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After more than 30 wonderful years as a writer, I have decided to retire. I know what you’re thinking, “He’s much too young to retire.” Okay, so maybe you are not thinking that, but it’s my final column, so would it kill you to work with me here? Thank you. All kidding aside, I have been the beneficiary of a long, rewarding career as a writer and I remain grateful to all newspapers and magazines that considered my work worthy of publication. As “Mr. Modem,” my words of occasional wisdom have appeared in The Reader’s Digest, The Wall St. Journa...
Q. Sometimes people I send email to tell me that when they open my message, their computer freezes. I’m sending you one of my emails that did this. Can you tell me what I’m doing wrong that might be causing this? A. The email you sent me contains eight graphical animations, including four animated closings, “Goodbye,” “Adios,” “CUL8TR,” and “Sayonara.” While I understand that “cutesy” is in the eyes of the beholder, I would encourage some measure of restraint when it comes to email “enhancements” of this type for several reasons. First, all...
Q. Is there any way I can reduce the size of a photo that was given to me in .JPG format? A. There sure is: Irfanview is a free graphics viewer/editor. Once installed, click "File", then "Open" to display your photo. With the picture displayed, click "Image," then "Resize/Resample". You will be able to choose from several options in the next window, including setting a new size by typing in the pixel dimensions, making the new picture a percentage of the original, or selecting from several standard sizes. If you click the Half button, you can...
Q. How do I capture or save what appears on screen? A. Depending on the version of Windows being used, press the Windows Logo Key and the Print Screen key, which is sometimes displayed as the PrntScrn or PrtSc key. Pressing the Print Screen key copies what appears on screen to the Windows Clipboard. You can then paste it into another document or email message. If you want to capture only the active window – the window in which you are currently working – and not any other window that might be lurking in the background, hold down the ALT key...
Q. I use Facebook in a browser on my Android phone. I don’t understand why, if I can easily use it in a browser, do I need to install the Facebook app? A. Excellent question! You certainly can continue to use Facebook as you are doing and it will continue to work pretty much as it normally does. But some things won’t work. Anything that requires Flash, for example, is not supported in an Android browser. If it requires Flash to run, most developers have created an app to make it work. So do you have to use the Facebook app? No, but keep in min...
Q. It seems like lots of “experts” have varying opinions about Net Neutrality. Can you explain it in layman’s terms? I am against the government sticking its nose into my business, but I don’t understand the issue. A. Net Neutrality 101. It’s a complex subject about which volumes have been written, but in its simplest form, Net Neutrality is a principle that states that all information flowing across the Internet should be treated equally. With more people streaming data-rich video, Skype (Internet telephone), playing online games, watching...
Q. My keyboard has several diacritic marks, including the tilde and circumflex accent. How does one place such a mark over a letter? A. Diacritic marks? Circumflex accents? Pulleeeze! Around here we refer to those as doohickies and squiggly things, so kindly refrain from using such high-falootin’ technical jargon in the future. I do have a reputation to protect, you know. Turning to the squiggly thing that is also known as a tilde, on the keyboard it’s a single character. But since you cannot press two keys at the same time – and lord knows...
Q. Is there a governing body that regulates the Internet in the United States? A. No one person, company, organization or governmental agency oversees the Internet at this time, though that is certainly subject to change. There are some individuals who feel the Internet should be overseen by the government, much like a public utility. At present, however, it is a globally distributed network comprised of many voluntarily interconnected autonomous networks. It operates without a central governing body with each constituent network setting and...
Q. I use my iPad during business meetings and the clicking sound it makes when I unlock it is distracting. Is there some way to silence that noise? A. Having invested years perfecting the art of stating the obvious, my best recommendation would be to unlock your iPad before the meeting begins. However, if the sound your iPad or iPhone makes when you lock or unlock it is ruining your life – or perh...
Q. I know you’re probably sick of hearing from us XP user/whiners, but it is such a good operating system, I just don’t want to move to something else. I have heard that Microsoft was losing money on XP, but why can’t they just charge XP users and continue supporting it? A. Microsoft was not losing money on XP. In fact, it was one of their most successful products ever. But as an operating system, it simply ran its course and it was time for the company to move on – exactly as it had announced years in advance. The same will hold true for Win...
Q. I’m using high-speed Internet over a phone line. It works okay, but on occasion it goes so slow that most sites never finish downloading. Is this a provider problem? A. I would start your investigation with your Internet service provider, and initially determine what connection speed range you should have. Your provider’s website will have that information or you can call their customer service department. With that information in hand, run several speed tests using a site such as speedtest.net, bandwidthplace.com or cnet.com/internet-speed-...
Q. Is there is any way to print the contents of a folder so I can obtain a list of the filenames, sizes and dates modified? A. Yes, you can print a list of the files and subfolders contained in any Windows folder, and while this can be accomplished within Windows itself, using a third‑party program makes the task a lot easier. One such program is PrintFolder at http://no‑nonsense‑software.com/freeware. PrintFolder can print files, subfolders or both, and it includes several other customizable options. If you’re a purist and prefer to print y...
Q. I’ve heard there is a way to cheat when playing Solitaire. I hate to ask, but can you shed any light on this? A. I don’t know why as many people ask about this as they do, particularly since Solitaire is a game you play against yourself, but Mr. Modem is here to answer questions, not to judge. Well, okay, I judge, too, but I keep my opinions to myself. Well, okay, maybe I don’t keep my opinions to myself, but I only share them with my cats. Here’s how to extricate yourself from Solitaire when you need a card, but it’s just not coming yo...
Q. How can I explore the various settings in Gmail without messing up what I currently have? Is there any place I can see demonstrations of what the various Gmail features and options do? A. Any changes you make to Gmail through its user settings are easily reversible by returning to the setting in question and changing it back to the way it was. As an alternative, since Gmail is free, you can create a test email account for yourself, then experiment until your head explodes. If you test settings in this manner and find something you...
Q. When I go to my online bank accounts and other sites that I have to sign into, does it make any difference whether I sign out or just click the X to leave? I’m thinking it doesn’t make any difference, but what is your opinion, Mr. M? A. Yes, it makes a huge difference. Make that HUGE difference! Never ever, ever, EVER leave an account that you logged into without logging out. Failing to log out is tantamount to departing your home and leaving the door open. 99.99 percent of the time everything will be fine when you return. On the other hand,...
Q. What happens when an external hard drive runs out of space? Does that mean I have to spend money to buy a new one? A. When you start to run out of space on your external drive, one possibility is to purchase another, larger drive. A better option is to take a look at your saved files and see if you can thin the herd. Try to make a point of periodically reviewing your files and deleting items you don’t really and truly need to save. Old files are a lot like old clothes in a closet: If you haven’t worn something in a year or two (or used a fil...
Q. I am debating about buying a new laptop with Windows 8. I know that some people don’t like Windows 8. Do you think Microsoft will keep this format in the future or will it go back to something like XP or the Windows 7 format? How do you feel about Windows 8? A. I think Windows 8 is fine. I like the touchscreen interface, which is what it was designed for, though it certainly can be used with a traditional mouse and keyboard. Historically, whenever a new operating system makes its debut, there are people who like it and people who don’t lik...
Q. When I try to print certain photos, I get an error message that tells me that Windows cannot connect with my printer and that I need to restart the spooler. What the heck is a spooler and how do I restart it? A. Spooler alert! A print spooler is software that temporarily stores print jobs on your computer’s hard drive or in memory (RAM) until the printer is ready to print them. Think of it as a print queue. The way a print spooler is typically restarted is to restart the computer. That clears the queue and resets it. To manually restart t...
Q. Can you recommend a simple program to move pictures from my Android phone to my Windows 7 computer? A. You really don’t need a program or an app to do that. Instead, follow these steps and you should be all set: First, connect your smartphone to your computer using the USB sync cable that came with your phone or is available at any Radio Shack. Once connected, a USB icon will appear in the Noti...
Q. I want to create a new folder in my Documents folder so I can consolidate several folders into one. The problem is, when I create a new folder, it appears at the top of the list of folders, and the ones I need to move into this new folder start with a “W.” I cannot drag the “W” folders to the top of the list to get them into the new folder. Do you have a solution for me, Mr. M? A. Folders will appear alphabetically, so click the column heading and it will sort A to Z. Click the heading again and it will sort from Z to A. You cannot, however...
Q. I went to delete a file and it just deleted without asking for confirmation. I intended to delete it, so the lack of a confirmation wasn’t a big deal, but I prefer having a “safety net” requiring me to confirm any deletions. Do you know why it would do this? A. Did you perhaps speak to it harshly? It sounds like your Recycle Bin settings may have changed, but it’s easy to get them back on track: Right-click your Recycle Bin and select Properties. Select the Global tab, which will encompass all hard drives. (In Windows 7, select the General T...
Q. When I go to Google and search for items to buy, later on I see those same or related items as ads at the top of other pages I visit. It sure seems like I’m being tracked and then being solicited soon thereafter. Is that what is happening or do you think it is just a coincidence? A. It is definitely not a coincidence. Tracking (also called search profiling) is an inherent part of life online today. Everything we do online leaves a trail, and in your situation, Google (and other search engines) do indeed monitor searches and use that data t...
Q. I’m dithering between purchasing an SD card and a thumb drive for the storage of photos and documents. Is one better than the other or should I get an external hard drive? A. SD cards and thumb drives basically use the same technology. A thumb or flash drive plugs into a USB port and it is quickly removed so you can take it with you. Its small size also makes it easy to misplace so if your life is lacking drama and you enjoy a good adrenaline surge periodically, thumb drives are the way to go. In your situation, you can’t go wrong with eit...
Q. Whenever I open Internet Explorer, it asks me if I want it to be my default. Does that mean that it will be my start page? A. If a program is your default, it means when an action is initiated that requires the use of a third-party application (program), your default program will be the one selected. So if you click a link to a Web site in an email message, for example, if Internet Explorer is your default Web browser, it will open automatically to display the linked Web page. Your Start page, which is whatever page is displayed when you lau...
