Clarify the text on your screen

This is for everyone who is still running Windows XP (which is most of us). It works best with an LCD monitor, but should help even with an old monitor as well.

This procedure adds clarity to the text on your screen. Do a right-click in a blank area on your desktop, and in the new menu that opens choose Properties. Click the Appearance tab, then click the Effects button. Look for the option that says "Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts" and check that box. In the drop-down menu just below that option, choose "ClearType". Click OK, and click Apply in the remaining window. You will see a noticeable difference in the text clarity.

If your screen already had that display property in place, UNcheck it and click OK and Apply in the remaining window so that you can see the difference it makes. Of course, you will want to set it back to the clearer display again. Pretty big difference! I am not sure why anyone would NOT want to take advantage of that clearer setting.

I found some more clips of Bill Dance - he is the guy with the fishing show that seems to constantly attract bad luck. I also found out some more about this guy. He lives in Tennessee, and has been doing this fishing show since 1968. I guess with almost 40 years of being on camera, it makes sense that there are this many mishaps caught on tape. Here we go!

Screen saver - now you need one again

When the PC first started becoming commonly used at home, one of the most popular programs was the screen saver. It was new, many of them were entertaining to watch, and everyone wanted to save their monitor from phosphor burn. Having those images move all around the screen in random directions prevented the icons from searing themselves permanently into the screen.

Then, the newer monitors came out. Not the new LCD flat-panel screens; just newer versions of the big ones (also known as CRT, for Cathode Ray Tube). With those monitors, you didn't really need a screen saver because the phosphor burn-in problem had been fixed. Still, you get a selection of screen savers with every version of Windows, and people really liked watching those pipes getting connected and filling up the screen, so a lot of people continued to use them anyway.

Now, the LCD flat-panel monitors are commonplace. In fact, the old CRT monitors have virtually no value - they are just being discarded. Initially I thought that the LCD monitors would not require a screen saver. That is not correct. I got mine a couple of years ago, and I have noticed now that if I leave the icons on the screen with no change for a couple of days, their shadowed image stays there even after they are gone. The ghost images are not there permanently, however - once the icons are changed or moved, the shadows are completely gone after about a day.

So, in spite of telling people for some time that they no longer need to use a screen saver, I now need to change that advice. Use one. To activate your screen saver, or change it, just do a right-click on a blank area of the desktop and choose Properties. Then click the Screen Saver tab, and choose the one you like from the drop-down menu.

Important: Do NOT go looking for a cool screen saver by searching on Google. Most of the ones you see advertised (such as "get your FREE waterfall screensaver!") are spyware, and will install all kinds of garbage on your computer. Only get software from a reliable source that you know and trust.

Your home network

These days it is quite common for one household to have several computers online, connecting to the internet via a wireless router. In our house, we have 4 computers. Mine is connected by cable to the router, and the others connect wirelessly. Of course, you want to make sure your network is secured with at least a password or passphrase - that keeps your neighbors (or anyone else nearby) from accessing your network.

There are a couple of advantages of this scenario, aside from everyone being able to connect to the high-speed internet signal.

We only use one printer. It is located in the office and connected by cable to my computer. I designated it as a "shared" printer, so that anyone on the network can use it. We might use more ink in that printer, but that's still cheaper than buying 4 printers. Also, if someone comes over with a wireless laptop and needs to print something, they can use the password to get on the network and use the same printer.

Another feature of this system is that it makes backups easier. I have an external hard drive connected to my computer, so I designate it as "shared", and then each person on the network can create their own folder on that drive. Everything important is sent to that drive on a regular basis, so the critical data is always in two places. Incidentally, having the data in two different places at all times is the critical rule of backup strategy. Sometimes people will tell me that they are going to put their valuable family pictures on a CD, so that they could delete them from the computer hard drive. What if the CD somehow gets damaged? Always keep the data in two places.

There are other advantages of having all computers on the same network (such as making it very easy to share files). If you don't already have your computers set up this way, I recommend doing it or having someone help you do it.

Screenshots made easy

This is a topic I have covered in the past, but it has been a while so it is worth repeating here.

I have done a lot of tech support via telephone. Part of that process is trying to determine what is happening on the screen, when all I have to go by is what the other person is telling me. I have learned that there are potentially three different things that could be happening:

1. What the customer says is happening,
or
2. What I think is happening based on the verbal description and level of expertise of the customer,
or
3. What is actually happening.

Well, you know what they say - a picture is worth a thousand words. If I can see the screen, that often clears up exactly what is going on. That's the first step toward a solution.

There is an easy way for me to see the screen. It's called a screenshot, and it is just what it sounds like it is - a picture of the screen. It's quick and easy to send a screenshot by email.

First, when the screen is showing evidence of whatever the problem is (such as an error message), hit the "Print Screen" button on the keyboard. This does not mean anything is going to print.

Next, open a new email and enter the recipient's email address and a subject line. Then put the cursor in the body of the email, and click Edit - Paste. There it is - a picture of your screen, right there in the email! Send it to whomever is helping you, and you might be surprised at how quickly it sheds light on the problem. It's the next best thing to being there!

Make a custom Google home page

Wouldn't it be great if you could have all of your vital information, news, email, etc all come up on your home page? It is possible - courtesy of Google. You wouldn't believe all that is available.

First, you need a Google account. If you already use Gmail for your email service, that account will work. Otherwise, go to www.gmail.com and create a free account.

Next, go to www.google.com and sign in if you are not already signed in. Then click on the "Get Started" link to personalize your home page (alternatively, you might see a link for "personalized home page which can also be used).

The first thing to customize is the theme (click on "Select Theme" in the top right). I like the sunrise/sunset theme.

Then, click on "Add stuff". What stuff is there to add, you ask? Almost anything you can think of. I have the weather conditions and forecast for Safety Harbor, Florida and Waldoboro, Maine. I also have news headlines, my Gmail inbox, Mortgage Rate watch, the "Interesting Thing of the Day" and a few other things. Be prepared to spend some time - there are many little widgets that you can add to this page. And you can move them around to where you like them just by dragging!

Once you have it the way you like it, set this to be your home page (under Tools - Options - click on Use Current Page).

Here is a wonderful video about a soldier coming back home from Iraq and surprising his 6-year old son: