 document Theme to a document running in Compatibility Mode.

If you create a document in 2007 from scratch but need to share it with others using earlier versions, you can turn on the Compatibility Checker to find out exactly which features you’ll lose in translation. To run the checker, click the round Microsoft Office button at the very top-left of your Word window, then, select Prepare | Run Compatibility Checker. You’ll instantly see a summary of items that Word must alter when you save the document to an earlier version. (Note: you can identify most Office 2007 version documents by the extra 'x' on the file name extension: 'mydocument.docx')


Adam Goldstein, ATech Services LLC — www.atechsvcs.net

Stable Internet Connection

Are you rebooting your cable or DSL modem every few weeks? Consider moving other electronic equipment away from the modem. Wireless routers placed next to modems can sometimes cause signal interference with the modem, causing the modem to lock up, and requiring you to reboot both devices. Moving one device at least six feet away from the other will often get rid of this problem.

Arnold Rosner, Strand Management — www.strandmanagement.com