Create Your Own Homepage
In my humble opinion, everyone should create a homepage. Wait, let's back up a minute. What's a homepage? Well, there are really two definitions. First, a homepage is the first page of a web site, usually named index, default or home. Second, a homepage is a web site with one or more pages which is personal. It's the second definition which we are using in this article.
Okay, so why would anyone want to create a homepage? It's simple really. The internet is all about communication. A homepage is a method whereby you can communicate about yourself, your family, hobbies, pets, likes, dislikes, religion or anything else that you desire. Oh, there are limits to what you can put on your web site - you must stay within the contractual terms of the company which is hosting it. You also should not violate any laws - but besides that, post away.
You say you have nothing to communicate that anyone would want to know? Hmmm. You're alive, aren't you? You have a family, a job, a pet, a hobby, anything? Let's see what kind of topics you can choose.
- Make a fan site for your favorite television show (Star Trek, Wonder Woman, Dallas, whatever)
- Create a personal diary.
- Post a photo album.
- Put up pictures of all of the trash cans in Disneyland (someone already did it).
- Write about and include drawings and photos of your cat, dog, fish, armadillo or snake.
- Tell everyone about your job.
- You like your car? Create a web site all about that.
- What about your travels around the world? A diary and/or photos is a good thing to put on a homepage.
- Did some school papers of which you are proud? Post them.
- If you are an artist or photographer, display your work.
- Figure something out? Tell us all about it.
- Had an out-of-body experience, been kidnapped by aliens or remember your past lives? Well, we'd all like to know.
That's just a sample, there are an infinite number of subjects that you can write about.
All right, so now you want to create a home page. How do you go about it? Find a company (a provider) to host it, choose a web editing package (optional), and get to work. If you want to include photos or other graphics you will need to get a graphics editor and possibly a scanner. Don't worry, just start small and work your way through it. The providers usually make it pretty easy to get started.
Visit some of web host sites. Read their information and FAQs (frequently asked questions) until you find one that you like.
Virtually all of these hosts have very easy-to-use utilities to create very nice home pages. They let you edit right from your web browser, add pictures, even include nice things like guestbooks and counters. These utilities are a great place to start.
My advice is to just pick a provider and jump right in. Get your feet wet. Yeah, your first efforts may not be perfect, but you've got to start somewhere. Enjoy yourself and have fun.
If you find after a while that the provider that you chose doesn't meet your needs, switch and start over with another one. Until you find a provider that you are happy with (fast, easy-to-use, up most of the time) keep you homepage small. Once you find one you are happy with, go to town.
Now spend some time working on it. Do a little every day if you can, or at least a few days a week. Just keep working on it. When you get a version of the site that's "done" (all pages finishes, no under construction signs, links working, etc) submit it to the search engines so other people can enjoy your work. Remember that the search engines take a few weeks or months to list your site, so don't expect visitors overnight. Then practice using some of the other promotion techniques discussed in the advertising section of this web site.
Now just keep working on your home page. Get as fancy as you like. You'll learn about graphics, HTML, and many other things. You've begun an adventure which has more rewards than you can imagine.
At some point you will begin to push the limits of the free host/web based homepage editing technology. You will start to get frustrated because something you want to do is difficult or cannot be done at all.
Now is the time to begin to learn about new things. Now you will want to learn HTML, perhaps buy a nice HTML editor and go to town. Most likely, by this time you will want to re-create your site anyway, so pick one and go for it. If you don't want to do the whole thing over, there are techniques to get your site down to your own hard drive (learn about FTP). Perhaps you will need to find a new host - there are hundreds and hundreds of them.
There is an added benefit to doing all of this - you are learning skills which will be of use throughout the rest of your life. This will be useful in many jobs, and if you become good enough, perhaps you will have found yourself a possible new career. At the very least, you may make some new friends and have a great adventure.
It's better than sitting at home watching television, isn't it?
Bill Gates World's #1 Target of Spam
Bill Gates gets 4 million emails a day according to Microsoft's CEO Steve Ballmer. `There are two people who probably are the number one spam recipients in the world,` Ballmer said at a Microsoft event in Singapore `Bill Gates because he is Bill Gates. Bill literally receives four million pieces of e-mail per day, most of it spam.` Ballmer declined to name who the other lucky recipient of offers of mortgage deals, aphrodisiacs and other not-to-be-missed offers is, although he is not likely to be far off the list himself.Whilst Bill Gates might one day feel the urge to take up the offer of a low cost loan, Ballmer said that in the meantime Microsoft keeps spam filters in place to spare his blushes, not all of it software driven apparently. Ballmer says there is a 'whole department` dedicated to seeing that no spam darkens the Chairman's mailbox. However, perhaps Bill should heed the advice of Microsoft's own website which recommends that one should have a separate mail account to act as a spam magnet and keep another personal email address private. |
Have You Tried Outlook 2003?
Like most, I had been using Outlook Express as my e-mail program of choice. It never occurred to me that the entire concept of e-mail was anything more then sending and receiving. After using Outlook 2003 for a few months now, I've been re-born (in a certain sense of course)
Here are some things that you can now do with e-mail .. as if we didn't have enough to do !!!!
· Find related messages To find related messages, right-click the message, and then on the shortcut menu, point to Find All and then click Related Messages. The Advanced Find dialog box appears with a list of related messages.
· Jog your memory with a follow-up flag Create a follow-up flag as a reminder to follow up on a message. On the Actions menu, click Follow Up and click the flag color of your choice.
Save searches that you use often. On the Tools menu, point to Find and then click Advanced Find. In the Advanced Find dialog box, specify your search criteria and click Save Search on the File menu. You can share the search results with others by sending the search results file as an attachment in an e-mail message.
· Search for and move items or files to different folders. On the Tools menu, point to Find and then click Advanced Find. In the Advanced Find dialog box, specify your search criteria and click Find Now. After the results are displayed in the search results window, move them to the folder of your choice.
· Use a file shortcut instead of an attachment to reduce the size of a message. Right-click the file and drag it to the Inbox. On the shortcut menu, click Send with Shortcut.
Sort messages alphabetically by sender name To sort, click Arranged By and then click From. To reverse the alphabetical order, click From again. To sort by Subject line, click Subject. You can sort this way in any table in Outlook.
· Receive notifications when messages you send are delivered or read On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Preferences tab. Click E-mail Options, and then click Tracking Options.
· Verify that the message is authentic If you have security set up, you can verify that a message you receive with a digital signature has not been tampered with. In the message, click the Verify Digital Signature button.
· Add your own words to a follow-up flag for a new message Click the Message Flag button and then type the text you want in the Flag to box.
· Quickly mark a message as read Right-click the message and then click Mark as Read.
· Make a folder available for online and offline use Right-click the folder, click Properties, and then click the Synchronization tab. The folder must be on your network, not on your hard disk.
· Want to move an Inbox item to a folder in the Navigation Pane but can't see the folder? Drag the item to the top or bottom of the group and pause until the correct folder scrolls into view. Subfolders must be expanded to view them.
· Quickly see the next or previous mail message in a conversation or thread In a message, click the small arrow next to the Previous Item button or Next Item button, and then click Item in Conversation Topic.
· Quickly print search results from your Inbox To print a list of your search results from the Advanced Find dialog box, press CTRL+P.
· Recall that message! To recall or replace a sent message, open the message in the Sent Items folder, and on the Actions menu, click Recall This Message.
· Automatically add a signature or logo to each message you send On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Mail Format tab. If you have more than one account, select the account you want to create the signature for, and then click Signatures.
· Show blocked images in an e-mail message Click the InfoBar at the top of the message, and then click Download Pictures.
· Set a reminder to reply to a message Right-click the message you want to set the reminder for, point to Follow Up, and then click Add Reminder. In the Due By list, click the date when you have to complete the reply. In the second list, click a time. In the Flag color list, click the flag color you want, and then click OK.
· Keep track of messages that require action Instead of just using rules to move messages to folders, use rules to assign a category to a message. Then the messages will be arranged in groups in your Inbox.
· See more messages in your Inbox with single-line view Change from multiline view to single-line view. On the View menu, point to Arrange By, and then click Custom. Click Other Settings. Clear the Use multi-line layout in widths smaller than n characters check box.
· Quickly test the hyperlink in the message you just wrote Press CTRL while you click the hyperlink.
· Speed up exporting and archiving items Make exports and archives of your Outlook mailbox faster by emptying the Deleted Items folder first. Right-click the Deleted Items folder, and then click Empty "Deleted Items" Folder.
· Does your mailbox need a quick cleanup? On the Tools menu, click Mailbox Cleanup. Select options to find items that are old or large and then move or delete them. Click AutoArchive to move old items to Archive Folders, or click Empty to permanently delete items from your Deleted Items folder.
· Choose which e-mail account to use If you have multiple e-mail accounts in Outlook, you can choose which to use when sending messages. For example, choose your Hotmail account, and recipients receive the message from that account, complete with your Hotmail return address. In a new message, click Accounts, and then click the account you want from the list.
· The mail folder list is just a click away To quickly view the Folder List, click Folder List in the button tray at the bottom of the Navigation Pane.
· Delete names from the AutoComplete list Select the unwanted name by using the UP ARROW or DOWN ARROW key and then press DELETE.
· Keep a Desktop Alert on the desktop To keep a Desktop Alert visible so that you have more time to read it, pause your insertion point over the alert before it fades from view.
· Want to turn off New Mail Desktop Alerts? On the Tools menu, click Options, click the Preferences tab, click E-mail Options, and then click Advanced E-mail Options. Under When new items arrive in my Inbox, clear the Display a New Mail Desktop Alert (default Inbox only) check box.
· Change in priorities? Quickly change the color of a message's Quick Flag Locate the flagged message in the message list. Right-click the flag, and then click the flag color that you want on the shortcut menu.
· Quickly read messages without opening them To see the first three lines of each message in the message list, on the View menu, click AutoPreview. To see the complete message to the right of the message list, on the View menu, point to Reading Pane, and then click Right.
· Make sending a file through e-mail even easier You can send a file on your computer through e-mail by right-clicking the file, pointing to Send To, and then clicking Mail Recipient. Text is automatically added to the body of the message; however, you can delete the text and add your own text by clicking in the message body and pressing CTRL+A.
· Reduce spam by not replying to suspicious e-mail messages Replying tells a spammer that your e-mail address is valid and probably won't remove you from their mailing list.
· Create a Search Folder quickly from the Find bar Press CTRL+E to open the Find bar, type what you want to find in the Look for box, specify which folder to look in by using the Search In box, and then click Find Now. When the search is complete, click Options on the Find bar, and then click Save Search as Search Folder.
· Find all messages sent by the same person Right-click a message from that person, and then on the shortcut menu, point to Find All. Click Messages from Sender. The Advanced Find dialog box displays a list of all messages in a folder from that person.
· Get a different view of the way that Outlook groups messages By default, Outlook groups messages by periods of time such as Today, Yesterday, and Last Week. To collapse a section to see only the group heading, select any message and then press the LEFT ARROW key. The RIGHT ARROW key expands the group.
· Quickly add an attachment to a new message Locate the file, for example a .doc file in your My Documents folder, and then drag it to your Inbox. Outlook opens a new e-mail message with the file attached. You can also drag multiple files.
· Flag that message fast Select a message in the message list, and then press INSERT.
· Was an important message sent to the Junk E-mail folder? If an item gets moved to your Junk E-mail folder by mistake, select the message, and then press CTRL+ ALT+J.
· Save multiple attachments at one time Open the message. On the File menu, click Save Attachments. Click OK, and then click the folder where you want to save the attached files. Click OK.
· View all your unread messages in the Inbox On the View menu, point to Arrange By, point to Current View, and then click Unread Messages in This Folder.
· Create a rule from a message Right-click the message, and then click Create Rule. Select the conditions and actions you want to apply, and then click OK.
· Start fresh! Clear your address history To clear your AutoComplete cache, open the C:\Documents and Settings\user name\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook folder, and then delete the profile_name.nk2 file. Outlook recreates this file as you type new addresses.
· Check an e-mail alias against the names in your address books To immediately resolve an e-mail alias in the To, Cc, or Bcc box, press CTRL+K.
· Make a message unavailable to recipients after a specific date To set the expiration date on a message you are composing, click Options . Under Delivery options, select the Expires after check box, and then in the lists, select the date and time you want the message to expire.
· Save a message thread in a text file Select the messages by pressing CTRL and clicking the messages you want. On the File menu, click Save As. Your messages are saved to a .txt file. Only message headers (To, From, Sent, and Subject) and body text are saved; attachments and and HTML formatting are not included in the text file.
· Open several messages at the same time Hold CTRL while you click each message. After you select the messages, on the File menu, point to Open, and then click Selected Items.
BITS | 
| BYTES |
Clicking on Dave will take you to the
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If 9 Out of 10 Computers Are Infected With Spyware
HOW LUCKY DO YOU FEEL?
| Studies show that 8 out of 10 Internet-connected computers are infected with some form of spyware. Spyware or adware programs secretly track and record your online activity and can communicate these activities to other third parties such as advertising and marketing companies. How to tell if your PC is infected Spyware is sneaky and hides in the background, tracking and recording your activities. But there are some common symptoms that may indicate that your computer is infected.
|
Common Symptoms- Your Web browser opens to the wrong page (not your home page), or your browser search settings have changed without your knowledge.
- You are bombarded with pop-up ads that don't go away.
- You notice a new toolbar in your browser that you didn't want, and find it difficult
to remove. - Your computer takes longer than usual to complete certain tasks.
- Your search results are redirected to other sites.
How can I tell for sure if my PC is infected? You can use the FREE online scanner, eTrust™ PestScan™, to check your PC for spyware threats. This online scanner will quickly scan your system and provide you a detailed list of any spyware found. PestScan™ takes seconds to run. Check your PC for Spyware now. 
|
From The "Bytes" Mailbag
Dave,
Is there a way to forward just part of an email rather than the whole thing?
It happens to all of us... someone sends a funny joke, recipe, or other interesting tidbit that you want to pass along. But, you are one of 200 other recipients in a chain of addresses going back to the dawn of time when Al Gore invented the internet.
Decision time—do you:
a) just hit forward and send to everyone in your address book
b) hit forward and BCC to everyone in your address book that will appreciate it (better)
c) send the original as an attachment
d) hit forward and remove all those names before sending
If you chose "d", then you already know what I'm about to tell you. Everybody else, gather 'round your monitors for today's email tip.
In Outlook Express and Netscape Mail just click the Forward Button, highlight the unwanted portions of the email, then Delete.
It's that easy.
 AOL automatically makes the original email into an attachment when you chose Forward, but you can Highlight and Copy (Ctrl + C) the part of the email you want then Paste (Ctrl + V) into a new message and send it to your friends without all those other addresses.
With Yahoo Mail, in the box next to the Forward button make sure you have "inline text" selected. 
That way, when you click Forward, you will have an editable copy of the message that you can highlight and Delete the unwanted addresses from.
If you click Forward with MSN/Hotmail you automatically get inline text with in front of each line. Once again, just highlight and Delete the unwanted addresses before you send the message on it's merry way.
Any other Email systems will use variations of the above.
Oh, and if you get one of those "nesting doll" emails with one attachment inside another, inside another... just follow the above instructions when you get to the primary message.
I usually give up after two attachments, and when I do get to the innermost message I'm disappointed anyway. Such is life.
Happy forwarding!
|
What Do Those Version Numbers Mean?
To find the version number of a program, just click Help, then find "About..."
Now, let's say we have program with a version number of 6.1.2 The first number (6) represents the "major" version number. Normally these are only updated if there has been lots of major changes to a program. The next number (1) represents a minor update. Maybe a feature or two was added to the program, but the overall program remained the same. The third number (2) represents a bug fix. Our example shows that version 6.1 has had 2 bug fixes so far. That's the gist of it. Some programs use letters rather than numbers, especially for minor update and bug fixes. Additionally, it's open to interpretation by the programmer (or the marketing department) as to whether the current update constitutes a major version change or just a minor enhancement. |
Countdown to the Next SPCUG General Meeting |
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The "Bytes" Beg, Bargain & Barter Basement
Got something "computer related" to sell? Looking for that rare peripheral? If it's computer related you can submit a short classified ad for exposure in Dave "Bytes". Be sure to include your name and e-mail address in the ad. You can also include a picture of the item. Now some would suggest that there be a charge for this feature but alas, since my bookkeeping skills leave much to be desired I've determined that this will be a free service to all SPCUG members in good standing. "Bytes" is currently sent to almost 1500 homes in the area. Ad requests will be included as soon as possible. I assume absolutely no responsibility as to the accuracy or completeness of supplied info. All transactions are between consulting adults which leaves me entirely off the hook. Please let me know by clicking HERE when your merchandise is sold so that I can remove it from the listing. I will try to run each ad for a month.
Click Here To Submit Your Ad
An old favorite by request...
I halve a spelling checker,
It came with my pea see.
It plainly marks four my revue
Mistakes I dew knot sea.
Eye strike a key and type a word
And weight four it two say
Weather eye am wrong oar write
It shows me strait aweigh.
As soon as a mist ache is maid
It nose bee fore two long
And eye can put the era rite
Its rarely ever wrong.
I've scent this massage threw it,
And I'm shore your pleased too no
Its letter prefect in every weigh;
My checker tolled me sew.
From "Smart Computing" Magazine
Don’t move: According to research at IBM, users cause a large percentage of damage to the hard drives by mishandling computers. The specific culprits are moving notebooks or bumping desktops while the computer is still on. If you need to move a computer, suspend it, put it in hibernate mode, or shut it down, then wait 30 seconds to ensure that the hard drives have spun down before you move it.
Use Any Photo As A Background: Right-click any blank area of the Desktop and choose Properties. Click the Desktop tab, click the Browse button, find the picture you want to use, and choose Open. From the Position drop-down menu, choose Stretch, Center, or Tile; then click OK.
Find That Lost File: Can't find a file? First, make sure you’re looking in the spot where you think you’re looking. All those folders look alike, so take a step back and recheck. Next make sure you didn’t accidentally delete the file or document. Many deleted files remain in the Recycle Bin until you empty it; double-click the Recycle Bin icon on your Desktop, right-click a file, and click Restore to return the item to its original location. Next, try expanding the range of operations. You or someone else might have saved or moved the file to a different location unintentionally. The Windows Find or Search feature, accessible through the Start menu, might be able to track it down. With Search you can type in information, such as the name of the file, or select options based on other characteristics. Note that you can use an asterisk (*) to stand in for multiple unknown letters in file names, so you can search for “hous*” if you can’t remember whether the file name included the word house, houses, or housing.
"Reprinted with permission from Smart Computing.
Visit http://www.smartcomputing.com/groups to learn what Smart Computing can do for you and your user group!"
Why not give the gift that keeps on giving all year round? I'm referring to a subscription to either Smart Computing, PC Today, CE Tips or CPU Magazines. If you are a current subscriber and order a gift subscription, the folks at Smart Computing will add 2 additional issues to your current subscription at no charge. And remember that even gift subscriptions will be credited to the SPCUG account so that we can accumulate free subscriptions to give away to our membership. If you aren't a subscriber you should be. These publications are geared towards the very same thing that caused you to join a PC User Group which is easy to read and understand computer information for folks at any level. If you already subscribe, be sure to use the appropriate SPCUG code when you renew !!!
To order call 1-800-733-3809 and be sure to give the following Code Numbers so that SPCUG gets proper credit.
Smart Computing (11607) CPU Magazine (272) PC Today (146) CE Tips (219)
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Pause For Thought
 | Silent gratitude isn’t much use to anyone
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And Now Here's
| Dave's Cool Download | |
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Happy Thanksgiving,
Dave
