FAQS! FACTS! FAX! 115 (25/06/98)

WORD FOR WALES

I am using MS Word 97 on my Gateway 2000 computer. We get on quite well in both English and American; however, Welsh presents a problem, since I cannot put a circumflex accent above a 'w' or a 'y'. I have searched the Symbol character maps to no avail, so am I flogging a dead ceffyl, or can you help me?

Bernard Simpson

A full set of accented characters for Windows 95 fonts -- including the ones you are looking for -- can be downloaded from the Microsoft web site. Just dial up the Internet address below and follow the instructions. Alternatively, Linguist Software markets a massive range of TrueType and Type1 foreign language fonts for all Windows and Mac operating systems and applications. The list contains almost 400 languages, from Acholi to Zuni…Needless to say Welsh is in there too.

http://www.microsoft.com/

typography/fontpack/default.htm

http://www.linguistsoftware.com

NOTICED ON THE NET

I want to take advantage of my service provider's offer to have my own web page. I have designed some pages, but the address allocated by my ISP is so user unfriendly and non-descriptive that no one surfing the net will ever find it.  How do I go about having my site recognised by some of the major search engines?

John Weight

Obviously not a regular reader… You're forgiven, if you promise not to miss Connected in future! We covered this very subject in a recent edition of Boot Camp (Connected May 7, 1998). It included information on how to find a host for your site plus a list of web registration utilities. The companies mentioned will register your site with the main search engines for free, if you want to be recognised more widely with the hundreds of other search engines you will have to pay for it. More details from:

http://www.cyberspacehq.com

http://softspider.com

http://www.submit-it.com

www.adme.com

SCHOOL CHIPS

I am the System Manager of a school network and we are continually upgrading our weakest machines.  Although I can still utilise 4Mb 30-pin SIMMs in some of our motherboards I am reaching the point where the 30-pin 1 Mb SIMMs will be heading for the dustbin. Our old motherboards and cards go for recycling but I wondered if there was a market for these 1 Mb SIMMs, which would enable us to realise a little cash from them.  Can you point us in the right direction?

Chris Baldwin

As recently as three years ago standard 1Mb SIMMs modules were in short supply and changing hands for over £35 each! Nowadays they are almost worthless and have virtually no applications outside of old 386 and 486 computers.  In theory they can be re-used in more up-to-date PCs with a device called an SIMM-Saver. It converts four 30-pin 1Mb SIMMs into a 72-pin 4Mb SIMM. The trouble is the only SIMM-Savers we could find were selling for significantly more than £10 each, which is roughly what a 4Mb memory module costs these days. Anyone like to put in an offer?

TIME OUT

About six months ago I upgraded my 386 to a Cyrix 200 with a brand new motherboard. Until about two weeks ago, everything was fine, but since then whenever I turn the computer on, the time and date in Windows 95 (and in DOS for that matter) are at the same as they were when I last turned the machine off. Can you suggest a remedy?

Tom Sykes

If the date is sometime back in the 1980's the real time clock (RTC) on the motherboard is probably faulty, or the battery that keeps it going has expired. It's unlikely to be anything to do with Windows 95, which reads time and date information from the RTC as it boots up. Normally a backup battery should last four or five years but it's possible yours is a dud. The company who fitted or supplied the motherboard are responsible for putting it right. However, if you're reasonably familiar with the innards of your machine it may be possible for you to check and change the battery yourself, rather than go the bother and expense of returning or dismantling your PC for what may be a relatively trivial fault.

SPACE JUMP                                  

I have a Windows 95 PC. Recently the spacebar and backspace key stopped operating one space at a time when I hold them down to run along the line. Instead there is a short delay and they jump along the line. I have been trying out the Tips of the Week in Boot Camp and wonder if I altered some setting without realising it. Whatever it is I can't find out how to get it back.

D. Nicholson, Richmond, Surrey

Here are three suggestions. Check the keyboard settings on Windows 95 Control Panel; click on the Keyboard icon and the Speed tab. If the Repeat Rate setting slider is on or close to Fast try moving it to halfway or less. Having the graphics acceleration set too high could also cause this. From Control Panel select the Display icon, click on the Setting Tab, then the Advanced Properties button and the Performance tab. Move the Hardware Acceleration slider to the left and see if that makes a difference. Lastly, it is just possible that it could be a fault on the keyboard itself, especially if the movement is erratic. Try substituting a known working keyboard from another PC.

FOOT FILE

Is it possible to have the filename of a Microsoft Word 97 document automatically printed as the footer on a letter?  I have hundreds of letters in lots of sub-directories. I try to name the file so that I can deduce what the document is, but it is impossible with so many documents. Although I always intend to type it on the page I usually forget. I am sure there must be a way to do it automatically? Your assistance would be much appreciated!

Sylvia Knight

It can be done by creating a document template. Set up a blank page for your letters, type in any information you want to appear, such as your address etc.  Next, from the View menu click on Headers and Footers. Scroll down the page until you get to the footer box, click in the box for a flashing cursor, now press Ctrl and F9. This will create a grey box surrounded by curly brackets with a cursor in the middle; type 'FILENAME \p' (omitting the quotation marks). To finish off select Save As from the File menu, and give your template a name, then in the Save As Type field select Document Template. Click OK and shut down Word. When you restart Word click on File and New and your new letter template will be filed under the general tab. When you've written the letter save it as a normal Word document. When it prints out the path and filename will be automatically shown at the bottom of each page.