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EMAIL ATTACHMENTS

CLEARING CACHES

Your Mac stores references to all the sites you’ve visited on the Internet so that pages load faster when you revisit those sites. The Mac also stores all kinds of other files on the computer. To help maintain an efficient system, it’s a good idea to empty the caches (pronounced cashes.)

To clear the Cache in Safari:

In Safari under the Safari menu, choose Empty Cache

To clear the Cache in Firefox:

In Firefox under the Firefox menu, choose Preferences

Click on the Advanced Tab

Click on Network

Click to Clear Now

To clear out all of the cached System files:

If a message appears about a file being in use, press Continue until all but those files have been deleted.

ADJUSTING THE BRIGHTNESS OF YOUR SCREEN

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ADDING FREQUENTLY USED ITEMS TO THE SIDEBAR

THE EASIEST WAY TO RENAME SOMETHING

RECENT ITEMS

To quickly return to something you’ve recently used:

1. Click on the Apple menu
2. Choose Recent Items
3. Follow the menu to reveal the list
4. Click on the item you want to open

COMPARING PHOTOS IN iPHOTO

Often you will have two similar pictures and it’s hard to decide which one is better. Instead of looking at one, then the other, you can compare them, side by side.

1. Click on the first photo

2. Hold down the Command key and click on the other photo

3. Click the Edit button in the bottom toolbar

4. They will open in the Edit mode, side by side

5. Now you can choose which one to keep or use in your project

Slow iPhone 3G

If you have a 3G or 3GS phone and you are experiencing a major slowing down since you upgraded to the new iOS4, try this:

Turn Off Spotlight:

1. In Settings, click General
2. Click Home Button
3. Remove the check Marks next to everything

You should notice a major improvement in the speed of things now.

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ZOOMING YOUR SCREEN

Do you ever want to quickly enlarge your screen so you can see something bigger?

1. Under the Apple menu, choose System Preferences

2. Click on the Mouse icon

3. Click to put a check mark next to Screen Zoom.

4. Click the Options for more choices.

5. It is set to use the Control key but you can choose a different key if you prefer.

6. You can also change how the screen moves when you zoom. Play with the different choices to see which works best for you.

7. Click Done

Now, anytime you hold down Control key and scroll with the mouse button, you’ll be ZOOMING! Try it.

KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS IN SAFARI

Instead of using your mouse’s scroll wheel or dragging the blue scroll bar, you can move down the page by pressing the Space Bar. Move up the page by holding down the Shift key and pressing the Space Bar.

To go Back to the previous page, instead of clicking the Back Arrow, press the Delete key.

HIDING PICTURES IN iPHOTO

If you have your Desktop Screen Saver set to use all the pictures in iPhoto, you may have certain pictures that you don’t want to include. Instead of creating a separate album specifically for the Screen Saver, you can hide selected photos.

In iPhoto, click on any picture you want to hide from view.

From the Photos menu, choose Hide Photo. An X will appear in the top right corner, indicating it is marked as Hidden.

If you don’t want to see Hidden photos in iPhoto, under the View Menu, re-select Hidden Photos to remove the check mark.

The picture is still in your Library, you just can’t see it.

To Unhide it, first, from the View menu, choose to show Hidden Pictures

Then select the photo that has the X on it and choose Unhide from the Photos menu

For more great iPhoto tips, check out the new video training series, Maximize Your Mac.

An Ingenious Solution for People With Two Homes, Two Computers

Many of my clients maintain two homes and want full computer access wherever they go. Some have a laptop, others have two iMacs. Often, keeping things current between their computers becomes a hassle.

A laptops is a viable solution if you don’t mind carrying it and you don’t need a big screen. Two iMacs gives you big screens but you have to copy your files, sync your information and update both computers as new software becomes available.

A third option is to buy one Mac Mini and then just purchase a monitor, keyboard and mouse for each location. (You can even use your current keyboard and mouse with the Mini.) The Mac-Mini is a complete computer, with a DVD drive, 5 USB ports and 2GB or 4GB of RAM and your choice of Hard Drive sizes.

The Mini is just 6.5 x 6.5 x 2 inches and weighs less than 3 pounds, making it really easy to carry back and forth. You just unplug it from one monitor and keyboard, travel, then plug it in to your other monitor when you arrive. Read all the tech specifications here.

It’s a great solution that will eliminate a lot of hassle and extra work so that you can just arrive and start Mac-ing!

If you’d like help transferring your current computer stuff to this new and easy solution, call or email me today!

Favorite iPhone App of the Month: Solitaire

Admit it–you like to play Solitaire. It relaxes you, clears your mind and it’s fun. So why not play on your iPhone? There are a lot of Solitaire games available in the App store. My favorite is Sol Free Solitaire, with 6 free versions of the game including 2 versions of Klondike and Baker’s Game.

Instead of dragging cards, just tap once on the card you want to move, then tap where you want to move it.

How to Set Up a Free iChat Account

iChat is Apple’s FREE video chatting software. You can use it to talk and video chat with anyone who has a Mac. (Use Skype to talk with PC users.) All you have to do is create a free identity and you’re ready to go!

When you open iChat for the first time it will ask you to put in your account name. If you have a MobileMe account, click on the word AIM and change it to “MobileMe” then type in your information, along with your password and click Done.

If you don’t have a MobileMe account, click on the word AIM and change it to “mac.com” and then click Get an iChat Identity.

Fill in all of the boxes, accept the agreement, click Done and you’re set up to iChat.

Now you just need to add the Identities of the people you want to chat with.

If you’d like to try it out, Add me to your Buddy List by clicking the PLUS sign at the bottom of the Buddy List window. My iChat identity is moc.camnull@loohcsotcam

The next time you see me online, click on my name and we can chat!

Getting the Most Life Out of Your Batteries

Adding Signatures to Email

A signature automatically appears at the bottom of your email. It can be your name, your contact information, even a favorite quote. You can create several different signatures and choose which one you want for a particular email.

To create a signature:
First, create a new email message so you have a place to type
Type everything you want to appear, including choosing the font, size, color
Highlight it all
From the Edit menu, choose Copy

Then, under the Mail menu, choose Preferences
Click on the Signatures icon
Click the “+” sign at the bottom of the middle column to create a new signature
Title it
In the right column, click the cursor, then, from the Edit menu, choose Paste
Your typed text will appear
To actually USE the signature, you have to now assign it to an email account.
Drag that named signature from the middle column to on top of the email address in the left column that you want to use it with
Click on that email address and, at the bottom, under Choose Signature, decide whether you always want that signature to appear or, if you choose None, then you can select the signature when you want to use it in a particular email

Spring Cleaning in Your Inbox
So many of us receive all kinds of emails from companies, newsletters from organizations, shopping specials from our favorite stores. They can quickly clutter our Inboxes and, often, we don’t even read them.
Instead of just deleting them, take a moment to UNSUBSCRIBE. At the bottom of every business email you will find a link to change your settings, or Unsubscribe. Click the link, change your preferences and soon, your Inbox will be less cluttered with junk.

Fun with Facebook
Facebook is a free online service that allows you to find old friends, share your photos, connect with people with common interests. Facebook allows you to post public comments on your Wall and your friends then see your comments and can comment back. You can even send private notes to your Friends.

Facebook is a great way to share good news, favorite websites and stay in touch with people.

The key to using to Facebook is taking the time to set your Privacy Preferences so that the whole world doesn’t have access to your comments and posts.

To set your Privacy Preferences, log in to your Facebook account

Click on Account in the top right corner and choose Privacy Settings

Click on each of the sections and choose WHO can see your information. I recommend only Friends, not even Friends of Friends.

Also, it is recommended to limit the amount of personal information you share. To change your information, first click on Profile in the top right corner. Then, in the left column under your picture, click Edit Profile.

If you want to include your birthday, it’s best to not include the year. You can make this choice from the pull down menu below where you enter your birthday.

You may choose to include your high school if you want to be found by former classmates.

Be sure to Save Your Changes when you’re done.

FAVORITE iPHONE APP OF THE MONTH:

LOSE IT!: If you looking for a way to keep track of what you eat, Lose It! is a great, free app that tracks your meals, your exercise, your weight goals. You enter your foods and the serving size and LOSE IT! keeps a log of the calories consumed. You also enter your exercise and it calculates the calories burned. You can track nutritional values as well. Then, with a click of a button you can see where you are in your daily food and exercise budget.

And the data automatically uploads to the free LOSE IT! website so you can print spreadsheets of your weekly progress.

Learning to drive a car, operate a power tool or do something new on your computer involves a mind and body connection. Your brain is learning something and your body must coordinate new movements. It’s important to practice each new step in sequence, uninterrupted, so that the mind and body can make the new connections.

Mac to School’s training programs promote this mind-body style of learning. You start with the basics and build on the skills you will need to accomplish your particular tasks. As the student, you sit in front of the computer, mouse in hand, as you learn each new skill.

Your mind and your body stay focused on learning the new tasks and everything is written down, step by step, so that you have clear and easy to understand instructions to follow as you practice.

One on one training is done in your home where it is comfortable and quiet and without distractions. We customize your computer to meet your needs, adjusting the font sizes for easier reading, adding tools to your favorite programs. And if I see some shortcuts that you might be ready to use, I’ll teach you those, too, and write them down so that you will remember them.

This proven style of teaching has given thousands of users great computer skills and, more importantly, the confidence to thrive in this ever-changing world of technology.

So many of my clients spend hours in front of their computers. Most do not even think to take a break for anything more than a quick bite to eat or a run to the bathroom.

When we sit at our desks, our shoulders are hunched forward, our neck is stiff, our heart is closed. It is so important to regularly counter this posture with stretches and movement.

Take regular breaks from sitting in front of your computer

Get up from your desk and raise your arms slowly over your head. Grab your left wrist with your right hand and gently tug, feeling the stretch in your side body. Breathe into the space. Switch hands and stretch your other side, breathing into the stretch.

Shrug your shoulders up. Really squeeze them toward your ears. Then release. Do this several times, feeling the tightness dissolve. Roll your shoulders forward several rotations, then reverse the direction.

Release the strain in your lower back by gently folding into a forward bend. You don’t have to touch your toes for this to be effective. Bend your knees slightly and let gravity pull your body down, allowing your head to drop. Hang like a rag doll and breathe into your back body. Imagine the tension leaving your body.

Relief for your eyes

Long periods of staring at a computer screen can strain your vision. Look away from the screen at least once every hour and stretch your eyes.

Close your eyes and squeeze them shut, then open them wide. Repeat.

Slowly look all the way up, then all the way down, all the way left, then all the way right. Move your eyes in a slow clockwise circle, as if you are looking at each of the numbers on a clock. Reverse the circle, going counter-clockwise.

15 minute power position that is sure to boost your energy level

Lie on the floor with your legs up the wall. Close your eyes and just breathe. Feel the weight of your legs supported by the wall and focus on your breath. If thoughts rush through your head, just notice them and let them go. This simple position lowers your heart rate, brings the blood back to the heart, relaxes your legs, your back.

After fifteen minutes, slowly roll over to your side and take your time standing up. You should feel alert, energized, ready to get back to work.

Balance all of that solitary sitting with movement and connection

Take a walk outside in the fresh air.

Notice some living things around you.

Water the plants.

Kiss your pets.

Call a friend for a chat and a laugh.

Consider scheduling your computer time between errands and chores to give your body and your mind more variety in the day.