Tech Help Videos

Question: I want to have some searches saved so that the search will operate more faster. And how do I create a search folder?

Answer: You can find files faster by saving your most common searches. (This tip is for Vista users)
1) Go to the Index Search Explorer in Windows Vista by clicking ‘Start‘.
2) Create a search by typing your query in the search box at the bottom of the Start Menu. As you type, files from a variety of locations on your PC appear that match your text.
3) Once the search is completed, on the toolbar click ‘Save Search‘.
4) In the File name box, type a name for the search, and then click ‘Save‘. The search is saved in the Searches folders, which you can open by clicking the Searches link in the Navigation pane.

Question: Is there going to be the Ribbon (which is featured in Office 2007 for Windows) going to be present in Office 2008 for the Macintosh?

Answer: No, there will be no Ribbon for Office 2008 for the Macintosh. This is because the user interface of Office 2008 have to look alike to other Mac applications. This means that, instead of the ribbon, there will be the old menus such as ‘File’ and ‘Edit’, etc.

However, from Microsoft will apply as many Ribbon like features as they can to Mac Office 2008 and I am sure that they will make it very ribbon like meaning that there will be lots of visual icons. Although not yet released, there are some screenshots on the web that could very likely be Office 2008 Mac. Below are a screenshot of Word 2008 and PowerPoint 2008:

Although there are quite a lot of significant changes to Microsoft Word 2007, the main one is the Ribbon. As you probably know, the Ribbon is new to any Office application and replaces the previous ‘File’, ‘Edit’…etc with a set of new menus called ‘Home’, ‘Insert’, Page Layout’, References’, ‘Mailings’, Review’, ‘View’ and ‘Add-ons’.So basically the Ribbon is a new Menu with visual icons of features and functions. If you still don’t understand, then take a look at this screenshot of the Ribbon. The second screenshot is of the old Word 2003 menu. Take a look at the difference. (Click to enlarge)

The Ribbon is absolutely excellent to use and work with, especially for less computer literate users. With the Ribbon, you can now visually see the features and functions that you can use. A lot of basic users will probably say ‘Wow, Microsoft must have added a lot of new features to Word 2007’. But actually, there aren’t many new features at all. Most of them were already there is Word 2003. But the problem was that many people do not realize that the features were even there. And that’s exactly what the Ribbon is for; to show users the features available. Personally, I think Microsoft has done a very good job with the Ribbon.The Ribbon is not only present in Word 2007 but also across many other Office 2007 applications such as PowerPoint.

Question: In order to save time, I want to have a look at the calendar with one or two clicks. Hoe can I do this?

Answer: There are two ways in which you can do with Windows Vista.

Method 1 - Just click on the time figure located at the right side of the Task bar. This is the best option.

Method 2 - Place a calender widget on your Vista sidebar. (To see how to add a widget, click HERE) To quickly view the sidebar just click on the sidebar icon in the Current running program icons. See picture below.

Question: How do I add a widget to my Vista Sidebar?

Answer: To add a widget, click on the small plus/add button located at the top of the sidebar. In the pop-up window, you will see a range of commonly used widgets. To add a widget, double-click the widget.

NOTE: If there is a widget that you want that is not there, click the ‘Get more gadgets online‘ link. This will direct you to Windows Live Gallery which is a service where you can select different widgets for Vista and also other Windows Live Services.

Question: How do I make a widget on the Windows Vista sidebar to appear on my desktop instead of on the sidebar.

Answer: To do this, you simply just drag the widget to anywhere on your desktop. It is very simple. Take a look at the screenshot below.

This week’s freeware pick is called ‘Mz Ultimate Tweaker’. This free program will help to optimize your computer for better performance and productivity. Some things that it does and have are: Hardware tweaks, system tweaks, internet Booster, WMP tweaks, Clean up tools and much more.

Also, this program is certified and received a four star rating from Softpedia.

Please note that this program is only for Windows XP. An equivalent program for Windows Vista will be published next week. For a much more detailed review that looks into the heart of Mz Ultimate Tweaker and the download page, please click HERE

Question: How do I pin a program to the start menu so that every time I click the Start button, a short cut for the program will appear.

Answer: You can pin a program tot he start menu by doing the following:
1) Browse through the programs list and right-click the program that you want to the pinned.
2) Click on ‘Pin to Start Menu‘.

The selected program should be now pinned to the Start Menu.

This week’s freeware pick is ‘FreeRAM XP Pro’. This program is to free and optimize your computer’s RAM which will increase your system performance and productivity. It also automatically configures itself for ease of use and also features advanced options. FreeRAM XP Pro is very easy to use and is suitable for both starters and experts. Also, download.com has given FreeRAM XP Pro a rating of 5 stars out of 5! Below are just some of the great features:

* Automatic, real-time memory monitoring and optimization
* Fast, threaded memory freeing with stop option
* AutoFree option intelligently optimizes RAM without sacrificing performance
* system metric and performance monitors
* Advanced tray support
* Memory reporting and diagnostic logging — Plus much more.

To go to FreeRAM XP Pro, please click HERE

Question: How do I change my monitor’s resolution?

Answer: You can change your monitor’s resolution by doing the following:
For Windows XP

1) Right-click your desktop and then click ‘Properties‘.
2) In the Display Properties pop-up window, click the ‘Settings‘ tab.
3) You can adjust your resolution by dragging the slider to the left to decrease the resolution or to the right to increase it.
4) If the Monitor Settings dialog box appears, look at your display. If you want to keep the new resolution, click ‘Yes‘. If not, click ‘No‘, and return to step 3.

For Windows Vista

1) Right-click on your desktop and click ‘Personalize‘.
2) In the pop-up window, click ‘Display Settings‘.
3) In the second pop-up dialog, you can adjust your resolution by dragging the slider to the left to decrease the resolution or to the right to increase it.
4) If the Monitor Settings dialog box appears, look at your display. If you want to keep the new resolution, click ‘Yes‘. If not, click ‘No‘, and return to step 3.