Gmail signature file & vacation responder

Two Short-n-Quik Gmail tips – Updating your signature file and Out of Office message:

I am right in the midst of working with the tech team in moving an entire school district of teachers, administrators and students over to using Gmail as our shared email system.  It is so fascinating to watch the ways that people embrace change.  We have been using an older email system called Groupwise, made by Novell for 12+ plus years.  Some people are not happy with the change.  They like the current system and want to keep using it.  Others are clamoring to get on the new email system and start using it as soon as possible.

Some common questions have come up recently when using Gmail and I thought it might be helpful to you to share a few tips we are learning as we go along.  If you have a Gmail account and have ever wondered how to do the following, here are some short-n-quik instructions.

How to change your Gmail signature:
Log into Gmail
Click the gear symbol
Settings
General Tab
Scroll down to the signature box and enter your info
scroll to the bottom of the screen and click "save changes"

How to send out of office reply in Gmail:
In Gmail
Click the gear symbol
Settings
General Tab
Scroll down to the Vacation Responder: and fill in your info
scroll to the bottom of the screen and click "save changes"

If you need some techie help online or in person, please get in touch!
 

Google Chromebook - What is it like?

I got my hands on a new Google Chromebook today and thought I would share a few details~It is bigger than a net-book or an iPad in size but smaller than a standard size laptop.It is light and feels like it has about medium sturdiness. By this I mean I am not sure your dog could take a nap on it and it would come out unscathed. It could take a bump or 2 no problem but not really hard abuse.The Chromebook runs the Google Operating system which is a version of their web browser on steroids.To use a Chromebook on regular basis, you need to shift you world out to the cloud. What is the cloud you ask?It is a bunch of servers that Google owns and operates all over the country and even out in the ocean where you store your stuff. That's some redundancy if I ever saw it! Anyway, you save all your documents using GoogleDocs and Gmail for your email system. There are a ton of apps to download from the Chrome App Store many are free. A few we tried out today were File Cabinet and apps for email and docs. There is no school based server that we would use with a Chromebook. Instead, we move all our documents onto Docs and work from the internet. This begs the question of, "What happens when the internet goes down?" and the answer is you are pretty much out of luck and have to wait for it to return.I'll tell you more about this tomorrow, I've got to dash.Peace,Jean

10 Things I LOVE about my iPad!!

There are so many things to like about using an iPad but I have narrowed down a list of my top 10 things that I like about my Ipad here:

1. Fast on, Fast off – no long waits to get logged in.

2. Small and portable – we keep ours in the living room and it is always getting passes around to look up info.

3. Words With Friends!!!  My name is Jeanvt if you want to play!  If you like scrabble, you will like WWF!

4. Dual cameras make for easy picture taking.  I am currently trying to take a picture a day to collect a year in photos and it is so easy to just grab the iPad and snap a shot when the inspiration hits me!

5.  Love listening to podcasts or Hayhouse Radio – they have an app to listen in to some great shows.

6. Great for looking up recipes and using in the kitchen.  Hint,  if you are going to be cooking messy stuff, stick your IPad in a large ziplock bag to prevent it from getting all gunked up.

7. Flipboard is a really beautiful app that gives you news and articles of interest.  It is fun to ready and there are many great ideas to be found !    http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flipboard/id358801284?mt=8

8.  Ted talks – the app is free and gives you access to some amazing thoughtful discussions about  “Ideas worth spreading”  All the talks are 20 minutes or less.  A few of my favorite talks are given by:

 Brene Brown, The Power of Vulnerability,
Shawn Achor,  The Happy Secret to Better Work
Elizabeth Gilbert, Nurturing Creativity

http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ted/id376183339?mt=8

9.  ABC app –  this app for the TV station lets me snuggle in bed occasionally and catch up with Grey’s Anatomy~  http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/abc-player/id364191819?mt=8

10.  Documents 2 is a basic notepad/spreadsheet app  that you can take notes on and keep track of things.  I find myself using Documents 2  more and little pieces of paper here and there less!  It allows you to save your notes up up to the Cloud using  GoogleDocs .  In doing this way, you can get access to your notes on any computer!  http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/documents-2-free-spreadsheet/id314894105?mt=8

Hope you pick  up a good idea or 2 here. If you need help with your iPad or other gizmo, I would  love to show you the benefits of using one!  If you would like to have 1 on 1 iPad or other gizmo tutoring with me via Skype, Facetime or in person(in Chittenden County, Vermont)  please feel free to contact me here:  http://www.jeanthecomputertutor.com/contact

Pinterest? What is Pinterest? What is all the excitement about??

A few weeks ago a friend of mine, who is a big coupon hunter, was commenting about this website, www.pinterest.com   (pronounced like interest with a “P” at the beginning) that she had found where there were lots of interesting couponing resources.  She told me that it was an “invite only” site and if I wanted to check it out, she would send me an invite to get logged in.  I am always up a new online resource, so I accepted!

At first, I wasn’t quite sure what the site was all about but now as I have used it more and talked with more people about it, it is a fun, graphic way to collect things online that are of interest to you.  It can include whatever you are interested in!  You make pinboards and post pictures with links to pictures from other sites and blogs about the topics you decide.  Travel, Food, Wedding planning, Design, Garden, Health, and any other topic you want to create.  The website’s explanation goes like this,

Here's my Pinterest page

“Pinterest is a Virtual Pinboard.  Pinterest lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web.”

I’ll warn you that once you start using Pinterest you will find it mildly addicting because there is just so much fascinating stuff out there!  The more you use it, the more you will connect with others that share you interests and it just keeps growing.

Here are some steps to get started:

1. Go to www.pinterest.com and request an invite.  If you have a friend that is already using it, they can invite you also.  If you leave me your email below I will send you an invite!

2. Create a Profile of yourself.  Upload a picture of yourself and tell a little bit about you!  If you have a website, you can link to that in your profile.

3.  Start creating a few Pin boards to attach things you are interested in, by topic.  If you are an organization or business you can highlight your products/services by creating boards that do the following:

* Exclusive Product Offering – special offers for Pinterest members only
* Upcoming Events,Product Releases – new products and services
* How-tos  - Pin a video on your board about your product/service
* Coupons and QR Codes – post coupons for your business
* Online Catalog – highlight the items that you sell

Now I want to hear your thoughts on Pinterest.com.  Is this a site that you use or would like to give a try?  What do you think are the pros/cons of yet another social networking site? Please leave a comment below!


I would  love to show you the benefits of using this and any other social networking sites for personal or business use via Skype, Facetime or in person(in Chittenden County, Vermont)  please feel free to contact me here:  http://www.jeanthecomputertutor.com/contact

 

 

 

What are some affordable iPad cases?

With the rise of tablet usage there are also lots of accessories to go along with them.
There are lots of IPad cases on the market now and here are a link to some that are pretty reasonably priced.

http://www.miniinthebox.com/cases-for-ipad-2_c4762

http://www.overstock.com/search?keywords=ipad+case&SearchType=Header 

I would  love to show you the benefits of using an iPad!  If you would like to have 1 on 1 iPad tutoring with me via Skype, Facetime or in person(in Chittenden County, Vermont)  please feel free to contact me here:  http://www.jeanthecomputertutor.com/contact

Top 5 consumer complaints about using an iPad

Those of you that know me know that I love my iPad 2 for many reasons.  It is a tool that I use daily and it serves me well in many ways.  The fact that I am a regular iPad 2 user also gives me the opportunity to “kick the tires” on it and figure out the things that could be a little better on it.  

1.   The iPad is great for consuming information but not so great for creating information.  If you need to update your blog, type up a paper, or work on a webpage, it can be somewhat clunky to do on the iPad.  It is still easier to do these things in the laptop/desktop world.  The “Pages” word processing app for iPad is also about $10 and sometimes it has some compatibility issues with other business approved word processing programs much as MS Office.  On the other hand, the iPad is way better for taking in information such as music, books, photos, e-mail and web surfing.

2. Fingerprints on the screen are annoying.  Since the iPad is used primarily with your fingers to navigate around you will find that the oils from your hand will build up over time and you will have to use a soft cleaning cloth to keep it wiped off for the best visibility.

Fingerprints!

3. The battery is not replaceable.  It is sealed and non-replaceable so after the rechargeable battery wears out, the iPad’s lifespan is complete.  The battery is usually able to hold a 10 hour charge which for me is fantastic and only requires me to charge it about 1 per week.  You can probably get about 1000 charges over the life of the battery.

4. No Flash support – This is by far my biggest disappointment with my iPad.  Frequently I receive links in emails and newsletters that direct me to a movie that is created in Flash.  The iPad does not have any built in ability to support that so you have to look for 2^nd party apps that can play Flash or you have to go back to your desktop/laptop computer to watch them.  Here is some more info in this that explains it: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3675552?start=0&tstart=0

5. The iPad does not have USB port or an SD card slot.  If you want to print to a non-wifi enables printer of put some pictures on your iPad from your sd card, you have to purchase separate $30 adapters.

With these things being said, I still love my iPad and think if you are considering purchasing one you should know that these features are less than the benefits that you will find in having one.  I will talk about the benefits of the iPad in another post!  

I would  love to show you the benefits of using one!  If you would like to have 1 on 1 iPad tutoring with me via Skype, Facetime or in person(in Chittenden County, Vermont)  please feel free to contact me here:  http://www.jeanthecomputertutor.com/contact

How to Schedule a Group Meeting

Have you ever tried planning a meeting day and time using email?  It can be totally frustrating passing emails back and forth to come up with a common date and time that works for a group.  Enter Doodle.com  This is a quik-n-easy site that you can go to and set up the possible dates and times to meet.  You send the link to the Doodle.com page to the people you want to meet with and they all check the dates and times that work for them.  In no time, you have a nice little picture showing which date and time works best for everyone.
Here is a link to one that I did recently to give you an idea of what it looks like:

http://www.doodle.com/d5i8q3uf66ptrhae

So the next time you need to plan a meeting, remember to give www.doodle.com a try!
Jean

Do you need computer help?  Jean the Computer Tutor offers 1 on 1 computer tutoring via Skype, Facetime or in person(in Chittenden County, Vermont)  please feel free to contact me here:  http://www.jeanthecomputertutor.com/contact