Q.
Occasionally I like to save a whole web page so I can refer back to it,
but when I do this, it creates a folder for the page and saves all the pieces of
the page and their individual little files. Is
there a way to save the website page more efficiently?
A.
YES. While you are on the
page you want to save, click File, Save As… then at the bottom of the window
that opens, click the dropdown box next to Save As Type: and choose ‘.mht’.
This will save the web page into a single file.
(Something you might want to do the
first time is, create a new folder for these files using the method described in
the last question in this article. You
might call it ‘Webpage Downloads.’) When
you perform the ‘Save As’ function, be sure the ‘Save In:’ line at the
top is pointing to the Webpage Downloads
folder. NOTE:
The cool thing about this is, if you are on line when you open the saved
file, the buttons on it are active and you can actually use the links and
details that appear.
Q.
When I get a cute joke or story, I like to pass it on to my friends.
Many times they come to me with a long list of e-mail addresses already
there, and the message itself is filled with little >>> symbols. I have
been told to protect my friend’s privacy, it is not a good idea to send all
the e-mail addresses to everyone. How can
I send something to several people without seeing all the addresses, and is
there a way to “clean up” that message?
A.
These are both very good questions, and I definitely have solutions for
you. The easiest way to “clean up”
that e-mail is to learn to use the e-mail cleaner. The
cleaner and the instructions are still on the XDrive, or you can ask me to send it to you in an e-mail message. I would also send the
instruction file. But, even if you
don’t want to mess with the e-mail cleaner, it is still best to send the
message without sending the addresses. Here’s how.
1)
Highlight the part of the message you want to send. Press Ctrl+C. Go to the top of your e-mail program and click New
Message or Write or Create Message, or whatever you do to write a new message.
2)
When the mail window opens, click in the message portion of the screen and press
Ctrl+V. That will paste the message into
a new e-mail.
3) When you are sending to several people, put YOUR OWN e-mail address in the TO: line. Then, selecting the other names from your address book, click on a name, or hold the Ctrl Key and click each name you want to include in the mailing. When you have selected all the names, in AOL click Blind Copy, or in Outlook Express click Bcc:. This way, when each friend gets your message, they will see your address (and that’s OK, because you are the one who sent it), but they will not see the addresses of everyone else you sent your message to. TO: and CC: or Carbon Copy: shows all addresses to everyone. BCC: or Blind Copy: hides the addresses. This is best!
Q. Sometimes I want to save a file into a new folder that I haven’t created yet. Is there an easy way to do that?
A. It depends where you are, but the answer is YES in some cases. If it is an e-mail or attachment you want to save, or if you are in MS Word or a newer version of other word processors, it is easy.
1) When you are downloading an e-mail attachment, click on the filename. The next window says Open or Save to Disk. When you choose Save to Disk, the next window shows you the Windows Explorer list of the files on your system. Click the Dropdown box next to Save In: and locate and click on the folder you want your new folder to be inside of. Then look next to that line at the little symbols there. Choose the little folder that looks like it has a little star on its corner. It will automatically give you a New Folder that is waiting for you to give it a name. Without clicking anything, just type a name for the new folder. The name of the file you are saving is already on the Filename line, so click Open, and it will save the file to your new folder. Note: Your ‘Save to Disk’ window may open in the My Documents folder. That’s OK. You can create a new folder right in the My Documents folder if you choose. As an example, sometimes one of your kids will send several pictures of the grandbaby, but the pictures don’t have names, they are just a bunch of numbers. To save those files to your download directory, the filenames would be meaningless to you later. I would click on the My Pictures folder first, then create a new folder inside that one using the grandchild’s name. Put the pictures in there. Now they are separate from the rest of your pictures and you can get back to them easily by going to that folder.
2) In MS Word, you can do the same thing. When you click on File, Save, the window that opens has the same little icon at the top to create a new folder. Be sure you are at the location where you want the new folder to go before creating it.
3) My version of Word Perfect doesn’t have this feature, but the newer version just might.
That little folder with the star will always represent New Folder. Before clicking on it, be sure you are at the place where you want the new folder created.
Q: I’m
often reminded that I should delete Temporary Internet Files and Cookies.
I’ve also been told that if I delete Cookies, I may have to retype
things such as registrations into Web sites that were stored in a Cookie.
How do I determine which, if any, I should delete?
A: The
way your machine manages Cookies, is not so much determined by your version of
the operating system as it is by your version of Internet Explorer.
The newer versions of Internet Explorer create a separate Cookies folder
in the Windows folder. That folder stores
what is known as Persistent Cookies.
Those stay on your hard drive in the Cookies folder.
Then there are Session Cookies that are stored in memory. They are only active during your current online session, and after
you close the Explorer, they are no longer active.
But, they are stored in your Temporary Internet Files folder and don’t
go away by themselves.
Know that you can always (and should) delete all
the files in the Temporary Internet Files folder.
As far as the Cookies folder is concerned, you should look at them and
see what sites they are referring to. It
may be that if you have registered online with your bank or broker, etc, you
will see their site there. I would
recommend not deleting any addresses that point to sites you go to often or
where you have entered a registration.
(For a little more technical explanation of the Cookie
issue, the following information is taken directly from the Microsoft Knowledge
Base).
One of the primary purposes of cookies is to provide a
convenience feature that you can use to save time. The purpose of a cookie is to tell the Web server that you have
returned to a specific Web page. For
example, if you personalize Web pages, or register for products or services, a
cookie helps the Web page server to recall your specific information.
This may be useful to simplify the process of recording your personal
information, such as billing addresses, shipping addresses, and so on.
When you visit the same Web site, the information you previously provided
can be retrieved, so you can easily use the Web site features that you
previously chose. For example:
_ If you previously entered billing or shipping
information for a purchase from a Web site, you may be able to use a password to
automatically enter your information on an order form instead of having to enter
this information again.
_ A cookie can indicate that you previously selected one
or more areas of interest you want to see each time you visit a Web site.
For example, if you want to view only some types of news, you might
select some types of news topics to view on a news-related Web site.
You have the ability to enable or disable cookies, or have
Internet Explorer prompt you before accepting cookies in Internet Explorer 4 and
later. Note that disabling cookies may prevent some Web services from working
correctly, and disabling cookies does not make you anonymous or prevent Web
sites from tracking your browsing habits. HTTP
requests still include information about where you came from (HTTP Referer),
your IP address, browser version, operating system, and other information.
Persistent vs. Session Cookies
Cookies are either stored in memory (session cookies) or placed on your hard
disk (persistent cookies). Persistent
cookies are written to the Cookies folder under either your user profile folder
or the C:\Windows\Cookies folder. The Temporary Internet Files index is updated with pointers to the
actual cookies files. For additional
information about persistent and session cookies, click the article number below
to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en_us;Q278835
Q: How can I view a photo or an image file if I don’t have graphic software on my machine?
A: If you don’t have software on your machine to open
graphic/image files, when you double-click on the filename, the picture (depending
on it’s file type,) may open Windows Paint. Paint will open jpg and bmp files, but generally that is all. Usually pictures sent to you on the Internet will be in one of these file
types. Most people’s complaint
about having Paint open a picture is that it comes in so large that you can’t
view the entire picture. When you
click on Zoom, making the picture smaller is not an option. However, there is a way to do it. Click
on Image, and choose Stretch/Skew. Replace
both “Stretch 100%” numbers with something smaller, such as 60. You can change the number to anything you like, but be sure to use the
same number in both boxes, then click OK. You
should now see all or nearly all the picture.
Q: How
do I know what file type the photo/image is?
A: Open Windows Explorer. Locate the folder containing the file. In the menu bar at the top of the window, click View, Details. If the file name doesn’t have a file extension (three letters after the dot) i.e. .jpg, .bmp, .exe., you will want to change the view. To do this, in Windows98, go to View, Folder Options (in Windows ME, go to Tools, Folder Options,) choose View at the top, and REMOVE the check from the box that says, Hide file extensions for known file types. Now you should see all the details about the file, including the file type. If the file is not bmp or jpg, you probably won’t be able to open it if you don’t have a graphics program.
Q: How
can I get a graphics viewer?
A: There is a shareware program called ACDSee. It is available for download from the Internet. You can get online, open your browser, click on this URL and Download
Now. http://www.billssoftwarepicks.com/software/graphics/viewers/ACDSee_Classic_ACD_Systems.html
Or
if you copy and paste this address into the address line in your browser and
press enter, you will be taken to the page where you can click Download Now. Save it to your hard drive, then go there and double-click to install it. This program can read many different file types, as well as convert a
file from one type to another.
Question: “Can I add a hyperlink in an AOL e-mail?”
The answer is, you can add an e-mail or website hyperlink to an AOL e-mail. There are at least 3 ways to add the website hyperlink. Choose any of the following:
1) Go to the site you want to share in your e-mail. If you haven’t already done so, click Write to get a new e-mail window. You will need to size the windows so you can see both the site page and the e-mail window. Using the little heart box in the right corner of the website window, drag and drop it into your e-mail message.
2) If it is a site you already have in your Favorite Places folder, click on the little heart just above the message box in the E-mail window, locate the site and click on it. It will be added to the e-mail.
3) If you know the hyperlink address, right click on the message window, choose “Insert a Hyperlink,” type a name for it and type the address in the second line and click OK. The name you have given the site will go in the e-mail, but the link will be to the address.
To add an e-mail address hyperlink, right click on the message window, choose "Insert a Hyperlink," type a name for it in the first line, and in the second line, type in mailto: and then the e-mail address. For example, mailto:judydi@interwrx.com. Click OK. The name you have given the address will go into the message, but the link will be to the e-mail address.