IT Update

1
IT Update

• Sudbury Chamber of Commerce

2
The Basics

• Computers are like everything else
• Use improves with practice
• Some users spend the odd 5 minutes investigating
  options c about 30 minutes a month
• Others spend 3 hours a month fighting problems

3
The Basics

• Its not the computer, its a program
• (application, package)
• Carries out a function
• Word processing, email, spreadsheet
• Is supplied by a maker
• Microsoft, Sage, McMillan Technology
• Has a name
• Word, Excel, Outlook Express

4
The Basics

• If you call a help desk, check which program you
  are running
• I want a wiper blade
• What car is it, sir?
• Its a hatchback

5
The Basics

• Every program runs in a window
• A rectangular area of the screen
• Might fill the screen, might not
• Windows can run several programs at once
• The screen behind the program windows is called
  the desktop
• The bit at the bottom is the task bar

6
The Basics

• A window has several components
• Title Bar
• Tells you the name of the program
• Allows you to move the window
• Menu
• Toolbars
• Main data area
• Scroll bars

7
Basics - Menus

• Follow a prescribed layout
• File is on the left
• Edit, View
• Other
• Tools, Options
• Window
• Help is on the right

8
Basics - Menus

• Dont need a mouse
• There should be an underlined letter
• File
• Press Alt and the key for that letter
• Or F10 and arrows
• On open menus
• Press the key for the underlined letter
• Or arrows and Enter

9
Basics Scroll Bars

• To move through the document / list
• Click on the arrows to move up and down a row
• Click on the slider and drag
• Many modern mice have a wheel to do this
• Click on the white space above / below the arrows
  to move a screenful

10
Email

• Depends on the program
• Usually Outlook or Outlook Express
• You can create folders
• Organise storage of emails
• Outlook and Outlook Express also manage lists of
  contacts, actions and a diary

11
Email - Folders

• I have a set of folders where I store emails
• Chamber
• Sales calls
• Working projects
• Admin
• Etc
• Drag emails from Inbox Outbox into my folder

12
Email - Spam

• Most spam filters move spam into a defined folder
• Spam filters cannot be 100 accurate
• Spam gets missed
• Genuine emails get binned
• Report spam and not spam!
• If you dont. your filter wont work well

13
Email - Spam

• Open the spam folder
• Peruse
• Move out / rescue / report genuine items
• Hit Ctrl A to select all items
• Hit Shift Del to Delete
• Del just moves them to the Deleted Items folder

14
Email Lists

• Build a list of contacts
• Use a separate folder
• Put somebody in the To field
• Click on the To or CC button
• Locate your list of contacts
• Select them all
• Click on the BCC button

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Mail Lists To, Cc and Bcc

• The mail will go to everybody in To, Cc and Bcc
• The names in To and Cc will be sent to everybody,
  Bcc wont
• Always use BCC
• Reduces the size of the incoming mail
• Reduces spam risk
• Do you want to give out your mailing list?

16
Mailing Lists and Bcc

• Spam generators use viruses
• Infect an unprotected computer
• Send the spam to everybody in the Outlook
  Database
• Contacts
• Recipients and Senders of emails
• Everybody in CC lists
• They then impersonate an address

17
Email Lists

• Avoid attachments
• Many email servers block emails with attachments
• All the advice is Dont open an attachment if
  you dont recognise and trust the sender
• Its more work for the recipient and makes it
  much less likely hell read it

18
Email Presentation

• Cut and paste
• Pictures
• Signatures
• Web pages

19
Email Presentation

• Simplest way is to write the message in Word
• Hit Ctrl A to select the document
• Edit gt Copy from the menu
• Switch to Outlook, the new document
• Edit gt Paste

20
Email Pictures

• From the Menu
• Insert gt Picture

21
Email - Links

• Can do in Word and Outlook
• Menu Insert gt Hyperlink
• Type in the text you want to show, and type in
  the email address
• Can also link to a web page
• Outlook and Word only let you pick a page
• Have to be able to navigate to it

22
Email Signatures

• Can create with Word
• Save as Web Page (.htm, .html)
• In Outlook menu, Tools gt Options
• Mail Format gt Signatures
• New, then find it
• Then, when you create an email, from menu Insert
  gt Signature

23
Email - Presentation

• An email is actually a web page
• For maximum impact, use a web page generator and
  copy into the email
• Microsoft Front Page
• Adobe Dream Weaver or Fireworks