Newsletter

MAY 2010
 

From the President Fred Roeser

I received an email from Orletha the other day that may make you think twice about using copy machines. The new digital copiers have a hard drive that stores the images from documents. These images are stored until the drive gets full, then starts to overwrite the old data. If you are using a machine that gets lots of use, like the ones here at the college it may not be an issue. But the last few images may still remain on the machine. It takes special software to read the hard drives from the copiers and the hard drive must be removed in most cases. Newer copiers may have software that removes the images but the old machines could still present an issue. Here is the link to the article is you want to check it out. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iC38D5am7go 

This month I will show some of the new features in Office 2010. The college will be switching to Windows 7 and also Office 2010 this summer. This new software is very similar to Office 2007 but it does have a few new features. We will discuss the new features in both Office and in Windows 7.

We also need to discuss the picnic. Do you want to have chicken like in previous years or something different. Come with ideas so we can make plans.

I downloaded some interesting software the other day. It is relaxation sounds. This is from a site called “Giveaway of the day”. They have software that is free to download on the day they have it on the site. You must download and install it the day they make it available. To get to the site go to http://www.giveawayoftheday.com I have downloaded many really good programs from this site and check it every day. They have a new service if you register with them, they will send you a popup message then you are online about the current give away. Some I currently have are the sound generator, a video file converter, an audio file converter, a portrait maker, and a few others. I would even consider purchasing some of these as they are very good.


EXCELL and WORD TIPS

Deleting a Hyperlink

Part of Microsoft Excel’s compatibility with the Web is to allow you to define hyperlinks in your workbooks. There may come a time when you no longer need a particular hyperlink. Fortunately, deleting a hyperlink in Excel is very easy to do. All you need to do is follow these steps:

1.Right-click on the hyperlink. Excel displays a Context menu.

2.Choose the Hyperlink option from the Context menu. Excel displays a submenu.

3.Choose Remove Hyperlink from the submenu. Excel dutifully removes the hyperlink.

You should note that in some versions of Excel (such Excel 2003 and Excel 2007) there is a Remove Hyperlink option directly on the Context menu displayed in step 1. If this is the case, consider yourself fortunate—you can directly remove the hyperlink without the extra steps.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that you can get rid of a hyperlink simply by clearing a cell (moving to the cell and pressing Del). You can do this in the newer versions of Excel, but you cannot in the older versions. If you do this, the hyperlink text is gone, but the hyperlink itself is still lurking in the background. If you type some information in the cell again, you will notice it is underlined, indicating it is still a hyperlink. The reason for this is because Excel considers the hyperlink to be a format of the cell. Pressing Del only clears the contents of the cell, not its format. You can use other editing techniques to get rid of a hyperlink, however, provided those techniques result in getting rid of formatting or overwriting the formatting.

Mixing Column Formats On a Page

It is not uncommon to have a document that mixes different column layouts on a single page. For instance, let's assume you have a five-page document, and you want to format the center part of page two as three columns. You want the rest of the document to remain a single column. To overcome this formatting challenge, you can follow these steps if you are using Word 97 through Word 2003:

1.Select the text that will appear in the columns.

2.Choose the Columns option from the Format menu. Word displays the Columns dialog box.

3.In the Number of Columns field, specify the number of columns you desire.

4.In the Apply To box, make sure it says Selected Text.

5.Click on OK. Word places the selected text into its own section and sets it in the number of columns you specified.

If you are using Word 2007, then the steps are a bit different:

1.Select the text that will appear in the columns.

2.Choose the Page Layout tab for the ribbon.

3.In the Page Setup group, click the Columns drop-down list.

4.Pick the number of columns you want to use for the selected text.



INEBRASKA NEWS

Warning! - Online Fraud Loss More Than Doubles
The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), a partnership between the FBI and the NationalWhiteCollarCrimeCenter, recently released its 2009 Annual Report about fraudulent activity on the Internet. Online crime complaints increased substantially in 2009, according to the report. The IC3 received a total of 336,655 complaints, a 22.3% increase over 2008. And the total dollar loss linked to online fraud was $559.7 million, up from $265 million the previous year.

Although the complaints consisted of a variety of fraud types, the top five scams were: 

  • E-mail scams using FBI name 
  • Non-delivered merchandise and/or payment 
  • Advance fee fraud 
  • Identity theft 
  • Overpayment fraud 
Peter Trahon, Section Chief of the FBI's Cyber Division, says, "Computer users are encouraged to have up-to-date security protection on their devices and evaluate e-mail solicitations they receive with a healthy skepticism—if something seems too good to be true, it likely is." In addition, be suspicious of any unsolicited e-mail that asks for personal information, and do not follow unsolicited links or respond to unsolicited e-mails. 

This Month's FAQ - Is It Considered Rude To Use Excessive Punctuation In E-mail Messages?
Question: Is it considered rude to use excessive punctuation, such as ????? or !!!!!, in e-mail messages?

Answer: Yes, most "netiquette" experts recommend not over-punctuating since it may seem as though you are shouting or frustrated with the recipient. Depending on the circumstances, communicating in this manner can also come off as demanding and condescending. (Plus, people are busy enough without having to wade through a dozen exclamation marks at the end of a sentence.)

Keep in mind that since e-mail messages lack the clarity and expressiveness of the human voice, they can easily be misinterpreted. For the sake of effective communication, it's best to follow normal punctuation rules when you write e-mail messages, and use the text itself to express emphasis rather than excessive punctuation. Also avoid using no punctuation or capitalization at all (habits you may have developed from instant messaging) as well as acronyms that the recipient might not understand. 

Sites Of The Month - Great Sites To Check Out In May
Explore the Outdoors
http://wildernet.com/index.cfm - With spring comes many more outdoor recreational opportunities. If you're looking for new adventures, look no further than this site for all the details. Pick a state on the U.S. map, and you'll find dozens of ideas for trails, state parks, lakes, rivers, scenic byways, and more. You'll get thorough descriptions, trip reports, trip planning resources, and contact information. The site also features a gift center, gear store, bookstore, and custom map service.

20-Minute Meal Recipes
http://cookinglight.com/food/quick-healthy/ - What's better than fast meals? Superfast meals! If you're looking for great food that can be prepared in 20 minutes or less, check out the wide variety of superfast suppers on the Cooking Light magazine site. Each category (pasta, sides, comfort food, pork, summer, seafood, Asian, and more) includes 20 recipes that get changed every two weeks.

Stop Bullying Now
http://stopbullyingnow.hrsa.gov/adults/default.aspx - Bullying is more than just a nuisance for kids. It's a serious social problem that can produce troubling, or even tragic, results. The Stop Bullying Now site is a resource for learning what constitutes bullying and cyberbullying, the consequences of this behavior, and what kids and adults can do to prevent it. Based on the work of researchers from around the world, the site includes games, webisodes, quizzes, articles, and tip sheets.

Grow a Gorgeous Garden
http://weekendgardener.net/index.html - As the weather warms up, are you gearing up for gardening season? If so, the Weekend Gardener may be for you. This comprehensive site offers feature articles, Q&As, how-tos, video tips, and climate zone maps. You'll find monthly to-do lists, gardening club listings, and suggestions for growing specific plants. Still want more? There are landscaping ideas, gardening resource lists, and instructions for controlling pesky garden pests.

Listen to Real-life Stories
http://storycorps.org - StoryCorps is a nonprofit organization that helps people share their life stories with friends, family, and the community. Their site features touching tales that have been recorded through the program, as well as instructions for producing your own. Listen to stories in such categories as Angles & Mentors, Friendship, and Wisdom. Or learn how to create a keepsake for Mother's or Father's Day that will be cherished for years to come. 

Short Tutorial - Renaming Your Favorites/Bookmarks
There are times when "short and sweet" is best, and this may apply to the names of your Favorites/Bookmarks. Their names come from webpage titles; if the author gave it a crazy long title, you end up with a crazy long name in your browser's list of Favorites/Bookmarks. You can use a shorter name when you create a new Favorite/Bookmark or you can rename it later by following the steps below.

Renaming Your Favorites/Bookmarks Using ...
Internet Browser: Firefox 3.5
Operating System: Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Mac OS X

1.With Firefox open, click your cursor arrow on the "Bookmarks" menu and select "Organize Bookmarks..." from the resulting drop-down menu. 

2.When the Library window opens, you will find a list of bookmark collections in the sidebar along the left side. Select "Bookmarks Menu" and a list of bookmarks will be listed in the larger pane to the right. 

3.Select a bookmark you want to rename by clicking on it. The name will now appear in a field at the bottom of the pane. 

4.Click in the "Name" field and change its name. Do not change the information in the "Location" field. 

5.You can keep changing names of bookmarks by clicking on them and renaming them in the "Name" field. Close the window when you are finished. 

Renaming Your Favorites/Bookmarks Using ...
Internet Browser: Safari 4.0
Operating System: Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, and Mac OS X 

1.With Safari open, click your cursor arrow on the "Bookmarks" menu and select "Show All Bookmarks" from the resulting drop-down menu. 

2.When the Bookmarks Menu window opens, you will find a list of bookmark collections in the sidebar on the left side. Select "Bookmarks Bar" and the bookmarks in that collection will appear in the main window on the right. 

3.Select a bookmark you want to rename by clicking on it. Click on the bookmark name again and type the new name. 

4.Rename other bookmarks in the same manner. 

Renaming Your Favorites/Bookmarks Using ...
Internet Browser: Internet Explorer 8
Operating System: Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7 

1.With Internet Explorer open, click your cursor arrow on the "Favorites" button located in the upper left corner. 

2.When the list of favorites opens, click the down arrow next to "Add to Favorites..." and then select "Organize Favorites..." from the resulting drop-down menu. 

3.When the Organize Favorites window opens, select the favorite you want to rename and click on the "Rename" button. 

4.The name will now be highlighted in blue. Begin typing the new name for your favorite and press the "Enter" key when you are finished. 

5.Rename other favorites in the same manner. Close the window when you are finished.

We hope you found this newsletter to be informative. It's our way of keeping you posted on the happenings here.

Thanks for your business!
Best regards,
The Internet Nebraska Team

Convert a PDF File to a Text File

By Sr. Dorothy Robinson, Newsletter Editor, The OMUG News

Olympia Microcomputer User Group, Washington

http://olymug.org/

srdorothy@gmail.com

This article has been obtained from APCUG with the author’s permission for publication by APCUG member groups; all other uses require the permission of the author (see e-mail address above).

Have you been wishing you had a piece of software that would convert PDF files to text files that you can edit?And maybe also didn't cost an arm and a leg? 

BCL Technologies has such software called easyConverter Desktop that costs about $20. That sounds like a good buy to me. But it only works with Windows (2000, XP, Vista and Win 7). So that leaves a lot of people, namely Linux users, out in the cold.

The good news is that BCL also has a free, online utility that does the same thing. And your operating system doesn't come into it. Open your browser and go to http://pdfonline.com/pdf2word/index.asp and take a look.

On the left side, under a header that says “Convert PDF to Word for Free” you'll see a place to browse your computer and select a file. Note that there is no need to provide your email address, since you'll just download the file directly.

Find your file and double click it (or click once then click Open), then click the Upload and Convert button. Press it only once, and wait; larger files may take a while to upload. The conversion is pretty fast, under a minute for the one or two page files I tried. There is a 2 MB limit on uploads, so really big files won't work.

This part is where, if you wanted to do a lot of files, or large ones, it would be great to have an application on yourcomputer to do it—thus eliminating the time to upload.

The next step is downloading the text file.I'm not sure why the instructions say to Right Click on the link to download the file, because for me at least it didn't work. I Left Clicked instead and the download dialog opened.

You'll see that the file is a rich text file (.RTF or .rtf) which can easily be opened by Word, OpenOffice Writer, Abiword, or other word processors or text editors and be available for editing. When you save it you can save it as a .doc if you like.

The dialog asks, What should (your browser) do with this file? The first choice is to open the file with the default application (mine showed OpenOffice) or you can choose another from a drop-down list. The second choice is to save the file, and if you choose Save the file, your download manager will save it to the default location—or you might get a Save as dialog and choose where to save it. One caution: opening the file directly rather than downloading it got me a Read Only file, which of course I couldn't edit. So for editing purposes, save the file before opening.

Make your choice by clicking a radio button, then click OK.You now have a text file you can edit. And the quality is very nice, too—for mostly text documents. I tried a PDF file that I had originally created in OpenOffice Writer which contained a calendar in a table. The results were not pretty!And for a postal PDF which was a requisition form using tables, the results were somewhat better but still unusable since the tables overlapped, hiding some of the text. 

On the other hand, I made a list of data (several rows and columns) in an OpenOffice spreadsheet, exported it to PDF, then uploaded it and converted it. When I downloaded this file, it was perfect—and perfectly editable. 

For me, using Ubuntu Linux, this free, online version is a good thing. Windows users have a choice of the web version or the computer application. And pdf2word gives the best results I've seen for this kind of web application.

A First Look at OpenOffice 

By Lynn Page, Editor, Crystal River Users Group, Florida

February 2010 Newsletter

www.crug.com

newsletter@crug.com

This article has been obtained from APCUG with the author’s permission for publication by APCUG member groups; all other uses require the permission of the author (see e-mail address above).

I have a new mini computer to use for internet access while traveling. I am used to having Microsoft Office for all of my computing needs and would be lost without it or a similar application. I downloaded and installed OpenOffice.org. The OpenOffice suite has six applications: Writer a word processor, Calc a spreadsheet, Impress for presentations, Base a database program, Math an equation editor, and Draw a graphics program. OpenOffice works with a wide variety of formats, including OpenDocument

and Microsoft Office 2003 formats. So you can go back and forth between Office and OpenOffice without losing formatting. OpenOffice even exports files to PDF. And best of all, the entire suite is free.

I will be working more with OpenOffice as I use my new mini computer. So I will attempt to provide some of my experiences in the newsletter. For my first look I will see how well the suite of office applications handles opening and working with some of my Microsoft Office files and look a little more at some of the applications.

Writer 

OpenOffice.org Writer looks and feels like Word 2003. It lets you produce word processing documents that include graphics, tables, and charts. You can save in a variety of formats, including the standardized OpenDocument (odt) format and Microsoft Word (doc) format. Although Writer doesn't have a save as pdf option as found in Word 2007 you can export the document to pdf. Conversely you can open and edit Word documents. This is really what I was looking for in OpenOffice.

I found Writer easy to use for simple documents but had to go to Help for some of the differences between it and Microsoft Office. I expected I would have adjustment issues as Microsoft Word 2007 is my favorite and most used application. I have been using Office 2007 long enough that I am no longer completely comfortable with Word 2003.

Writer has all text Formatting tools you need including basic styles and a format painter. I was glad to find see spelling and grammar checking and that I could display non printing characters. Find and replace worked as expected. I did find that the auto-complete feature in Writer displayed a lot of words that I didn't expect. That is not a problem because you just keep typing to ignore the autocomplete or hit enter to accept.

Cropping a graphic is one feature that is different than I expected. Cropping is done

through a dialog box by moving the edges in a measured distance. Not as convenient as using the crop handles I am used to but still serviceable. Resizing a graphic is done by dragging the size handles and text wrapping is easily handled with a dialog box.

For one last look at Writer's compatibility with Word, I opened one of my Word 2007

documents. Open Office Writer opened the document and all formatting was intact. I did

get a notice that the document was opening as read only. I was able save the document

in OpenOffice or Word 2003 format and then edit it.

Calc

Calc is the spreadsheet application in OpenOffice. It again looks and feels like Microsoft Excel 2003. It opened an old CRUG registration spreadsheet generated in Excel 2003. All sheets of the spreadsheet, their relationships and all calculations worked well and all formatting was intact. I could simulate adding student registrants in classes and calculations on all sheets were accurately recorded.

Styles and Formatting make it easy to apply cell formatting, including splitting or merging cell, adding cell borders and backgrounds. Cell content is formatted as in Writer and can even be freely rotated.

Although I haven't worked much with spreadsheets in the last couple of years found using the Formula Bar straightforward. The Sum function takes care of a lot of calculations and the Function Wizard helps in choosing and using the other spreadsheet functions. I tried sorting in another of my spreadsheets and it worked well, correctly sorting data by a selected column while recognizing my column headings.

Spreadsheets can be saved in OpenDocument format, an XML based format or a variety of other formats including Excel xls format.

Impress

OpenOffice's presentation application Impress can open and modify Microsoft PowerPoint presentations or create slide shows with the presentation wizard. Presentations can include charts, drawing objects, text, multimedia or other items. Animations and slide transitions make the on-screen presentation interesting and professional.

I opened and edited one of my

PowerPoint presentations,

made changes, saved it to

Impress odp format and ran the presentation. Impress looked and felt like PowerPoint

while editing and running the presentation. The presentation had the template, smart art

graphics, transitions, text formatting and digital images I used when generating it in

PowerPoint 2007. I did note that some transitions appeared a little rougher but still ran.

When Impress is opened the presentation wizard starts automatically. You choose to create a new blank presentation, use a template and let the wizard walk you through structuring the presentation or open an existing presentation.
 

When creating an empty presentation the Presentation Wizard walks through the steps of selecting a background, slide transitions, and speed of presentation if it is to be automatic. Not all of the backgrounds and transitions of PowerPoint are available but there are enough to get by.

If you decide to create a presentation based on a template the wizard lets you select a template based on the type of presentation and the output medium. For many of us this is an on screen presentation but Impress can also create output for overheat transparencies or hard copy. You then specify slide transitions. Then from the list of pages presented by the wizard select those to be included in the presentation. Once the wizard creates the generic presentation just add your information and tailor the presentation to your needs.

Base 

The OpenOffice database application Base unlike the other applications is not directly compatible with Microsoft Access database files. With it you can create and manipulating tables, queries, forms and reports within the database. Since my intent with this first look at OpenOffice is to look at compatibility with my Microsoft Office files I have not looked at Base. I will look at it at a future time.

Math

Math is OpenOffice.org's equation editor. It can be used for generating mathematical equations. I have not had the opportunity to user the application but it can be used as an equation editor for text documents. Within Writer the equation is treated as an object inside the document.

Draw

I expected Draw to be similar to Paint but that is not the case. It is a vector graphics editor featuring connectors between the available shapes. I have not made any attempt at using Draw at this time.

Conclusions 

OpenOffice.org’s office suite offers an alternative to Microsoft Office or other office applications. As it is free it can be a solution for someone not wanting to invest in purchasing a license for one of the software suites. For those like me who use Office but have an extra computer without Office installed it offers a solution. The compatibility lets me copy my Word documents, Excel spreadsheets, and PowerPoint presentations to my mini. I can use and even edit my files in Writer, Calc or Impress and then save in the previous Microsoft format to use again on my desktop or laptop. For those using

OpenOffice as their only office suite it lets them save in the Microsoft Office format or even as a pdf. This makes sharing files simple.

ANYONE AND EVERYONE WELCOME TO OUR CLUB

The M.U.C. MONTHLY is published eleven months of the year by the Mid-Nebraska Users of Computers. The club is in no way connected to IBM Corporation. M.U.C. (Mid-Nebraska Users of Computers) is a non-profit organization with the purpose of bringing together people with the interest of computing, offer assistance, share knowledge and further the understanding of the use and/or programming of personal computers. Other goals include informing our membership of the latest news in IBM compatible computing, and making available Public Domain Software. Meetings are held at Central Community College, Grand Island Campus, 3134 W. HWY 34, dates and time to be announced. Membership is open to everyone, Guests are welcome to attend two (2) meetings before joining. The Membership fee for one (1) year is $18.00, each year after is renewable at a $12.00 fee. The Club does not promote or encourage the illegal distribution of copyrighted software. If for any reason a copyrighted program is inadvertently entered into the Club Library, upon notification, the Librarian will remove the program and notify the membership, through the newsletter and at the next meeting, so they may scratch the program from their disk. Programs on club library disks are provided for the personal use of CLUB MEMBERS ONLY, and are not for resale. Fees charged by the club are not for the programs contained on the disk, but to recover the cost of obtaining, copying, and distributing the Public Domain programs. Editorial contributions are welcome from anyone interested in microcomputers or related products. Members! Have you purchased new software, hardware, got any comments or suggestions, or questions or answers?? Your input to the club and newsletter is needed to make our club more effective. Your articles need not be long or technical, you can either type it in a wordprocessor no printer codes or formatting commands, or type or write your article, in double space and send it. Members may run brief advertisement to buy sell or trade surplus computer equipment, software (Not Pirated), and supplies.
User Groups: We would be delighted to exchange Newsletters with your club. Just put us on your mailing list and mail your letter to us. If your club is receiving this Newsletter, make sure you use the club address for our copy. This must be done if you wish to continue receiving our Newsletter. Articles (except otherwise noted) are not copyrighted and may be reprinted by other users groups who may find it helpful. We only request that our name and that of the author be credited.
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