NAPIER SENETTER NEWS
Newsletter of SeniorNet Napier Incorporated

Volume10 Number 6 June 2008

Web Page - http://nsn3.tripod.com/napiersn

Selecting/clicking below, on any
underlined article will take you there.

From the President
FAQs Workshop
Create a Panoramic Photograph
Tutors & Volunteers
Tips
Some Classic Insults
Time for a Smile
Creative Advertising
A Warm Welcome to All our New Members
Notices
Emergency Contact Details
Getting Help from SeniorNet Napier
Newsletter Closing Date
Next Committee Meeting

 

From the President

This has been a really busy month following the decision of your committee to go ahead with the purchase and relocation of the St.Peter's Hall at All Saints Church, Taradale,
We have had great support from the Vestry who prepared a document acknowledging that we would purchase the hall for a nominal $1 and should SeniorNet have no further use for it in the future, ownership of the hall would revert to the Church or SeniorNet would have the option of removing the hall from its site and having it relocated at another site.
The token dollar was handed over at a short ceremony on June 6th and the photo shows All Saints Vicar, Rev.Di Woods accepting it.
On Monday June 9th the building movers arrived at the crack of dawn and by lunch time the hall had been relocated ready for repiling the next day. On the Wednesday the hall was lowered onto its new piles and fastened down ready for the plumbers, electricians and Telecom to couple up the services. Now the real work begins and with luck we should be operating out of the new learning centre before the end of Winter.
Our thanks again to everyone who has been involved in the work to date.

It is a requirement that one of the toilets in the new centre has disability facilities and this would include an L shaped hand rail measuring 75cm X 75cm. It may be that one of our members has one tucked away in the shed and if so we would be pleased to hear from them
Remember that we have a Members Meeting on 24th June at 2.00pm when Bill Allan will present a talk on Pictures and Backgrounds in e-mail and if you want copies of the presentation they will be available.
It has been suggested by one of the tutors that it could be helpful if students starting a new course had USB Flash Drives and 1GB would be more than adequate. It is not essential but with the demise of Floppy Discs it would be an asset.

Happy Computing

Gordon Brown

FAQ's (FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS) WORKSHOP

On HOW TO MANAGE YOUR COMPUTER

The format of this workshop(for XP and 98 Systems) will commence with an hour or so of the presentation, followed by a "cuppa" then question time. A Manual will be provided as part of the cost.

When: Tuesday, 8th July from 2.00 - 4.00 p.m.
Where: St. Andrew's Hall, ATAWHAI
COST: JUST $10.00 - to be paid at the door

In the last Newsletter, details of the content and discussion issues were detailed and expressions of interest were invited to be sent to Peter Ashley.

If you have not already registered, it is not too late to attend. Please turn up on the day.

The cost is just $10.00 per person and this will include the presentation, afternoon tea and an opportunity to ask questions. Remember a manual is included in this entry fee.

For those who have registered their interest, we have your names and a manual has been ordered for you.

For those of you who have not yet registered, and who turn up on the day, if there are insufficient manuals available we will order a copy for you and supply it as soon as possible afterwards.

For further information, see the notice in the Learning Centre or please contact Peter, preferably by email peteran@clear.net.nz , or by phone on 835 7338 (but please be aware that as he is frequently out, be prepared to leave your name and number and for him to ring back).

In order to print sufficient manuals that will be given out at the workshop, we need to receive EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST by 14 JUNE.

Please advise the following details and either :
POST TO Peter Ashley, 42a Kennedy Road, Napier 4110, or
EMAIL TO peteran@clear.net.nz
YOUR NAME/S………………….. ADDRESS………………………

EMAIL ADDRESS…………………………..TEL………………….....

 

 

CREATE A PANORAMIC PHOTOGRAPH (Like the one in the Presidents Report)

West Quay Ahuriri

West Quay Ahuriri evening time different day

Have you ever wanted to photograph a mountain view or other sweeping landscape but found it too wide for a single picture? Well, it's easy to create a panoramic picture of even the widest scene, even with an inexpensive point-and-shoot digital camera..
You can create a panoramic photo using Windows Live Photo Gallery. Windows Live Photo Gallery is a new version of Photo Gallery that you can install on Windows Vista or Windows XP. It includes a new feature for creating panoramas. If you don't already have Windows Live Photo Gallery, you can download it for free. Just type http://get.live.com/photogallery/overview into Google or your normal search engine and download it from there.

First you need to shoot photos for your panorama. Start by finding a scene that would make a good panorama, such as a wide city skyline or view across a broad valley-something too wide to fit into one picture. You need to take multiple photos of your scene all in a row. Start at one end of the scene and take a photo, and turn just enough to overlap the last shot by about a third. Don't worry if you overlap more than that-it won't hurt.
Hold your camera steady and keep going until you've photographed the entire scene you want to capture. Try not to turn your camera up or down as you move or you might end up with a crooked horizon. A tripod would probably be helpful. Three to five photos is usually enough.
Now all you need to do is stitch them together into a panorama using Windows Live Photo Gallery.
If you are using photos which are still on your camera you can import them direct from the camera into Photo Gallery.
First plug in the camera and Windows will detect the pictures on your camera and will ask how you wish to import them. Choose Import pictures and videos using Windows Live Photo Gallery. Now click Import all new items. If you are using photos which have already been down loaded to your computer, open the Windows Live Photo Gallery programme and select them from Windows Explorer.
Now, select the photos you want to stitch together. To select multiple photos, hold down the CTRL key, and then click each of the photos. Next, click Make on the menu bar, and then Create panoramic photo.
That's it! Wait while Windows Live Photo Gallery stitches them together. This might take a few minutes, especially if you have large photos or are stitching together a lot of photos.
It's done. Once you're satisfied with the stitched photo, click FIX on the menu bar and then using the tools from the task pane, which will open, crop the panorama into a nice clean rectangle. Finish by doing any retouching you want to the panorama, such as adjusting its colour or exposure.
When you're all done, you can sit back and admire the beautiful scene all over again, as much as you want!
It's simple
It's FREE

 

 

Tutors & Volunteers
Like most Senior Net branches we are always on the look out for new Tutors and their assistants. Without them we could not function and it is largely through them that we enjoy the benefits of being a strong and vibrant club.
Tutoring is not as scary as you might think and soon becomes a rewarding activity.
If you can help please let Sue Gay our Course Co-ordinator know and she will roster you on for a future course

 

Want to Buy on the Internet
but worried about giving your credit card details?

A solution could be to use "prezzy card". These cards are just like a Visa card and can be used as many times as required until the balance is zero. Purchase them from a Post Shop for $5.00 and load with a specific value from $25.00 to $500.00. Purchase can be via your Eftpos card. Cheaper to use than buying an International Money Order!
Use this card and your maximum potential loss is limited.
There are a few places where Prezzy Cards cannot be used - mainly card operated fuel stops (OK if used when paying at the cashier's desk) and where ID may also be required - but ideal for Internet purchases especially if buying from outside of NZ. Just ensure that there is a sufficient amount of money loaded to cover any variation in exchange rates. Any balance can be checked via the Net and spent just like an Eftpos card - if insufficient for the last purchase - just top up with cash, eftpos or credit card.
Also, of course, they are ideal for sending money as a gift to a relative or friend both in NZ and overseas.
Full details can be obtained in leaflet form from Post Shops.

Now, Where was I?
If you prepare a long document, it will probably be edited or re-read several times. Each time you open the document, the cursor will be at the start of the document, and you will have to scroll through to find out where you last working. Efforts to identify the last location can include highlighting a character or word and changing the font size and colour.
But Word provides a simple method of picking up where you left off. Just type one character where your editing ends for the day (even a space at the end of a sentence) before saving it.
Next time you open the document, the cursor will be at the start, as usual. But if you press Shift + F5 the cursor will immediately move to the exact location of the last edit, including the blank space you may have created with the spacebar.
This function will work no matter how big the document or how long it has been since it was last edited.

Thanks to Motueka Senior Net

Photos in E-mails
When you receive an e-mail with photographs or other items included and you then forward the message on, the photos sometimes do not go with the e-mail, but instead come out as an outlined square with a cross in the corner. Do you have any idea why?
To correct the problem:
Launch Outlook Express
Select 'Options' from the Tools menu
Click the tab labelled 'Send'
Click the upper of 2 buttons titled HTML settings.
Put a check in the box labelled 'Send pictures with messages'
Click OK and OK again.
That should do the trick

An Economist is someone who predicted 5 of the last 2 recessions

Our thanks to other SeniorNet Newsletters for allowing us to Plagiarise items of interest for our newsletters

 

Some Classic Insults
"He has all the virtues I dislike and none of the vices I admire."
-Winston Churchill

"I've had a perfectly wonderful evening. But this wasn't it."
-Groucho Marx

"He has no enemies, but is intensely disliked by his friends."
-Oscar Wilde

"I am enclosing two tickets to the first night of my new play; bring a friend... if you have one."
-George Bernard Shaw to Winston Churchill

"Cannot possibly attend first night; will attend second, if there is one."
-Winston Churchill's response to George Bernard Shaw

"I've just learned about his illness. Let's hope it's nothing trivial."
-Irvin S. Cobb

 

 

Time for a Smile

More Canadian Humour

 

 

 

Creative Advertising

 

A Very Warm Welcome
to all our New Members
who are entering the world of
Computerised Information Technology

 

 

Notice Board

Scroll Down to view all notices

CLASSES offered by SeniorNet Napier

Dates for 2008

Session 4 …….. .21 July to 28 August
Session 5 …….. .8 September to 17 October
Session 6 ……... 3 November to 12 December

Depending on demand (usually minimum of 3 students) the following classes will be available.

E-mail Addresses
If you have changed your e-mail address or are planning to change, please let Ila McInnes know so that we can keep our database of members up to date.
This is particularly important now that we are distributing the Newsletter by e-mail as it becomes most frustrating when the Newsletter 'bounces' back because the address is incorrect.

From the Course Co-ordinator
If you wish to do a class in session 4 (Commencing 21 July) please give some thought to it now and get your application and cheque to Sue Gay.

Have You Forgotten?

A Few people have omitted to return their Renewal forms due in March! and April. Please return your form even if you wish to resign - it helps us keep track of your wishes.
This may be the last newsletter for both groups.

DISTRIBUTION OF
FUTURE NEWSLETTERS
DISTRIBUTION OF NEWSLETTERS
The Newsletter will in future be sent as an
email attachment to all members who have email.
Those who do not have email will continue to receive by post.
If you would prefer to receive the Newsletter by post, please contact Dorothy OR Gordon.
When any members with email change their present email address, please advise the Membership Secretary, Ila McInnes so she can update her records. Thank you.

HOW DO YOU OPEN AN ATTACHMENT?
Double left click the attachment,

Click on Open

Your Newsletter will open. Select File Print to Print off a copy.

You may like to keep copies of Newsletters on your computer as well.
Make a new folder by right clicking a blank area on your desktop, scroll down to "New" and across to "folder". Call the folder SeniorNet Newsletters. Now, when you receive your SeniorNet Newsletter as an attachment, double click on the attachment notice, open, then save it to the SeniorNet Newsletter folder > In File name space, call it the Month of the Newsletter received e.g. March 08. Click Save. Mission accomplished.
When any members get email or change their present email address, please advise the Membership Secretary, Ila McInnes so she can update her records. Thank you.

Telstra Clear Offer
I thought it worth reminding members again that if you are a TelstraClear subscriber, TelstraClear will donate 3% of your monthly account to the Senior Net Federation.
If you have not already done so please phone or e-mail Ila McInnes so your name can be passed on to TelstraClear.
Those with another provider who join TelstraClear get 240 free "National Minutes" to use within 2 months. With Broadband you can get a $99 connection credit and 2 months free use up to 10GB a month along with a free modem.
For dial up, for $3.95 there's unlimited use for anyone who has their line rental and calling with TelstraClear.

Computer Problems!

Need a Nerd
Is Hawke's Bay's Mobile Technical Support Service for Businesses
and Home Users and they sponsor SeniorNet Napier
The Nerds come to you!
Phone 0800 63 33 26

 

 

Emergency Contact Details
We have never needed this – but your committee has approved the precaution of having a contact phone number and name of the person who could be contacted in the case of unexpected illness, clearly printed on the back of your SNN membership name label.
Please write this contact info on your label at the next class or members meeting.

 

Disclaimer
Getting Help from SeniorNet Napier - Many of our members have benefited from advice and help given freely by our volunteer officers and tutorial staff. However, we ask all members to take note that our volunteers do not claim to be computer experts.
Any tuition, advice or help they provide to you is given in good faith, strictly on condition that you use such tuition, advice or help entirely at your own risk.

Napier Senetter

ARTICLES FOR NEXT NEWSLETTER
Closing date for material for the next Newsletter
Monday 14th July, 2008
Please send contributions for newsletters to:
egbrown@clear.net.nz or nlumsden@xtra.co.nz

Any SNN member is welcome to contribute.

 

Next Committee Meeting

Tuesday 15th July 2008, - 2.00pm

Please support our Sponsors

 

Till Next Time
Keep Having Fun with Your Computer