FAQS! FACTS! FAX! 119 (23/07/98)

DATE GRATE UPDATE

I too have been trying to get Word 97 to produce the date as '9th July 1998' (Date Grate F!F!F! July 9), your suggestion is only partly successful in that it does not add the 'th' after the number. Also, there is a comma after July, which whilst correct in some cases, is a problem if using 'open punctuation'. Is it possible to get Word to add, 'st', 'nd', 'rd' or 'th' after the appropriate number? Can you get rid of the comma, or can you not edit this to this degree?

Stephen Fryer

We were afraid someone was going to ask that… We've had quite a few letters and E-mails on the subject, so here goes. The 'th', 'rd', 'nd' etc., after a date figure is called an ordinal. You cannot modify dates on the 'Available Format' menu, but there are other ways of achieving the desired result, i.e., a button on the Toolbar to insert a date, with ordinals. 

First we'll write some simple field codes to generate a line with the day's date, then record a macro, to assign the function to a button. Don't worry it's really easy, but follow each step carefully.

Open a new document and press Ctrl + F9, you should see a small grey box surround by curly brackets. Inside the brackets type the following: date \@ "MMMM"  (include the quotation marks) and press End on the keyboard (it's next to Delete…). This code inserts the month. Press the Space bar then Ctrl + F9 for another grey box and between the next set of brackets type: date \@ "d" \*ordinal  (don't forget those quotation marks and watch the spacing). Press End and space again. This field generates the day digits, with those all-essential ordinals. Now press Ctrl + F9 for a third time and in this grey box type: date \@ "YYYY" and press End. This code puts in the year digits. If you like you can use two 'Y's for a 2-digit year, you can also change the order of the curly bracketed boxes -- to get day/month/year instead of month/day/year. Commas or anything else you care to put in the space between the grey boxes will be printed. Highlight the whole line and press F9, then press Alt + F9, this will toggle between the field codes and the date line, so you can check it. If all's well leave it on the date, go to the Insert menu, select AutoText, then the AutoText icon and give your code a name, or use the default that appears in the 'Enter AutoText Entries Here' box, then click on the Add button.

Open a new blank page and go up to the Tools menu. Click on Macro, then Record New Macro. Give your Macro a name or use the default, then click on the Toolbars icon. Select the Commands tab, click and hold the little triangular icon thingy and drag it to a space on the end of a toolbar. It makes an ugly big button, so if you want to make it smaller right-click on the box and select 'Change Button Image'. Choose an icon, right-click on the box again and select Default, then click 'Close' on the Macro window. At this stage you should see your new icon on the Toolbar and a blank page with a small Macro Recording box. Leave it alone for the moment and try hard not to make any mistakes as every keystroke you make is being recorded! Go up to the Insert menu again, click AutoText, then the AutoText icon, find and highlight the date code you've just created. Click Insert and the date should appear on the page. Hold down the shift key and use the backspace key to move the cursor to the end of the line, use Home to highlight the line and press F9, (this updates the field codes to the current date). Finally click Stop on the Macro Record dialogue box, and see if it works by clicking the Macro button.

UNSTABLE LABEL

The label under the "My Computer" Icon has changed to "Desktop" (though it still seems to be working properly). This applies to the Icon wherever I see it - on the desktop and in the window, which appears after double clicking it. It's the same in Windows Explorer. I tried the repair function in Tweak UI but nothing happened.  Can you please tell me how to put it right?

John Cooper

Icon labels can change for a variety of reasons and there are several known bugs and conflicts within Windows 95 and other applications. Fortunately the My Computer can be easily re-named; just click on the icon to highlight it, then without moving the pointer, press your right mouse button. A menu will appear, select Rename, type in the new name and press Enter

FLASH POINT

Re the item 'Wide of the mark', (F!F!F! July 9) can you tell me if the floppy disk adaptor for the PCMCIA digital camera card is available and compatible with the Mac operating system; if so where can such a device be obtained? I am considering purchasing a Minolta Dimage digital camera which is supplied with a cable for connection to the Mac modem port. This is already occupied on my machine and I want to avoid changing plugs every time I need to download from the camera.

Frederick Plant

The disc adaptor we referred to is called Flash Path and it is being marketed by a number of still camera manufacturers including Fuji, Olympus Sanyo and Toshiba. The adaptor is shaped like a 3.5-inch floppy disc, and it accepts any standard 'Smartmedia' miniature memory card. As far as we're aware only Sanyo is selling them in the UK at the moment (£70 in Dixons), it comes with PC software (Windows 3.x/95). We understand the Toshiba version will have Mac drivers but this isn't available yet. Until then the only solution is to use a serial cable switchbox, available from your local computer dealer for around £10 to £15.

GOLDEN MEMORIES

I recently purchased additional memory modules from a nationally advertised supplier. On fitting them I noticed that the module contacts were tin while the computer socket is gold plated. The supplier assures me this is OK, but I recall reading that you should only use memory modules with gold contacts. I have fitted the memory and it works properly - the machine performs a power-up full memory test without problems. Might I encounter either short or long term problems, and if so should I change the memory modules for gold plated ones?

David Eddy

There is no need to worry. Gold is used to plate electrical contacts because it is an excellent conductor and it doesn’t corrode. Other types of contacts may be vulnerable to tarnishing over time but the pins in motherboard memory sockets are designed to come into intimate contact with the memory module's connector pads, in some cases digging into the surface of the contact. Providing you don't touch the contacts when they are being installed -- depositing sweat, grease or other contaminants -- there is very little chance of the connections failing within the life of the PC.