Computer and Web Articles

In Microsoft Word, clicking a web link (eg: www.hello.com) doesn’t do anything at all. This is because Word doesn’t know whether you want to visit the site or edit the text.

Sooooo, next time try holding down the Ctrl button on your keyboard before clicking a link; this tells Word that you really do want to visit the website address you’re clicking on. Works like a charm.

Gimpshop offers the ultimate replacement for Adobe Photoshop — and it’s 100 percent free. Sounds too good to be true, but I promise it isn’t.

Visit www.gimpshop.com to learn more.

Do your e-mails regularly find their way into your recipients’ spam filters?

Though you’ll likely be surprised by few of the following phrases, keep in mind that using any of them in your e-mail subject lines make you a prime spam suspect in the eyes of most modern-day spam filters.

Some of the prime spam filter trigger-phrases include: fast cash, web traffic, online marketing, incredible deal, free gift, free info, earn extra cash, increase sales, limited time offer, info you requested, information you requested, internet market, financial freedom, weight loss, home based, apply now, eliminate debt, extra income and free membership.

What a ridiculously easy and unbelievably useful tool I came across this week; I absolutely love jott! Check this out.

Jott lets people call a toll-free number and quickly leave a voicemail message for themselves, another individual, or a group. That message is transcribed into an e-mail and routed to the appropriate user’s inbox within a few minutes.

Here’s how it works. Once your phone dials Jott, everything is hands-free. Jott asks who you’d like to contact. You can choose “mom” or “me” or “study group,” or anyone else that’s on your jott contact list. Speak your message, then hang up. Your message is immediately transcribed and delivered to that person’s phone and/or e-mail. Delegate tasks, record expenses, communicate with teams, create reminders and to-dos for yourself — in one quick step.

The little charts and movies on jott.com are fantastic. Definitely take a look as they’re simple and easy to watch — plus they quickly convey just how useful jott can be for different types of users: Realtors can send messages to potential buyers when they’re out in the field, business owners can send e-mail reminders to themselves, parents can communicate with their entire families, and so on.

And yep, you guessed it, it’s free. (For now at least, so hurry up and visit www.jott.com!

This super easy tip is absolutely invaluable for people who (like myself) use their Google Search Bar countless times each day. Here it is. (And, yes, this assumes you have the Google Toolbar installed.) Next time you need to search for something in Google, hit Ctrl + K.

That’s it. Did you do it? Do you see how the Google Search bar is now highlighted and awaiting your search? All this without ever having to touch your mouse. Lovely.

“A laptop is stolen every 53 seconds, and according to the FBI, 97 percent are never recovered.” Which is why Absolute Software would like you to visit their website and review their products and services; they provide what they describe as “the ultimate in laptop protection.”

Absolute offers computer/laptop theft recovery and protection services. From data protection to theft deterrence to theft recovery, they’ve got you covered. The coolest piece of information I read on their website stated that Absolute recovers three out of four lost or stolen computers that contact their Monitoring Center.

Learn more at www.absolute.com.

Windows Vista allows you to have up to three clocks (displaying times from three different time zones) configured on your desktop.

Simply go to the Date and Time section in the Control Panel.

Flip to the Additional Clocks tab and configure your two extra clocks to whatever time zones you’d like.

Where do they appear, you ask? They’ll appear in the tooltip whenever you hover your mouse over the Taskbar clock.

What a fantastic idea.

Kiva connects people like yourself with unique small businesses in developing countries around the globe. In essence, you can sponsor a business and “help the world’s working poor make great strides toward economic independence.” As loans are repaid, you get your money back.

Loans can be as small as $25, and once you receive your money back (usually within six to 12 months), you can either drop it right back into your bank account or lend it to another business.

I signed up for Kiva on May 12 and decided to start off by sponsoring two businesses.

One loan I gave has helped a baker in Mexico move one step closer to purchasing a new mixer so that he may increase his daily bread production and supply more people and businesses in his area with food. The other loan will help a woman in Tajikistan expand her already-successful-but-quite-small restaurant.

If you’d like, Kiva will e-mail you journal updates over time so you know how your money is being used and how the businesses you sponsored are thriving and progressing.

Visit www.kiva.org; help someone less fortunate than you.

Question: “Hi Erin, I use Word a lot to write letters and reports at my work. I see that when I look at my recently used documents list in word, it shows me the last four files I worked on. Can I increase this number or am I stuck with four?”

Answer: You can definitely increase this — but only up to nine. To change the number of previous documents that Word shows you when you look at the Recent Documents list, go to Tools, then Options, click the General tab and locate the option that reads “Recently used files list.” Hit the up arrow to increase the number to nine.

And that’s it!