Computer and software information

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This page will provide you useful and meaningful information about;

1-WHAT IS COMPUTER AND COMPUTER KNOWLEDGE?

2-WHAT ARE 10 THINGS THAT YOU HAVE TO KNOW TO BE A COMPUTER LITERATE?

3-WHAT ARE 10 THINGS THAT YOU HAVE TO KNOW FOR SMARTER, MORE EFFICIENT INTERNET SEARCHING?

4-WHAT IS SOFTWARE?

5-WHAT IS INTERNET DOWNLOAD MANAGER?

Computer:

1. Computer is an electronic device which is capable of receiving information (data) in a particular form and of performing a sequence of operations in accordance with a predetermined but variable set of procedural instructions (program) to produce a result in the form of information or signals.

2. A computer is a device that accepts information (in the form of digitalized data) and manipulates it for some result based on a program or sequence of instructions on how the data is to be processed.

Computer Knowledge:

Computer knowledge is defined as the knowledge and ability to utilize computers and related technology efficiently, with a range of skills covering levels from elementary use to programming and advanced problem solving. Computer literacy can also refer to the comfort level someone has with using computer programs and other applications that are associated with computers. Another valuable component is understanding how computers work and operate.

Students are required to have a prerequisite level of computer knowledge and familiarity in order to be successful in the professional studies. Students are not expected to be experts, but they are expected to know how to perform common and frequently used functions, including the following:

Windows

• Use Windows Explorer or Computer to navigate to any specified folder on any fixed or removable drive on your system
• Perform basic file management including: creating/deleting folders; copying, moving or deleting files; and changing folder view settings to see appropriate file information
• Close or disable all applications running in the background, and how to ensure these are not running
• Install and uninstall software
• Perform Windows Updates
• Check if System Restore is turned on
• Verify language, date and time format settings
• Adjust screen resolution
• Use the snipping tool accessory to capture a screen image

Should you require additional help, please review the Microsoft Windows site:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-CA/windows7/help/getting-started

Microsoft Office

• Use the Help menu within an application to find a solution to a problem and learn how to use the application’s functions and features
• Use Copy/Cut, Paste and Paste Special
• Word
  • Format paragraphs
  • Use tables
  • Use bullets and numbering
  • Use tabs and rulers, adjust margins, etc.
  • Save in different file formats
• Excel
  • Enter formulae and text using relative and absolute referencing to other cells
  • Format cells
  • Replicate cells
  • play/print formulas
• PowerPoint
  • Print multiple handouts per page

Should you require additional help please review the Microsoft office site:

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/support/?CTT=97

Internet

• Download and save files from the Internet to your computer
• E-mail attachments and save attachments received in e-mail messages
• Change settings for cookies and popup blocker
• Open web pages in new browser tabs or windows
• Clear Internet Explorer browsing history and cache

WE encourages the use of antivirus and internet security programs, but makes no specific recommendations. You must be familiar with the use, management, and updating of all such applications you have installed.

10 things you have to know to be computer literate:

It is tempting to think that because you have used a computer for a long time, you are "computer literate" or "computer savvy," but this is not the case. Here are 10 skills you absolutely must know to be considered computer literate. If you already know these, you should be helping others learn them as well!

1: Search engines

Using a search engine is more than typing in the address, putting a couple of keywords into the big text box, clicking Search, and choosing the first result. While that may work, it won't give you the best results much of the time. Learning the advanced search, Boolean operators, and how to discern good results from bad results goes a long way toward enabling you to use a computer as a powerful research tool.

2: Word processing

Word processing is one of the oldest uses for a computer. And it continues to be extremely important, even though in many ways its functions have been put into other applications. (For example, people may write more emails than documents, but the task is nearly identical.) It is tough to claim to be computer literate if the basic functions of word processing -- like spell check, table creation, and working with headers -- are outside your capabilities.

3: Spreadsheets

Spreadsheets were the killer application that got a lot of people willing to pony up big bucks for a PC in the early 1980s. Spreadsheets offer incredibly powerful analysis possibilities... if you know how to use them for more than storing the holiday card address list. (Okay, I use Excel for that too.) Being able to use formulas, references, and macros can turn a "grid of numbers" into actionable information in the hands of the right person.

4: Browser basics

It is almost painful to watch some "computer savvy" people operate a Web browser. The most obvious goof is going to a search engine to type in the address of the site they want to go to. But folks are unaware of a lot of other things they do that make the Internet more difficult than it needs to be. Mastering techniques like opening links in new windows, using bookmarks, editing URLs to perform navigation, clearing the browser cache, and understanding common error messages will give you access to a world of unlimited information instead of keeping you stuck with only what Web site designers make obvious.

5: Virus/malware scanning

Much of typical computer maintenance is automated or unneeded at this point, but it is still essential to understand how to check a system for nasty bugs, spyware, and other malicious applications. While the scanning tools come with real-time monitors, something can still slip onto the system before the scanner has the right filter for it. So it's critical to know how to trigger a manual virus/malware scan, as well as how to use alternative systems, spot signs of an infection, and other similar tasks.

6: Common keyboard commands

If you do not know how to copy/paste without a mouse, you are not computer literate. Sorry! Every operating system has some universal keyboard commands, and while knowing them won't add 30 minutes back into your day, it will take a lot of the "friction" out of using a computer. Learning these commands is more a matter of routine than anything else; a short tutorial done once a day for a week will probably be enough to put you in the habit, and it will make you a happier user.

7: Basic hardware terminology

It is tough to have someone help you with a problem when you tell them that your "hard drive" is unplugged, when you really mean "the computer." There are a number of common hardware misunderstandings out there, and while some are understandable (for instance, confusing a NIC with a modem -- the cables look similar and they serve the same purpose, working), knowing basic hardware terminology is a must-have skill to be a savvy user.

8: Simple networking diagnosis

working problems create the most common trouble with most computers. While you don't need to be able to program a Cisco router, you should know how to:

• Determine your IP address
• Verify physical connectivity to the work
• Check that you have a logical connection to the work
• Find out what path work traffic takes to get to its destination
• Translate from DNS names to IP addresses

9: How to hook it up

Despite the color coding of connections and the fact that most cords can be plugged into only one hole, tons of people still can't hook up a computer. It is tough to claim to be computer literate if you can't even get it hooked up and turned on without some help.

10: Security/privacy 101

It is a dangerous world out there! You absolutely must know how to protect yourself from attackers on the Internet and keep your personal data private.If you do not know how to keep yourself safe, you need to learn how.

10 tips for smarter, more efficient Internet searching:

These days, everyone is expected to be up to speed on Internet search techniques. But there are still a few tricks that some users -- and even savvy searchers -- may not be aware of. 

Did you hate memorizing seemingly insignificant facts for tests at school? No photographic memory? Good news! Life is now an open-book exam -- assuming you have a computer, browser, and Internet access. If you know how to use a good search engine, you don't have to stuff your mind with facts that are useful only when playing jeopardy! and Trivial Pursuit. Chances are, you aren't the first person to run across the problem you are experiencing. Chances are also good that an answer is awaiting your discovery on the Internet -- you just have to remove the irrelevant pages and the unhelpful/incorrect results to find that needle in the haystack. Google has been fanatical about speed. There is little doubt that it has built an incredibly fast and thorough search engine. Unfortunately, the human element of the Internet search equation is often overlooked. These 10 tips are designed to improve that human element and better your Internet search skills. (Note: All examples below refer to the Google search engine.)

1: Use unique, specific terms

It is simply amazing how many Web pages are returned when performing a search. You might guess that the terms blue dolphin are relatively specialized. A Google search of those terms returned 2,440,000 results! To reduce the number of pages returned, use unique terms that are specific to the subject you are researching.

2: Use the minus operator (-) to narrow the search

How many times have you searched for a term and had the search engine return something totally unexpected? Terms with multiple meanings can return a lot of unwanted results. The rarely used but powerful minus operator, equivalent to a Boolean NOT, can remove many unwanted results. For example, when searching for the insect caterpillar, references to the company Caterpillar, Inc. will also be returned. Use Caterpillar-Inc to exclude references to the company or Caterpillar-Inc-Cat to further refine the search.

3: Use quotation marks for exact phrases

I often remember parts of phrases I have seen on a Web page or part of a quotation I want to track down. Using quotation marks around a phrase will return only those exact words in that order. It's one of the best ways to limit the pages returned. Example: "Be nice to nerds" .Of course, you must have the phrase exactly right -- and if your memory is as good as mine, that can be problematic.

4: Don't use common words and punctuation

Common terms like a and the are called stop words and are usually ignored. Punctuation is also typically ignored. But there are exceptions. Common words and punctuation marksshould be used when searching for a specific phrase inside quotes. There are cases when common words like the are significant. For instance, Raven and The Raven return entirely different results.

5: Capitalization

Most search engines do not distinguish between uppercase and lowercase, even within quotation marks. The following are all equivalent:

• technology
• Technology
• TECHNOLOGY
• "technology"
• "Technology"

6: Drop the suffixes

It's usually best to enter the base word so that you don't exclude relevant pages. For example, bird and not birds, walk and not walked. One exception is if you are looking for sites that focus on the act of walking, enter the whole term walking.

7: Maximize AutoComplete

Ordering search terms from general to specific in the search box will play helpful results in a drop-down list and is the most efficient way to use AutoComplete. Selecting the appropriate item as it appears will save time typing. You have several choices for how the AutoComplete feature works:

Use Google AutoComplete. The standard Google start page will play a drop-down list of suggestions supplied by the Google search engine. This option can be a handy way to discover similar, related searches. For example, typing in Tucson fast will not only bring up the suggestion Tucson fast food but also Tucson fast food coupons. Use browser AutoComplete. Use this Google start page to disable the Google AutoComplete feature and play a list of your previous searches in a drop-down box. I find this particularly useful when I've made dozens of searches in the past for a particular item. The browser's AutoComplete feature must be turned on for this option to work. Click one of these links for instructions detailing how to turn AutoComplete on or off in I.E. and Firefox.

Examples:

• Visual Basic statement case
• Visual Basic statement for
• Visual Basic call

8: Customize your searches

There are several other less well known ways to limit the number of results returned and reduce your search time:

• The plus operator (+): As mentioned above, stop words are typically ignored by the search engine. The plus operator tells the search engine to include those words in the result set. Example: tall +and short will return results that include the word and.

• The tide operator (~): Include a tilde in front of a word to return results that include synonyms. The tilde operator does not work well for all terms and sometimes not at all. A search for ~CSS includes the synonym style and returns fashion related style pages --not exactly what someone searching for CSS wants. Examples: ~HTML to get results forHTML with synonyms; ~HTML -HTML to get synonyms only for HTML.

• The wildcard operator (*): Google calls it the fill in the blank operator. For example,amusement * will return pages with amusement and any other term(s) the Google search engine deems relevant. You can't use wildcards for parts of words. So for example,amusement p* is invalid.

• The OR operator (OR) or (|): Use this operator to return results with either of two terms. For example happy joy will return pages with both happy and joy, while happy | joy will return pages with either happy or joy.

• Numeric ranges: You can refine searches that use numeric terms by returning a specific range, but you must supply the unit of measurement. Examples: Windows XP 2003..2005, PC $700 $800.

• Site search: Many Web sites have their own site search feature, but you may find that Google site search will return more pages. When doing research, it's best to go directly to the source, and site search is a great way to do that. Example: site:www.intel.com rapid storage technology.

• Related sites: For example, related:www.youtube.com can be used to find sites similar to YouTube.

• Change your preferences: Search preferences can be set globally by clicking on the gear icon in the upper-right corner and selecting Search Settings. I like to change the Number Of Results option to 100 to reduce total search time.

• Forums-only search: Under the Google logo on the left side of the search result page, click More | Discussions or go to Google Groups. Forums are great places to look for solutions to technical problems.

• Advanced searches: Click the Advanced Search button by the search box on the Google start or results page to refine your search by date, country, amount, language, or other criteria.

• Wonder Wheel: The Google Wonder Wheel can visually assist you as you refine your search from general to specific. Here's how to use this tool:

1. Click on More Search Tools | Wonder Wheel in the lower-left section of the screen (Figure A) to load the Wonder Wheel page.

2. Click on dbms tutorial (Figure B).

Figure A

Figure B

As you can see in Figure C, Google now displays two wheels showing the DBMS and dbms tutorial Wonder Wheels, with the results for dbms tutorial on the right side of the page. You can continue drilling down the tree to further narrow your search. Click the Close button at the top of the results to remove the Wonder Wheel(s).

Figure C

9: Use browser history

Many times, I will be researching an item and scanning through dozens of pages when I suddenly remember something I had originally dismissed as being irrelevant. How do you quickly go back to that Web site? You can try to remember the exact words used for the search and then scan the results for the right site, but there is an easier way. If you can remember the general date and time of the search you can look through the browser historyto find the Web page.

10: Set a time limit -- then change tactics

Sometimes, you never can find what you are looking for. Start an internal clock, and when a certain amount of time has elapsed without results, stop beating your head against the wall. It's time to try something else:

• Use a different search engine, like Yahoo!, Bing, Startpage, or Lycos.
• Ask a peer.
• Call support.
• Ask a question in the appropriate forum.
• Use search experts who can find the answer for you.

The bottom line

A tool is only as useful as the typing fingers wielding it. Remember that old acronym GIGO,garbage in, garbage out? Search engines will try to place the most relevant results at the top of the list, but if your search terms are too broad or ambiguous, the results will not be helpful. It is your responsibility to learn how to make your searches both fast and effective.

The Internet is the great equalizer for those who know how to use it efficiently. Anyone can now easily find facts using a search engine instead of dredging them from the gray matter dungeon -- assuming they know a few basic tricks. Never underestimate the power of a skilled search expert.

mycctech

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