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May
1, 2000; Issue #5; Mail Address:PMB 309
4038 Factoria Blvd. SE, Bellevue, WA 98006-1212
Voice
Mail: 206-232-5892; Classroom: Phantom Lake Elementary School, Bellevue
For
Detailed Information, Class Schedules:
www.seniornetps.org
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IT’S EASIER THAN EVER to access the local SeniorNet website with all vital information, subjects taught, class schedules, and back copies of the Newsletter, thanks to our Website creators and operators, Hal Mozer and Jay Schlechter, with additional assistance by Ken Crandall. Just type in the short URL as follows: www.seniornetps.org
PRINTER TIP---If your printer stops producing those nice black-and-white, or color printouts, it sometimes (repeat, sometimes) means your print head contact with the paper has dried up, even though there is plenty of ink. The possible solution: Check to see if there is enough ink in the cartridge. How?? Well, try shaking it and if you hear swishing inside, there is ink. BUT, don’t get yourself all marked up if it spills. Another way to check: Take a small hunk of paper towel or a tie you always wanted to get rid of, dribble a small touch of alcohol, and wipe the print head contact several times, then blot on paper towel, or the tie. This happened to this writer. Now the printer prints like a printer should, although there is no guarantee there isn’t a different problem with your printer. But worth a try.
DVD DRIVE: WHAT IS IT AND DO I NEED IT? From Joe Pontecorvo some tips: DVD stood for "digital video disk" until the medium's diverse possibilities became obvious. Although the V briefly came to stand for "versatile," the industry's official line now is that the initials stand for nothing in particular at all. You can think of DVD as a bigger, faster CD-ROM that can deliver full-screen video that looks like TV, not expanses of fuzzy blocks. In its basic form a DVD-ROM can hold 4.7 gigabytes of information on a single side, about seven times the capacity of current CD-ROMs. Double-layered DVD's will hold 8.5 billion bytes, and double-sided disks will double those numbers. The disks are the same size as existing CDs and conventional CDs can be played in most DVD drives. DVD player units are becoming very popular for home entertainment systems. Other than movies, until more programs are available on DVD, its use for the computer is limited for now.
ANYBODY GOT COMPUTER PROBLEMS? (line forms at left)-With the impressive array of real computer talent within our SeniorNet group, you are invited to send in, via email to the editor, a (brief) note re your problem. We in turn will pass it along to our experts and invite/challenge them to come up with a possible answer in the next monthly Online newsletter. Send query to: b26flyer@worldspy.net
HARRY SULLY DOING FINE-Yes, our venerable sage Harry Sully is reported recovering nicely following the recent installation of a pacemaker, and Sully in fine spirits. But then, Sully always has been an enthusiast for electronic stuff.
POWER BREAKFASTERS- Sure, our all-volunteer SeniorNet works with Seniors to help them develop and polish computer skills in our hands-on classes, but it also develops real relationships in the exchange of ideas and learning. The first Tuesday morning of each month, SeniorNet holds its very informal no-host Kaffee Klatch at the Crossroads Mall Food Circus at 11 am. Now some members living in the same area are carrying the socializing and self-education concept a step forward with so-called Power Breakfasts now and then. Ray Hansen and Online News Editor Phil Scheier, both Kirkland residents, started these occasional sessions at the gourmet McDonald’s on NE 85th. In time, Joe Pontecorvo and Erv Vernon, also of Kirkland, joined the exchange of ideas and computer info over low-cal Egg McMuffins and coffee.
CAN’T FIND THE START MENU?—A true puzzle for one of our members (no names, please) who somehow couldn’t find the Start icon for Windows at its usual spot at the bottom of the screen; couldn’t find the Toolbar at the top. Matter of fact, for some strange reason, he couldn’t find anything to issue a command or open a menu. Nothing! With some experimenting, and questioning some of our colleagues, he was able to solve the mystery. He had somehow brushed against one of the screen adjustment wheels at the front of the monitor. This enlarged the screen, covering everything else. So the drill is, check the adjustment wheels/buttons at the front, bottom of the monitor, and all should, generally, return to normal. And you can always find the Start menu by pressing the Windows key with the Microsoft Windows flag on your keyboard. No Windows key? Press Control-Escape and it appears. The hyphen means you hold both keys down at the same time.
LOOKING FOR SOMEONE? ANYONE?—Searching for a zip code, an address, phone, a map of a specific area? One of the better way to get the information fast is via Internet’s White Pages, where you insert whatever information you happen to have to get the rest of the information. If you’re looking for a person living somewhere in a specific state, but you don’t know the town or city, you still have a good chance of running down the correct information. Lots of easy to use possibilities at: http://www.whitepages.com/cgi/find_person.cgi
SOME WORDS OF CAUTION IN FORWARDING EMAIL—Curriculum Coordinator Hal Mozer comes up with some words of caution to avoid having your email address, and those of others, getting into the hands of the wrong people, such as spammers/scammers etc.(These, generally, are not good computer friends) In essence when you’re being hit with jokes, virus warnings, whatever, from well-meaning friends, who in turn, received it from other equally well-meaning friends, you generally wind up with a huge amount of email addresses. And when you feel it is your duty to pass these items along, the list of open email addresses grow longer and longer. If you wish to also pass the email along to friends, Hal strongly recommends you delete all previous email addresses arriving with the message by either backspacing them out, or selecting them and pressing the delete button. And now, if you wish to pass this along, insert the addresses to receive this message, into the BCC (Blind Carbon Copy) address space. In this way, nobody else will know who else is getting this message. And in the TO address space, you can insert your own address. Thus, everyone’s privacy is maintained. Which is what we try to do with this Online Newsletter.
REMEMBER: This coming Tuesday morning, May 2, our monthly no-host, self-enrichment, come as you are, Kaffee Klatch, let’s-talk-it-over starts at 11 a.m., at the Crossroads Mall Food Circus.
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Pres.>
Helen Hesketh; Past Pres.> Clif
Wuesthoff; Vice Pres.>Bill
Bumpas; Secy>Dave Lewis;
Treas.>Bob
Swenson; Registrar<Louise
Flora; Curriculum. Coordinator>
Hal Mozer; Facilities Coordinator> Ken Crandall;
Member-at-Large>Anne
Scheinholz; Volunteers
Coordinator> Delores Davis;
Online
News Editor> Phil Scheier;
Public Relations>Jo Hugh
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