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SeniorNet
Warkworth
Newsletter PO Box 659, Warkworth 0941 Learning Centre at 3 Matakana Road, Warkworth, Ph 09 425 9643 For bookings & enquiries
Ph 09 422 3728 - email: seniornetwarkworth@clear.net.nz |
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Term
5 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Chairman’s Message. Greetings to you all as we approach the last 8-week term of 2011 starting on October 10. Elsewhere in this newsletter and on our website you will find schedules covering the upcoming Monday workshops, Mac workshops, and 2-hr Learning Modules. These are interspersed with our regular courses, Christmas workshop, and social activities.
Term 5 offers some new courses: a 4-lesson Email with Windows Live Mail 2011; a 4-lesson Basic Computer Skills Using Word for Mac 2011; and another on the many photo-editing tools found within Adobe Photoshop. There are also some more popular Monday Workshops, and new topics in our 2-hr Learning Modules that will meet your need to revise or keep informed of the hundreds of techniques available in the latest programs. So register your name for a place on Ph. 422 3728 as soon as you determine those topics of interest.
Think about setting aside Friday October 7 (before Term 5 starts) now for some learning fun at one or more of the topics at our popular annual all-day Christmas Workshops (details to follow). You will then be able to show family and friends the many new skills that you have learned at SeniorNet in the past year. Look for our weekly email reminders, or frequently visit our website seniornetwarkworth.org.nz to keep informed of these many opportunities.
While all of this activity is going on, in the background we will be planning our 2012 calendar with a schedule of activities that leads to a new prospectus, and allows budgeting to proceed. Planning and scheduling consumes a huge amount of time but is necessary if we are to achieve our computer-learning obligations to our community. As Cloud Computing gathers pace we anticipate many more new apps, programs, and changes from both Windows and Apple. Already several of our Learning Modules and Workshops cover various Cloud Computing activities, mainly through the Windows Live programs – just another change that, with convergence, will quickly become part of our daily lives. So understand basic computing and you will be able to keep abreast of these new developments by attending the workshops and learning-modules.
Make sure you avail yourself of the several services offered to members by your SeniorNet. I am often surprised to learn of members who have paid big money to buy a program, or to fix a computer ‘fault’ that could have been resolved through our regular Help Clinics at no cost at all. I have often said – know your own computer, and keep your security features and updates under regular surveillance. Don’t forget the free programs offered on your Training Disk, and always visit the valuable link from our website to the Federation of NZ SeniorNet Societies Inc. to get discounts and information. You owe it to yourself to quickly save your annual membership subscription by looking for the best deal.
Your SeniorNet offers a range of activities but if you feel we can do more to further expand these please contact me on garrya@paradise.net.nz.
Meanwhile, enjoy your computing in Term 5! Garry G. Atkins, Chairman From the Academic manager
TERM 5 OPEN DAY
About 2 weeks before the start of every term we hold an Open Day so that any of your friends, or the public, interested in learning computers, whether Mac or PC, can visit us for information on courses and membership. As a member, you can also come along to find out about a particular course, though it should not be confused with a Help Clinic where we look at your computer-related problem. Our Term 5 Open Day is at 2.30 p.m. on Tuesday, September 20. Suggest to your friends or neighbours that they consider our Open Day to gather their information.
MONDAY WORKSHOPS FOR TERM 5:
The following Monday Workshops are planned for Term 5.
Although it is not absolutely essential that you register for a place, it
certainly
TERM 5 2-HR LEARNING MODULES (‘Bite-sized pieces’ of learning)
ALL-DAY CHRISTMAS
WORKSHOPS. Make a Diary Note
now to set aside Friday, October 7 when we will spend
the day with workshops on popular Christmas topics using computer skills
that you can use in making cheerful seasonal cards, letters and emails,
slide shows, and other items. TERM 5 HELP CLINIC. Make use of the free help facilities as it may potentially save you big money. This Term 5 the Help Clinic is scheduled on November 15 at 2.30 p.m. Remember, the computer-related problems need not only be of a technical nature. Maybe you are having problems with email, the Internet, downloading photos, doing a particular activity in word processing, or looking at buying a new program, computer or peripheral and need some advice – that’s what we are here for – whether PC or Mac. From the Technical Manager
Some facts about keyloggers and other malware.
Keyloggers are small pieces of software that record every keystroke you make, and this may include your banking passwords. You usually don’t know they are present on your computer as they may be hidden inside a trojan, or even legitimate files like pictures. The following is a direct quote from a Microsoft Technet Flash.
“While the web is a wonderful place, there are many dangers online that can put you and your computer at risk. Your browser is the first line of defence against attacks on the web, and it plays a critical role along with anti-virus and other security software to help keep you safe online. With Internet Explorer, SmartScreen helps protect users from socially engineered malware attacks by stopping them before they have a chance to infect your PC.
NSS Labs, an independent security research and testing
organization, released two reports that show SmartScreen continues to
offer industry-leading protection against socially engineered malware.
According to the global test conducted by NSS, “IE9 caught an exceptional
96% of the live threats with SmartScreen URL reputation, and an additional
3.2% with Application Reputation. The graph below compares the test
results from various browsers and shows that Internet Explorer blocks up
to seven times more malware than other browsers in the global test.” The size of this difference was news to me. I did not understand how great a role my browser plays in keeping me safe. According to this study Microsoft’s latest Internet Explorer is way out in front, but I expect it will not be long before other makers bring out conflicting evidence!
A security site sponsored by Symantec, the makers of Norton Antivirus, says: “Keyloggers can attach themselves to your computer in several ways. They can be installed manually, but they are more likely to arrive in the form of a virus, worm or Trojan. All of these types of malware -- malicious software -- can attack your computer via email or a file-sharing system, such as a music downloading site. Visiting an insecure website or downloading apparently legitimate software can also put your computer at risk.”
Internet Explorer 9 sometimes annoys me with is its tendency to grey out and leave me with a computer that won’t do anything, or it brings up a message that says it has to close. So for everyday browsing it is OK to use Google Chrome or one of the other browsers, and work in a Limited User Account.
However for critical things like on-line banking it is recommended that you use IE9, and use it in a separate Limited User Account. Why? Key loggers and other nasties often get attached to the browser as add-ons, so if the particular browser you use for banking has never been to a site where you could pick up malware, then you should be safe.
Mac users are not at the same risk, though it is an open question whether they should be concerned. Certainly keylogger software for Mac computers is available on the web, and is used legitimately to track employee’s use of business computers.
One report says “Keyloggers can find their way onto your Mac system in a number of ways, so the only way to be sure that you’re protected against them is to have a strong anti-malware program installed. One of the most highly recommended anti-malware apps for Mac is MacScan, by SecureMac. “
Copyright and patent issues. A word of warning to those who download music, movies, and other copyrighted content using peer to peer software, You run the risk of falling foul of the new copyright law which came into force on September 1st, so you should read the explanations on the 3 Strikes website. You may not realise that even things that we have all been doing for years may now infringe someone’s copyright, as the stupidest things have been patented. In the land of litigation they are in a frenzy of suing each other right now, and this new law opens us up to it happening here. For more information go to this website http://3strikes.net.nz/ Mac notes Mac OS X was first released in 2001 so 2011 marks the 10th anniversary of OS X.
In July this year, Apple released the 8th major revision of the operating system - version 10.7 - known as Lion. We have now updated the Macs at SeniorNet to run this latest version and conducted several tutorials on the essential differences between Lion and earlier versions. We have noted that OS X today is fundamentally very similar to the first release in 2001 but takes advantage of significant improvements in processing power to introduce many added features.
In order to run Lion your Mac needs to have an Intel Core 2 Duo, Core i3, Core i5, Core i7, or Xeon processor. Find out if your current Mac has one of these processors by clicking the Apple icon at the top left of your screen, then choosing "About This Mac". It is also recommended that you have at least 2GB of RAM.
Upgrading to Lion requires you to be running Version 10.6 (Snow Leopard) and at present is available only by downloading from the App Store. The cost in NZ is $38.99 incl. gst. It is a 3.8GB download so will take quite some time to download and will use up a large chunk of your monthly download cap. Apple have advised that they will make Lion available on a USB stick but the cost will be considerably higher than the download price.
We have a Help day upcoming on Tuesday September 13 so bring along any issues which you may have and we will endeavour to resolve them for you.
Our final two workshops for the term will take place on Wednesday 21 and Wednesday 28 September at 2.30pm. In term 5 we will be running another "Getting started with Mac" course over 4 weeks commencing on Friday 14 October. We will also be holding Workshops on Wednesday afternoons in Term 5- keep an eye on the website for details of these Workshops.
Contact Mel Woodley (ph. 422 2605, email melwoodley@gmail.com) or our Course Co-ordinator, Judy Wane (ph. 425 4327, email juwan@clear.net.nz) for details of courses and Workshops. Mel Woodley Brians Tips
Why doesn’t my Widescreen TV picture look right?
With the advent of digital television and the strong New Zealand dollar many of us are upgrading our televisions to the new LCD or Plasma wide screen sets which give cinema like quality to our viewing. However you may be disappointed in the picture display. The people in the television programs don’t quite look normal and in fact look a bit short and squat and that some parts of the scores that come on the screen during the sports programmes are off the screen you can’t see them.
If you are having this problem then there is a very good reason. The problem is with your television decoder rather than the TV set. Many new TV sets come with a built in Freeview High definition Decoder. This decoder only works using a Freeview UHF aerial. However many of us living in the Warkworth area will be unable to pick up UHF signals with an aerial. Instead we must use a satellite dish which must be used in conjunction with a set top decoder.
If you are a subscriber to Sky television, and apparently it is now in 51% of New Zealand homes, then you already have this decoder. If not then you will be using a Freeview set top decoder. Prior to wide screen models becoming available all TV sets were viewed in a 4:3 format That means the picture is 4 units wide by 3 units deep. In contrast wide screen TVs display an image 16 units wide by 9 units deep. Your Sky or Free view decoder is very likely set to the 4:3 aspect ratio. It must be changed to 16:9 or wide screen aspect ratio.
Sky TV · Using your remote, turn on a Sky channel and press the select button (the oval button inside the four arrows). · Using the arrows, select the "spanner" icon then "Advanced Setup" using the same oval button. · Enter your four-digit pin number, press select, and then select "TV Setup". · Select "16:9" from the menu, press select and then press the "Go Back" button on your remote twice to return to the channel. Note:- Your 4 digit pin number should be in your Sky instruction booklet. If it is not there or you have lost it try typing in 0 0 0 0 as the code or 1 2 3 4. If this doesn’t work you must phone Sky who will give you the number.
Freeview
These instructions and more are available at the Sky TV and Freeview websites. If you're still having problems, get in touch with either and ask for assistance.
Remember that not all TV programmes were made or are available in the 16:9 format. You'll notice big black vertical borders on your 16:9 display when these 4:3 programmes are displayed. And since some movies were not filmed in the exact 16:9 format you may still occasionally get small horizontal borders as well. Don't worry, this is normal New Photo Editing Course
If you are a keen photographer or just interested in improving the look of your photos then starting in Term 5 we are introducing a new Photo Editing Course using Photoshop Elements.
The course covers many aspects of Photoshop Elements including image adjustment, cutting out and moving images, repairing and cloning of photos, and colourising black and white pictures as well as many other techniques. The course is based on Elements 4 however, the skills learnt are easily translated into earlier or later versions of the programme.
There are 4 lessons in the course and each lesson consists of 2 hour sessions spread over two consecutive weeks. The 4 lessons will take 8 weeks to complete.
Although the course is designed to teach the novice how to use Photoshop Elements, students should have a good understanding of the use of computer technique’s such as copy and pasting, files and folder management and as well as the use of the mouse.
The course is designed to gradually introduce new tools and techniques so that at the end of the course the student will have a good grounding in the use of Photoshop Elements to improve and enhance their Photos. Welcome aboard Since our last
newsletter we have welcomed new members Terry and Bea Nuttall, Bruce
Scoggins,Graham Rowe, Theo Rodink, Glyn and Carolyn Williams, Lorraine
Grant, Tony and Sally Hutson, Delyse Carlaw, Merryl Houghton, Gael
Dorreen, Diane Barron, Keith Hopner, Carolyn Jenkins, Pamela Oldfield,
Fran Caldwell, Carol Peebles, Mandy Burnside, Doug Harrison, Steve Gray,
Peter and Nita Millar, and Jennifer McKay.
104 new members have joined this year so far, and they
bring our total membership to 423 for this calendar year.
It is very encouraging to have so many members, and
shows that we must be fulfilling a need in the Warkworth district.
We will continue to keep up with the latest technology, and strive to keep
you informed about the new developments in technology, while at the same
time catering for those who just want to send emails and write a few
letters.
For computer
repairs, and supply of HP computers, contact your local repair men.
They support us.
RODNEY COMPUTER SERVICES Onsite Computer Support Systems and Software Consultation Wayne McCarthy - 0211193431 Brent Jones - 021422650 Email: support@rodcom.co.nz Web: http://www.rodcom.co.nz/. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
