Software Tips - Page 5

1/23/02 - Windows Updates

Microsoft comes out with updates and patches for Windows and other programs frequently. It's a good idea to check for updates once a month. To check for updates on a Windows 98/2000 machine, click Start > Windows Update. A new Internet Explorer window will open. Select the Product Updates link. At the Security Warning dialog box you must click Yes; if you click No, you will not be able to install updates. A small browser window will appear asking you to wait while your system is checked to see what updates it needs. At the Select Software web page, select the updates you would like to install (note: critical updates and some of the other updates must be done one at a time) and click Download. At the Download Checklist screen click Start Download. Click Yes at the License Agreement screen. The Download Progress/Install Progress screen will appear, wait until it finishes, answer Yes/OK to any prompts that follow. You may need to Restart your system after the installation is complete.

Free email accounts

I recommend signing up for a free email account at http://www.hotmail.com or http://mail.yahoo.com Unfortunately, many valuable newsletters sell your email address. You can use a free email account to subscribe to newsletters and services on the Internet without having to worry about receiving spam mail at your regular email address.

12/18/01 - To update your virus software use the following procedures

Norton Antivirus - Click Start > Programs > Norton Antivirus > Live Update - Norton Antivirus. You do not need to change any settings, click the Next button until you get a pop-up box asking you to click OK, click OK and click Finish. Reboot your machine if prompted to.

McAfee Antivirus - Click Start > Programs > Network Associates > Virus Scan Console. At the Virus Scan Console dialog box right click Auto Update and then click Start.

12/14/01 - Help Prevent Spam - When sending out email messages to a group of people use the BCC field rather than the To and CC fields. This prevents people who receive your message from seeing everyone's email addresses and spamming people in the future.

10/25/01 - URLs and Email

Tinker's Tip of the Day - When sending your URL out in an e-mail message always use the full URL i.e. http://www.putertutor.net. If you do not include the http:// a hyperlink will not be created and people will have to copy and paste your address into the browser. If you send an email to me from the classroom (using Outlook or Outlook Express) you must include your personal email address or I will not respond.

Offering quality links that are related to your web site content is an excellent way to attract visitors. Linda asked how do you keep people on the site when offering so many links. My solution: Have the links open in a new browser window. Example code: <a target="_blank" href="http://www.pinoy7.com/">Richie Dumlao's PinoyVII</a>

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