June 1, 2003

Computer Tips for Small Businesses

http://www.saundersbusiness.com

IN THIS ISSUE
  1. BEGINNING USERS - How to change your monitor settings
  2. INTERMEDIATE USERS - For years I have talked to medium to large companies about their firewalls 
  3. ADVANCED USERS - You have probably thought, if you haven't already, that I can create a web page, it can't be that hard. 
  4. CUSTOMER'S REAL WORLD ISSUES - This month our subject is E-Bay.
 

1.  BEGINNING USERS - Computer facts that you should know about to make your computing easier.

For 13 years, we have been helping companies and individual, small business computer users with their computer needs.  There is not a week that goes by that we do not have a person ask us about the most basic computer questions.  Below we will mention and answer a few of the most common questions.

  •  

 How do I change my screen settings so the information is larger - or smaller?

Your screen settings determine how much information you can see on the screen at one time.  The larger the print size, the less information you can see.  Conversely, the smaller the print, the more information you can see.  The number of settings depends on your computer, the amount of memory, the monitor size and the video card.  We will not get into that at this time.  I will show you how to adjust it and the computer will determine how much flexibility you have.  If you do not understand, the information below will probably clear things up for you.

You can control your screen settings by doing the following: 

  1. Right click on the screen any where there is not an icon.  This will bring up the screen below.

  1. Next left click on the properties menu option.  The following screen will appear or something like it.

  1. Next select the setting tab. You will see the "Screen Resolution" slide bar and the "Color Quality" dropdown list.  

  1. First select the "Color Quality" you want.  The farther down on the list you go the better the color quality and the slower the screen will react.  
  2. Once selected, you can now select the "Screen Resolution" by clicking and holding your mouse on the slide bar and moving it to the left or right.  The higher the numbers the smaller the print and pictures will be on the screen, but you will see more on the screen
  3. When finished, click "Apply" then "OK" - your screen will go blank and then come up with a message asking if you want to save the settings, click "Yes" and you are finished.

 
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2.  INTERMEDIATE USERS - For years I have talked to medium to large companies about their firewalls (computer protection to stop people from the internet from getting inside your computer or network).  For the most part, my customers are small - 1 to 10 computers and generally do not think about firewalls.  Now that many of us have unlimited fast access to the internet using ADSL, Cable, DSL and are connected most if not all the time, there are times when people can access our computer without us knowing it.  They will access your computer and get information, use your computer to send out e-mails, and many other inappropriate things.

I recently found out about www.zonelabs.com and their FREE fire wall software.  To get to the free software go to the web site, go to Home/Office products, and then ZoneAlarm.  This is a free download that will give you some protection from intruders.  They have upgrades that they want you to buy but at this time, all I have is the free program.

The way it works is after you download the program and install it, you get warnings when someone is trying to access you computer.  You can accept or reject the request this time or always.  The same applies if you have a program that is trying to access the internet.  After the initial set up and flurry of activity, it settles down and seems to be a good application.

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3. ADVANCED USERS - You have probably thought, if you haven't already, that I can create a web page, it can't be that hard.  For the most part, that is true.  Microsoft FrontPage is a great web development tool that you can use to create simple or complicated sites.  We use FrontPage for all our new development and have had no problems.

You have also probably heard that you should use DreamWeaver if you are going to create a web site.  I do not agree.  DreamWeaver is a great program and we have used it in the past and will probably use it in the future on certain projects.  It is definitely a more complicated and flexible program than FrontPage but why go through all the learning curve for one or two web sites.  If you are going to create web sites for a living, you might consider the DreamWeaver program but even then, it is not a foregone conclusion.  

There are three parts to creating a web site.  First you need a Domain Name.  Second you need a web host (server to host your web site for all the world to visit). Third, you need the web site that you create.  After the fact you will need to list and promote your site, but we will talk about that in a later issue.

Back to the issue at hand, once you have your copy of FrontPage, install it and open the program.  FrontPage has a feel much like Microsoft Access rather than Excel or Word.  I suggest you create a test web page first using the FrontPage wizards.  Once done, you can see what it did and begin to understand that a web site is a bunch of pages and each page is a file.  The site is just a collection of files that interact with each other.  Always be sure to optimize your pictures and graphics using a program like Paint Shop Pro so your picture size is as small as possible and pay attention to file management - you want your pictures all located in the Images folder and even sub folders within images.

That is about it for now, maybe this will get you started and you can play with it from here.

 
4. CUSTOMER'S REAL WORLD ISSUES - What our customers have been asking for over the last month.

Each month, we try to include a real world issue that our customers have requested.  

This month our subject is E-Bay.  I have had a few customers ask me about E-Bay this month, how to sign up and how to list an item.  I will not take the time and bore you with the details of how to set up an account with E-Bay, but I will say that their online sign up is easy to understand.  Their help screens are good and easy to follow - you just need time.  And take the time to read the fine print and be sure to record your username, password and special question.  Then respond to the email that they send to you.

When you get ready to list your first auction item, take your time. Read the notes and follow the instructions.  They will need a credit card or bank account to charge for the fees that are incurred.  Be real careful when listing and note, you have the opportunity to list your item in a second category, THIS DOUBLES YOUR FEES!. So be careful.  You have listing fees and selling fees as well as any costs you have to pack, ship or use an online pay service so add up all your costs.

I wrote this article to caution you.  Be careful out there.  E-Bay is great but they do charge.  When you see $.05 and $.10 they add up quickly and be sure you stay current on the charges.

One last note, they now have a good picture handler that will add your digital picture to the auction.  They charge for this but it works and works well.  You can take the pictures with your digital camera or with a regular camera and have the pictures printed to a CD.  You will want this first before you begin listing your items on E-Bay.

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Thank you for your time. We hope you've found our tips helpful!

Rob Saunders

Copyright 2003 by Saunders Business Solutions. All rights reserved