House of Innocence

Largest Web Development Site

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 14:43:00 +0000

If you are interested in developing web sites, whether for personal use or as a career, then you really should checkout what is claimed to be the world's largest web development site. Hosted at http://www.w3schools.com/, it is very comprehensive and covers all the major areas, including:

html (including xhtml and html5)
css (inc. css3)
scripting (inc. javascript, vbscript, ajax, jquery, jsn, e4x, dhtml and html dom)
server scripting (inc. sql, asp, ado, php, asp.net, razor and .net mobile
web services (inc. wsdl, soap, rss and rdf)
multimedia (inc. smil and svg)

So, if you want to improve your web development skills you should definitely bookmark the site. The tutorials are simple to follow and give clear examples of code. You can even make changes to the code and see the effect - how cool is that!

Free Online Tutorials from FreeSkills

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 14:31:00 +0000

Another source of online tutorials that are free that I have come across is at http://tutorials.freeskills.com/. They cover plenty of topics and as well as the usual computer related topics, they also cover accountancy, finance and travel.

I will say that some of the topics are not covered in great detail whilst others are dealt with more thoroughly, so bit of a mixed bag. However, its certainly worth checking out the site and looking at topics you are interested in. Certainly, it will provide some useful information and at the very least get you started.

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 16:44:00 +0000

DocManual is a site that has Free Documents manuals for Business, Novel, Inspirational, Education, Finance, Science, Technology, Medical, Reference and other topics available for free download.

If you are looking for some help with some aspect of computers or technology in general then there is sure to be something of interest on the their site. Check out these examples:

Why not check them out, thousands do every day.

Free Tutorials on YouTube

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 23:52:00 +0000

Image via CrunchBaseThere is a great source of tutorials on YouTube from Robert Griffith at Free Tutorials. He covers various topics, including Photoshop, Flash, Bryce, Rhino, Front Page, Microsoft Office, Digital Photography, Windows Movie Maker, Google, 3D (Anaglyph) Photography, My Space, HTML, CSS, etc. He has over 11,000 subscribers so he must be doing something right! Why not check it out. He has over 110 videos uploaded already and seems to add more at regular intervals.

Free graphics tutorials on DeviantART

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Fri, 24 Dec 2010 11:52:00 +0000

If you are looking for help with your graphics work then you could do no worse than visit DeviantART and check out the free online tutorials from members of the Ex-po-zure group at http://news.deviantart.com/article/51569/

Covering topics such as:

there is a good selection to peruse. You can also join DeviantART community for free and upload your own examples of artwork and even tutorials etc.

businessballs.com offers free online learning resources

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 14:22:00 +0000

Businessballs is a free ethical learning and development resource for people and organizations, run by Alan Chapman, in Leicester, England.

Businessballs.com launched at the end of 1999. The concept began a few years earlier as an experimental online collection of learning and development ideas. The website is now used by about a million people each month. Alan originally created the Businessballs name for juggling balls which he used in his training and development business.

The philosophy of the website is intended to be ethical, practical, innovative, compassionate and enjoyable.

Topics covered include:

Business and Selling
Human Resources
Glossaries & Terminology
Amusement & Stress Relief
Leadership & Management
Team Building & Games
Self/Personal Development
Lifestyle & Environment
Writing & Communication
Diagrams & Tools

All in all its an excellent site with tons of resource materials. Highly recommended.

GCF LearnFree.org has new Word 2010 tutorials online

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 20:26:00 +0000

Word 2010 is a software for word processing in the new Microsoft 2010 Office Suite. Word allows you to easily create professional-looking documents using various themes, visual designs, formatting tools, sharing features and more.

Lessons include:

Word Basics

1: Getting Started with Word

2: Text Basics

3: Formatting Text

4: Saving

5: Modifying Page Layout

6: Checking Spelling and Grammar

7: Printing

Common Tasks in Word

8: Using Indents and Tabs

9: Line and Paragraph Spacing

10: Working with Lists

11: Adding Breaks

12: Working with Columns

13: Working with Hyperlinks

14: Working with Shapes

15: Text Boxes and WordArt

16: Inserting Clip Art and Pictures

17: Formatting Pictures

Doing More With Word

18: Styles and Themes

19: Working with Headers and Footers

20: Reviewing Documents

21: Working with Tables

22: SmartArt Graphics

23: Using a Template

24: Using Mail Merge

Learning to program on your computer

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 08:14:00 +0000

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=newbdigi-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=0672323079&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" align="left"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=newbdigi-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=0470108541&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" align="left"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;iframe src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=newbdigi-20&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;o=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;p=8&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;l=bpl&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;asins=032163537X&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;IS2=1&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt1=_blank&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;m=amazon&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lc1=0000FF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bc1=000000&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;bg1=FFFFFF&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;f=ifr" style="padding-top: 5px; width: 131px; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px;" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" align="left"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Image via Wikipedia

When I was a kid the main reasons you got a computer were either to play games on or learning programming (I'm talking about kids here, not adults who would generally use a computer for business). As far as games were concerned they were pretty basic in the early days, manly as the computers were very basic. Remember that in 1972 (I was aged 15) the game Pong was released in glorious black and white. In 177 Atari launched its Video Computer System, later to become the Atari 2600. This was an 8-bit console which you connected to your TV and played various pixellated games on. By the time they made the last one in 1990 there were over 900 games available!

One of the biggest selling games of all time, Doom, was released in 1993 by id Software. It gained popularity on several computer platforms and players could create their own levels and change the appearance of the game. As well as games like Doom there were thousands of shareware games produced by enthusiasts for the Commodore 64, Atari ST, Amiga 500 and ZX Spectrum amongst others. These were coded in software languages such as BASIC or even in machine code.

Today, the most popular languages to program in are (according to Tiobe.com):

1. Java – 17.9%
2. C – 17.6%
3. C++ – 9.6%
4. PHP – 9.1%
5. Visual Basic – 5.4%
6. C# – 4.9%
7. Python – 4.2%
8. Perl – 3.4%
9. Objective-C – 3.1%
10. Delphi – 2.4%
11. Javascript – 2.4%
12. Ruby - 1.9%

So, there's plenty of choice but the question is - which one do you choose? Well, it all depends on what you want to use it for and also, to some extent, what computer platform you own.

If you aim to become a professional software developer in industry then something like Java would be a good choice as its widely used in Enterprise Software Development. If your aim is develop purely for Windows then C# is a good choice as its native libraries are generally thought to be excellent.

If you wish to develop applications for the web then its a bit more confusing. You have a choice of PHP, Ruby, Python, XHTML, CSS and JavaScript. You should probably learn more than one of these - the more the better. For general web development go for XHTML, CSS and JavaScript. If you are looking to develop more for the back-end then Python would be a good place to start. For rapid web prototyping and if you are interested in Wordpress (creating your own theme, plugins and widgets) then PHP is the best place to start.

Bear in mind that programmers are a passionate lot and if you think that the Mac v PC debate gets a little heated then you ain't seen nothing yet!

Once you made your mind up where to start then the next question is how to go about learning. My advice is start with the web as its free and there are tons of resources available. It will help you understand what's involved and decide it its really for you before you invest in books and other resources you have to pay for. After a while you also have a feel for what books are best and also if its worth looking at formal courses. Check if your local college is running free or cheap introductory courses as well.

I hope to post about resources for each of the languages above in future posts so be sure to check back.

How to use the internet... and other video guides

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 14:25:00 +0000

Image by Jason Gulledge via Flickr

Butterscotch (beta) is a great tutorial site covering all sorts of topics. The tutorials are all video in format. The site also offers downloads and freeware. Here is what they say about themselves:

"butterscotch.com is your fresh, friendly, smart and sticky portal into the world of technology. We help you do more with the tech you already own and turn you on to the latest and greatest in language everyone can understand. We promise not to talk down to you and to only talk up the most interesting and impactful software, trends, news, gadgets and gear if you promise to come back often. Have a look around and see what sticks!

butterscotch.com is a division of Tucows Inc."

That last bit tells you that it is a very reputable site as Tucows is one of the best sites for downloading open source and shareware software (some would say its THE best).

So, why not check out the site at http://www.butterscotch.com/

Currently they have 747 episodes, the latest one being How to import contacts in Windows Live Mail?

Free Digital Photography Course from Canon

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:45:00 +0000

Many of us use computers to edit our digital photographs. However, as with many things in life, its best to start with the best material you can rather than trying to correct something later in software. So, we could all benefit from improving our skills in taking pictures so that we start with a good image before it even gets onto our computers.

To obtain the knowledge and skills to enable us to take better photographs we could take a course at our local college or we could borrow lots of books from the local library. Or, we could download a free course from Canon. Now as you probably know, Canon have been in the imaging business for a long time (since the 1930's) and they know a thing or two about photography. So, the course is bound to be filled with lots of excellent advice and tips and indeed it is.

You can download the free course from http://ltbc.canon-europe.com/?culture=en-gb

There are in fact 5 separate course covering:

People and Portraits
Travel and Holidays
Animals and Nature
Landscapes and Architecture
Parties and Special Events

You will need to register for their "You Connect" club and will receive free monthly newsletters.

Fed up of poor WiFi signal reception? Then you need the highly-rated hField Wi-Fire USB WiFI adapter for Windows (XP/Vista/7), Mac (OS X) and Linux. Check it out now at http://www.newbeltanetechmedia.co.uk

Full Web Building Tutorials - ALL FREE!

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 09:31:00 +0000

THE LARGEST WEB DEVELOPER SITE ON THE NET

W3Schools Online Web Tutorials market themselves as the site where you can find everything you need to learn about web design and development, in an accessible and handy format. Certainly, they offer a comprehensive set of tutorials covering everything you can think of and all tutorials are free.

Topics include:

HTML Tutorials

Learn HTML
Learn HTML5
Learn XHTML
Learn CSS
Learn TCP/IP

Browser Scripting

Learn JavaScript
Learn HTML DOM
Learn DHTML
Learn VBScript
Learn AJAX
Learn jQuery
Learn E4X

XML Tutorials

Learn XML
Learn DTD
Learn XML DOM
Learn XSLT
Learn XPath
Learn XQuery
Learn XLink
Learn XPointer
Learn Schema
Learn XSL-FO
Learn XForms

Server Scripting

Learn SQL
Learn ASP
Learn ADO
Learn PHP
Learn ASP.NET
Learn .NET Mobile

Web Services

Learn Web Services
Learn WSDL
Learn SOAP
Learn RSS
Learn RDF
Learn WAP
Learn WMLScript

Multimedia

Learn Media
Learn SMIL
Learn SVG
Learn Flash

Web Building

Web Building
Web Browsers
Web Certification
Web Hosting
Web W3C
Web Quality
Web Semantic

So, why not pop along there now (click any of the links above) and check them out.

Learn using videos on the Internet

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 22:51:00 +0000

Image by Mike Gdovin via Flickr

One great way to learn new skills or about a subject you aere interested in is to visit site such as YouTube and iTunesU. YouTube has so many videos its difficult, if not impossible to keep track of what's on there! However, if you are interested in learning then the place to start is http://www.youtube.com/education.

Topics covered include:

Another great site to visit is iTunesU at http://www.apple.com/education/itunes-u/. here you will find

more than 250,000 free lectures, videos, films, and other resources — from all over the world. All you need is access to the internet and a copy of iTunes (available on PC and Mac) - gree download available from http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/.

Eric's Networking | Networking tips and 'how to's'.

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 22:14:00 +0000

This is an excellent site with lots of tips and ‘How To’s’ connected with networking computers. I can highly recommend it. Topics featured include:

Open Ports in the Windows XP ICF for File and Printer Sharing

Start the Network Setup Wizard using the XP CD-ROM

Share a drive or a folder on the network with Windows XP

Share and Set Permissions for Folders and Files with Windows XP Professional

Configure Windows Firewall settings for File and Printer Sharing with Windows XP

Overview of the Windows Firewall Security Log File in Windows XP

Start a Remote Assistance session in a Small Office Home Office Network

Understanding the Wireless Network Connection Dialog Box in XP

How to configure a wireless network with Windows XP

Enable NetBIOS over TCP/IP on Windows Vista

How to connect to a wireless network in Windows Vista

Add Windows Vista to your existing wireless network

How to Hide or Show the Network Icon in Windows Vista

How to configure a wireless network with Windows 7

Check it out now if you want to know more about configuring your computer network.

Pledgeco.com - online free articles directory

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 00:52:00 +0000

Image by mikecogh via Flickr

Submit and read the best articles on finance, romance, life, sport, home, health care and much more. Write article for free publishing. Pledgeco.com offers a library of free articles on a host of topics, including learning computers.

Topics covered range from fixing your Registry to using Dreamweaver. It isn't easy to find what your looking for and the site badly needs an index. There are links at the top of the site to the various topics but these are somewhat broad categories. Once you have chosen your subject interest its a bit of 'pot luck' and you will need to be prepared to spend some time looking around the site. However, the are definitely some gems buried there so its worth a trawl.

Free computer tutorials

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 00:36:00 +0000

Home and Learn offer free computer tutorials, including for complete beginners. They cover topics such as:

Microsoft Word
Microsoft Excel
Wed Design
Javascript
Visual Basic
PHP

You can also register for free exams, to test your knowledge and see how well you are doing. Why not check out what they have to offer over at http://www.homeandlearn.co.uk/

TutCity - Free tutorial resources

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 22:44:00 +0000

TutCity.com has lots of free tutorials covering topic areas such as 2D graphics (Adobe Fireworks, Flash, Illustrator, Image Ready adn Photoshop), 3D graphics (3D Studio Max, Cinema 4D, Maya 3D), Office applications (Excel, PowerPoint and Word), Databases (MS Access and MySQL), Programming (C and C++, Python and Visual Basic), Web Development (inc. Dreamweaver, ASP, CGI, Perl and PHP to name just some) and Vista.

Some areas have more than others. For example, when I checked there were 321 tutorials on Dreamweaver and 1029 on PHP! Definitely be somethng for almost anyone then! Each tutorial seems to be quite short but easy to follow and it looks like rather than have long tutorials that might overwhelm the learner, the approach is to break everyhting down into easy to grasp steps. This seems the best approach to me for all but the most expert of learners.

Check it out at http://www.tutcity.com/

Free computing lessons for kids from PC PRO magazine

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:04:00 +0000

Free computing lessons for kids
Posted on 14 Sep 2009 at 12:21

Download the full PDF of our Give Your Kids The IT Edge feature, with free computing lessons for 5 to 15-year-olds
Our Give Your Kids The IT Edge feature has won praise from parents, schools and education experts.

Now we're giving you the chance to download the entire feature for free for use in your home or school.

The feature provides step-by-step tutorials for each of the school key stages, introducing schoolchildren of all ages to fun computing challenges - and perhaps even teaching parents and teachers a thing or two!

Inside the feature you'll find:

Key Stage 1 (ages 5-7): A six-step guide to creating a blog for your child using the free Edublogs software, which is used by schools across the country

Key Stage 2 (ages 7-11): Let children write and star in their own computer game with our 12-step guide to the brilliant Scratch software

Key Stage 3 (ages 11-14): Create an interactive 3D quiz using the widely-acclaimed Alice software

Key stage 4 (ages 14-16): Teenagers can create their own web photo gallery using our straightforward JavaScript tutorial

In addition to our step-by-step tutorials, you'll also find plenty of suggestions for alternative activities for each key stage, as recommended by our team of education experts.

Parents and teachers are free to print out and distribute part or all of the feature at home or in schools. The feature may not be reproduced or distributed for commercial purposes without permission.

Click here to download the feature (12MB PDF)

Author: Barry Collins

Basic Computer Skills - online resource

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 15:00:00 +0000

Image via Wikipedia

Computers Invented (http://computersinvented.com/) offers excellent online resources for anyone wishing to learn the basics about computing. With articles on a wide range of topics, its a great place to start with. Check out their articles on:

Alternatively, check out their numerous categories:

Jidaw E-learning resources for newcomers to computing

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 22:54:00 +0000

Jidaw.com has some learning reources for those new to computing. Check out their site at: http://www.jidaw.com/

Here is how they introduce themselves:

"The Staff and Management of Jidaw Systems Limited (Jidaw) welcome YOU to Jidaw.com, the online web initiative. Jidaw has been helping people and organizations interested in growth and empowerment with Information and Communications Technology. Jidaw....More Knowledge! More Power!"

Topics include:

In the first lesson, you will learn:

In this Second lesson, you will learn:

"Learn New Skills & Increase Your Earning Power-- With FREE Computer Training"

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 12:39:00 +0000

Another promising site offering free online learning resources for novices with computers and software is EducationOnlineForComputers.com.

Run by Scott Turton, it offers free and subscription-based learning resources and tutorials. Access to their free training and tutorial materials requires no registration. They cover Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Outlook, Project, Publisher, FrontPage, Flash, Dreamweaver, Photoshop, Web Development, and more.

They also have several blogs including:

Free Microsoft Office Training and Tutorial Resources blog

Free Training for Photoshop, Flash, Dreamweaver, FrontPage, and other Adobe & Macromedia Apps blog

Free Web Design, Development and Programming Training and Tutorial Resources blog

Check out the site now at http://www.educationonlineforcomputers.com/

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IPL - The Internet Public Library

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 22:23:00 +0000

The Internet Public Library is a public service organization and a learning/teaching environment founded at the University of Michigan School of Information and hosted by Drexel University's College of Information Science & Technology.

The first version of this timeline was created for the IPL’s 10^th Anniversary Celebration in 2005. A more interactive version of this timeline was created on June 16, 2008. The IPL decided to cease updating this interactive version on April 27, 2009.

It had been decided that, in the fall of 2009, the Internet Public Library (IPL) would merge with the Librarians’ Internet Index (LII), which at the time was found at http://www.lii.org, to create a new web presence. There will be announcement in the near future about the new site. IN the meantime I recommend checking out the vast library of resources available on the existing site.

Computer topics are well-covered here: http://www.ipl.org/div/subject/browse/com00.00.00/

BUBL Home - BUBL LINK Catalogue of Internet Resources

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 22:14:00 +0000

This is a portal with lots of online resources on not just computers and the internet but a host of other topics. There is plenty for everyone on almost any topic you can think of. Indeed, there must be thousands of resources listed so pop along and check the site out.

Some of the computer-related topics include:

Each of these has further categories, e.g. "The Internet" has the following sub-categories:

004.678 Internet caching
004.678 Internet dictionaries and glossaries
004.678 Internet domain names
004.678 Internet education and training
004.678 Internet filtering and access control
004.678 Internet magazines
004.678 Internet services
004.678 Internet software products
004.678 Internet societies
004.678 Internet technology
004.678 Internet usage
004.678 Web browsers
004.678 Web design and development
004.678 Web searching

You will find the site here: http://bubl.ac.uk/

Tutorial: Hard disks and file systems

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 15:58:00 +0000

A good source of tutorials are computer magazines. One of the must trusted and respected magazines is PCW. They also have plenty of tutorials on their site, for all levels of users. The good thing about the tutorials on PCW is that you can also download them as a pdf file, so that you can read it offline. Handy if you want to print it out to follow it later.

One area that gets novice computer users confused is that of hard disks and file systems. many is the time I have received a phone call from someone who says that the importnat document they were working on yesterday has 'disappeared' and i there any chance I could 'recover' it for them? Of course, its rare that documents (or indeed any file) just disppears without the user deliberately deleting it (even then, many folk forget to empty their trash (recycle bin) and even though they deleted it, its still there. sometime months later!).

So, understanding about hard disks and file systems is an importnat skill to pick u and this tutorial is an excellent place to pick up those skills. It covers the topic in depth and although novices may find it a bit too deep in parts, its worth sticking with it as its comprehensive and covers the essentials. You can find it here: http://www.pcw.co.uk/personal-computer-world/features/2239138/disks-file-systems

A related tutorial which I recommend reading too is one covering backing-up and restoring files. You will find it here: http://www.pcw.co.uk/personal-computer-world/features/2235821/backup-restore-4286261

Another site for free computer training | GCF LearnFree.org

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 15:42:00 +0000

GCF LearnFree.org is provided by the Goodwill Community Foundation and includes not only resources for anyone wanting to learn about computers but also covers topics such as:

Everyday Life
Maths & Money
Work and Career

GCFLearnFree.org® is supported by the Goodwill Community Foundation, Inc. (GCF®) whose mission is "to create and provide education, employment, and life enrichment opportunities for people who desire to improve the quality of their lives".

GCFLearnFree.org exists to serve the educational part of the GCF mission. We create and provide quality, innovative online learning opportunities to anyone who wants to improve the technology, literacy, and math skills necessary for them to be successful in both work and life. We believe there's freedom in the ability to learn what you want, when you want, regardless of your circumstances. That's why we're 'GCFLearnFree.org.'

Over 700,000 learners from around the world have taken advantage of our free learning opportunities. Read their testimonials to see what they're saying or take a look at our interactive maps to see how far-reaching our program is today! GCFLearnFree.org, formerly GCF Global Learning®, is operated on behalf of GCF by Goodwill Industries of Eastern North Carolina, Inc. (GIENC).

Computer courses include:

Computer Basics
Windows
Internet Basics
Email Basics
Internet Safety
Mozilla Firefox
Facebook 101
Office Software (Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Access, OpenOffice, Outlook, Publisher)

The courses are comprehensive, and each topic is usually covered over several lessons. For example, the Facebook 101 course consists of:

The basics - what is Facebook?
Create an account
Account settings
Privacy settings
Applications settings
Add Basic Profile Info
What's on your Mind?
Find Friends
Applications
Upload pictures
Send a gift
Post a note
Plan an event
Upload videos
Join or create a group
Deactivate your account

Very comprehensive indeed! Definitely should be top of your list of sites to check out.

Golden Rules for Newbies

noreply@blogger.com (Steven Dale) — Fri, 22 May 2009 23:34:00 +0000

I have been working with computers now for more than 16 years now, both PCs and Macs. in that time I have picked up a few things along the way, though no-one can know everything and compared to many I am still a novice in several areas. For instance I am no programmer and am hopeless with hand-wiring my own network cables. I can set-up and trouble-shoot Wi-Fi networks, printers and build a decent pc. My favourite areas are the internet and Macs.

So, its not surprising that I often find myself called upon to help out friends and neighbours sort out their computers. I have even managed to get paid on occasion! Therefore, perhaps I should share some things I have learnt, often through many hours of trial and error.

Golden Rule No.1
Backup, backup and backup! I cannot begin to say how many hours have been wasted of my time and that of others because someone forgot to back up.

My strong recommendation is that whatever PC (or Mac) you have, you should invest in three things:

External hard drive at least as big as your internal hard drive and twice as big is better!
Portable USB flash drives x 2 (more on this later)
Plenty of DVD's

As soon as you have a PC, almost before you do anything else, attach the external hard drive and use software to clone your hard drive. If you are not sure what this means just Google "clone my hard drive". My personal recommendations are:

For Windows - Ultimate Boot CD (UBCD) availabe from http://ubcd.sourceforge.net/
For the Mac - Carbon Copy Cloner from http://www.bombich.com/software/ccc.html

The first is Open Source, the second is donationware. I use both and have found them to be excellent. UBCD also has lots of utilities to allow you to do all sorts of stuff that you might never need but if you do then you know where to go.

A clone of your hard drive is a backup of your whole system and if your Windows installation (or Mac installation for that matter) crashes and is non-booting, you can use the clone to resurrect your pc as it was before the crash. Note however that you will need to create clones on a regular basis if you want to always have a recent copy to hand, just in case.

However, you need other backups, just to be on the safe side. So, that's were having a backu external hard disk that is twice the size of your internal one becomes useful. You can keep the clone on the drive and backup (using Windows own backup software or a third-party program) on a regular basis your important files (documents, photos, videos etc).

Now, we come to the USB Flash Drives and why you need two.

Well, computers have a nasty habit of failing....believe me, it will hapne one day to you and on that day you will need your backups. So, here is what you do with your first USB Flash Drive... you use it to bakup your important documents as you work. So, when you save a document, save it again (this time use 'Save as' and choose your USB Flash Drive as the location... you did plug it in didn't you!

You can then carry that around with you and always have your important documents with you.

Secondly, if you computer dies and is beyond recovery (it does happen) at least you will your important and precious documents safe on the USB Flash Drive. Also, if you have a clone of your hard drive you can buy a new hard drive and clone your original drive (ncluding OS, applications and settings) much more easily than re-installing windows, applications and docuuments etc (not to mention email accounts, contacts etc). Believe me you don't want to find yourself wiht a dead pc and no backups!

So, the second USB Flash Drive, what's that for hear you asking. Well, use it to install a copy of a Linux -based recovery system. you can use it to boot up your pc even if it won't boot normally into Windows. I recommend Trinity Rescue Kit from http://trinityhome.org and install it on your USB Flash Drive, as well as CD/DVD. it comes with lots of utilities and even if you are no Linux expert, the documentartion is very clear and easy to follow.

What sort of things can you do with it, you might ask. Well, here are just some of the things you can do with this free piece of software:

easily reset windows passwords (backup and restore option in 3.3)
4 different virusscan products integrated in a single uniform commandline with online update capability (5 in version 3.3)
full ntfs write support thanks to ntfs-3g (all other drivers included as well)
clone NTFS filesystems over the network
wide range of hardware support (kernel 2.6.19.2 and recent kudzu hwdata)
easy script to find all local filesystems
self update capability to include and update all virusscanners
full proxyserver support.
run a samba fileserver (windows like filesharing)
run a ssh server
recovery and undeletion of files with utilities and procedures
recovery of lost partitions
evacuation of dying disks
powerful multicast disk cloning utility for any filesystem
2 rootkit detection uitilities (version 3.3).

As you can see, you can use it to clone your hard drive(s), recover deleted files, recover lost partitions (think of partitions as drawers in your chest of drawers - your hard drive) and scan for viruses.

Golden Rule No. 2
Never, ever, just switch your computer off when you have finished but ALWAYS shut it down properly, otherwise data can get corrupted and your pc may not boot up again. So, so switching it off at the mains, that is your last step, but use the shutdown command from the Start Menu (or from Finder on the Mac).

Golden Rule No. 3
Before you install new software, back up, even if its only to create a Windows Restore Point. If the software makes something stop working, that way you can go back to the point where things worked. Ideally, make another clone before installing new software, just in case something goes horribly wrong... sod's law says it will one day, when you least expect it.

So, there are some pearls of wisdom from my own experience. May you never need to put all this advice to the test... but I know you will!