Questions from our members are answered by experts in the specific field and our computer institute run by Phil Rothman provides training in all facets of computer technology.
The month of October kicked off of our new season. A general meeting took place on Tuesday, October 21st with presentations by Joe Maltz and Marvin Weinstock. Meetings in the months that follow will be held on the third Tuesday of each month and some interesting and very informative presentations are planned. Workshop meetings will be held on the first Tuesday of each month starting with the first meeting on November 4th.
The Computer Club's involvement in helping our local public schools has received acknowledgement and acclaim. We received a letter from Mr. Brian Nichols, Technology Coordinator for the Odyssey Middle School thanking us for our "generous donation" of computer equipment. On the list were ten computers plus additional monitors, printers, scanners, and many other miscellaneous items such as software, keyboards, mouse, diskettes, and more. All of this equipments was donated by residents of Palm Isles and were checked out and reformatted by members of the computer club.
The following quote is from Mr. Nichols' letter:
"The generosity of the club and your members to our school is greatly appreciated. We will be distributing the computers in different classrooms where the students and teachers at Odyssey Middle School will benefit from your kindness and generosity. We look forward to your continuous partnership on our “Journey of Discovery."
Computer classes have been restarted after the summer break and several of the classes are filled. Anyone wishing to enroll in a course should stop by the computer learning center any weekday morning to sign up for the class they want. If you have not previously taken any courses, there is a one-time charge of $10 for materials. After that you may take as many courses as you wish.
We have gotten reports from one of our members that they have received e-mails that are obvious attempts to infect their computers with viruses. These people have received messages, purportedly from Microsoft with an attachment that will protect them from the latest virus.
DON'T open the attachment as it contains a VIRUS. Delete it immediately. Just remember, don't open any attachments from anyone you are not familiar with and, even then, be wary. And, of course, keep your virus program up to date by periodically going on line to the site of your software company and downloading the latest protection software.
Remember, neither Microsoft nor any other legitimate company will ever send a program update or a patch as an attachment to you via E-mail.
The problem arises from installation of software that contains background utilities, called applets, designed to make the main program enable the computer to link to the vendor's Web site. Background applets are routinely installed by software drivers and adapters for printers, scanners, cameras, graphic and sound cards. Many programs, including those from Symantec, Intuit and Microsoft, contain background utilities. Individually, these applets are too tiny to be much of a problem but, collectively, they can slow a PC's processing speed and contribute to spontaneous lockups. Here is where a computer owner can make a big improvement by disabling unnecessary applets. One of the best methods available to casual users without risk is the Msconfig program, which is included with Windows 98, ME and XP (not in 95 or 2000). This is a simple procedure that anyone can perform if they are willing to take the time and effort. For help on how to use Msconfig, ask one of the officers of the club and he/she can guide you through the steps.
We have several web pages which have great information:
For many Windows tips, try these pages:
1) Windows Tips
2)Windows Tips
3)Windows Tips
4)Windows Tips
5)Windows Tips
6)Windows Tips
7)Windows Tips
We have created several interesting web pages:
Dr M's Computer Tips has lots of useful information for computer users.
Click Here For Some Great Windows Tips
Check out these Presentations that we have shown at our meetings.
We offer two FREE newsletters: "Dr M's Quicken Tip List" which has lots of great information, tips and secrets on using the world's most popular financial software, Quicken, and "Dr M's Computer Tips" which shows you many useful ways to help you operate your computer easily and enjoyably.
If you would like to receive a FREE subscription to either or both of the two newsletters published by our talented webmaster, "Dr M.", send an e-mail to him at: marvw1@hotmail.com and specify which newsletter you would like to receive.
We are always looking for new people to put on presentations on programs that they use. Our members will appreciate your efforts and you will enjoy yourself. It's not necessary to be an expert on PowerPoint to do so. We'll be glad to teach you how to use this wonderful, easy to learn program. Just contact one of our officers and we'll start you off on a new career!!!
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