Last time I told you about OpenDNS.com where you can set up ways to restrict website access from your home computers.  Microsoft also adds a similar feature in Windows Vista and 7, titled, "Parental Controls."

"Parental Controls" are useful to help manage how and when your children use a computer.  You can set up games they can play, programs they are allowed to run and time limits on computer use.

You need to be an Administrator on the computer in order to perform the following actions.  To access "Parental Controls" in Windows 7 go to the Start button / Control Panel.  Next, select User Accounts.  You will need to set up an account for each child you wish to restrict if one does not already exist.  If your children are equal in age, ability, trustworthiness, etc. you may only need one account with a password.  You will see the settings for the account you are currently using. Make sure it says the account is password protected. You may not want your children accessing your account.

Make sure when you set up the account for your kids, or before setting up Parental Controls on an existing account, you set the account to a Standard user account.  If your child is an Admin on the computer they will have all rights.

Next, click the Set up Parental Controls link at the bottom of the screen.  From the Parental Control screen, select the child’s account you wish to restrict.   Change "Parental Controls" to "On, enforce current settings." You will see links for Time Limits and Games and Program controls.

Using the "Time Limits" link, you can set limits on when the computer can be used. For example, you can have the computer log on from 7 PM to 9 PM every day and then block all access to the user account.

Click the Games link to control what games can be run. You can filter by rating, content or title. This setting only applies to games in Windows 7′s Game Explorer area. If they aren’t there they cannot be affected.

The last link is, "Allow or block specific programs".  Here you can stop access to any programs installed on the computer.  This will take a couple of minutes to set up since it will search your system for all programs which can be affected.  Once the list loads you can check the applications you want to enable that user to run.  Be cautious since some of them are not labeled well and you may allow access to the wrong application.

Next week we will look at a few more things you can control on your computer using Windows Live Essentials.

Tags: blocking software, censor, children, computer log, computer use, control panel, games, home computers, internet safety, kids, last time, limit, microsoft, parental control, parental controls, program controls, start button, teens, time limits, user accounts

Several weeks ago I mentioned a application when talking about Ubuntu called, VirtualBox.  I had a couple of people writing asking if there was a program like VirtualBox they could use to run Ubuntu, Windows XP or another operating system on their Windows 7 computer.

Guess what?  There is and it is called, "VirtualBox", (virtualbox.org) the exact same program.  There are different downloads for Windows, Mac, Linux (Ubuntu) and Solaris (another free operating system) depending on which operating system your uses as its base system.

What VirtualBox does is really simple; however, how it does it is quite complicated.   This article may be for more advanced user so if you feel you are more advanced (not sure what the definition is) then read on.  If you do not feel you are a more advanced user, then come back next week for a more "universal" discussion.

Let us pretend that you run Microsoft Windows XP on your computer.  Over the past month or so you read my articles concerning Ubuntu and you would like to try it out.  You have run it off of a CD and found that it was a little too slow for you.  You would like to run it off of your actual computer to really find out how good/bad it is.  The other, currently more likely scenario is that you use Windows 7 on your system and you would like to run XP for some "trust issue".  Either way, VirtualBox, www.virtualbox.org, is where you need to look.

As long as you have a licensed (if a license is needed although one is not needed for Ubuntu) installation disc of that additional operating system you can install it on your computer.  It will allow you to run that operating system on your computer while your original OS is also running.

At present, VirtualBox runs on Linux (Ubuntu), Windows, , Macintosh and OpenSolaris hosts and supports the ability to run Windows (NT 4.0, 2000, XP, Server 2003, Vista, Windows 7), DOS/Windows 3.x, Linux (2.4, 2.6 and all Ubuntu like OS), Solaris, OpenSolaris, and OpenBSD.  If you have never heard or do not care about any of the items mention in this paragraph re-read the last sentence in the third paragraph above.

Basically you start your computer as you normally would.  Next, you start VirtualBox and choose to run the OS you previously installed.  It will open a window that starts what looks like another computer running.  However, this window will be running the "other" OS.  If you go to DoubleClicks.info I have posted a picture showing what it looks like when you are running Windows 7 as your host (native OS) and Ubuntu 10.10. The graphic is provided by VirtualBox.com with a couple of edits by me.

If you are looking for something like this, give VirtualBox a try.  There are several other free applications out there that offer almost identical features; however, this one is the easiest to set up and use…in my opinion.

[Screenshots are from VirtualBox.org.]

Tags: actual computer, BSD, downloads, free, free operating system, Linux, mac linux, microsoft, microsoft windows, open, solaris, trust issue, ubuntu, virtual, virtualbox, windows, windows xp

If you know me or read my articles and columns you know that I am a Google Lover and so I have to share another one with you.

Read their blog but basically now Microsoft Office (at least Word, Excel and PowerPoint) all work in conjunction with Google Docs.  You can create, store, edit and share them all on Google Docs directly from inside the MS apps.

Give it a try.  I have and so far it has worked great, if that opinion changes either the good or the bad I will let you know here.

Tags: blog spot, cloud, Cloud Connect, computing, docs, google, google.com, googledocs, launch, microsoft, microsoft html, microsoft office, ms apps

How do you temporarily hide the wide ribbon menu bar at the top of the Word screen?  Watch this video to find out.  It works in many other Microsoft Office apps so try them to see.

Tags: microsoft, ribbon, training, video, Word

According to the Internet, "Ubuntu" is an African word from the Bantu language "which has no direct translation into English, but is used to describe a particular African world-view in which people can only find fulfillment through interacting with other people…" Desmond Tutu has a good definition of it if you wish to take a quick read, http://bit.ly/dSv0ia. He says, "A single straw of a broom can be broken easily, but the straws together are not easily broken."

However, for us geeks Ubuntu is something a little different.  Ubuntu (ubuntu.com) is an operating system based off of Linux.   It was created as a hobby by a young college student named Linus Torvalds while attending the University of Helsinki in Finland in 1991.  The operating system that you are most likely acquainted with is Microsoft Windows.  Windows operating systems are found on the majority of computers today.  Linux is found on…well, not many but it is gaining presence worldwide.

Ubuntu, differs from Linux in that it is much more user-friendly and windows-like.  This means that it has a nice user interface (looks good), is easy to use and closely resembles Microsoft Windows.

Oh, one very significant thing I forgot to mention; Ubuntu is free.  Yes, absolutely no cost.  Ubuntu also comes with many other free items that you must pay significant amounts for with other systems.  Ubuntu is sponsored by Mark Shuttleworth, a South African billionaire.

When you install Ubuntu you also get the Firefox browser, a quite useful email program named "Evolution."  It works quite well and has many games for free.  Oh yes, I almost forgot to mention you also get Open Office (OpenOffice.org) which is free.  Open Office, in my opinion, compares very favorably with Microsoft Office (office.Microsoft.com).  That was hard for me to say since I am a staunch supporter of Microsoft but this works very well – for free.

Ubuntu gained one new user and supporter about a month ago when I installed it on an old notebook. It is now all I run on that computer.  Ubuntu will run on new computers and old low-end computers alike.  I tried it on a very old computer several years ago that wouldn’t run Windows XP but ran Ubuntu like it was brand new.

Ubuntu doesn’t need all the power of the newer Windows machines.  If you have an older computer and aren’t totally tied to the MS systems you may want to try Ubuntu before you toss it out. 

Before you run out and install it make sure you read my next column where I will cover a few more interesting things about Ubuntu.  By-the-way, this column was written entirely on my Ubuntu system using OpenOffice and worked wonderfully.

Tags: african word, alternative windows, bantu language, Broom, desmond tutu, free, geeks, linus torvalds, Madela, mark shuttleworth, maverick, microsoft, microsoft windows, operating system, OS, straws, ubuntu, unbuntu, university of helsinki, user interface, windows operating systems

As I stated last week, I annually provide links to all of the sites we have visited throughout the previous year at Double Click.

Here is part 2. Remember, if the site addresses are too long to type I have shortened them with bit.ly. Here they are in their order of appearance with short descriptions of each.

• Yahoo! Mail (mail.yahoo.com) the most popular free online email provider.
• Windows Live/Hotmail (live.com or hotmail.com) the next most popular online email site.
• Gmail (gmail.com) next in the online email list, and my personal favorite. I use it for most of my email needs.
• AOL Mail (webmail.aol.com) last in the popular email list, and my least favorite. Yeah, the world finally agrees with me!
• Gmail hacked? (bit.ly/9u1CZi) here are instructions on what you should do if your Gmail account is hacked, such as someone other than you getting your password and changing it. The other email providers have this too. Just search for them if needed.
• KeePass (keepass.info) an app that will keep all of your usernames and passwords in one secure location. Can be used on your computer, thumb drive and on most Smart Phones.
• Lucy Phone (lucyphone.com) when you are put on hold for too long let this site call you back as soon as a real person comes online. You don’t have to wait on hold.
• Windows Live Mail (bit.ly/aMeCl4) downloadable email program from Microsoft (replaced Outlook Express).
• IMAP (bit.ly/bYXOtk) explains what IMAP does with your email. This could be good and could be bad. Just be careful if you use it.
• Run Pee (runpee.com) check out current movies for the best place to take a “pee” break and not miss anything.
• Multiple RSS readers, reader.google.com, Viigo.com, bloglines.com, feedreader.com. If you don’t know what RSS is, Google it and find out if you want to use one of these.
• Google Calendar Sync (bit.ly/google-cal-sync) easily synchronizes your Outlook calendar with Google’s calendar.
• Skype (skype.com) and Google Voice (voice.google.com) two different but similar telephony apps, complete with many details. So check the sites carefully.
• 43marks.com, create your own ultimate start page with your favorite links.
• MedicAlert (medicalert.org) identify your medical condition and give rescue personnel necessary info.
• TAC Drive (tacdrive.com) similar to above but I like it much better.
• Blogger.com here you can create your own blog site very easily.
• Heritage Basket Weaving & Chair Caning (hbs1991.wordpress.com) a friend’s site using Live Writer.
• Windows Live Essentials (bit.ly/windowle) several very good apps from Microsoft including Live Writer.

  That is all for 2010, see you next week to start 2011!

Tags: appearance, blank mail, Double Click, email providers, gmail account, keepass, lucy, microsoft, outlook express, previous year, real person, smart phones, thumb drive, usernames and passwords, yahoo, yahoo mail

Several weeks ago I did a couple of articles about tricks using Microsoft Word and your responses truly surprised me.  I thought that I may hear from a couple of Office Geeks but I heard from quite a few of you.  First, thanks for the emails, I always enjoy them even when you disagree…that tells me that they are being read! 

Recent "emailers" have asked me to add a couple of Excel Tricks so today that is what we will do.  I cannot imagine that there are that many of you Excel readers out there but because of the email requests I will certainly give you some info.

I will figure that Excel users know all of the basics on how to write a formula, etc. so I will skip those things.  If you don’t know those basics you need to invite me to your office for a couple of training sessions.

Conditional Formatting is a basic staple of Excel; however, it has been my experience that very few people use it since, at first glance, it looks a little intricate.  I guarantee once you try out Conditional Formatting (CF to save space) a few times you will want to continue to learn different, very practical ways to use it.

CF allows you to change the formatting of an individual cell based on the results being displayed in that cell. For instance, you could make the text in the cell bold and purple if its result is greater than a certain value. You could even color the background of a cell based on the result of a formula.  There are many possibilities. 

To start off with: select the cell, or group of cells, which you want to format according to its value or formula result.  For this example we will want to format the cell to bold yellow text with a red background if the resulting value is above nine.

For Excel 2003 or earlier choose the Format menu, Conditional Formatting and then "Formula Is".

For Excel 2007 and above select the Home ribbon, the Styles group, Conditional Formatting. Drop down to New Rule and select "Format only cells that contain".

From here they will be similar, so choose the "greater than" option. Next enter the number (9 for our example) then change the text format color, bold it and the fill (the background cell color).

When the answer to a formula or the actual number entered into a cell is above nine, the cell will be highlighted for easy recognitions.

You can also apply this for dates, words, etc.  Play with CF and see how you can utilize it.   This was a very basic look at Conditional Formatting.  It contains many more features.  Let me know what you think after you give it a try.

Tags: Conditional Formatting, excel, microsoft, office

Today we will continue on with our last week’s discussion about tricks and tips for Office, which generated a lot of email, thanks!

Try this.

Open up a blank Word document and type the following sentence on a new blank line (without quotes) exactly as it appears here, without edits for spelling or capitalization. "teh cta adn teh hta cmoes bcak." Now press enter to go to the next line.

I bet you ended up with something similar to, "The cta and the hta comes back." Word automatically corrects most of the words for you. It also left two of them with red squiggly lines under them. Also, you may have one “comes” with a green squiggle. The red squiggles mean that Word could not find the word in its built-in auto-correcting dictionary. The MS dictionary has thousands of words and checks each word you type against the massive list. If the word isn’t present in the dictionary it marks it with the squiggle.

The green squiggle means that grammatically Word has an issue with the word. You handle the green ones the same as the reds. This green is unwarranted, so you must use your own brain on occasion.

To correct the spelling/grammar, use your mouse and touch (hover is the geek term) the offending word, then right click. Doing so will bring up a list of words that are close. Find the one that is correct and click it…presto, the spelling is corrected. You can easily correct the two above as "cat" and "hat." Even though Word’s grammar suggests “come” and not “comes” that is not correct.

What about the auto-corrected words? If you noticed Word also capitalized the first word in the sentence. You have just experienced another facet of Microsoft’s "Autocorrect" feature.

Go to another new line and type "(r)" with a space after it and you get the registered symbol. Try typing "(c)" and see it change to copyright symbol. Last but not least try, “:)”. Cool isn’t it?

There are many more autocorrects. Take a look at them in Word using:

Office 2010: File, Options, Proofing and then click, “AutoCorrect Options.”

Version 2007: Click the Office Orb, Word Options, Proofing and then click, “AutoCorrect Options.”

Versions 2003 and earlier: Click on Tools, “AutoCorrect Options.”

No matter which version you have you will now be at the same screen and may scroll down the list. You can play with the checked items, but be careful. None of them can destroy you, but they may make Word operate differently than you are used to.

You can add your own items to AutoCorrect. Let’s say that you always type "dog" as "dgo." In the AutoCorrect window type "dgo" in the left box under, "Replace" and then type "dog" under "With" then click the “Add” button. To finish, click OK at the bottom of the window and try it out on a document. Next time you type “dgo” it will autocorrect to “dog.”

If you wish to remove one of the items from the list just scroll down the list, select it and click the “Remove” button.

WARNING: I had an adult student once who decided to try this out at his office. The name of the company was "Arnold’s Road Equipment" (actual name of the company was changed to protect the innocent). He wanted to speed up his typing so he added "are" to be replaced by his company name. Think about that one for a couple of seconds. True story!

Tags: Auto, Autocorrect, Correct, excel, microsoft, office, PowerPoint, Word

When I originally started writing this column years ago it was going to be devoted mostly to Microsoft Office products.  Since that time I have written about those products and most everything under the sun, at least computer-wise.

Today, I am going back to the beginning and will answer questions I have received from several readers over the past months.  So today and for the next few weeks we will look at some tips for Office applications.

So you are writing a long document in Microsoft Word.  Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to track all of the changes made in that document throughout its history?  Tracking changes is a handy feature if you know you will be working on the file for a long time or if you are working on a document with others.  This will allow you to see what has transpired throughout the document’s life. 

To turn on tracking in versions before 2007 use the TOOLS menu and select "Track Changes." For version 2007 and later go to REVIEW tab on the ribbon and in the "Tracking" group, choose "Track Changes." 

Do not be alarmed. I am sure you will have many red lines, vertical bars and other unknown effects pop up on your document.  The text you add/delete will show up in red (maybe with lines) and some changes will be noted in a red comment box along the margin.  Personally, I do not like to track changes in a document since it gets sort of "junky" looking.  However, there are some really good reasons to track a document.

If you are feeling like you are seeing red a little too much, just reverse the steps for starting tracking and they will disappear.   You may also have to click an indented button in the Tracking group.

When you are on the receiving end of a tracked document you should review each of the changes shown.  To agree with a comment choose the "Accept Change" icon.  If you have reviewed the entire document and agree with all of the changes you can choose, "Accept All Changes."

Then as you edit the document your changes will also be recorded and tracked for the next person’s input.
 
As I started writing this I realized MS Office has many versions people still use so I would have to write three instructions for each tip.  The following is one of those, so check which version you have before changing the settings.

When you select text in Word (also Excel, PowerPoint, and several other Office programs) a little "Mini Toolbar" pops up over the selected text.  It has the bold, italics, font face, font size and many other formatting options available for you to easily click and change.  But if you are like me you prefer other ways to format your text and the mini-bar just gets in the way.

Here is how to remove it in three different versions.

Office 2003 and earlier, the versions without the ribbon:  Choose Tools, Customize, Options and then uncheck, "Show ScreenTips on toolbars" and/or "Show shortcut keys in ScreenTips."

Office 2007, the first with the ribbon:  Click the Office Orb button, Word Options, Popular, (which most likely will already be chosen) under "Top options for working with Word." Uncheck "Show Mini Toolbar on selection."

Last but not least: the latest version Office 2010:  File, Options, General, User Interface Options and finally uncheck, "Show Mini Toolbar on Selection."

If you try either of these and do/don’t like them, let me know.

Tags: excel, microsoft, office, PowerPoint, Tracking, Word

I receive many emails with questions regarding RSS feeds, so it must be time to revisit them.

RSS means (pick one) “RDF Site Summary”, “Rich Site Summary”, or more commonly “Really Simple Syndication”.  There may be others out there.  I have no idea what the problem is with picking one name for this feature.   “Really Simple Syndication” seems to be the most popular.

How would you like to get regular revisions on sites you often visit without having to go there each time you want to check for new updates or “news feeds”?  That is RSS.  You can receive the site’s latest information whether text, audio, video or just about any other form of media in RSS feeds.

There are basically two steps for using RSS.

First you need a RSS Reader which allows you to read the news feeds.  Be aware…there are millions!  Try Google’s Reader and see what you get.  If you have a BlackBerry, as I do, you can use Viigo.com.  A good basic freebie is Bloglines.  You can also use Mozilla’s Firefox or Thunderbird.  The possibilities are endless.  The last one I will mention is “FeedReader” which is an old favorite of mine.  Just pick one out, and try it. If you like it, keep using it. If not, toss it since they are all free.

FeedReader is a good choice for a new person just starting out with RSS.  This is because it has several categories where “Feeds” are already set up.  You can play with them and see how they work before adding your own.  Also FeedReader looks a lot like a regular email program so you don’t have to get used to a new GUI (Graphical Use Interface).  Again, there are a multitude of readers out there — try them and find one you like.

All readers work very similarly, some just have more “buttons and bells”.  Usually you click on the category that you want to read, say “Sports, Baseball” and a list of recent news items will be made available.  Click on the item/feed you wish to read (there will be a sentence or two describing it) and enjoy.

Next, a site must be configured for a RSS “feed”.  You don’t have anything to do with that, it is done by the web site.

RSS feeds are usually very easy to spot.  Go to almost any news site and look for the standard RSS logo.  It is usually an orange square with rounded edges. There is a dot in the lower left corner with two arches pointing to the NE corner.  Give RSS feeds a try and you can stay up-to-date with many of your favorite sites.  I don’t use the RSS logo on my page.  It simply says, “Entries RSS“.

Click the orange link. When the page opens choose the area you like and copy the URL into your reader’s new feed area.  Experiment because you can add and delete feeds at will.

There are “feeds” for everything. Just find the orange emblem and try it.  Try one of my favorites at the Weather Channel.

Tags: Double Click, feed, Firefox, Gmail, google, microsoft, mozilla, news, rss