February 4, 2009

XP Sizes

As you may recall, last week, I ran a tip in the newsletter about changing the font size in Windows Vista (you can read that tip here). Well, ever since, several of you have been asking if there's a way to do the same thing in Windows XP. I wasn't sure off the top of my head, but I figured there had to be, so I made a note to myself to check on it. But before I had a chance to look, one of our loyal readers e-mailed me with the answer. So, today's quick tip is coming to you thanks to Mr. Dick Furst. Let's check it out!

If you want to increase (or even decrease) the size of the objects best cialis on your computer, in Windows XP, go to Start, Control Panel (make sure you're in the classic view) and double click on the Display icon. Next, click on the Settings tab and then hit the Advanced button. Under the General tab, you can select which DPI setting you prefer. You can choose from Normal size, Large size or you can even make a Custom size just for you.

Once you choose your setting, you will be prompted to restart your computer. When it boots back up, you'll be able to notice the size difference of the objects on your computer. Now, if you also want to change your font size, go back to Start, Control Panel and click on the Display icon again. From there, click on the Appearance tab and then use the Font size drop down box to choose between Normal, Large or Extra Large. Then just hit OK and you'll be all set. Your XP computer is now set up just the way you want it. Yes!

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Urban Dictionary

This Web site is not necessarily for everyone, as it is describing slang, but I found it, because I heard a song on the radio talking about showing someone your grill and had no idea what it meant.

Meanings of grill:

1.) Teeth

2.) A gold/diamond plate that is molded for your teeth. It is decorated with diamonds best cialis prices and/or gold. Usually worn by rappers, Nelly, Paul Wall, Mike Jones and many others.

I was highly confused, so I had to find somewhere to look it up and I found this site. I think this site is also handy for monitoring the slang coming out of your children’s mouths. My mom wouldn’t let us use slang around the house. We always had to speak perfect English. This is what comes of having a teacher for a mom. I am extremely grateful that she did, because It made me better able to communicate.

There are several ways to surf this site. The easiest way is to type in the word you want to define in the dictionary, like I did. Put in the term you want to define and click the search button.

Or, you can go through alphabetically, A-Z, and browse slang words by letter. Or you can click Random at the very end of the A to Z listing and get a random word. There are also random listings that change on the main page.

I wouldn’t want my children using a lot of this terminology, that is for sure. Another warning that I just noticed: some of the examples do have profanity in them, so I wouldn’t recommend showing this site to kids.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/

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Focal Length and Magnification Factors

When people talk about lenses, they talk about focal length. This is basically a measurement that will help you determine how far your zoom can "reach" or how much of that great scenery your wide angle lens will encompass.

For those who wonder how it's figured out, it's the distance from the "optical center" of the lens to the point where it is focused when set to infinity. (No, we're not talking luxury cars here. Setting a lens' focus to "infinity" simply means to focus a lens at its furthest distance). Don't worry, you don't need to know or understand any of that to figure out how this works!

Here's the practical application: the smaller the focal length of a lens, the more it can "see" and the more "stuff" you can get in the photo. Small focal length lenses are commonly referred to as "wide angle" lenses.

On the other hand, the higher the number, the less the lens is able to "see" and the closer your subject looks. These are usually referred to as "long" or "telephoto" lenses.

Back when 35mm cameras ruled the roost and digicams were only cute "toys," focal length made it easy to compare one lens to another. If it was a 28mm lens, it was a wide angle lens. If it was a 300mm, it was a telephoto lens. It was simple because the size of a 35mm negative was the same from camera to camera. A 50mm lens on one camera "picked up" the same scene as a 50mm lens on a different camera.

Now that digicams are taking over, the game has changed. This is because of the size difference with the various image sensors out there.

You see, a smaller sensor doesn't "see" as average cost of cialis much of the scene as a larger sensor does. In essence, it's cropping in, which is called the magnification factor. Since sensor sizes range all over the board, the image you get with a 28mm setting on one camera will probably look completely different on another.

Note: In the photos above, although the lens sees the exact same thing, the camera with the red sensor captures more of the scene than the camera with the blue sensor. Both were taken with a 28mm lens, but the results are very different.

Fortunately, a lot of manufactures are starting to give the 35mm equivalent ranges when they discuss their equipment. So, instead of saying a camera has a 7mm/28m lens, they give you the 35mm equivalent of 28mm/112mm.

So, if you see a camera that has 35mm equivalent focal lengths listed, here's a chart to help you decide if you have enough lens.

35mm Lens Chart:

12-20 – Ultra Wide Angle

24-35 – Wide Angle

40-80 – Normal lens

90-135 – Short Telephoto

150-250 – Medium Telephotos

300+ – Longer Telephotos

Okay, if you're shooting with a regular digicam, that's about all you need to know. However, if you have a digital SLR (you can take the lenses on and off), you'll want to read on.

Most digital SLRs do not have a full frame sensor. This means there is a magnification factor with any given lens. Normally, this is around 1.5, so we'll use that for our example. Check your owner's manual for the exact number.

Anyhow, here's what happens with this magnification factor. Let's say you have a 200mm lens. If your camera has a mag factor of 1.5x, that means you take the focal length of the lens (200) and multiply it by 1.5. In this case, your 200mm is now equivalent to a 300mm. Cool!

Now the bad news. If you like taking wide angle shots, this works against you. For example, that 24mm lens you liked so much on your 35mm camera now looks like a 36mm lens (gasp!) In order to get back to 24, you'd need to fork over lots of dead presidents for a 16mm lens! That pain you just felt was from your wallet.

So, if you're into long lenses, you'll probably like the magnification factor. If not, you may need to start stitching images together. Short of that, most manufacturers now have special "digital only" lenses that don't cost as much as the standard 35mm equipment (won't work on it properly either). They aren't necessarily cheap, but it may be worth looking into.

Oh, there are cameras that have a full frame CMOS sensor, so there is no magnification factor. Unfortunately, they sell for $2500+ so it's probably cheaper to buy some new lenses.

Geez, I talk too much. Happy shooting!

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Limited Movements

Do you use a lot of objects in your MS Office Suite files? Maybe you use Clip Art in your Word documents or AutoShapes in your Excel files. Also, if you use PowerPoint, I'm sure you're always working with some type of object.

When you go to relocate an object, are you frequently frustrated by your inability to control the drag movements?

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Let's say you wanted to slide an object horizontally and you somehow always seem to move it up or down a bit as you drag it left or right.

Interested in a way to control that drag and drop relocation of your objects?

Yes, me too! I figure it can't hurt to know every trick possible when it comes to our Office files.

The next time you want to move an object either horizontally or vertically (with no accidental wandering in another direction), give the Shift key a try.

Yep, that's right! A simple Shift + drag of the object will move it either horizontally or vertically and that's it. No unintentional "drag drifts" for your objects anymore!

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USB Speeds

If acheter cialis original you've gotten a new computer in the last few years, it more than likely came with USB ports. If you're not sure, USB ports are the little slots on either the front or back of your computer that you can use to plug in certain devices, such as a flash drive or digital camera. USB ports come in two different speeds: 2.0 and 1.0, with 2.0 being faster. Most newer PCs have the 2.0 speed, but if you purchased yours quite awhile ago, you may have the 1.0 speed. So, if you've ever wondered which speed you have, keep reading to learn how you can find out!

To get to your computer's USB area, you need to right click on the My Computer icon on your desktop and choose Properties. Next, click on the Hardware tab and then hit the Device Manager button. When the new window opens, scroll down to the very bottom where it says Universal Serial Bus controllers. Click on the plus sign (+) next to that and all of your USB information will come up. You may have quite a few listings or you may only have a few. It just depends on how many ports came with your computer and if you've added any yourself.

If you see one that says something like "USB Enhanced Host Controller," that means you have the 2.0 speed. The "Enhanced" part is what sets the 2.0 apart from the slower speed. On my computer, that entry was the very last one, so make sure you look through your whole list before you make any assumptions. Also, just for your information, if one of your USB ports is 2.0, it's likely that all of your ports will be the same. That goes for the 1.0 speed as well. Most computers don't come with two different port speeds. So, tell me, how does it feel to know what kind of USB speed your PC is running? Pretty darn good, huh? Check yours out today!

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