Typical Order of APL Computer Classes:
1. Mouse Basics
Microsoft Office Classes 2. Computer Basics, part 1
3. Computer Basics, part 2
4. Camera to Computer (Transferring Photos)
5. Word Basics
6. Word Intermediate
7. Excel Basics
8. Excel Intermediate
9. Mail Merge
10. Power Point Basics
11. Power Point Intermediate
Internet Classes 12. Internet Browser Basics
13. Internet Searching Basics
14. Email Basics (Gmail)
15. Google Docs
16. Google Maps
17. 2.0-Overview
18. 2.0-Open Lab
19. Music Online
20. Introduction to Facebook
21. Facebook Privacy
22. Picasa Web Albums
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2.0 Overview to top Get a quick overview of many of the sites and services you’ve been hearing about, including blogs, Facebook, Pandora, Hulu, Flickr, and more. Discover what they are and why you might want to use them. 2 hours
● What makes a website or service 2.0? …basically, people can talk to one another and customize things
● Privacy issues…
● The class will look at ○ Blogs (Blogging is characterized by an individual exploration of ideas of personal interest through frequent online posts, documenting ideas as they emerge over time.)
○ RSS & FeedReaders
○ Forums
○ Social Networking ■ Facebook ■ Twitter
○ Music Sites ■ Pandora ■ GrooveShark
○ Video Sites ■ Hulu ■ YouTube
○ Photo Albums ■ Picasa ■ Flickr ■ Animoto (animated, 30-second photo albums)
○ Photo Editing ■ Picnik ■ FotoFlexer
○ Online Invitations ■ Evite ■ Purple Trail
○ Review Sites ■ GoodReads & Shelfari (Books) ■ TripAdvisor (Travel) ■ Flixster (Movies)
2.0 Open Lab to top Here’s your opportunity for further exploration of any of the services we looked at in the 2.0 Overview class. This class is structured as an open lab setting for you to work on your own with an instructor available for questions. Use of the computers during this lab session is limited to those services outlined in the '2.0-Overview' class.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
Camera to Computer: Transferring Digital Photos to Your Computer to top Learn to transfer photos from your digital camera to the computer. You must bring your own digital camera and your camera’s USB connection cable; several photos must already be on your camera. APL does not provide cameras for this class. APL computers do not have drives for photo memory cards. Knowledge of what is covered in the 'Computer Basics 2: Organizing and Customizing' class would be extremely helpful.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Transfer Photos
○ direct file transfer ■ necessary to bypass camera's proprietary software in the Library's Computer Lab ■ note: for the files to show up under the camera in Windows Explorer, you may need to begin running the Scanner & Camera Wizard (Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Scanner & Camera Wizard)
2. Organize photos in folders
3. Online options
○ Upload photos to PicasaWeb ○ Edit photos with Picnik
Computer Basics 1: Starting & Saving to top New to computers? Don't know where to start? This class will teach you some of the very basics of using your PC, including how to start programs on your computer and save documents. Use this class to ask questions and get hands-on computer experience. This class is intended for those with very little or no computer experience.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Terminology and parts of the computer (Monitor; Tower/CPU; keyboard; mouse; printer; drives; USB)
2. Taskbar
3. Starting Programs (to open the Word program)
4. Saving a document in Word
5. Close, Maximize, and Minimize buttons in upper-right corners
6. My Documents (to find saved documents from the Start menu)
Computer Basics 2: Organzing & Customizing to top
Now it’s time to start organizing the files on your computer. Learn to create and move folders and files, as well as some ways to customize the look and feel of your computer. Familiarity with the concepts/skills taught in 'Computer Basics 1' would be very helpful.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. My Documents (finding saved documents from the Start menu)
2. Creating new folders (in Explorer OR by doing a “Save As” in Word)
3. Filenames and Paths
4. Organizing documents (Dragging and Dropping with folders)
5. Customizing the desktop
Email Basics (Gmail) to top Learn how to compose and send an email, save other people’s email addresses and attach documents or pictures to send in an email. Ask any other questions you have about email and we’ll try to answer them. Basic computer experience would be helpful. You will use an already established Gmail account, but can be shown where/how to sign up for your own.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Inbox
2. Address book
3. Writing / Composing a new email message (To, Cc, Bcc)
4. Attachments
5. Reducing the sizes of photos
6. Labels (Folders) & Archiving
Excel Basics to top If you’ve never worked with spreadsheets but would like to learn more effective ways to organize data, this class is for you! Basic computer experience desired.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Common uses for Excel
2. Structure of a spreadsheet
a. Rows, Columns, and Cells
b. Tab and Enter to move from cell to cell
c. Formula Bar
d. Workbook and Worksheets
3. Entering Content into a cell and/or the Formula Bar
4. Resizing rows and cells
5. Sorting information by criteria
6. Stylistic features
a. Fill color (to color a cell, group of cells, column/s or row/s)
b. Font : style, size, color, alignment
c. Borders
7. Merge Cells
Excel Intermediate to top This class will cover formatting cells (making the contents display in certain ways -- for example, setting a column so any numbers entered automatically display as money), inserting formulas, and creating graphs to display data. Knowledge of what is covered in the 'Excel Basics' class would be extremely helpful for this class.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Cutting and Pasting cell contents
2. Formatting cells for an intended value
a. Examples i. Numbers ii. Currency iii. Dates iv. Decimal Places
3. Using AutoSum to write an Adding formula (look at how to do other formulas)
4. Create Graphs/Charts to display data (bar, pie, line graphs, etc…)
Introduction to Facebook to top
This class will explain what Facebook is, why you might want to use it, and how it works.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting.
2 hours
1. Signing Up
2. Privacy Settings
3. Home Page a. News Feed uses an algorithm to display the stories Facebook thinks are most interesting to you. This is a subset of all stories you could possibly see. b. Live Feed displays every story you could see as soon as they are posted.
4. Profile Page
a. Wall i. Your Status (may include links, videos, photos)
ii. Updates on your activity (depending on privacy settings)
iii. Posts from your friends
iv. Comments from friends on various posts by you or your friends
b. Info – about you
c. Photos i. Pictures/Albums that you have uploaded
ii. Your Friends' uploaded pictures in which you have been tagged
5. Finding Friends a. Privacy settings b. Email import (privacy concerns)
Facebook Privacy to top
This class is intended for those who already have a Facebook account. You will need to login to your account during class to follow along. Learn how to control who-can-see-what on your Facebook Profile page, as well as other steps you can take to protect your privacy and customize your experience.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Hide posts from specific Applications (like Mafia Wars or Farmville) or Friends on your Home page
2. Create Friend Lists to help you establish privacy rules
3. Customize your Privacy Settings
4. Block people on Facebook so they can never find you or see anything you post on mutual friends' pages
Google Docs/Drive to top
Google Docs is a free, Web-based word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation application with valuable storage and sharing capabilities. Create and edit documents online (from scratch or using provided templates) with an option to collaborate in real-time with other users. Upload files to your Google Docs account to make them accessible anywhere you have an internet connection. You will use an already existing Google account, but can be shown where to sign up for your own.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting.
2 hours
1. What is Google Docs a. Documents b. Spreadsheets c. Presentations d. Forms e. Drawings
2. Sharing
3. Publishing
Google Maps to top
Google Maps lets you find a location, get directions, print maps, check on traffic, see satellite-level and sometimes even street-level views of an area - - and more!
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Find a Location a. Zoom in and out
b. Move the map
c. Views i. Map
ii. Satellite
iii. Terrain
iv. Street
v. Traffic
1. Major Roads
2. Construction
3. Closings
d. Search nearby (reviews)
2. Get Directions a. To/From b. Alter/Customize c. Car / Walking / Transit / Bikes
3. Print, Send, & Link
4. My Mapss
(demonstration; must have an account to use)
Internet Browser Basics to top
This class will cover the very basics of using an internet browser, the software you need to view internet content. You will explore the features of an internet browser, learn to use URLs, and understand (hyper)links. Basic computer experience would be helpful.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. What is the internet / world wide web?
2. Connecting to the Internet: computer, browser, ISP
3. URLS
a. What are they? b. How do you use them? c. What do extensions indicate? (.com, .edu, .org, .gov, & .mil)
5. Browsers
a. Browser Buttons 1. Back / Forward 2. Home 3. Favorites 4. Tabs
6. What are hyperlinks? How can you identify them?
Internet Searching Basics to top
This class will cover the very basics of search engines and subject directories to help you find information online. As time permits, Library databases may also be touched on. Basic computer experience would be helpful.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Search Engines
2. Subject Directories/Indexes
3. Library Databases
● APL's custom databases ● Subscription databases
Mail Merge to top Learn how to use Excel and Word together to create labels, mailers, or envelopes that are automatically addressed. Using Mail Merge can be especially useful around the holidays or other special events if you like to send cards, letters, or invitations through the regular mail. Manage your friends' and family's addresses in an Excel file and import that information to print on your envelopes or even straight into your letters. Experience with Word and Excel desired.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
Mouse Basics to top No experience with computers? It's vitally important to be comfortable using a mouse, and this class will give you plenty of practice. Learn about moving the mouse, clicking, double-clicking, right-clicking, dropping and dragging, highlighting and scrolling. 1 hour
1. “Holding” and Moving the mouse
2. Cursors
a. arrow
b. hand
c. “I” beam / text bracket
3. Clicking
4. Double-Clicking
5. Dragging and Dropping
6. Right-Clicking
7. Scrolling
8. Forms and Buttons
9. Highlighting
Music Online: Pandora & Grooveshark to top This class will show you two options for listening to music online for free. Create an account at home to save some of your favorite songs and playlists.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right-clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours Pandora www.pandora.com · Free. Can be used with or without an account.
· Create and save (with a free account) up to 100 unique "stations" based off a favorite song or artist; Pandora recommends and plays other songs it thinks you will like based on the properties of the song/artist you chose. (Can be fine-tuned to omit songs you don’t want.)
· Does not play the specific song you entered as your favorite (unlike Grooveshark) --- only plays songs like the song/artist you choose.
· How it works….
o Based on their “Music Genome Project”
§ Team of fifty musician-analysts listened to music, one song at a time, studying and collecting literally hundreds of musical details on every song. § Documented the details that give each recording its magical sound - melody, harmony, instrumentation, rhythm, vocals, lyrics ... and more - close to 400 attributes § On-going o Type the name of one of your favorite songs or artists into Pandora and the Genome Project will quickly scan its entire world of analyzed music, almost a century of popular recordings - new and old, well known and completely obscure - to find songs with interesting musical similarities to your choice.
GrooveShark www.grooveshark.com
· Free. Can be used with or without an account.
· Create and save (with a free account) playlists of the exact songs you want.
· Not as good as Pandora when it comes to recommending similar music.
· Add your tunes to Grooveshark and access them from anywhere (you don’t have to do this to listen to music or create/save playlists). · Browse other people’s playlists.
Picasa Web Albums to top Learn how to create online photo albums to share with your friends and family. Web albums are a much better option than emailing large numbers of photos – and you can keep them private. (Covers web album functionality rather than installing and using the free Picasa software on your computer.)
Power Point Basics to top Have you ever wanted to create an electronic slideshow for a presentation or just for fun? This class will cover using the various Power Point templates for background, style and layout, as well as inserting customized text, pictures, or graphs. Basic computer experience would be helpful.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Introduction (what it is; common buttons / tasks)
2. Backgrounds and Styles
a. Templates
b. Creating a “Slide Master”
3. Inserting objects
a. Layout Templates
b. Inserting your own
i. Text Box
ii. Movies and Sounds
iii. Charts
iv. Tables
v. Pictures
1. Photos (from File) and Clip Art
2. AutoShapes
3. WordArt
4. Organization Chart
4. Drawing Toolbar
Power Point Intermediate to top This class will cover creating a timed presentation that includes slide transitions, graphic animation, music, and/or narration. Familiarity with what is covered in the 'PowerPoint Basics' class would be very helpful.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Adding Sounds
2. Action Buttons
3. Animation
4. Slide Transitions
5. Timing your presentation
6. Adding Narration
7. Show Setup
a. Display mode
b. Music
Word Basics to top This class will cover the basics of using Word to create letters or other documents. Tasks covered will include opening, saving, formatting, and printing documents, as well as using spell check, cutting and pasting, and adding pictures. Basic computer experience would be helpful.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Formatting
a. Page margins
b. Page layout (Portrait and Landscape)
c. Line Spacing, Indenting, Aligning (Left, Right, Center, Justified)
d. Font: Type, Size, Style (Regular, Bold, Italicize, Underline), Color, Highlighting
2. Save / Save As
3. Cutting and Pasting
4. Pictures: inserting, re-sizing, cropping, and wrapping text around
5. Spell Check
6. Printing (Print Preview, selected pages)
Word Intermediate to top Build on some of the skills you learned in Word Basics. This class will cover creating Lists, Columns, Tables, and Advanced Spacing. The class includes time for you to ask other questions you have about using Word. Basic Word experience would be helpful.
Requires the ability to use the mouse, including double-clicking, right- clicking, and highlighting. 2 hours
1. Headers, Footers, and Page numbers
2. Customized spaces before / after paragraphs
3. Lists
a. Bulleted
b. Numbered
c. Customizations (Indents / Tab Spaces; Pictures / Symbols)
4. Columns
5. Tables
a. Split / Merge Cells
b. Inserting Rows / Columns
c. Borders
6. Text Boxes
7. Drawing Toolbar
8. Inserting Special Symbols
9. Find & Replace