SUN CITY

COMPUTER CLUB COMMENTS

ByPhillip Shuppel

President

SOME ALARMING FACTS ABOUT COMPUTER SECURITY:

Ø 90% of PC users are not utilizing readily available security and are subject to cyber attack.

Ø Securing your personal computer plays a crucial role in protecting your personal files.

Ø 21% of the world’s computers have had viruses such as Klez, or bugbear, which are dangerous to your computer.

SUGGESTIONS TO KEEP OUR COMPUTERS SAFE:

Ø Use antivirus software and keep it updated.

Ø Use difficult to guess passwords.

Ø Use a firewall to keep outsiders from getting into your computer (keeps backdoor programs from sending out information). One excellent firewall program is Zonealarm:

(www.zonealarm.com).

Ø Do not use file-sharing programs with strangers.

Ø Disconnect your computer from Internet when not using it.

Ø McAfee 6 and McAfee 7 have free firewalls.

Ø Stay up to date with security patches.

Ø Check security settings twice a year.

Ø Make sure you know what to do if a computer becomes infected with a virus. Regularly back up your computer(s).

WEB SITES FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

Ø www.staysafeonline.info (National Cyber Security Alliance) – see the Internet Security Study for further information.

Ø www.gocsi.com

Ø www.grisoft.com - free antivirus software.

A few words of caution: Once Zonealarm is installed it will stop you from installing new software. Zonealarm is just doing its job and you have to temporarily disable it. I know first hand. When installing any new software it is best to stop all software running in the background temporarily, but not the operating system. Before installing Grisoft antivirus you should first uninstall your present antivirus per Sam Sugarman; otherwise the two softwares will be in conflict.

GOING ON VACATION AND WANT TO CHECK YOUR E-MAIL FREE?

Chuck Thomas who teaches E-Mailing Workshop says to go to the local library in the town that you are in and use their computer. He has been doing it and the worst experience he has had is waiting a few minutes to get on the computer. FREE! I can wait a few minutes. I waited 45 in Edinburgh, Scotland, in a cyber café and still had to pay. The cigarette smoke almost killed me. If you don’t know how to do any of the above, come to the Computer Room when a “Computer Help Monitor” is on duty. Check the schedule at www.suncitycc.org.

Check our website (www.suncitycc.org) all summer; we will be adding information and any happening here at Sun City that is newsworthy.

Oh yes, I almost forgot, the Computer Club will not meet in July and August and there will be no classes. The teachers need a well-deserved break. This was a great educational year and a special thanks to Jeanne Koehl for running a great program.

Ya’ll come back now, ya’ hear!!

MAC SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP

The Mac meeting will take place at 7 p.m. on June 2 in the Computer Room. John Walters will do a presentation on Via Voice, a program that lets you talk to your computer and have it do the typing. All active computer club members are welcome to attend.

For more information about the Mac Special Interest Group, call Lynn Conley at 3906.'

GENEALOGY SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP

If you enjoyed the April session on Family Tree Maker, did not get to attend or just want to know more, there will be more. Pat Roche will be doing an in-depth presentation on Family Tree Maker and what you can do. This will include printing out a family tree book, complete with charts.

The Genealogy Group will not hold regular meetings during the summer but several follow-up hands-on FTM workshops are scheduled from 7‑9 p.m. on July 3 and August 6. Since each person will need a computer and the spaces are limited, please call Pat at 705-9773 to sign up.

For more information about the Genealogy Group, please contact Sharon Ede at 705-7987'

MUSIC SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP

The music special interest group will meet on Monday, June 16 at 7:00 p.m. in the Room. We will have a question and answer period followed by a program on Burning A Music CD. We will continue a discussion of topics you would like to have presented next year.

For information, call Diane Hutchings 7805 ' or e-mail to dianehutch@aol.com.

INTERNET SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP

Please join us Thursday, June 19, 7-8:15 p.m. in the Computer Room for the first meeting of the Internet SIG.

We will start with 15 minutes of Q&A on anything concerning the Internet or e-mail. Robin Seaver and Sam Sugarman will then each preview one of their favorite Web sites.

For more information about this SIG, contact Robin 5762 or Sam 5252. '

PROGRAMS

June Meeting: At the June 9 meeting Chip Creed from Computer Dynamics in Sheridan Park will show us how to backup/copy files to CD-Rs or CD-RWs. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn the basics of CD burning. Note that this is a change from the minutes of the May meeting.

MEMBERSHIP

Please welcome the following new members:

Rudy Gamble-------------- 9163

Donald P. Geisler---------- 3337

Any questions regarding Membership, e-mail Diane Frazier-Ciravolo at disfc@aol.com or call 3841 '

NOTES FROM THE EDUCATION CHAIR

With classroom computer courses taking a hiatus for the summer, you might like to try a FREE online class or two from http://www.hplearningcenter.com. While HP does not offer an extensive curriculum, the price is right. Robin is currently signed up for Introduction to “Microsoft Excel” and “Advanced Microsoft Word for Windows.” Diane is enrolled in “the other 90%: unlock your vast untapped potential.”

Eclectic Academy

(http://www.eclecticacademy.com) offers more than 90 online courses, not all computer-related. Robin has taken several of their courses, and says each has been well worth the $20 fee.

Have a great summer. See you when the school bell rings in September!

For more information, e-mail Robin (searobin@islc.net).

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MAY MEETING

Phillip Shuppel, President, called the meeting of May 12 to order at 7:00 p.m.

President’s Report - Phillip Shuppel

Phillip thanked Jeanne Koehl for her three years as Chairperson of the Education Committee. Jeanne has left the position in better shape than she found it. That is the mark of a good leader.

Robin Seaver was introduced and welcomed as the new Education Chairperson. Robin is currently teaching computer classes at the Hilton Head Computer Club, the Technical College of the Low Country, the Creative Retirement Center, and also here at the Sun City Computer Club. She is very knowledgeable in the computer education field. Diane Hutchings, who also teaches and has started a SIG group for Computer Music, will be assisting Robin with the Education Committee.

Phillip expressed thanks to Bob Rasmussen, who could not be present at the meeting, for a great program in April. Bob wrote the script and the storybook for the whole program. The movie clip at the beginning was 4 minutes and 13 seconds. It took Bob and Bruce Barton over 3 hours to shoot that sequence.

In light of the response from Bob's program, we are instituting Tips and Tricks for ten minutes at the beginning of each meeting. The business portion of the meeting will be compressed. This evening Robin Seaver will demonstrate how to get on to the Computer Club Web Site, access KeyStrokes, Board and Committee Member names,andthe Computer Room schedule. Our web site is:

www.suncitycc.org.

Phillip, as new Board President, was presented a tee shirt imprinted with the Computer Club web site.

There will be no Technical meeting in May.

Treasurer – Ron Garner

Balance forward as of

March 31, 2003 $20,387.57

April Income $681.00**

April Expenses $731.14

Net Operating Balance as of

April 30, 2003 $20,337.43

**Does not include APR Interest

Membership – Diane Frazier-Ciravolo

Two new members and one renewal signed up at the April meeting. The current total number of members is now 565. There were 97 members and four guests attending the May meeting. Diane asked everyone to wear their nametags to the meetings.

Monitors – Richard LaFever

There are currently 53 monitors. The list has been updated. The next class for training as a monitor will be June 6 for all present and future monitors.

Program – George Weyhrich

The program for June will be a representative from Advanced Micro Device (AMD).

The program for this meeting featured Dan Rogers of Pinnacle Systems who demonstrated video and music editing.

The meeting was adjourned at 8 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Pat Beaty, Secretary