Microsoft Office File Names

If you can no longer open documents that were created in a previous version of Microsoft Word, Excel or PowerPoint, it’s probably because of the file name. It may be too long or, it contains a slash or other no-longer-acceptable characters.

To change the name of a file:

1. Click once on the item

2. Press the Return key to highlight the file name

3. Type a new name. If you press the left or right arrow key it will move the cursor to the beginning or end of the text

4. Press the Return key when done

Now try opening the file and it will probably work!

iPad Tip of the Week

All About Sounds

You can control what sounds play when different things happen. Maybe you don’t like the sound when you unlock your device. Maybe you prefer NOT to hear a sound every time you receive or send an email or when someone sends you a text or leaves a voicemail.

It’s easy to choose which sounds and alerts you want to hear.

1. Tap Settings
2. Tap Sounds
3. Scroll through the list, choosing which you want on and which you want off

This is also where you can choose a different ringtone and make the Vibrate feature silent.

————

Latest Update for Mountain Lion

If you are running OS 10.8, Mountain Lion, Apple just released an update to fix several bugs and issues in the software. Version 10.8.5 is available as a free download in the App Store. Under the Apple menu, choose Software Update. Install the OS 10.5.8 and any other updates that are available.

iPad Tip of the Week

Getting Ready For The New iOS7

Apple’s new iOS7 for iPhones and iPads is packed with a new look and lots of new features.

As with any upgrade, you may want to wait until they iron out some of the bugs before you jump in. Andbefore you rush to upgrade, you’ll want to do a little housecleaning first.

1. Confirm that your device will work with iOS7. It is compatible with:

• iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, iPhone 5c, iPhone 5s
• iPod touch 5th gen
• iPad 2, iPad 3, iPad 4, iPad mini

NOTE:

OSXDAILY highly recommends WAITING to update iPad2 and iPad 3,iPad4 and iPad mini as well as iPhone 4, iPhone 4S

2. Back up to iCloud:

• Tap Settings
• Tap iCloud
• Tap Storage and Backup
• Tap Backup Now

3. Delete any apps you don’t use:

• Tap and hold on any app to get them wiggling
• Tap the X to delete
• Tap the Home button when done to stop the wiggling

————–

Make Your Cursor Bigger

The bigger your screen, the smaller the cursor. But you can make it bigger so you can find it more easily.

In Mountain Lion

1. Under the Apple menu, open System Preferences

2. Click on Accessibility in the bottom right

3. Click on Display

4. Move the slider to adjust the Cursor Size

In Snow Leopard:

1. Under the Apple menu, open System Preferences

2. Click on Accessibility in the bottom right

3. Click on Mouse

4. Move the slider to adjust the Cursor Size

iPad Tip of the Week

Make the Text Bigger

You have a lot of control over the size of text and other items on your iPad and iPhone

1. Tap Settings
2. Tap General
3. Scroll down and tap Accessibility
4. ZOOM gives you choices for finger gestures to enlarge entire screens
5. LARGER TEXT allows you to choice a more readable font size

—————-

Importing Contacts From Excel

Mountain Lion finally allows you to easily import lists of names from an Excel spreadsheet into Contacts.

1. In the Excel spreadsheet, from the File menu, choose Save As
2. Title the document
3. From the Format menu, choose Comma Separated Values (.csv)
4. Be sure to save the document where you can easily find it
5. Quit Excel. If you get a warning that the file may not be compatible, just say OK
6. Open Contacts
7. From the File menu, choose Import
8. Locate the .csv file you just saved and Open
9. In this window, match up the fields from Excel with the Contacts fields that you want to import by clicking on each one you want to import
10. Choose to Ignore the First Card since it contains the label names of the fields
11. Use the arrows on the screen to move through your data to confirm that things are in the correct fields
12. Click OK
13. You can now delete the .csv file you saved

iPad Tip of the Week

Importing Videos From iPhone and iPad to Your Mac

Perhaps you’ve noticed that photos that you take on your mobile device appear on your Mac via Photo Stream, but videos do not.

As my Apple Genius friend reminded me, it’s called Photo Stream, not Video Stream.

The easiest way to transfer your movies from your device to your computer is to email them to yourself, then drag the attachment from the email onto the iPhoto icon on your Mac.

To email a video:

1. On your device, tap Photos
2. Tap Albums to get to the Camera Roll
3. Because videos are large files, I recommend emailing them one at a time
4. Find the video. It will have a movie camera icon and the length time of the video
5. Tap the Share icon, the forward-facing arrow
5. Choose Mail
6. Address it to yourself
7. Send

 

Ram vs. Hard Drive Storage: What’s The Difference?

Computer memory is RAM. It’s like your physical desk. How much RAM you have determines how many apps you can have open at one time and work with efficiently.

If your computer is slow, or freezing, or you get the spinning ball, you need more working space–you need to install more RAM.

Hard drive storage space is like your closet. You can store a whole lot more in your closet than would ever fit on your desk to work with at any given time.

Uninstalling Apps, deleting photos and documents creates more storage space. Buying and installing RAM will create more efficient working space.

To find out how much RAM and hard drive storage your Mac has:

Under the Apple menu, choose About This Mac

The RAM amount, measured in GB, is listed in this first window.

To see how much hard drive storage you have, click More Info

If you are running Lion or Mountain Lion, click on the Storage tab across the top and a graphic will appear, showing you how much you are using and how much is left.

If you are running an earlier version of the OS, in the left column of the More Info window, scroll down and click on Serial ATA and click on the hard drive listed for the information.

In my opinion, you need a minimum of 4GB if you are running Lion or Mountain Lion. Anything less than that, and things may run slow, or freeze.

Contact Apple or a third party dealer (MacMall, MacMemory) to find out how much more you can add to your particular Mac.

iPad and iPhone Tip of the Week

Free Apps

The cool, crisp weather of autumn is an invitation to get outdoors and spend some time in nature. This month’s free apps can enhance your experience.

LEAFSNAP

Have you ever found a leaf and wondered what kind it was? This virtual field guide lets you take a picture of the leaf, then matches it to the correct leaf in the apps database.

iBIRD LITE GUIDE TO BIRDS

This intro app is a pared down version of iBird, one of the most popular bird identifying apps. iBird Lite includes 31 species of birds, including search capabilities and bird songs.

RELAXING SOUNDS OF NATURE LITE

If you can’t get outdoors, you can bring the sounds of nature indoors with this free app. With 22 different nature sounds, you can create your own combination of sounds to relax, reduce stress and feel better.
———–

Reminders in Mountain Lion

Mountain Lion is packed with so many new features, like Smart Browsing in Safari, VIPs in Mail and Reminders.

Reminders, like Notes, sync between your iPhone, iPad and Mac. Unlike Notes, you can set an alert by date, time, even location in the Reminders App.

I’ve just added a whole new course to The Virtual Classroom so members can learn all about these great new features.

Click here to watch a free video from the Virtual Classroom that will show you how to use the new Reminders feature.

iPad and iPhone Tip of the Week

Quick Scroll To The Top

When you reach the bottom of an article, an email, or your Facebook posts, instead of scrolling all the way back to the top, just tap in the very top black horizontal menu space where the time and battery are displayed and you’ll zip right up to the top of the screen.

————

Turn Off Facebook Notifications

Do you get an email every time something is posted or commented on in FaceBook? This can make for a very full and overwhelming Inbox.

Here’s how to turn them off:

1. In FaceBook, click on the down triangle in the top right next to HOME

2. Choose Account Settings

3. In the left column, choose Notifications

4. Anywhere you see an icon of an envelope, it means you are asking to receive an email notification

5. Click Edit

6. Click on the envelope to remove all checkmarks

7. Do this with each category

8. Now breathe….

iPad and iPhone Tip of the Week

Editing Text

Instead of deleting and retyping, you can edit text, just like you do on your Mac.

1. Tap and hold your finger near the text you want to edit. An onscreen magnifying glass appears, showing you where the cursor is positioned

2. Drag the cursor to the desired point

3. Now you can type, delete, and edit your text

Selecting Text to Copy and Paste

1. Use the same technique for positioning the cursor, and this time, tap and release, revealing choices to Select, Select All, etc

2. To select only some text, drag the corner grab points to surround the text you want to work with

3. Tap the now selected text to choose to cut or copy

4. To put the text someplace else, tap where you want to put it and choose Paste

Shortcuts:

To select a single word, double-tap it

To select a paragraph, swipe across the paragraph with two fingers

or

quadruple-tap the paragraph

or

pinch/pull on the corner handles with two fingers to change the range of text

Undo the Last Thing Your Did

To undo the last thing you typed or edited, shake the iPad and then click Undo

————-

Make an Email Really Stand Out

The Flag feature of Apple Mail is great for marking important emails. And you can quickly find any flagged emails quickly with the built-in Search tool.But sometimes an email is REALLY important and you want it to really stand out in the long list of messages in your Inbox. So why not make it a color?

1. Click once on the email

2. From the Format menu, choose Show Colors

3. Choose a color. You can change how you see the different color choices by clicking on the icons at the top of the window. The icon on the far right will show a simple crayon box for simplicity.

4. Close the color window and the email will now be highlighted in that color.

iPad and iPhone Tip of the Week

Inserting a Picture in Mail

The new iOS6 is filled with great new features, including the ability to now add a photo into an email directly in Mail.

1. Create a new mail message

2. When you’re ready to insert a photo tap and hold in the message area

3. Choose Insert Photo or Video

4. Choose where the picture is (Camera Roll, Photo Library, an album, etc.)

5. Choose the photo

6. Tap USE

To send several photos at once, either repeat the above steps for each photo or:

1. Open the Photos app

2. Tap Camera Roll or Photo Library, depending on where the photos are

3. Tap Edit

4. Select the photos you want to email

5. Tap Share

6. Tap Mail

If Mail is not an option, you have too many photos selected. So cancel and unselect several photos then try again.

————

Setting Margins in Microsoft Word

Many of my clients have been using Microsoft Word for years, yet they admit they don’t know how to properly set margins.

It’s NOT by sliding the triangles on the ruler!

Here’s a free video lesson that will show you how easy it is to properly change your margins.

This tip is just one of the many things you can learn in the newest course in Mac to School’s Virtual Classroom, Tips for Microsoft Word. To gain access to the entire course and all of the other great video lessons, join the classroom!

iPad and iPhone Tip of the Week

Maps vs. Google Maps in iOS6

It’s true. The new Maps app in iOS6 DOES include turn by turn directions but it does NOT include mass transit or walking directions. BUT you can still use Google maps!

1. Open Safari

2. Go to maps.google.com

3. Tap the Share button and choose to save it as an icon to your home page

 

New Gestures in Lion and Mountain Lion

A reader emailed me this question:

My screen jumps to the left and reveals a few apps on a black background ( temp, calculator etc). This always comes as a surprise… I have no idea how it happens but I would love to know. And other times, I see miniatures of what’s open..what’s that?

The Mac lets you use fast hand Gestures to activate different actions and windows. If you aren’t aware of these settings, you don’t realize that your movements are actually giving these commands.

The black background screen is the Dashboard, a collection of web based apps that you can open without first opening Safari and then navigating to the site. Your screen jumps to the Dashboard when you accidentally swipe the mouse or trackpad sideways.

The window with a mini view of all open applications is called Mission Control. With so many windows open, this feature makes it easy to quickly click on the one you want to work with next.

You can turn off these gestures: in System Preferences, under either Mouse or Trackpad, click More Gestures. Roll your cursor over the individual choices to see a short video that demonstrates what each gesture does. To turn off any gesture, just remove the check mark.

BONUS TIP: If you like to access Dashboard and Mission Control, but don’t like doing it with Gestures, you can set a keyboard combination to access them.

In System Preferences, click on Mission Control, choose a keystroke combination for each feature you want to use.

iPad and iPhone Tip of the Week

Settings for Visually and Hearing Impaired

Macs have always catered to users with visual and hearing disabilities, so it is no surprise that the iPhone and iPad also have settings to make using these devices easier for folks with limitations.

Tap Settings

Tap General

Tap Accessibility

Here you can turn on VoiceOver, to have the device read to you

You can Zoom text, make text much larger, even change the text to be white text on a black background.

This is also where you can set your device to work with an adaptive accessory if you have difficulty touching the screen.

————

Clear Safari’s Cache in Lion and Mountain Lion

Safari’s Cache makes pages that you’ve previously loaded open faster. Often because it’s opening the older version of that page. Sometimes refreshing or reloading a page will bring up the newer version, but sometimes it’s best to Empty the Cache.

In previous versions of Safari, it was easy and clear how to Empty the Cache. The newest versions of Safari have changed where you go to empty out the Cache.

Now, under the Safari menu choose Reset Safari.

Remove the checkmarks next to things you do NOT want to reset.

Click Reset and everything else, including the cache, will be cleared.

iPad and iPhone Tip of the Week

Check out these free travel-related apps

Gas Buddy: Find gas stations near you and compare prices.

Hotel Tonight: Get last minute deals on hotels.

KidzOut: Find kid-friendly restaurants, parks and play places, even diaper changing stations.

———–

New VIP Feature of Mountain Lion

Mountain Lion, Apple’s newest operating system, is packed with new features and capabilities.

One feature in Mail is great for keeping track of emails from your most important people, your VIPs.

You can designate someone as a VIP by clicking the star icon to the left of the person’s name in any incoming or sent message. Every message to or from that person will now displays a star in message lists, making it easier to find those messages.

In addition, when you designate a person as a VIP, a new mailbox in the VIP Mailbox is created so that when you can click on a VIP’s name,you get a list of all messages, across all mailboxes (including Sent and Trash), to or from that person.

To remove the VIP designation, click on an email from that person, then click the arrow on the right side of their name and choose Remove from VIPS.

iPad and iPhone Tip of the Week

Undo and Redo

Did you know there is an UNDO and REDO button on the iPad?

If you accidentally delete some text, you can undo your last action in Mail or Notes.

To UNDO, tap to access the number keyboard, then tap the Undo key.

To REDO, tap to access the Symbol keyboard, then tap the Redo key.

As an alternative, you can also shake your device to undo and redo, like this:

After deleting some text, hold your iPad firmly with your both hands and give it a quick shake, and the Undo button slides in for you to undo.

To redo, shake it again.

———

Keyboard Shortcuts in Safari

Instead of using your mouse’s scroll wheel or dragging the blue scroll bar, you can move down the page by pressing the Space Bar.

Move up the page by holding down the Shift key and pressing the Space Bar.

To go Back to the previous page, instead of clicking the Back Arrow, press the Delete key.

iPad and iPhone Tip of the Week

Copy and Paste

1. Yes, of course you can copy and paste text on your iPad and iPhone.

Press and hold your finger at the beginning of the text you want to select. A menu appears, and the text is highlighted in light blue and there are blue circles on either end of the selection

2. Drag the blue circles to highlight all of the text you want to work with or choose Select All

3. Choose Copy

4. Press and hold your finger where you want to put the text you copied

5. Choose Paste

Edit Text

Use this same technique of pressing and holding your finger to reposition your cursor to Edit text

————