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FAQS!
FACTS! FAX! 212 (18/05/00)
START AFRESH
I have a problem (more of a niggle really) with the
Start menu on my new PC, which runs Windows 98. On my old Windows 95 machine,
when I called up the Programs menu from the Start menu, the whole list of
programs was displayed on the screen in two or three columns, allowing you to
see the whole list at once. On the new computer, the list of programs is
displayed in one column, wrapping over the top and bottom of the screen, so
that you have to scroll up and down to see the programs at the top and bottom
of the list, causing no end of frustration. It's driving me mad!
Andy Preston
I
have installed several games and programs, which are listed in the Start/Programs menu in the order they were installed, whether they are folders or files. I would like to have them in alphabetical order, as it was
when I bought the computer. I cannot find any way to do this - can you help?
John Baker
Both
problems can be solved by making changes to the Registry but that can be a
risky business; fortunately there are several freeware utilities that can do
the job easily and safely with a couple of mouse-clicks. To replicate the
Windows 95 Start side-by-side menu layout, try StartMenu Extender (you can
change it back to the scrolling display, should you so wish). To arrange your
Programs menu in alphabetical order there’s Q Sort 2000; this can sort the
Favourites menu alphabetically as well. Both programs are small and should take
less than a minute to download on a 56kbs modem; they can be obtained – along
with a myriad of other Start button/menu customisation utilities -- from:
http://winfiles.cnet.com/apps/98/startmenu.html
THUMBNAIL
SKETCH
If
your Tip Of the Week worked for enabling thumbnail views in Windows Explorer
(Boot Camp May 4th) it would be very useful - however, when I follow
it all I get are icons in a thumbnail frame. Is there anything further I
need to do?
Chris
Cann
The
usual reason for this is that the Windows Desktop Update component isn’t
installed on your version of Internet Explorer, for details of how to do it
follow the instructions on the Microsoft web site at:
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q176/8/82.ASP
BLACK POWER
My computer has taken to showing me a black screen
at every opportunity, unless I am doing something the screen goes black after
about 60 seconds, also when running Error check and Disc defrag. The process
keeps stopping and starting again and takes forever to complete. Is there any
thing I can do to keep this black screen from
appearing?
G.Kirkwood
The chances are you or someone else has been
fiddling around with the power management settings on your computer and the
monitor is going into power save mode. Go to Start > Settings > Control
Panel and click on the Power Management icon, on the Power Schemes tab change
the ‘Turn Off Monitor’ setting from 1 minute to a higher value, 30 minutes,
say, or ‘Never’, depending on your pattern of use.
HOT SPOT
Am I right in thinking that when
using Hotmail, etc. I have to compose while on-line, thus adding to my phone
bill? I have noticed that if I am writing a long message the
computer automatically logs-off after a certain period and yet I can still go
on writing my message. Is there a way to write off-line sooner and save on the
phone bill?
Brian
Nicholson
Yes, log on to Hotmail call up the Compose
Message page, log off by clicking the modem icon in the System Tray and write
your message and enter the recipient’s address. Alternatively, compose the
message in a word processor, then copy it to the clipboard (of highlight and
press Ctrl + C) and paste (Ctrl + V) it into the compose window. When you’ve
finished click on the Send button and you’ll automatically reconnect and the
message will be sent.
KNIT-WARE?
Since
you were able to unearth so much gen on lace pattern software, can you ask if
anyone knows of any programs that can ‘digitise’ pictures or photos, to provide
knitting templates? I’ve heard of CAD (computer aided design) software for
knitting machines but I’m more interested in hand knitting.
Mrs
D. Ross, Selly Park, Birmingham
The
variable Mosaic function (Special Filters on the Image menu) in Paint Shop Pro
might do the trick, but we suspect there are many more elegant solutions, so
how about it?
DIAL-UP
DISABLE
How
does one avoid the automatic Dial-Up when clicking on Outlook Express?
D.
Innes, Cults, Aberdeen
In
Outlook Express version 4 click on Options on the Tools menu and select the
Dial Up tab and under the item ‘When Outlook Express Starts’, put a check next
to ‘Do not dial a connection’. In OE5 the procedure is Tools > Options and
the General tab, uncheck ‘Send and receive at start-up’ and select ‘Do not
connect’ from the drop down menu under ‘If my computer is not connected…’
KEY
POINT
My
daughter was recently given a Toshiba laptop, bought in America, and thus having
an American keyboard layout. There is no ‘£’ sign and I can’t find any key
assigned to the symbol. If I change the keyboard configuration I can get a
pound sign but of course the keyboard does not show it and various other
characters are changed. Is there some way of keeping the American keyboard
setting and changing the default ‘$’ sign to a ‘£’, or maybe changing some
other rarely used key?
Mrs
S. E. Hardman, Weybridge, Surrey
On
some laptops it is possible to change the keycaps or even replace the keyboard
with the UK version but the simplest solution in your case is to keep the US
layout and use the pound sign’s keystroke assignment, (Alt + 0163) or better
still, create a keyboard shortcut to the symbol in your word processor program.
In most versions of MS Word go to Symbol on the Insert menu, make sure the Font
panel shows ‘normal text’, highlight the ‘£’ sign in the table and click the
Shortcut Key button. Choose a simple to remember shortcut, such as Alt + 3 (the
3 key is where the pound sign should be) and click Assign. If any other
characters or symbols are missing you can easily make more shortcuts, or use
the keystroke assignment, to find that use the Character Map utility in Control
Panel.
EJECTION
FEAT
About
a year ago, possibly longer, an F!F!F! reader asked about ways of opening and closing the drawer on his CD-ROM
drive by using his mouse or keyboard. I remember at the time thinking that one
day this would prove to be useful but I did not keep the article and cannot
remember how to do it.
Steve Matthews
We
suggested a couple of little shareware utilities that put open/close icons on
the Taskbar or in the System Tray (next to the clock display). They are CD
Ejector, which can be downloaded from:
http://www.zdnet.co.uk
/software/free/diagnostic/sw16.html
and
Tray CD/Open CD which is available at:
http://www.rjlsoftware.com
/software/utility/default.shtml
Alternatively,
drag a copy of the Windows CD Player on to the Quick Launch toolbar (usually
next to the Start button) and use the player’s own Eject button.
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