C C C C N E W S L E T T E R
CENTRAL COAST COMPUTER CLUB
Santa Maria, California
VOLUME XIX: NUMBER 3 MARCH, 2004
NEXT MEETING: March 16, 2004 6:00PM KNOLLWOOD VILLAGE 4012 S. BRADLEY
PRESENTATION: Ray Isenson & Gil Smith On Using TaxAct
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| CONTENTS |
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(1) Officers, Helplines, S.I.G.s
(2) President's Corner Spence Stimler
(3) March Program Ray Isenson, Gil Smith
(4) Web Wanderings Gil Smith
(5) Digital Imaging S.I.G. Charles Barney
(6) Genealogy S.I.G. Gerry Miller
(7) Systems S.I.G. Dick Trissel
(8) Editor's Comments Dick Trissel
(9) Windows Explorer Part 1 Dick Trissel
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OFFICERS HELPLINES
President Juno
Spence Stimler 938-0217 Gilbert Smith 925-3743
spence@pronet.net colgil1@juno.com
Vice President Windows 95/98/ME/XP & VoiceControl
Bill Corning 934-0775 Amy Malicki 925-5780
foster95@juno.com savvyseniors@juno.com
Secretary and Book Librarian Hardware and Windows XP
Barbara Godwin 934-9885 Ray Isenson 937-6938
yung.bag@verizon.net risenson@juno.com
Treasurer AOL
Gerry Miller 934-1396 Frank Maciel 922-2318
2741 Banyan Way frm8198@aol.com
Santa Maria CA 93455
gandamiller@verizon.net
Disk Librarian Visual Basic and Genealogy
Sharon Allen 928-2209 Gerald Miller 934-1396
sallen4060@aol.com gandamiller@verizon.net
Publicity Help With Any Problem
Bill Corning 934-0775 Fred Adams 934-1128
foster95@juno.com fredeadams@verizon.net
Newsletter Editor Digital Imaging
Dick Trissel 937-7572 Charles Barney 937-1240
rtrissel@juno.com Cbarney@lightspeed.net
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUPS (S.I.G.s)
Digital Imaging (6:00pm) Genealogy (6:00pm) Systems (5:45pm)
Charles Barney Gerry Miller Dick Trissel
Cbarney@lightspeed.net gandamiller@verizon.net rtrissel@juno.com
CCCC Membership is $15 for twelve months ($20 family). For this you
receive:
Monthly newsletter
EXTRA4C E-mail Messages
Access to the clubs software library
Disk of the month (usually for $1)
Helpline support
Monthly presentation
Valuable door prizes
Question and answer sessions
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CCCC Page 2 March 2004
PRESIDENT'S CORNER
by Spence Stimler
February has come and gone and from all reports, the meeting was a success.
Our thanks to Dick Trissel for coming up with Gil Vela. Gil did a great
job in explaining networking and we look forward to having him back in the
future.
Door prize winners were Joann McBride, Al Cooper, Joseph Gatwis, John
McCurdy, Amy Malicki, Laudell Ludwig, and Ken Baur. There were losers
because they were absent, but I don't think it right to rub it in by
mentioning their names. If you really want to know, call me and I'll fill
you in.
Mention has been made to obtain the Newsletter by each person downloading
it from the CCCC website. Dick Trissel has instructions in the Editor's
Comments in this edition as to how you can accomplish it. The question is
raised as to why we should ask the members to do this instead of having the
Newsletter mailed to them. The answer is purely dollars and cents. I
don't have any particular axe to grind one way or the other, but I am
interested in managing our monies-particularly in looking into the future
for wished-for capital purchases. There is an equipment fund for this and
it is financed by one half of the money from the 50/50 drawing we hold each
month. We have just finished purchasing a new projector for approximately
$1600. The equipment fund will be reduced to zero and $600 will have to be
taken from the general fund.
A typical budget for the year looks something like this:
INCOME
100 members @ $15 $1500
50/50 drawing $35 x 11 mo. 385
Coffee donations net $12x11 mo. 135
Total $2020
EXPENDITURES
Newsletter $90/mo for 12 mo. $1080
Door prizes $50/mo. for 11 mo. 550
Door prizes for Xmas party 200
Total $1835
BALANCE $185
It doesn't take much to realize that it will take a number of years before
we can be in a position to purchase another piece of equipment approaching
the cost of the new projector.
What more do we need? If we are going to be able to stay somewhere near
the advancing technology, there are a number of things that will be needed-
things like new operating systems, perhaps a DVD burner, new laptop to take
the place of the ancient equipment Dick brings to each meeting instead of
the old computer, monitor, keyboard, and etc.
Like I said at the beginning, I have no personal axe to grind one way or
the other, but by far our largest expense is our Newsletter. If we could
persuade people to download it from the Web, we could save $900 to $1000
per year. We still would have to mail about ten Newsletters to people who
are not on the Web. It would not pay to have to mail many more for if
twenty people insist on receiving the Newsletter by mail, then we might as
well do them all by mail.
We will talk about it at the next meeting, but we aren't going to beat it
to death. Remember that we are discussing your money and how to spend it
the most efficient manner.
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CCCC Page 3 March 2004
MARCH PROGRAM
Gil Smith and Ray Isenson will present the program at the March 16 meeting.
Their topic will be, "Using the TaxAct program to prepare federal and state
income taxes". As a demonstration vehicle, the returns prepared will be
for a fairly representative but fictitious club member, couple. Both
Robert and Ellen Shumaker collect Social Security. Each also collects some
retirement pay from prior employment. They have some investments that pay
interest or dividends and they sold some stock during the year. Their
situation does differ from that of most members in that they have a
dependent.
The demonstration will include the steps involved in preparing the return
using the TaxAct software. Copies of the resultant paper printout of the
federal and state returns will be circulated.
TaxAct availability:
Free: fed at: http://www.taxact.com;
CCCC discount prices: Fed and state Ultimate Bundle $16.00 (regularly
$19.95) at http://www.taxact.com/ad_offer3.asp?sc=0363001;
Fed only Deluxe $6.00 (regularly $9.95) at:
http://www.taxact.com/ad_offer3.asp?sc=0363002
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CCCC Page 4 March 2004
WEB WANDERINGS
By Gil Smith
CYBERSLEUTH KIDS
An Internet Search Guide for the K-12 Student - Is their slogan, but how
good are they? Fabulous. With tons of links to information, your
Student really needs. There's clipart to make those school projects a lot
snazzier, learning software, educational tools like flashcards, math work
sheets, and an online word search will help your child, or grandchild, out.
For teachers there are at least 1,000 free lesson plans. You will find a
search engine to help your students find the information they need.
Sections are conveniently grouped and linked by subject, for instance, Art
& Music, Health, History, Language Arts, and Media.
This site is a handy tool for anyone in school. Check it for your school
age children or grandchildren.
http://cybersleuth-kids.com/
SMITHSONIAN NATIONAL ZOO
I know we've been running a lot of zoo sites lately but this site is too
wonderful to leave behind. This site is laid out exquisitely, and with
tons of useful information.
You can check out the photo gallery, read up on species by continent, learn
about activities and events to help you plan your visit, live cameras, and
zoo news.
http://naationalzoo.si.edu/default.cfm
THE FORGOTTEN WAR
The Forgotten War is a site about the Korean War. A war that spanned
Three long hard years with many casualties, and is rarely talked about in
depth. Here you can find information on this war as well as see pictures
of Truman, the Memorial, Medals of Honor, and more.
This site divides the war into three separate phases. The first phase
begins on June 25, 1950 and ended on the day United Nations (U.N.) forces
thrust into North Korea's territory. The second phase of the Korean war
was essentialy the Southern unit's attack and retreat from North Korea.
The last phase of the war consisted of the "see-saw" fighting on the
thirty-eighth parallel, stalemate, and negotiation talks."
Learn more about this war, or do some research. Check it out!
http://www.koreanwar.com/
IT'S SPAM--REAL SPAM
Welcome to the Official SPAM homepage. We aren't talking about unwanted e-
mail, but the delicious(?) lunchmeat. You can follow its travels through
time, with "Spam in Time" and check all those different labels from as
early as the 1930s. Take a virtual ride on the SPAMMOBILE and find out if
it's coming to your town. Join the Official SPAM Fan Club or browse
through the SPAM gift catalog.
Learn the answers to your burning questions about SPAM, like what it is--
Pork shoulder and ham, mostly. And spices. Secret spices. Join the Fan
club, or check the SPAM FAQ.
This site invites you to explore. See if you can find all of the great
interactive features scattered throughout the site. (Here's a hint . . .
check out SPAM in Time.) Take the challenge, this site is definitely worth
a look.
http://www.spam.com
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CCCC Page 5 March 2004
DIGITAL IMAGING SIG -- February '04 Recap
By Charles Barney
I counted 23 in attendance at my SIG during the February 17th meeting. We
spent much of the session going over the "homework assignment" handed out
at the previous get-together. This was a detailed questionnaire about the
features, functions, settings, etc. of the member's digital cameras. Many
of the answers required looking them up in the camera's manual (who would
have thought to look there, of all places?).
We discussed some important settings such as capture resolution, measured
in the number of pixels horizontally and vertically, and image file
compression. JPEG is a universal image file format that offers various
degrees of compression settings. The trade-off is that the greater the
compression (smaller file size) the less the picture quality becomes. Other
popular camera file types are the uncompressed TIFF and RAW formats that do
not degrade the image at all. The trade-off there (you guessed it) is much
larger file sizes.
File size not only affects the amount of storage space needed, but also
camera response time. When you snap a picture, the captured image data must
be processed by the camera's on-board electronics and then written to the
media card before another shot can be taken. Depending on the resolution,
file type, and compression level you have chosen, the wait can seem
excruciatingly long and can even result in missed shots -- something to
consider when your grandchild is taking her very first steps!
Other topics touched upon were ISO sensitivity setting, white balance,
metering modes and auto focus. Also, a subject that generated considerable
interest was the EXIF data (also referred to as metadata) that is saved by
most current digital cameras and embedded in each picture file they store.
This information, which can be viewed in many imaging programs, gives an
extensive review of the camera's state at the moment the image was captured
(shutter speed, aperture, lens focal length, flash or no flash and much
more). This can be very useful to the serious digital photographer who is
always seeking to improve his or her pictures.
The subject of my demo was "Sizing Digital Photos to Fit Standard Frames."
The common-sized picture frames you can buy at the store such as 4x6, 5x7,
and 8x10 inches are based on prints made from the old 35 millimeter film
standard. Digital cameras normally do not produce pictures with the same
aspect ratio as film cameras. Sometimes you can get out the scissors or
paper cutter and trim your photos or fiddle endlessly with the image
resolution and dimensions to try and make them fit. More often than not,
this results in making some disappointing compromises. A little finessing
is in order here to avoid this hassle or having to pay for expensive
custom-made frames. I struggled with this problem for a long time before
finally discovering an easy way to do it.
Using Adobe Photoshop Elements 2, I demonstrated the use of the Crop tool
to resize images to any arbitrary dimensions or resolution. Here's how:
With your image open in the workspace, select the Crop tool from the
Toolbox. On the Options Bar, enter the needed horizontal and vertical
dimensions as well as the desired output resolution for printing (Elements
will interpolate as needed). Right click on the image and drag the
rectangular selection border over the portion of the image you want to
size. The tool will automatically constrain dimensions to maintain the
proper aspect ratio. The selection border can be repositioned by right-
clicking inside it and dragging. When satisfied with the selection, click
the OK checkmark to complete the crop. To verify that the dimensions are
what you were going for, press the Ctrl+R keys to display the on-screen
rulers. If all looks good, you're ready to print!
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CCCC Page 6 March 2004
GENEALOGY S.I.G
By Gerry Miller
I was not sure what to expect from our members at the first meeting of the
Genealogy SIG. I was prepared to discuss the features of the two computer
programs that I use. As the meeting developed it became clear that the
programs were of only passing interest and that most of the questions
involved sources of information. Fortunately there were attendees that had
a much better grasp of the information situation than I, and I think the
discussion was useful. The sources of genealogical information can be
divided into two broad categories; public records and private information
usually provided by family members. Any information should be based on the
documented official record. Birth certificates, marriage records, wills,
land records and other official recorded documents are the primary
documentation for family history.
The census is one of the sources that is useful to establish the most
likely place to find the official documents. We know that census records
are released to the public only after 72 years. One of the attendees
explained that the Mormon Church has these records on CD's at its Family
Center. Anyone is welcome to go there and use these records. Nancy
Converse is perhaps the most helpful contact. Next week we will talk more
about the census and other sources.
I still have copies of the free download from the Mormon Church of the
Personal Ancestral File or PAF. They are about 10 Megabytes. I will bring
them to the meeting.
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CCCC Page 7 March 2004
SYSTEMS S.I.G.
by Dick Trissel
We started the session with a clever little animated program that provides
nine "tools" to get back at your aggravating computer by putting images on
the screen. There were several request for copies, and since it is small
enough to fit on a floppy disk, it will be a Disk-of-the Month--probably
for the March meeting.
Then we got down to serious business with about a half a dozen questions
and problems that were "weird". One was about a "Motive SmartBridge". The
next day I went to Google and did a search, and got hits on everything from
tattoos to Verizon.
Another problem was an access to a scanner. We guessed the user probably
had an IRQ (Interrupt ReQuest) conflict, and was advised to use AIDA32
program or Belarc Advisor program (both free) to investigate his setup.
Ironically, the Belarc Advisor was the DOM this month.
One user reported his computer was being used to send e-mail that was
undeliverable--sounded like some kind of worm or virus. This led to a
discussion about the different types of e-mail programs. I mentioned I had
just sent out an EXTRA4C the day before describing the three types of e-
mail programs. However, no one remembered receiving it (or reading it). I
checked--it was sent.
This reminded me to mention that I'm getting quite a few EXTRA4C e-mail
returns undeliverable. Since the EXTRA4C is straight text and no
attachments, the problem has to be at the recipients. Either their inbox
is full, the ISP spam blocker is overactive, or they have changed their
address.
Speaking of spam blockers, one person mentioned www.mailblockers.com. It
is available free for 5Mbytes of e-mail. Some ISPs offer spam blocking,
also. The big problem is deciding who are the good guys, and who are the
bad guys without losing good e-mail.
A mention was made of the ActiveX warning that occurs when browsing some
Web sites. In Windows 998 this is controllable under Tools in Internet
Explorer in the Internet Options Security tab. Click on Custom Level and
check the options you want.
Security was a favorite topic of discussion, especially if you are using
DSL. This is because of the long-term connection to the Internet with the
same IP address. All users were advised to go to www.grc.com and run
ShieldsUp, even if DSL users are using a router with a hardware firewall.
It's a free diagnosis program, complicated, but very informative. Some
people feel you should use Zonealarm (a free firewall) even if you are
using a router.
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CCCC Page 8 March 2004
EDITOR'S COMMENTS by Dick Trissel
Back in the year 2000 (June-September) I wrote a series of articles
explaining the use of Windows Explorer. I think it is time to repeat that
series. When space is available, the newsletter will contain the four
articles starting with part one in this issue.
The December 2003 newsletter had a review of how to start Explorer. If you
don't still have the December newsletter, or you want to read the series of
articles in advance, you can get them from the CCCC Web site at:
http://member.apcug.org/fourseas
To get a newsletter from the CCCC Web site, scroll down to the Newsletters
links. There is a link for the newsletter contents, and a link for the
newsletter index. From the index you can select the newsletter by month.
Or, you can go directly to a Web site newsletter link. For example, the
contents are at:
http://member.apcug.org/fourseas/content.htm
The index is at:
http://member.apcug.org/fourseas/newsltrs.htm
The December newsletter is at:
http://member.apcug.org/fourseas/dec03ltr.htm
The four articles are at:
http://member.apcug.org/fourseas/jun00ltr.htm
http://member.apcug.org/fourseas/jul00ltr.htm
http://member.apcug.org/fourseas/aug00ltr.htm
http://member.apcug.org/fourseas/sep00ltr.htm
If you have any questions about using Windows Explorer, bring them to the
System S.I.G., or send me an e-mail. Of course there's always the Windows
offline Help pages. There's a lot of information there. Just search on
Windows Explorer, or just Explorer (and skip over Internet Explorer).
For more on how to navigate the CCCC Web site, I will be demonstrating this
at the March Systems S.I.G., hopefully. This demonstration will also
include the different ways to get a full copy of a particular newsletter,
or just an article from the newsletter and how to print it out.
I say "hopefully" because we should have a projector for the Systems S.I.G.
which will make the demonstration much more effective.
If the projector idea works, it will allow us to cover more topics in the
System S.I.G. that require demonstrations.
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CCCC Page 9 March 2004
WINDOWS EXPLORER PART 1 by Dick Trissel
Windows Explorer (not to be confused with Internet Explorer) probably is
the must important tool you have in your computer for solving computer
problems. However, in my experience over the past few years it appears to
be the least used tool. Some people don't even know they have it. Others
get it confused with Internet Explorer.
Explorer is patterned after the old File Manager of Windows 3.x (which is
still available in the Windows9x systems in C:\Windows\Winfile.exe).
Explorer really is an HTML based program like Internet Explorer. In fact,
you can make it look like a Web page, which decreases its functionality.
Why learn to use Explorer? For my everyday manipulation of computer files
(copying, deleting, renaming, running applications on files, etc.), I
haven't found a more useful tool.
Windows Explorer is located in the Windows folder as Explorer.exe. There
are ten ways to start Explorer, and I recommend Explorer be run in the
Maximum display mode.
1) Right-click Start / Explore
2) Start / Programs / Windows Explorer.
3) Right-click My Computer and choose Explore.
4) Put a Windows Explorer shortcut icon on the desktop.
5) Put a Quick Launch icon in the taskbar (my favorite).
6) Press the Windows key and the E key simultaneously.
7) Go to Start / Run and type explorer.
8) Double-click a System desktop icon (My Documents, Recycle Bin, etc.)
9) Right-click a System desktop icon / Explore.
10) Put a shortcut to Explorer in the Startup list (automatically starts at
bootup).
Many of the items in this and following articles require a basic knowledge
of Windows and I will assume you have that.
To make Explorer completely effective requires some adjustments:
1) Under the Toolbar View option menu, unclick the as Web page option.
2) Under the Toolbar View option menu, click Details.
3) Under the Toolbar View option menu, Explorer bar, check Folders.
4) Under the Toolbar View option menu. Choose Folder Options.
a) General tab choose Classic.
b) Files and Folders.
Only check the following:
* Remember each folder's view settings.
* Display the full path in title bar.
* Show file attributes in Detail View.
* Show pop-up description for folder and desktop items.
* Allow all uppercase names.
c) Hidden files. Only check Show all files.
d) Leave all the other choices unchecked.
e) PRESS APPLY
Now your Explorer window should have folders and sub-folders listed in the
left pane and in the right pane. And the sub-folders and files for any
folder selected are in the left pane. Adjust the pane sizes by clicking
the separator bar and dragging.
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