SFCT.NET - Technology Help and Questions Answered

www.academicearth.org Here is a sample: www.youtube.com/edu Here is a sample: Innovative Ideas & Thinking www.ted.org Here is a sample:

Google. Maps View Satellite Images of actual streets and buildings Locate local businesses within the area Save different locations in the world to your saved places, like bookmarks/favorites Get driving directions to an address/location See a timed schedule of public transit to get you from point A to B as fast as possible 1. type in maps.google.com 2. a page appears displaying a map of the US 3. in the search box, type in your address as an origin point, include the street address and zip (or city and state if you don’t know the zip) 4. click “Search Maps” or press enter 5. your location will be displayed Change the type of map display that is show --->click “Satellite” to view a satellite picture ------>click “Terrain” for a simple map with fewer side streets displayed --------->click “Map”, for a typical street map To navigate around the map Click hold and drag your mouse anywhere on the map Click the + to zoom in or – to zoom out on the left of the map Click on any of the...

Is your google homepage getting cluttered with multiple gadgets? Organize gadgets under different categories or tabs. 1. On the left side of your google homepage 2. Click the triangle pointing down beside home 3. choose add a tab 4. type in a label for the tab or category you will create 5. remove the I’m feeling lucky 6. click OK 7. your new tab/category has been created Click on the tab name and click “add stuff” to customize your new empty category/tab [Microsoft Word] I am getting a small preview of each page on the left, how can I remove or get it back 1. click the view menu 2. choose thumbnail to remove or make it appear I have been using this new igoogle, I like it, but I want my original Google page back without all the gadgets. What do I do to get it back? 1. on the top right of the page, you will see a link titled “classic home” 2. Click that to have your google.com page return to the classic style/design ***notice once you have the original google page displayed, the link y...

Setting up a custom iGoogle homepage with personalized windows displaying topics of your choice. (ex. news, directions, tv listings, daily soduku, joke of the day, stock updates, gmail – choose 1 or all) 1. go to igoogle.com 2. click sign in (top left) 3. type in your entire gmail email ex. sftowershelp@gmail.com 4. type in your password and choose remember me on this computer 5. click sign in 6. a window will appear (the first time you set it up) asking which topics you are interested in including on your custom homepage 7. check a few of the boxes beside the topics 8. if you like you can choose a custom theme that can be changed later if you do not like it 9. type in your zip code 10. click “see your page” to generate your custom homepage Navigating on the iGoogle homepage *Tabs on the left On the left of the window are tabs that list each of the panels/gadget you have included as part of your homepage. Click it to open a larger view **Each panel/gadget is separated by its own border...

Creating a gmail account for email and access to google’s other online functions Sign up for a Gmail Account 1. Open Safari or Firefox 2. in the address bar, click and type in "gmail.com" 3. Click "sign up for gmail" 4. A form will appear, fill out the needed information, First Name, Last Name...type in the desired prefix you want for an email address, ex. mynameandzip@gmail.com TIP: press tab to skip to the next field 4a. click check availability...if it is not available, add a zip code, area code, or birthday to the login name you want 5. type in a desired password you want 8 characters in length, WRITE DOWN WHAT YOU ENTER, use a combination or letters and numbers to strengthen the password 6. fill out the remaining questions, write down the answer you use for the security question 7. Type in the displayed security word 8. click submit information to activate your account 9. Upon successful completion you will see a congratulations screen 10. Click take me to my a...

Tips for Surfing the Internet 1.Going to another www.internetaddress.com 2.With Safari or Firefox open 3.In the address bar on the top of the screen with http://www.... 4.Click on the little dot/picture to the left of http:// 5.This Selects/highlights in blue, the current address 6.Press Delete to clear the address bar 7.Now you can type in the website address you want...press "RETURN" to go to the page

Sign up for a Gmail Account 1. Open Safari or Firefox 2. in the address bar, click and type in "gmail.com" 3. Click "sign up for gmail" 4. A form will appear, fill out the needed information, First Name, Last Name...type in the desired prefix you want for an email address, ex. mynameandzip@gmail.com TIP: press tab to skip to the next field 4a. click check availability...if it is not available, add a zip code, area code, or birthday to the login name you want 5. type in a desired password you want 8 characters in length, WRITE DOWN WHAT YOU ENTER, use a combination or letters and numbers to strengthen the password 6. fill out the remaining questions, write down the answer you use for the security question 7. Type in the displayed security word 8. click submit information to activate your account 9. Upon successful completion you will see a congratulations screen 10. Click take me to my account to view email using gmail How can I access my gmail account? 1. open safar...

Sending e-greetings cards via the internet and an email address. Benefits: Saves time and paper You can send to multiple addresses at once Cards have music and animation, Fun! www.jacqielawson.com www.egreetings.com www.hallmark.com Tip: If you have a yahoo email address you can go to greetings.yahoo.com and send greeting cards from your email address book. Why is Firefox so slow or it freezes? Firefox takes up a large amount of computer memory. In class we compared Firefox to Internet Explorer opening 3 of the same website tabs at the same time, and Firefox allocated 95mb while Internet Explorer used only 56mb. What happened? I believe that over time…popularity of Firefox has demanded more bells and whistles thus increasing the need for more memory to run the program What does this mean…do I need to switch? No, but if you do have problems you can try using one or the other. Tip: There is a new browser that seems to work better and faster (for now). Safari, Apple computers web brow...

iWeb, a program available on the Mac iLife disc is a very capable program for creating one's own web site.  I have used it for more than a year for a personal site I use for personal essays, opinion, photo galleries, keynote type presentations, and a number of issues I am interested in. It is totally constructed with iWeb.   You might like to take a look at what is possible with this ingenious program. As an avid user, I would be happy to help you learn to use it, if you were so moved to create a site for others to enjoy. Click on this link to view it:  Pyrrhonist Perspectives Since it is graphic intensive, a cable modem would provide most enjoyment, particularly for the galleries and movies.  Click on any blue text to expand the information. Let me know how you fare navigating the site.  I always enjoy suggestions. Dennis Alvernaz

If anyone at the Towers with a Mac gets stuck with a problem, I can usually diagnose and often fix the problem.  If anyone wants to make better use of their Mac programs,    just let me know . Just call me at 5478. Dennis  Alvernaz

I have come across a free ticket to the exhibitions at Mac world.  If anyone would like it let me know. Dennis Alvernaz

I want to communicate with friends and family overseas or elsewhere without having to pay long distance charges. Skype, iChat, google chat, yahoo chat, aol chat Are all different examples of software that can be used to start a conversation from one computer to another computer anywhere in the world via the Internet. To use the software download them from the provider confirm that the other party has also installed the software on their computer...sign up for an account with the company (for free)...share that user name with your friend so you can both find each other (like a telephone number)...and get started talking with voice or video over the internet for FREE. VOIP-Voice Over IP is telephone service over the internet using a regular telephone NOT the computer No long distance charges within the United States and low fees overseas (yet the Towers Long Distance now seems to be very competitive) VOIP companies - www.packet8.net

10 Ways to Enhance Brain Fitness Online Dec. 12th, 2008 By Tina As the New York Times reported recently, surfing the internet boosts brain activity. Scientists from the UCLA specifically studied the effect of internet surfing on the brains of people between the ages of 55 and 76. From their results, they concluded that “emerging computerized technologies may have physiological effects and potential benefits for middle-aged and older adults.” But anyone can do something for their brain’s fitness. Here’s a small selection of things you can do online: 1. Search the internet Apparently, searching the internet requires decision-making and complex reasoning, which is a challenge for the brain and keeps the respective key centers in a top notch condition. But instead of using Google all the time, try something new. There are hundreds of search engines out there and you’ll find some of these have been covered on MakeUseOf . Don’t be lazy, give them a c...

Start a blog to share your creative ideas and get feedback from others. 1. go to blogspot.com 2. click start new account (if you have a google account click the link on the top and then enter in your account info) 3. fill in the information page 4. create a user name (i suggest not putting your full name-use a pen-name or your first name) 5. choose a design 6. create your first blog entry