COMPUTER CLUB COMMENTS
By Phillip Shuppel
President
Question &
Answers
Q - What
particular hardware gives people the most problems?
A - I’ve
heard it said that printers give people the most trouble, but that may be
because almost everybody has to have one, and they aren’t integrated into
the computer system unit. That means that every PC has to be designed to
connect to any printer, and every printer has to be designed to connect to any
PC. Printers require “drivers” (software), and special cables, and often
make use of 2-way communication, and sometimes signal the user about problems
with obscure coded beeps. Without knowing some of the proper terms, a phone
conversation trying to get help from a “guru” is nearly hopeless.
Q - Does
it matter if I leave my computer turned on all the time?
A - Your
PC contains disk drives and fans (probably 2 of them) that have bearings that
wear out, so the more your computer is turned on, the sooner those bearings
will wear out. It’s probably a
good idea to turn your computer off if you’re not going to be using it for
two hours. Some computers turn themselves off after a period of nonuse;
that’s not the same as being ‘on’ all the time. Some operating system
software seem to have problems when left on all the time. I find that it’s a
good idea to shut down Windows software at least once a day and to unplug the
phone line from the computer or surge strip during thunderstorms.
Q - Does
it make a difference in what order or sequence I turn on components of my
computer system?
A - I
recommend turning on the old (CRT style) monitor first. It usually draws a
surge of current which can affect the current supplied to the system unit
during startup when the CPU is doing its critical power-on self-test (POST).
An analogy is what happens in plumbing systems when a toilet is flushed while
the shower is running – there can be an unpleasant surge of hot water in the
shower when the cold water flow is temporarily diverted. Do not use a cheap lamp extension cord! This is bad for the computer and could be a fire hazard.
Q - How
can I tell if I’m getting good advice?
A - One
way is to check with other experts and compare answers. If the person giving
advice suggests that you check with other experts, that’s a good sign. Be
wary of self-proclaimed experts who suggest drastic measures like “format
c:” as a solution to everything. Another
good sign is when your expert admits to the limits of his/her knowledge, that
he/she is willing to tell you why they think something is so, and what he/she
think are firm conclusions and what are mere speculations. Often it’s easy to learn the general rules or formulas, but
it takes years of careful study to learn the exceptions. An expert should be aware of what
he/she may not know. If
someone helps you document the configuration of your computer or software for
the next time you need help, whether it’s for them or for anyone else you
might call on to help you, that person is probably looking after your best
interests.
Q - What
can I do that will have the best payoff in helping me get computer problems
solved?
A - Learn
the terminology used around computers. In order for a computer “guru” to
help you, you have to talk in terms they understand. Use the terms
“monitor” and “system unit” and “cursor” (and “pointer”)
correctly, and you're likely to get problems solved more readily. One of the
problems with computers is that the part exhibiting the symptom may not be the
part where the problem resides. I've been told that it’s a rare talent that
can explain things quickly in terms the average layman can understand.
That’s why I try to collect analogies, to use in explanations (e.g.,
“hardware” is like the piano, while “software” is like the music to be
played on the piano).
Q - I’m
having lots of problems with my computer. What’s the quickest way to get
everything working?
A - If it is
over 4 years old, maybe it’s time to buy a new computer. The easiest way to get everything
working is also the quickest.
NEW
Got a question? Come
to the meeting on November 10 at 6:30 p.m. for the first question and
answer discussion. The panel will
try to answer any and all computer related questions until 6:55 p.m. Priority will be given to questions
submitted by e‑mail prior to the meeting.
Send e-mail to pshuppelsccc@davtv.com.
President’s Joke of the Month
Car Trouble
Four engineers were traveling
along a dusty road in the middle of nowhere when their car suddenly stopped.
After a few minutes of reflection, each engineer gave his opinion as to the
cause of their current troubles.
"It must be something in
the transmission," said the Mechanical Engineer.
"No, it must be in the
electrical system," said the Electrical Engineer.
"I really think that it
must be the quality of the gasoline," announced the Chemical Engineer.
Finally, all eyes turned to
the Software Engineer who sat there with a puzzled look on his face. The
Software Engineer scratched his head and said…
"I have no idea why the car stopped, but maybe if we
all exit the car and then get back in, it will run again."
MAC SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP
The Mac group will meet at 7
p.m. on Monday, November 3 in the Computer Room. Lynn Conley will do a presentation on
the Basics of Photoshop Elements 2. You
do not need to use a digital camera to try your hand at editing photos. Any computer club member is welcome to
attend.
For more information about the
Mac Special Interest Group, call Lynn Conley at 3906.'
GENEALOGY
SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP
The Genealogy Group will meet
on November 5 at 7 p.m. in the Computer Room. The featured speaker will be
Sandee Hanahan, from the Heritage Library. She
will walk us through the process to convert our family tree into a GEDCOM
file. GEDCOM allows us to send
our genealogy files to folks that do not have the same family tree computer
program. We have had requests for
this topic for a long time and finally are making it happen.
For more information about the Genealogy
Group, please contact Sharon Ede at
705-7987 '
MUSIC SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP
PROGRAMS
In November, the program will feature Skip Purdy from Microsoft and new updates to
MS Office.
December
is the Sun City Computer Club Holiday Party
On Monday, December 8, 2003,
the Computer Club will have its annual Holiday Party beginning at 7 p.m.
in Pinckney Hall. All members and
spouses are invited to this great time of food and camaraderie. Please bring either an appetizer or
dessert that will serve 8 people. We will have a short business meeting and
then it’s Party Time.
Music will be furnished by
Mike Riegel and the Snycopaters. A flyer is enclosed with this newsletter.
MEMBERSHIP
Don’t
forget to wear your nametag to meetings and classes.
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Please welcome the following new
members:
Farag, Bonnie............... 5498
Gasnier, Sue................ 7592
Guter, Richard.............. 9577
McGuire, Claire............ 6880
Miller, E.J.................... 3951
Miller, Lorraine.............. 3951
Nagel, Barbara............. 7187
Petrine, Patricia............ 7988
Sbrocco, Ann............... 915-490-9000
VanWickel, Charles...... 6073
All memberships will expire on December 31, 2003, and may be renewed
using the following form.
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Sun City
Computer Club
RENEWAL
FORM
2004 MEMBERSHIP
Due on or before December 31, 2003
$20 per single membership, $35 for two
members of the same household
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Phone
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Address
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Village
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**Email Address(es)
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**Please be
sure to let Membership know if your email changes at any time during the year.
You may drop off the renewal form along
with your check made out to “SSHHCC” in the lower mailbox of Diane
Frazier-Ciravolo at 307 Hampton Place.
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Any
questions regarding Membership, e-mail Diane Frazier-Ciravolo at disfc@aol.com
or call 3841 '
Notes
from the Education Chair
There
will be no formal class sales in November since we don’t offer computer
classes in December. However, if you’re interested seeing what November
classes may still be available, check the Class Sales Black Box in the
Computer Room during any open time. To register for a class or workshop, bring
your checkbook and follow the instructions on the first card in the box. Sales
close at noon Saturday for classes starting the following week. If you need help, ask the Computer Room monitor to assist you.
With classroom courses on
hiatus during the holidays, you might like to take a look at MIT’s
OpenCourseware at http://ocw.mit.edu. To quote from the site: “With the
publication of 500 courses, MIT OCW offers educational materials from 33
academic disciplines and all five of MIT's schools.” Wow! Closer to home,
the Bluffton library is now offering a limited number of computer courses.
SCHHCC classes will resume the
week of January 19. First registration for January and February classes
will be Monday, January 5, from 1‑3 p.m. in the Computer Room. We will
notify you by e-mail when these class descriptions are posted on
www.suncitycc.org and on the Computer Room bulletin board. In the meantime, we
look forward to seeing you at the November 10 meeting and our December 10
Holiday Party!
If you have comments,
questions or suggestions for the Education Chair, please contact Robin Seaver
at (searobin@islc.net) or Diane Hutchings at (dianehutch@aol.com)
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE OCTOBER MEETING
Pre-Meeting
- Bob Rasmussen presented a short pre-meeting program on how to install the
free AVG anti-virus program.
Phillip Shuppel, President,
called the meeting of October 13, to order at 7:00 p.m.
Tips and Tricks – Sandy
Tucker, Editor of the KeyStrokes
and teacher of Microsoft Word, gave numerous tips to use when
typing Word documents.
President’s Report – The minutes from the last meeting were
approved as published in the October KeyStrokes. Phillip reminded the audience that
anti-virus protection and Microsoft
critical updates are vital to computer security. He thanked Bob for giving the pre-program on the free
anti-virus.
Members of the Hilton Head
Computer Club were welcomed to the meeting.
Attendance at either meeting is reciprocal.
Technical Committee - Bob Rasmussen
Since his pre-meeting demo did not work as he wanted it to, he said that he
would be available after the meeting to discuss it with anyone interested.
The Technical Committee
meeting on the 17th of October at 7 p.m. will work on maintenance
of equipment, especially the “mice.”
Treasurer – Ron Garner
August
2003 Balance Forward
$19,024.81
September
Income
$1382.54
September
Expenses
$353.78
Total
Checking Balance
$20,053.57
Transfer
to Savings
$8,000.00
Operating
Balance as of
September
30, 2003
$12,053.57
Education Committee – Robin Seaver - Classes are still available
for October and November. You may
sign up in the Computer Room, starting at noon on Tuesday, October 14, any
time the room is open and when there is not a class in session. Forms and instructions are in the
black box. If there are no forms
behind a class divider that means the class is full. Class registration will end at noon on
the Saturday previous to the week in which the class is held. There will be no classes in December. If you have any suggestions for types
of new classes or names of new teachers, please contact the Education
Committee
Membership Committee – Diane Frazier-Ciravolo – Since our last
meeting, we have had 17 new members. The total membership is now 655. There will be no registrations for
membership for the remainder of this year unless someone wants to take a class
before October 31. We
will start taking membership dues for 2004 at the Club Fair on October 31. The cost of membership for a single is
$20, $35 for two members of the same household.
There is now a green box in the Computer Room for persons to sign up
for membership. Please leave
checks only. There were 195
persons attending the meeting including 24 guests.
Monitor Committee – Richie Sherson – There is a monitor training
class scheduled for October 24 from 1-3 p.m. The committee is trying to initiate self-scheduling for
monitors in late November. There
will be more details on this at a later time.
Program Committee – George Weyhrich - In November, the program
will feature Skip Purdy from Microsoft
and new updates to MS
Office. December 8
will be the annual holiday party. Please
contact John and Jo Longo, Renee Fordyce, or Juli Yale if you are interested
in helping with the party.
In January, we will have a
representative from the Beaufort County Sheriff’s office who will speak
about their website and computer security.
The evening program featured
Keith Ennis from Voice Factor who presented an exciting program on
voice-activated software for computers.
A copy of the video “What to
Do Until the Doctor Comes” will be available for check out after the 20th
of October in the Computer Room.
The meeting was adjourned at 8:30 p.m.
Respectfully submitted
Pat Beaty, Secretary
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New November Classes
Two Advanced Windows classes have been added to the
schedule for November.
Replacing a Hard Drive – Instructor: Bob Rasmussen. The class will
remove the original hard drive, install a new larger one, format the drive,
install the Windows XP Operating System, and many application programs
including AVG antivirus and Microsoft Office.
November 15, Saturday, 1 p.m. to at least 4 p.m. $5.00
Adding a Second Hard Drive – Instructor: Bob Rasmussen. The class
will add a second hard drive to a computer, format it, and move the
application programs from the original drive to the new one. This could be of interest if you are running out of space on
your original hard drive.
November 22, Saturday, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. $5.00
To sign up for either of these
classes attach a check to the proper slip in the Class Sales Black Box in the
Computer Room any time during open hours.
Enjoy your
Thanksgiving with family and friends.
The November
meeting will be Monday, November 17, at 7:00 p.m. in the Computer Room.
The topic will be 