Business Software Made Easy - Time Saving Tips

Icons Missing from your Desktop? Maybe they got cleaned-up.

Sun, 19 Oct 2008 21:18:20 GMT

Originally Posted October 19 2008

If you turned on your computer and discovered your icons and perhaps your files are missing from your desktop, you may be the victim of an over-active Desktop Cleanup Wizard. The Desktop Cleanup Wizard will move your old (untouched in a while) Desktop items and place them into a folder called 'Unused Desktop Icons' on your Desktop.

In Windows XP:

Right click on your Desktop

Select 'Properties'

-The Display Properties window appears

Click the 'Desktop' tab

Click 'Customize Desktop...' button

-The Desktop Items window appears

Uncheck 'Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard every 60 days'

Click OK

Click Apply

Click OK

If you are using Vista, well this feature has been removed. I guess we'll have to wait for Windows 7.

Why let your digital photos sit there? Turn them into your screen saver.

Sun, 24 Aug 2008 20:47:13 GMT

Originally Posted Aug 24 2008

So you have collected and downloaded all those photos into your computer. Why just let them sit there. Here's how to turn your digital photos in your My Photos or Photos folder into a screen saver:

In XP:

1. Start > Control Panel > Display

2. Click the 'Screen Saver' tab

-In the Screen Saver field

3. Select 'My Pictures Slideshow' from the drop-down list

Hint: Click the 'Settings...' button to adjust the transition settings, time, etc

4. Click 'Apply'

5. Click 'OK'

In Vista:

1. Start > Control Panel > Personalization

2. Click 'Screen Saver'

-In the 'Screen Saver' field

3. Select 'Photos' from the drop-down list

Hint: Click the 'Settings...' button to adjust the transition settings, time, etc

4. Click 'Apply'

5. Click 'OK'

That's it!

Resize Pictures, Images, and Logos in Vista

Sun, 18 May 2008 14:29:42 GMT

Originally Posted May 18, 2008

If you have taken advantage of the free Microsoft Image Resizer software download that I shared in my earlier Tip and want to be able to quickly resize your images, photos, company logos, etc. on your Vista machine here's what you can do.

Be sure you have Microsoft Office installed to use this process:

-In Vista

1. Click the Start button

2. Click Pictures to open your Picture files

3. Find the picture you want to resize

4. Right Click on the picture

5. Select 'Open With'

6. Select 'Microsoft Office Picture Manager'

-Microsoft Office Picture Manager starts

7. Picture > Resize

8. Select the desired size in the 'Predefined width X height' field in the upper right-hand margin

9. Click OK

10. Close Microsoft Office Picture Manager

-You will be prompted to Save the changes

11. Click 'Save'

Note: This will alter the original picture size. If you want to keep the original in-tact, be sure to File > Save As... before resizing.

Control when your Vista computer goes to sleep

Sat, 19 Apr 2008 13:32:08 GMT

Originally Posted April 19 2008

Are you tired of waiting forever for your Vista computer to wake-up after it goes to sleep? Do you wish there was a way that it would just turn-on instantly when the monitor is black? All you need to do is change the Power Plan.

-In Vista

1. Start (button) > Control Panel

2. Click 'Classic View' for easy reference in the upper left-hand margin

3. Double Click Power Options

4. Click 'Create a power plan'

5. Enter a name for the power plan in the 'Plan name:" field

6. Click Next

-In the Put the computer to sleep:

7. Select Never for On Battery and Plugged in options

Note:

-You want to have your monitor turn-off after some period of time because LCD monitors will burn-in an image over time

-Leaving your hard drive on all the time is not recommended with a laptop computer because it will greatly reduce its battery life

8. Click Create

9. Verify your custom Power Plan is selected

10. Close the window

-Your power plan is now saved and applied to your Vista computer

That's it!

How to improve your computer's performance

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 00:17:07 GMT

Originally posted March 31 2008

Is your computer running slow? Are you wondering how to get more performance from your computer? Here are a few tips you can do:

-Run the Disk Cleanup

Many files are created in the normal operation of your computer. Once they are unneeded, they sometimes are not deleted. Disk Cleanup will eliminate these unneeded files.

In Vista and Windows XP

1. Click the Start button

2. All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Cleanup

3. Select all the check boxes

4. Click OK

-Delete Temporary Files manually:

Like the temporary files cleaned-up by Disk Cleanup, there are additional temporary files that are created in the normal operation of your computer, but do not get deleted when your computer is done with them. This process deletes temporary files saved in different locations identified by Disk Cleanup.

Note: This is also a great troubleshooting technique when you are having difficulty installing software.

In Vista and Windows XP

1. Start > Run

2. Enter '%temp%' (without the ')

3. Edit > Select All

4. Edit > Delete

5. Close the window

1. Start > Run

2. Enter 'temp' (without the ')

3. Edit > Select All

4. Edit > Delete

5. Close the window

If you get a message that a file cannot be deleted after completing either step 4 or 7, just restart your computer then repeat the process as soon as you restart.

-Defragment your Hard Drive

Your hard drive is similar to a record (remember records?) Well, unlike a record your files are not saved in sequence rather they are scattered over the entire disk (technically called a platter). The more scattered the files, the more effort your computer has to make to find your files - this increases the time it takes to find your files.

In Windows XP (In Vista, Disk Defragmerter happens automatically)

1. Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter

2. Click 'Defragment Now' or 'Run'

-Add RAM memory to your computer. Additional RAM memory will noticeably enhance your computer's performance. May people believe that increasing the side of their disk drive will enhance their computer's performance, but this may not be true (unless you see messages stating 'Low disk space' or similar messages).

-Add more RAM memory to your computer

RAM memory is the intermediary location your computer saves data while its running. Things like the programs that are currently running, the files you opened, etc. The less amount of RAM you have the slower your computer since each open program and file competes for it's share of the RAM memory. Adding more RAM is probably the most noticeable way to increase your computer's performance.

To add more RAM memory you must first determine how much memory you have by:

1. Start > My Computer

2. Right Click on My Computer

3. Click 'Properties'

-The amount of memory is displayed

For windows XP computers, you should have at least 1GB or .99MB of RAM memory. For Vista computers, you should have at least 2GB of RAM. If you don't then you should add more memory to enhance your computer's performance.

You can purchase additional memory through your computer manufacturer's website or other vendors like your computer manufacturer's website, Kingston.com, PNY.com, or a local electronics retailer.

We can assist with increasing your computer's performance by completing all these tasks and more. Just give us a call!

Slow connection to the Internet or can't connect to the Internet? Try these remedies first.

Sun, 20 Jan 2008 21:15:37 GMT

Originally Posted January 20, 1008

If your Internet connection seems to be running slow or if you can't even connect, try these quick remedies before calling technical support. Most likely, this will solve your problem before you have to call tech support:

Reset your communication components to establish a fresh connection between you and your ISP.

1. Turn off all your computers

2. Unplug your Router from the power - If you don't know what is your router, look for a box that has one of the popular brands like Linksys, D-Link, or Netgear printed on it. Your setup may not even have a router and be connected directly to the Modem. If so, to to step 3.

3. Unplug your Modem from the power - If you don't know what is your modem, look for a box that has one of the popular brands like 2Wire, Toshiba, or Siemens. If you have Time Warner, Grande, or even SuddenLink look for an unmarked black box that is connected connected to your Router or directly to your computer

4. Wait 30 seconds

-Complete the following in order:

5. Plug in the Modem to the power

6. Wait 30 seconds

7. Plug in the Router to the power

8. Wait 30 seconds

9. Turn on your computers

If the above didn't help, try clearing your Browser's cache. Your Browser saves website files on your computer that will accumulate over time. If they haven't been deleted, this will bog down your computer - here's how to clear them out:

If you have Internet Explorer 7.0 (You may have to press your ALT key to reveal the menu).

1. Tools > Internet Options

2. Click the 'Delete...' button

3. Click 'Delete all...'

-The Delete Files window appears

4. Check the 'Delete all offline content' checkbox

5. Click 'OK'

If you have Internet Explorer 6.0

1. Tools > Internet Options....

-The Internet Options window appears

2. Click the 'Delete Files...' button

-The Delete Files window appears

3. Check the Delete all offline content checkbox

4. Click 'OK'

If you use AOL

-With AOL Closed

1. Start > All Programs > America On Line (or AOL) > AOL System Information

2. Click on the 'Utilities' tab

3. Click Clear Browser Cache' button

4. Click 'Close'

If you use Firefox 2.0:

1. Start Firefox

2. Click Tools > Clear Private Data...

3. Check all boxes for a thorough cleaning or just Cache for the cached files

3. Click the 'Clear Private Data Now' button

If neither of these seems to help, it is time to call the professionals - like us!

More Free software from Microsoft!

Sun, 6 Jan 2008 22:17:42 GMT

Originally Posted January 6 2008

Happy New Year!

With the beginning of 2008, I would like to say thank you for your loyalty to my Time Saving Tips.

Since I couldn't give you a present in person, here is a list of free software that I think everyone will really enjoy even if you aren't technically inclined.

Microsoft has assembled a list of handy downloads that almost everyone can benefit from. Here are just a few of the kinds of professions that can benefit:

• If you are in Real Estate, there is Image Resizer. Just right click on the digital image and you can resize your image for upload to MLXchange or other websites.

• If you are a Windows Power User, you can have a thumbnail of the program you select when pressing ALT + Tab with the Alt-Tab replacement

• If you are a statistician, use the Power Calculator to graph your calculations

• The SyncToy is also available (remember the last Tip from 2007?). You can sync two folders, hard drives, or even flash drives!

All these Microsoft free programs available here:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspx

Enjoy!

Synchronize your files the easy way with SyncToy

Sun, 16 Dec 2007 20:48:18 GMT

Originally Posted: Dec 16 2007

If you are like most people, you probably spend some time on your home computer completing work-related documents, spreadsheet, presentations etc. You probably then save or copy those files to a USB flashdrive, take it to work, and either print, e-mail, or work on them some more on your work computer. After a while you may loose track of what file has the most recent edits - is it the one on your flashdrive or your home computer?

If this sounds like you, you are in luck. Microsoft has a handy and FREE software called SyncToy. SyncToy will synchronize selected Folders on your computer with your flash drive (or even another computer if it is connected to your network). Download and setup is easy.

To Download:

1. Go to: http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/digitalphotography/prophoto/synctoy.mspx

2. Download SyncToy from the 'download' link on the right hand side of the screen

3. Click Run to install SyncToy

5. Click on the SyncToy icon in you Start menu (In All Programs, it should be near the end of the list)

6. Click 'Create new folder pair'

-The Wizard starts and helps you select which Folders you want to Sync

7. Sync!

That's it!