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Stamping Is My Business!: Tech Tips

9 posts categorized "Tech Tips"

February 11, 2010

TECH TIP - How To Create A System Restore Point

Whenever you're about to install a new piece of software or an update, or one is going to be automatically installed for you, it's always a good idea to manually create a System Restore Point.

Luckily, creating a System Restore Point is easy:

  1. Click on the Start or Windows button (usually in the lower-left corner of your screen)
  2. In the Start Search box, type 'System Restore'
  3. You should see the 'System Restore' function come up.  Click on it.
  4. You should see a box asking you if you want to Restore your computer to a previous point, or Create A Restore Point.  Click Create A Restore Point (this may also be labeled, "Open System Protection").
  5. Select the drives you'd like to create a Restore Point for (usually just the C drive)
  6. Click the 'Create' button
  7. Name the Restore Point (usually the day and time you're creating it)
  8. Click the 'Create' button

You'll now see a dialog box informing you the Restore Point is being created.

After a minute or so, you should see a dialog box letting you know the Restore Point was created successfully!

It's a simple task, and the payoff is peace of mind!

December 02, 2009

VIDEO - Facebook Privacy Changes And How They Affect You

Facebook announced some upcoming changes to their privacy settings that will affect ALL users.  Watch the video below for some preliminary information.

And don't forget to subscribe to the SIMB YouTube Channel for instant notification of our latest videos!

November 30, 2009

VIDEO - What To Consider When Buying A New Computer For Your Business

The new YouTube channel is up and running.  We'll be adding new videos to it several times a month. 

This week's video is a timely one.  As you get closer to the end of the calendar year, it's a good idea to take a look at your tax picture.  If you're showing a profit and you're going to take a tax hit... AND if you were planning on doing it in a few months anyway... you might want to consider purchasing a new computer for your busniess before the end of the year.

This video goes through the list of factors and specifications to consider.

Enjoy!  And click here to subscribe to the SIMB YouTube Channel!

November 24, 2009

TECH TIP - Opening A New Tab (Without Your Fingers Ever Leaving The Keyboard)

If you're like me, you probably have one browser window open... with LOTS of tabs.

I admit it... I'm a tabbing maniac.  Right now, I have six tabs open to six different websites.

What gets annoying, though, is having to mouse up to the menu bar, and File, New Tab every time I want to open up a new one.

Well... there's a shortcut for that!  CTRL+T!

It couldn't be easier.  Just hit CTRL+T and a new tab will immediately open in your browser.

Not only that... the text in the new address bar will be highlighted, so you can just type in the new URL.  No muss... no fuss.

For more Tech Tips, click here.

November 17, 2009

TECH TIP - Need Another Word For... Try Shift+F7!

Sooner or later, it happens to everyone.  You're writing your blog post... or a piece of marketing copy... and you realize you're using the same word over and over again.

You could go online and find a thesaurus.  You may even have one on your bookshelf.

If you're working in MS Word, though, there's an easier solution.  Shift+F7!

If you highlight the word you need a synonym for, then hit Shift+F7, a thesaurus will pop up along the right-hand side of your document with several suggestions.  They even throw an antonym in for good measure!

So, give Shift+F7 a try.  You'll be glad (happy, pleased, cheerful, joyful, delighted, thankful or relieved... but not sorry) you did!

November 10, 2009

TECH TIP - How To Increase Your Screen Size (Without Buying A New Monitor)

image from www.techonthenet.comFor me, this tech tip falls into the "I should have known this for years, but I only found out recently" category. 

When you're browsing the web, a surprisingly large percentage of the top of your screen is taken up with menus, toolbars, etc.

Wouldn't it be great if you could make all of those disappear with the touch of a button... and then reappear only when you need them?

Meet the F11 button!

If you're browsing the web on a PC, just hit the F11 key to make all of the tabs, address bars and menus disappear.  You'll be amazed how much viewable screen area you gain!

Then, when you need to use one of those now-vanished elements, just hit to F11 key again to make them reappear.

Anybody know which key does this on a Mac?  If you do, post it to the Comments section below. 

November 03, 2009

TECH TIP - Using Google For Site-Specific Search

image from clear.colorado.edu Most people use Google to search the entire internet, but did you know you could also use Google to search within a specific website?

It's true!  And, it's easy!

Simply use the following forumla in the Google Search Box:

search term site:website addreess

There is no space between site, the colon and the website address.

For example, if you were looking for information on Group Coaching from my website, you would type:

group coaching site:www.stampingismybusiness.com

Give it a try!  And don't forget to check back every Tuesday for more Tech Tips!

October 27, 2009

TECH TIP TUESDAY - How To Fix A Corrupted Outlook File

Outlook_2007_logo A client of mine recently had this happen to her, and if you're a long-time Outlook user, the chances are pretty good its happened to you, as well.

You fire up Outlook only to get the messsage that Outlook can't start because of a corrupted Outlook profile.

As bad as it sounds, the fix isn't terribly difficult and you should be able to do it in just a few minutes.

To see the step-by-step instructions, click here.

October 19, 2009

TECH TIP TUESDAY - Keep Your Firefox Plugins Up To Date

Over the last several weeks, several malicious attacks have been launched against computer users.  These attacks took advantage of security leaks in some browser plug-ins.

Security patches and updates were released quickly, but that doesn't necessarily fix a security hole in the plug-in.  Just the browser.

If you're a Firefox user, though, there's some good news.  Mozilla, the maker of Firefox, recently established a page you can visit to check your plug-ins automatically and let you know which ones, if any, need updating.

To check your plug-ins, open up Firefox and browse to the Plugin Check page.  The page will scan your plug-ins and you'll see a results page that looks like this:

Firefoxplugin
 From there, yoiu can decide whether or not to update your plug-ins.