Newsletter of SeniorNet Napier Incorporated

Volume11 Number 7 November 2009

Web Page - www.napier.seniornet.co.nz

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

From the President
Christmas Luncheon
Message from Federation
Urgently Required
What a Neat Idea
Upgrade from XP/Vista to Windows 7
Automatically Clean Out Your Temporary Internet Files
Keep It Speedy
Time for a Smile
A Warm Welcome to All our New Members
Notices
Emergency Contact Details
Getting Help from SeniorNet Napier
Newsletter Closing Date
Next Committee Meeting
Classes Offered by SeniorNet Napier

From the President

President's Report for Movember

Perhaps I am getting very old because time slips by so much more quickly these days. I realised the other day that it is now over a year since we opened our new learning centre. I seems like only yesterday.
It also struck me that Christmas was approaching because the shops were displaying their Christmas goods in September. It gets earlier every year.
I find this most infuriating.

Well, we do have a Christmas present to offer you in the way of course fees. You will remember that for a trial period we reduced our $40 fee to $25 and our $25 fee to $15 if booked between 1st June and the 30th November 2009. Now, in view of our reasonably strong financial position, and all other things being equal, we have decided to extend this period to 31st December 2010.

It had been intended to exhibit SeniorNet at the Neighbourhood Support display in Anderson Park on 1st November in order to attract new members. However, we have recently had an influx of new members and numerous membership inquiries have been received this month. This is wonderful, but these new members expect to start their classes as soon as possible after joining. However, without sufficient tutors and assistants this is not always possible. In view of this we felt that we should withdraw from the Anderson Park display. Once again we would appeal for additional tutors and assistants to help out the overworked ones we have now. Always remember, no tutors, no SeniorNet. As a competent, newly graduated student, you could initially attend a class of your choice as an observer and ultimately go forward as an assistant tutor. Have a talk to Sue Gay, our Course Co-ordinator about it ( 844 4302 ).

It seems that some of our members are not reading our Newsletters, either because they are not sure how to open the attachments, or their Spam Filters are being over zealous. This is a pity as these members are missing out on the Pearls of Wisdom we are hoping to impart. To try to trick the spam filters we are going to change the senders name from that of your Newsletter Editors to SeniorNet Napier and see if that works. It has also been suggested that as a final part of the Introductory Course we add on an extra 10 minutes of instruction on how to open an e-mail attachment. This seems like a better option than the one on a tin of sardines which stated "Instructions for opening are inside the can". Or the other one that says 'Please let me know if you do not receive this e-mail'.

Our thanks go to Peter Ashley who presented his interesting workshop on 'Frequently Asked Questions' (FAQ). A number of members queried the cost of $10 for the workshop without recognising that the cost of printing the accompanying manual was almost $9 on top of the hall hire. In similar situations, in the future, if no manual is required there will be no charge but if a manual is required without attending the workshop the $10 charge will still apply.

Finally, we are holding our Christmas Lunch on Friday, 27th November, details of which are in this Newsletter. We look forward to seeing you all there.

Enjoy your computing

Gordon Brown

To All of Our Members
who are unwell and/or in Hospital at the moment,
a Cheery Hullo,
and our Sincerest Condolences to those
who have recently lost someone
near and dear to them.

From all at SeniorNet Napier

 

 

Our Christmas Luncheon
"Smorgasbord"

AN invitation is extended
To all members and Partners
to Join us at
The Napier RSA Club
Hastings Street Napier

On Friday 27th November 2009
Time: 12.00 noon.
Cost: $15.00 per person

Please Don't forget to bring your exchange gift,
to the value of $5 for each-person attending, this is real fun
Please identify whether your gift is for a lady or a gentleman.
Place these items in the appropriate
baskets provided on arrival.
These - will be exchanged during the meal.

Please pay with correct cash ($15.00 per person) on the day

to Gordon Buckley

Please e-mail Dorothy nlumsden@xtra.co.nz
or if you don't have email - phone 836 6584

NO LATER
than 22nd November
to advise names and number attending

 

Message from Federation re Recent Survey
From: Grant Sidaway

The Lottery Grants Board funded SeniorNet Research which was commissioned by the SeniorNet Federation has now been published. A copy of the final report is available on www.seniornet.co.nz. There is a click through tab on the home page "Research Report".

The report confirms the Federation and its Learning Centres provide an extremely valuable service to the community of New Zealand with the quality teaching it performs and sets out a platform on which to move forward with.

I recommend you notify your members of the report and encourage them to read it. In a few days time a short PowerPoint file will also be available on the site highlighting the key points.
Thanks to all who participated in the survey(s) it was an enormous help in compiling the evaluation.
Kind regards
Grant

 

URGENTLY REQUIRED.

Are to able to give 1 hour on a
Tuesday, from 4.00 - 5.00 p.m.
About every 6th week
To assist with cleaning the SeniorNet Learning centre?
Please ring Marilyn Thorp, 845 2274 or
email theateam@paradise.net.nz
if you are able to help.
Your help would be very much appreciated.

 

What a Neat Idea - A stand for your laptop computer.
The inventiveness of one Waikato SeniorNet member has come to the fore with a practical, low cost, yet very sturdy stand. Go to www.seniornet.co.nz and find this advertisement to order.

 

 

Upgrade from XP/Vista to Windows 7

Last month a new operating system was to be launched by Microsoft. It was called windows 7. But there are some downsides to Windows 7. First, you will only be able to directly upgrade Vista computers to the new version. People still using Windows XP will need to perform a more cumbersome multistep process. Microsoft is working on a method to help XP owners preserve all their data during this process.
Second, Windows 7 will eliminate some familiar bundled programs from Windows 7. Vista's Mail, Calendar, Photo Gallery, Movie Maker, and Address Book programs are being removed. To get similar basic, free, programs, you'll have to download them from Microsoft's Windows Live service, or use alternatives from other companies. Microsoft defends this move as supporting consumer choice and better coordination with Web services, but it does remove out-of-the-box functionality from Windows.

 

Automatically Clean Out Your Temporary Internet Files

If you do a lot of searching on the internet, sites you have surveyed are stored as Temporary Internet Files. This provides for speedy recall if you should visit the site again as your computer will recall it from the temporary files storage instead of down loading it from the internet. However frequent use on the internet speedily fills the cache and clutters up your hard drive. You can set Internet Explorer to automatically delete the cached files on closing the browser. Open Internet Explorer, go to Tools>Internet Options and click on the Advanced tab at the top. Scroll down until you see Security, and put a check mark in the box next to Empty Temporary Internet Files Folders when browser is closed. Click Apply and then OK.

 

 

KEEP IT SPEEDY

Your computer may sometimes slow down or crash for no apparent reason. The following fixes may help reduce such problems, which are often related to basic file organization.

Defrag your drive. Overloaded hard drives often cause slowdowns. As you add more and more data to the drive, the data becomes increasingly scattered and your computer struggles to make things work quickly.

You can keep data better organized on your hard drive by running a defragmenter (defrag) program. Windows has a built-in defrag utility that you can access; click Start, All Programs (or Programs), Accessories, and System Tools; then click Disk Defragmenter. This utility works a little differently in various versions of Windows, but you'll need to select the drive you want to defragment and then start the process, which can take minutes or hours, depending on drive size. If you have a large hard drive, you should expect the process to take at least an hour; also note this utility will often run much more efficiently if you don't use other programs during the procedure.

Reduce clutter. If the defrag process doesn't speed things up, check your hard drive space. In My Computer, right-click the icon for the hard drive, then click Properties. Some sources indicate you should have at least 20% of the drive space free to help your processor manage things efficiently. Delete unnecessary data to create some room to breathe. Do not delete any files that you do not know their origin.

Windows can help you clear out garbage data with its Disk Cleanup utility. Click Start, All Programs (or Programs), Accessories, System Tools, and click Disk Cleanup. Point the program to the drive you want to clean and click OK, and Windows will hunt down such as Recycle Bin files, temporary Internet files, and other space wasters. When the process completes, you can examine these files and see how much space they consume. In most cases, it's safe to let Windows remove these files for good.

Temporary Internet files that Internet Explorer creates are especially notorious for hogging hard drive space. By default, this program earmarks a huge chunk of space to store information about Web sites you've visited, but letting the program use more than 50MB is generally overkill. In IE, from the Tools menu, click Internet Options. In the Temporary Internet Files section, click Settings, then click and drag the Amount of Disk Space to Use slider to the left to reduce the space Explorer uses for temporary Internet Files.

Ditch old drivers and programs. It's helpful to reduce temporary file storage but you may also benefit from removing old, unused drivers. That's because your computer will continue to load old drivers on startup even if you're not using the old hardware. Those old drivers might cause device conflict problems, too, so it's in your PC's best interest to get rid of them. Click Start, point to Settings, and click Control Panel. Double-click the Add/Remove Programs icon and look for programs related to hardware you no longer use. Click the program, click Add/Remove, and click OK.

There are other ways to improve initial startup speeds.
One is by removing unnecessary programs from the Startup menu. To do so, click Start, Run, type Msconfig, and press ENTER. Click the Startup tab and you will see a list of programs that load every time your computer starts up. You'll probably see programs, such as America Online or media players, which place icons in the System Tray or on the Taskbar and use system resources even if you rarely use the application.

Clear the checkboxes next to programs that you don't want to load at startup. Take care when you do this-don't clear a checkbox unless you're absolutely sure of a program's purpose because some of these programs are vital to starting the system. Once you finish removing programs from the startup routine, click OK; Windows will then prompt you to restart the computer.

Remember that if you do not understand these instructions, do not carry out the procedures but ask your tutors. Also any defragging should be done after you clean out the garbage and redundant programs.

Thanks to SeniorNet, Canterbury

 

 

Time for a Smile

A Little Poem for you

Another year has passed, and we're all a little older.
Last summer felt lots hotter, and winter seemed much colder
There was a time not long ago, when life was quite a blast.
Now I fully understand, about 'Living in the Past'

We used to go to weddings, Football games and lunches.
Now we go to funeral homes, and after-funeral brunches
We used to have hangovers, from parties that were gay.
Now we suffer body aches and wile the night away

We used to go out dining, and couldn't get our fill.
Now we ask for doggie bags, go home and take a pill.
We used to often travel to places near and far.
Now we get sore butts from riding in the car.

We used to go to nightclubs and drink a little booze.
Now we stay at home every night and watch the evening news.
That, my friend is how life is, and now my tale is told
So, enjoy each day and live it up...
Before you're too damned OLD

 

 

A Very Warm Welcome

to all our latest 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 2009

Session 6................. 2 November to 11 December

Dates for 2010

Session 1................ 25 January to 5 March

Session 2................22 March to 30 April

COST TO ATTEND SENIORNET, NAPIER CLASSES
PLEASE NOTE

Course fees will continue at the reduced rate until 31 December, 2010.
6 week courses will cost $25.00
4 week courses will cost $15.00

To All The Tutors & Assistants of the
Introductory Classes
and the 6th SESSION of 2009
2nd November to 11th December
who have volunteered their services
for the sixth learning session of this year.
It is very much appreciated by all.

Without your willingness to help others,

there would be NO SeniorNet Napier.

AN EXCELLENT TIP

Remember: to save your work!
If you are working in a program, for example typing a letter or document in MSWord, or creating a graphic, remember to save your work from time to time. Most programs offer this as an automated feature - so be sure to look at the program's help documentation. If you have even been in the middle of something and had a system crash or the power go off, only to find you've lost all your work, you know what we mean! Simple and basic: Remember to save your work often. Someday ...............

THANKYOU FOR ORGANISING THE F.A.Q.

49 members attended the recent Frequenty Asked Questions
seminar organised by Peter Ashley.
Hope you all learnt something and felt your attending
was well worth it. Thank you Peter.

Unable To Attend A Class

In consideration of other students please stay away from class if you have an infectious illness, such as flu,colds etc. You will still be able to complete your course when you recover.
Just phone and let your tutors know.

NB: If you are unable to attend your class please phone your Tutor in good time.

WANTED

Does anyone have a large 4 litre aluminium or enamel teapot which is
no longer used and could be looking for a new home?
The SeniorNet, Napier Centre would dearly like it.
Please email Dorothy:- nlumsden@xtra.co.nz
phone 836 6584. Thank you.

DO YOU FEEL CONFIDENT?

About assistant tutoring that is.

If you have been using Vista and Office 2007, have or have not done the courses, but think that you could assist others to learn, please consider putting your name forward.
With more newcomers now buying Vista, we need tutors and assistants.
It is not surprising that being in a group, discussing the same program will increase your own knowledge of it.
Please contact Sue Gay, Alan Overington or Bill Allan.

To ALL those members and other SeniorNet Branches
who made contributions to this Newsletter.
These are very much appreciated.

We would like to acknowledge items in this Newsletter which we have
plagiarised from the Newsletters of other SeniorNet

 

DISTRIBUTION OF NEWSLETTERS

Did you receive this Newsletter by post, but have an email address?
If you answered YES, it would be much appreciated if you would please help us save money by emailing your address as soon as possible to
or nlumsden@xtra.co.nz or egbrown@clear.net.nz

Those who do not have email will continue to receive by post.
When any member receives an email or change their present email address, please advise the Membership Secretary, Ila McInnes so your records can be updated.

Newsletters are now only published every 2 months there may be occasions when special notices may have to be sent out urgently. In view of handling & postage costs these will only go to e-mail recipients.

Can't open the Newsletter?

Ring or email Dorothy nlumsden@xtra.co.nzor Gordon.egbrown@clear.net.nz If you can't get either,
please contact a committee member.

Printing the Newsletter from your computer.

To save ink you may like to print it in "draft".
How? Go to File > Print > Properties > Print quality > click the down arrow and select draft > then print. If you only want to print off, say pages 1,3 and 7. Go to File >Print > in pages slot type 1,3,7 then OK
If you only want a portion of a page, highlight the
portion you want, again, click print and click selection
and that will be all you will get.
Again, if you have a problem please contact
Dorothy, Gordon Brown or a Committee Member.
We don't want you taking this desperate action!

 

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 Newsletter

ARTICLES FOR NEXT NEWSLETTER
Closing date for material for the next Newsletter
Friday, 15 January, 2010

Please send contributions for newsletters to:
egbrown@clear.net.nz or nlumsden@xtra.co.nz

Any SNN member is welcome to contribute.

As Newsletters are now published every 2 months there may be occasions when special notices may have to be sent out urgently. In view of handling & postage costs
these will only go to e-mail recipients.

 

Next Committee Meeting

Tuesday 17th November 2009 at 2.00pm

 

 

Classes Offered by SeniorNet Files Napier

Dates for 2009 are:-

Session 6...................2nd November to 11th December

Depending on demand (usually minimum of 3 students) the following classes will be available.
Introduction to Computers and Windows (2 weeks) free to all members
Word Processing 1 A (6 weeks) $25.00 in Word & XP
Word Processing 1 A (6 weeks) $25.00 in Vista & Word 2007
Word Processing 1 B (6 weeks) $25.00 in Word & XP
Word Processing 1 B (6 weeks) $25.00 in Vista & Word 2007
Word Processing 2 (6 weeks) $25.00 in Word & XP
Word Processing 2 (6 weeks) $25.00 in Vista & Word 2007
Advanced Word Processing (6 weeks) $25.00
File Management (4 weeks) $15.00 in XP or Vista
Email - using Outlook Express (6 weeks) $25.00
Database - using Works (6 weeks) $25.00
Spreadsheets (6 weeks) $25.00
Drawing and Publishing in Word (6 weeks) $25.00
Students must have good mouse skills for D & P Word & must have completed WP2 in WORD
Scanning & Photo Editing (6 weeks) $25.00
PowerPoint (6 weeks) $25.00
Comput-a-Craft (1 x 2hr session) $10.00
Creative Stationery in Word 2003 (1 x 2 hr session) $10.00
It is expected that a good level of Word Processing is attained before taking the other courses.
This includes the Email course.
N.B You DO NOT have a firm booking in a class unless the COURSE FEE has been paid.
Please send payment with your course application form.

________________________________________________________

COURSE APPLICATION FORM (For all classes after 'Intro to Computers')

It is essential that you supply details of your Operating System and Word Processing programme below to assist our Course Co-ordinator

Name............................................................. Member No..........................

Address.......................................................... Phone No............................

Course applied for.............................................. Session..............................

Operating System (Circle One)
Windows 98 ..Windows XP... Windows Vista..Other
Word Processing Program (Circle One)
Works Word ..Word 2000... Word 2003..Word 2007
Other

(The following 4 questions are asked because we now belong to the NZ Federation of SeniorsNets)
* Are you a NZ or Australian Citizen/NZ Permanent Resident? Yes / No
* Circle the age group you are in 50 to 59 OR 60+
* Circle which ethnicity you belong to
European... Maori... Pacific Islander... Asian...
* Circle your answer. Are you Male or Female
N.B. Is there a time on any day that you CANNOT attend a class……………………………………………………

Return with course fee of $. . . . . . . . Signed..................................

Date..........................
To: SNN Application,
21 Mission Road, Greenmeadows, NAPIER.
Please make cheques payable to: Senior Net Napier Incorporated
_____________________

Newsletter Editors:
Dorothy LUMSDEN - e-mail nlumsden@xtra.co.nz
Gordon BROWN - e-mail egbrown@clear.net.nz
Please send items for the Newsletter to the above.

 

Please support our Sponsors

 

Till Next Time
Keep Having Fun with Your Computer