Tech Tips for the Basic Computer User - Pogue’s Posts - Technology - New York Times Blog 10/8/08 9:09 AM HOME PAGE MY TIMES TODAY'S PAPER VIDEO MOST POPULAR TIMES TOPICS Get Home Delivery Log In Register Now Wednesday, October 8, 2008 Technology Technology All NYT WORLD U.S. N.Y. / REGION BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY SCIENCE HEALTH SPORTS OPINION ARTS STYLE TRAVEL JOBS REAL ESTATE AUTOS Search Technology Inside Technology Bits Personal Tech » Internet Start-Ups Business Computing Companies Blog » Cellphones, Cameras, Computers and more Search This Blog All NYTimes.com Blogs » Back to front page » VIDEO More Video | Multimedia October 2, 2008, 12:22 pm Tech Tips for the Basic Computer User Last week, I wrote an entry on my blog that began like this: “One of these days, I’m going to write a book called, ‘The Basics.’ It’s going to be a compendium of the essential tech bits that you just assume everyone knows–but you’re wrong. “(I’ll never forget watching a book editor at a publishing house painstakingly drag across a word in a word processor to select it. After 10 TECHNOLOGY minutes of this, I couldn’t stand it. ‘Why don’t you just double-click the Movie Downloads: The Bailout Plan word?’ She had no clue you could do that!)” By David Pogue for NYTimes.com and CNBC Many readers chimed in with other “basics” that they assumed every computer user knew–but soon discovered that what’s common knowledge TECHNOLOGY TECHNOLOGY TECHNOLOGY isn’t the same as universal knowledge. I’m sure the basics could fill a book, but here are a few to get you started. All of these are things that certain friends, family or coworkers, over the years, did *not* know. Clip, save and pass along to…well, you know who they are. * You can double-click a word to highlight it in any document, e-mail or Web page. * When you get an e-mail message from eBay or your bank, claiming that you have an account problem or a question from a buyer, it’s probably a “phishing scam” intended to trick you into typing your password. Don’t click the link in the message. If in doubt, go into your browser and type “www.ebay.com” (or whatever) manually. * Nobody, but nobody, is going to give you half of $80 million to help Monthly Archives Select Month them liberate the funds of a deceased millionaire…from Nigeria or anywhere else. Popular Tags * You can hide all windows, revealing only what’s on the computer Apple camera Canon Cellphones copyright Digital desktop, with one keystroke: hit the Windows key and “D” simultaneously Music Digital Photography/Video Extreme Web Feedback Gadgets gas prices Google gps great in Windows, or press F11 on Macs (on recent Mac laptops, Command+F3; ideas HDTV Home Theater internet access iPhone jeopardy Command is the key with the cloverleaf logo). That’s great when you want laptops LinkedIn macintosh Microsoft movies music office examine or delete something you’ve just downloaded to the desktop, for Palm performance Pogue Unplugged printers prius promising development Promising Developments social example. Press the keystroke again to return to what you were doing. networking Software spam speech recognition sports * You can enlarge the text on any Web page. In Windows, press Ctrl and Tech Culture Tech Support television Tips the plus or minus keys (for bigger or smaller fonts); on the Mac, it’s the and Tricks TiVo toyota Web 2.0 web gems wi fi Windows Yamaha YouTube Command key and plus or minus. About Pogue’s Posts * You can also enlarge the entire Web page or document by pressing the Control key as you turn the wheel on top of your mouse. On the Mac, this David Pogue's technology column has appeared each Thursday in http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/02/tech-tips-for-the-basic-computer-user/ Page 1 of 158 Tech Tips for the Basic Computer User - Pogue’s Posts - Technology - New York Times Blog 10/8/08 9:09 AM Control key as you turn the wheel on top of your mouse. On the Mac, this David Pogue's technology column has appeared each Thursday in The Times since 2000. Each week, he also writes the Times e- enlarges the entire screen image. mail column "From the Desk of David Pogue," creates a short, funny Web video for NYTimes.com, and posts entries to his * The number of megapixels does not determine a camera’s picture Times blog. In his other life, David is an Emmy-winning quality; that’s a marketing myth. The sensor size is far more important. correspondent for CBS News, a frequent contributor to NPR's (Use Google to find it. For example, search for “sensor size Nikon D90.”) "Morning Edition," creator of the Missing Manual series of computer books, and father of three. Recent Articles by David * On most cellphones, press the Send key to open up a list of recent calls. Email David Instead of manually dialing, you can return a call by highlighting one of these calls and pressing Send again. Books by David Pogue * When someone sends you some shocking e-mail and suggests that you iPhone - The Missing Manual By David Pogue pass it on, don’t. At least not until you’ve first confirmed its truth at Tips for smarter text messaging, video downloads snopes.com, the Internet’s authority on e-mailed myths. This includes get- and Web browsing on your iPhone. rich schemes, Microsoft/AOL cash giveaways, and–especially lately–nutty scare-tactic messages about our Presidential candidates. * You can tap the Space bar to scroll down on a Web page one screenful. Mac OS X Leopard Add the Shift key to scroll back up. By David Pogue For Mac users at any level, an updated guide for configuring your Mac. * When you’re filling in the boxes on a Web page (like City, State, Zip), you can press the Tab key to jump from box to box, rather than clicking. Add the Shift key to jump through the boxes backwards. * You can adjust the size and position of any window on your computer. Recent Posts Drag the top strip to move it; drag the lower-right corner (Mac) or any October 7 Microsoft’s New Pay-Per-Click Plan edge (Windows) to resize it. 20 comments Microsoft really wants you to use their search engine. So much, in fact, that they’ll pay you * Forcing the camera’s flash to go off prevents silhouetted, too-dark faces for it. when you’re outdoors. October 2 Tech Tips for the Basic Computer User 1149 comments Last week, I wrote an entry on my blog that * When you’re searching for something on the Web using, say, Google, put began like this: quotes around phrases that must be searched together. For example, if you “One of these days, I’m going to write a book called, ‘The Basics.’ It’s going to be a put quotes around “electric curtains,” Google won’t waste your time compendium of the essential tech bits that you finding one set of Web pages containing the word “electric” and another just assume everyone knows–but you’re wrong. set containing the word “curtains.” “(I’ll never forget watching a book editor at a publishing house painstakingly […] * You can use Google to do math for you. Just type the equation, like October 1 Microsoft’s Surface Computer Finds a 23*7+15/3=, and hit Enter. 46 comments Niche Microsoft’s surface computer may or may not * Oh, yeah: on the computer, * means “times” and / means “divided by.” work for consumers, but it’s a boon to TV news anchors. * If you can’t find some obvious command, like Delete in a photo September 30 Catching Up With Me on iTunes program, try clicking using the right-side mouse button. (On the Mac, you 22 comments How to get David Pogue videos sent directly into your iTunes library. can Control-click instead.) September 29 Google’s Little-Known Search Feature: 24 comments One Box * Google is also a units-of-measurement and currency converter. Type Google’s new One Box feature is yet another “teaspoons in 1.3 gallons,” for example, or “euros in 17 dollars.” Click reason to skip a site’s internal search features. Search to see the answer. * You can open the Start menu by tapping the key with the Windows logo on it. * You can switch from one open program to the next by pressing Alt+Tab (Windows) or Command-Tab (Mac). nytimes.com/travel * You generally can’t send someone more than a couple of full-size digital photos as an e-mail attachment; those files are too big, and they’ll bounce back to you. (Instead, use iPhoto or Picasa–photo-organizing programs that can automatically scale down photos in the process of e-mailing them.) In India, lessons on yoga and life * Whatever technology you buy today will be obsolete soon, but you can Also in Travel: avoid heartache by learning the cycles. New iPods come out every Seeing the show without breaking the bank Israel from cliff top to desert bottom September. New digital cameras come out in February and October. Jean Paul Gaultier's Paris http://pogue.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/02/tech-tips-for-the-basic-computer-user/ Page 2 of 158 Tech Tips for the Basic Computer User - Pogue’s Posts - Technology - New York Times Blog 10/8/08 9:09 AM * Just putting something into the Trash or the Recycle Bin doesn’t actually delete it.