Port Macquarie Seniors Computer Group Incorporated… November. Newsletter.

Volume: 16

Issue: 11

Nov. 2017

Contacts. Port Macquarie Seniors Computer Group Inc.

P.O. Box2135, Port Macquarie. NSW. 2444.

Email: portseniors.pc@gmail.com

Web Address: www.portseniorspc.org.au

Committee.

Peggy McC.

President & Web

Administrator.

Barry D.

Secretary.

Graham C.

Treasurer.

Rosemary C.

Membership Officer.

Odette C.

Social Secretary.

Anne C.

Committee Member.

Sel C.

Newsletter Editor.

Disclaimer: This Newsletter is provided “As is.” without warranty of any kind.

Each Reader assumes complete risks as to the accuracy and subsequent use of its contents.

President Peggy’s Comments.

WELCOME to our last Newsletter for this year.

Looking back over the year, it has been a very busy time.

My sincerest thanks to all those wonderful helpers

throughout the year, who have “pitched” in and helped

keep our Group going whilst we have had

Committee Members away due to illness.

Looking forward to next year, we have some exciting lessons planned.

Go to our Classes page, to have a look. More details regarding the content of the

lessons will be in place shortly.

I am always on the lookout for new things to explore, please let me know if there

is something you would like to learn.

Some members are concerned the classes may not run, if the class numbers are

too low.

We are committed to paying the rental for the Tech. room for all days we have

booked with the Library, so as far as I am concerned, as long as I am taking the

lessons, and we have at least two members in class it will run.

Thank you to those Members who have paid their memberships for 2018.

This does give us some idea of how to plan for next year.

The arrangements for booking classes for February and March 2018 plus the

January Monthly Meeting at the Library Meeting room, will be online, or phone

65597439 ON OR AFTER 15th JANUARY. thru to the Monthly Meeting.

The $2.00 entrance fee into the Monthly Meeting will be collected on the day.

In the meantime all those booked into the Christmas Get Together will I am sure

have an enjoyable time. Microsoft has donated a Windows 10 Pro O/S. There

will be some Gift Vouchers and other prizes.

As our year draws to a close, I take this opportunity to wish each and everyone of

you a wonderful Christmas. Enjoy the time you spend with family and friends.

Above all—drive safely, and care for others.

Regards Peggy.

Social Secretary’s Report

The winner of the Lucky Door Prize was Rose D’A.

Many thanks to our Monthly Meeting Morning Tea helpers. In alphabetical order:

Lorraine F, Margaret F, Glennis K, Lorraine L, Pat M, Wendy S and Judy T.

Christmas Get Together

The food will be served at 11.30 from tables at the back of the room.

When President Peggy announces the food is ready please start the line from the Southern side and move towards the windows. There will be a START sign to help you.

You can serve yourselves tea and percolated coffee after 11.30 whenever you would like it – before, with or after your food.

A special thanks to Rose from PCBC and Peggy for organizing our Christmas Get Together.

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and a very happy New Year.

Regards, Odette

Being a new computer user can be nerve racking, as there are many things to learn and know about computers and how to use them. Here are a few Tips.

Backup Important Data. A computer or its hard drive can fail at any time and without warning. When it does all your personal documents, letters, pictures, music, and videos, is lost and in many situations cannot be recovered or costs lots of money to be recovered. Make sure you have backups of all your important data in case your computer fails.

Protect the Computer. Make sure to protect your computer from electrical surges, and blackouts. At the very least, every computer user should have a decent surge protector on their computer and phone line if they use a modem. Surge protectors can help protect your computer during an electrical storm and could save you hundreds of dollars in repair costs if it were to get damaged.

Keep the Computer and its Programs Updated. There is no such thing as a perfect software program or hardware drivers. After the developer has released their program they may discover errors and release updates to fix these problems. In the case of major software programs and operating systems, there can be several hundred updates and service packs released during its lifetime. Making sure your computer and its programs are up-to-date can help prevent problems.

Keep the Computer safe from Viruses, Spyware, Phishing, and Spam. Every computer connected to the Internet or other networks need to be protected. We recommend having some form of antivirus program installed and running on the computer. It is also a good idea to have a malware detection program running on the computer to pickup any spyware or malware that an antivirus may not have detected. Finally, every computer user should also be fully aware of other security risks such as chain mails, phishing, and spam while on the Internet.

Read, Understand, and Watch for Tricks. One of the most common mistakes a new computer user makes is agreeing to dialog text boxes, agreements, or other prompts without reading the dialog text box or understanding it. Before clicking any OK or Install button, make sure you understand what you are doing. If you do not understand the prompt, click the Cancel button or close the box. Also, while installing any program watch for any check boxes. Free programs, plugins, and updates have check boxes that ask if it is OK to install additional programs onto the computer, these boxes are often checked by default.

Keep the Computer Clean. Keeping the computer physically clean can keep the computer running smoothly, prevent issues such as overheating, and protect you from getting sick. While cleaning the computer, it is also a good idea to clean the data on the computer. Microsoft Windows users can run ScanDisk to check the hard drive for errors. It is also a good idea to go through the installed programs and uninstall anything you no longer use.

Be familiar with free alternatives. Be familiar with and know about free alternatives to popular commercial programs, this can save you lots of money.

Take Full Advantage of all the Mouse Buttons and Wheels. Many new computer users only use the left mouse button. Use the mouse to its full potential by also using the right mouse button to access the context menu. For example, if you highlight text and then right-click on that text, it brings up a menu that allows you to copy, cut, and perform other functions on that text. Similar functions are available when right-clicking on files. Although most users already use the mouse wheel to scroll up and down on a web page, this wheel can also often be used as a third-button by pressing down on the wheel. Some computer mice also allow the wheel to be pushed right-and-left to perform additional features, such as moving forward and back on a web page. Finally, many computer mice also have side buttons, sometimes called thumb buttons, that can be programmed to do any number of features, including going back on a web page or opening a magnifier.

Become Familiar with and use Shortcut Keys. Every computer user should become familiar with and use keyboard shortcuts. Knowing these shortcuts can drastically increase your productivity on the computer and make your overall computer experience much more enjoyable.

Printed with permission from: www.computerhope.com.

Meeting Agenda.

Next Monthly Meeting at Port Macquarie Library, Meeting Room, on: 29th.Jan.2018.

Class Venue.

Classes will be held at:

Port Macquarie Library

Tech. Room.

Class Information.

Visit our Website :

www.potrseniorspc.org.au

click on “Classes” select a class of

interest and click on “Contact Us”

if you wish to enroll.

Class Fees.

Individual Classes : $5.00

“Get to know Win10” -$20.00

(4 Week Course)

Payable in advance!

Refreshments.

Tea/Coffee and Biscuits are

included in class fees.

Remember!!

Wear your current Name Tag

to all Classes and Monthly

Meetings!

If using a Library Computer or

Group Laptop

February. 2018 Computer Classes. 1/2 Thur. 9.30am—12.00pm Internet & Downloading Safety Peggy

8/2 Thur. 9.30am—12.00pm Win10—Free Programs, Money, etc. Peggy

15/2 Thur. 9.30am—12.00pm M/S Excel Intro to Spreadsheets, Lesson 1 Peggy

22/2 Thur. 9.30am—12.00pm M/S Excel Digital Inventory, Lesson 2 Peggy

March. 2018 Computer Classes. 1/3 Thur. 9.30am—12.00pm M/S Excel Spreadsheets, Lesson 3 Peggy

8/3 Thur. 9.30am—12.00pm M/S Excel Spreadsheets, Lesson 4 Peggy

15/3 Thur. 9.30am—12.00pm GIMP Intro. to GIMP, Lesson 1 Peggy

22/3 Thur. 9.30am—12.00pm GIMP Improving Images, Lesson 2 Peggy

The President, Committee and

Helpers wish you a Merry Christmas and a Safe and Prosperous New Year.