Nov 14

2022

Welcome

Club Overview &Computer Scams

Scams 2022

OPEN MEETING (attend without joining).

Welcome to PebbleCreek Computer Club.

A paper handout, relevant to the day’s topic, will be available at each session.  If you become a member, handouts will be emailed to you before each meeting.

   Throughout the year, I will have a computer at each meeting to be projected on a 10 ft. screen – We will present both Windows 10 and 11.  Questions about older versions are certainly welcome.  Some topics, such as Internet, are independent of the version of Windows. 

There is no need to bring your computer to the meetings.

   At this first meeting, there will be a brief introduction of officers and explanation of meeting format.  Presentation of plan for the year.  Getting a feel for attendee demographics.  Some discussion of computer basics, definitions, operating systems (Windows 10 and Windows 11 will both be shown) and computer applications.

Discussion of Scams and how to recognize them and avoid being taken advantage of.  In addition, some talk of computer problems, including slowness. This discussion should be of interest to all.  Questions encouraged at every meeting.

Microsoft only supports Windows 10 (through 2025) – and, of course, Windows 11.  That means there are no corrections or updates to any other version (including Win 7 & 8 (8.1)).  You can keep using other versions, but converting to Windows 10 will be necessary to run certain software. Converting to Windows 11 (from Win 10) is free, but there are some severe hardware limitations that make many Win 10 machines UNupgradable. Although Windows 11 is current, it has only been out one year.  Therefore Windows 10 and Win 11 will get about equal attention.

Jan 9 2023

Getting Started

FAQ 2023

Deciding on a new computer

   What to consider when buying a computer.  Introduction to common terminology.  More exposure to Windows 11 and comparison to Windows 10.  General discussion for beginners.  Handout consists of frequently asked questions (FAQ) and their answers.  Although I will start with a Win 10 computer at the meetings, questions on older Windows versions are still welcome.  I will also have a Windows 11 computer at each meeting.

Jan 16

2023

Windows 10 & 11

Settings & Features

Computer Health Applications

Virus Summary revisited

  Keeping a computer efficient and safe.   Virus checkers and Spyware checkers discussed.  Where to get free "keep-me-clean" programs and how to set them up and use them. 

  How to use the start menu and change its format. More coverage of Win 10 & 11.  How to find and use the “old” control panel with discussion of things you can change and things you probably shouldn’t change.  Working with Settings area of Win 10 & 11. How to use Windows (File) Explorer, which is different from Internet Explorer (now Edge), to organize your files and folders. Where to find these items in Windows 11 compared to Windows 10.

Jan 23

2023

Internet

Session 1

Windows 10 & 11

Get Computer Health Plan Components

Internet Speedup

   General discussion of ISPs. (Internet Service Providers) Choosing an ISP.  Signing on to wireless.  Discussion of Internet Browser (examples: Edge & Chrome) settings & menus. Explanation of the Microsoft Edge browser that comes with Win 10 & 11.  Other browsers such as Chrome and Firefox discussed.  Deciding on a home page.  Using a search engine such as Google or DuckDuckGo.  Search technique suggestions. Using an encyclopedia and dictionary.   Introduction to some very interesting websites.  How to get questions answered online. Making you computer faster on the Internet. Web terminology. 

   Internet and Windows questions will ALWAYS be addressed.  This is the heart of PC use.  So never hesitate to ask anything!  This session and the next two always prove to be very interesting and popular.

Jan 30

Internet

Sessions 2

   Focus on other aspects of the Internet - e.g. Shopping and banking.  Introduction to E-bay and Half.com. Using Amazon.com.  Demonstrate Travel related capabilities, Including Travelocity, Expedia and Tripadvisor.  Introduction to "Tabbed Browsing".  Using the Internet to reserve flights, hotels, rental cars and dinner reservations.  How to track airplanes in flight.  How to use different corporate websites to get things done - e.g. bill paying, Property Taxes, APS, Southwest Gas, American Express and other credit cards. Always bring your questions.  Using the www.pebblecreekhoa.org website.

Feb 6

Email

   Discussion of email.   Using Mail handler in Win 10 & 11.  Exposure to Mozilla Thunderbird. How to get on the PebbleCreek E-group.  Working with attachments, forwarding email and using he address book.  Managing your email.  Using the BCC (blind carbon copy) feature. Establishing an account with Hotmail, Gmail or Yahoo.  Common email errors. 

Feb 13

Microsoft Word 1 (Word Processing in General)

   Basic explanation of ribbons, settings and documents.  How to work with fonts, margins, copy, cut and paste.  Changing things in a document and cleaning up basic formatting problems. Print preview.  I will cover the format used in Office version 2007 and later (2010, 2013, 2016, 2019 and 2021 are all similar).  I will also discuss some free office productivity suites including MS Office 2010 Starter Edition (Win7 only), Apache OpenOffice, WPS Office and King LibreOffice.  As always, questions and answers.

Feb 20

Word 2

   Working with spell check and auto correct.  Using some of the basic features.  Using speech recognition. Adding lines, boxes and WordArt to a document.  Creating personal letterhead.  Creating labels.  Working with tables.  Sorting and editing.   Adding Clipart

Feb 27

Excel 1
(Spreadsheets)

   Basic introduction to Excel and Spreadsheets. Title of this session should be "Why You Should Know Something About Spreadsheets, Even If You Think You Don't Need to Know Anything About Spreadsheets".  Ribbons and settings will be addressed. Cell formatting, rows and columns, borders, worksheets, workbooks, editing will be covered.  Some basic applications and uses.  What Excel is good for and what it isn’t so good for.  Emphasis will be on Excel version 2007 and later. Review of Excel wannabes such as Works, OpenOffice, WPS Office and LibreOffice.

Mar 6

Excel 2

USING EXCEL #2

   Basic addition and subtraction applications within a spreadsheet.  Creating a nice looking report.  Defining a print area.  Cross-footing.  Demo of my programs. (e.g. How Long Will Your Money Last and Minimum Required withdrawal from a 401K)

   If desired and time permits - Introduction to some basic functions.  Working with functions.  Hiding rows and columns.  Protecting cells.  Linking worksheets.  Doing graphs. 

Mar 13

Windows Cont’d

File Management

   More explanation on how to making Windows more efficient.  How to examine your computer for startup functions.  System Tray.  Review of in-depth explanation on how to use Windows (file) Explorer.  Reference to Microsoft Edge Browser and the Google Chrome Browser.  This sounds like topics covered earlier, but questions often make this session relevant. If it hasn't been dealt with yet, backing up a computer will be addressed.  Detailed Control Panel use.

   Transitioning from an old computer to a new one.  What to consider when setting up a new one.  What can be moved and what can't be moved to a new machine.  Believe me, getting a new computer can be somewhat of a trauma to get it working to your satisfaction.  This session will help.

   Working with networks. Sharing files and printers.  Moving data from old computer to new one.  Wireless router setup.    Hooking up a wireless printer and dealing with related problems.

Please bring all your questions, as always.

Mar 20

Loose Ends with Windows

Common Mistakes

   Open discussion based on questions and concerns of membership.  I will have an agenda if there are no concerns.  With this session, I want to make sure everyone considered this season's meetings worthwhile.

Mar 27

System Cleanup, Photo Story 3

   Snowbirds start to leave around April 1st, so this will be the last meeting of the season.   General Internet.  Q & A on any topics.

   Downloading and using Microsoft’s free download called PhotoStory3.  Creating a nice slide show with music and slide animation.  This has always been a very fun and well-received topic.

    Working with digital pictures.  Will emphasize how to use Microsoft Office Picture Manager for picture enhancement.  Learn how to get rid of red-eye and brighten up dark photos.  Other digital picture handler programs discussed (e.g. Picasa).  How to make your camera’s setting more efficient.

   Time usually permits having open discussion on any topic you want such as more interesting Internet Sites and maybe using Quicken. 

   Have a safe summer and hope to see you in the fall - if you are still interested.  It has been my pleasure to hold these meetings (if they happen) and sincerely thank you for your interest and support.  Next meeting is November 13, 2023