by Technophobes;the Kicking;Screaming Is This Thing On?: A Computer Handbook for Late Bloomers
The only threat posed by cookies is they enable an unwelcome visitor to your computer to view information now stored on your computer by the cookies. Frankly, my shopping habits aren’t anything anyone wants to know about, but your cookies may contain more significant information—possibly your credit card numbers. I don’t choose to allow websites to store my credit card information. If you do allow for that, the information will be stored in a cookie. If you want to delete the cookies on your computer, you can do so without harm to your computer. The only downside to cleaning out your cookies is some websites that previously recognized you won’t anymore. You’ll just have to introduce yourself all over again. At that point a new cookie will be placed on your computer so you’ll be recognized on your next visit to that website.
When you choose to delete cookies from your computer, you could access the folder they are stored in and pick and choose what to delete, but it’s difficult to always recognize what website the cookie is for and what information it contains. I prefer to delete them all and reintroduce myself to websites. (Because of the possible deletion of cookies after registration to a site, I print a document with all my registration information—website, user name or ID, and password—in case I need to refer to it later.) Let’s remove the cookies accumulated on your computer.
If you use Firefox to access the Internet, follow the steps below in the Click and Go to delete cookies. If you use Internet Explorer (the big blue E icon) to access the Internet, follow the steps at top right in the Click and Go to delete Cookies. If you use Safari to access the Internet, follow the steps at bottom right in the Click and Go to delete cookies.
While you’re in the Internet Options window of Internet Explorer there are other points of interest. Do you see above Delete Cookies there is Delete Files? The files referred to are temporary files allowing a website previously visited to open up faster on your computer. Over time the contents of this folder can slow down the computer. If your computer operates more slowly than in the past, access the Internet Options window and click on Delete Files. Wait for the hourglass to go away before continuing on with your next computer task. You may notice things run a bit faster after you’ve deleted those files. Other computer housecleaning tips can be found in Chapter 25, “Troubleshooting.”
Firefox
CLICK AND GO
1. Click Tools.
2. Click Options.
3. Click Privacy.
4. Click Remove Individual Cookies.
5. Click Remove All Cookies.
Explorer
• Here is how to delete cookies with Firefox.
CLICK AND GO
1. Click Tools.
2. Click Internet Options.
3. Click Delete.
4. Click Delete Cookies.
Safari
• Here is how to delete cookies with Internet Explorer.
CLICK AND GO
1. Click Safari.
2. Click Preferences.
3. Click Security.
4. Click Show Cookies.
5. Click Remove All.
Below the Temporary Internet Files portion of the window you’ll see History. History is where the computer stores the websites you’ve visited in the past. This is all well and good unless you’ve traveled somewhere on the Internet you’d rather not have others know about. No confessions necessary. If you don’t want someone to see the websites you’ve visited, click on Clear History. This won’t protect you if the Feds confiscate your computer and want to investigate past behavior, but it will prevent a curious spouse or grandchild from tracking your Internet activities.
Keep on Your Toes
Don’t forget the old-fashioned techniques used by would-be thieves… their keen eyes and sticky fingers. When typing a password in a public place, try to have all of your fingers in motion over the keys to make it more difficult for someone to see what you actually type. If you have a laptop and you’re in a public space, in order to protect the information on it from curious eyes, do not walk away from your computer when it is on. Frankly, when in a public place I wouldn’t walk away from my laptop at any time for fear that someone would steal it and make it their own.
What a terrible note to end on! But if you learn the potential pitfalls, it’s easier to avoid them. There was also a lot of computer jargon to absorb in this chapter. Don’t worry. I don’t expect you to remember it all! You can always come back and review. Why not treat yourself to a few cookies (the edible kind) and a cooling drink and take a break before you journey to the next chapter?
Q: Is the Internet safe?
A: Yes. It is as safe as any other place you visit in the “real” world. You just have to use the same precautions and common sense when you’re visiting the Internet as you would traveling someplace you’ve never been before.
Q: What is spyware?
A: Spyware is software installed on your computer without your consent. Spyware can monitor your computer behavior, sending that information back to advertisers, along with diverting you from a desired website to another. One way to avoid spyware is not to download (or add) any programs onto your computer without being sure of the source and certain that you need the software offered. You can install anti-spyware software on your computer. This is a topic best dealt with by asking friends or relatives in the know or a computer professional who can help install anti-spyware software and/or help remove any spyware that was found on your computer.
Q: I use a laptop computer, not a desktop. Do I need to connect wirelessly?
A: Not necessarily. You can connect to the Internet using an Ethernet cable, as you would with most desktops. (An Ethernet cable looks like a phone cable, but the cable itself is a bit fatter and the end you plug into the computer is wider.) The only advantage of a wireless connection is that you could work on your laptop anywhere in your home and be able to connect to the Internet without a cable.
Q: How will I know if someone has accessed my computer without my permission?
A: Unfortunately, you won’t. It will only be after they have used that information (e.g., shopped with your credit card) that you will know. Unless they are stupid enough to change settings on your computer so it will appear different to you, but that would be like leaving their glove in your home after they’ve broken in. If you are suspicious that your computer has been hacked, call in a tech support person to check things out for you.
Q: Who do I contact if I think my computer has been broken into?
A: If you have any evidence that your credit card number(s) or your identity has been in any way jeopardized, call the police and file a report (they may want to see the computer) and call the numbers listed on page 220 in this chapter. Bring your computer to a technical support person and have them go over the computer to see what evidence of intrusion they can find. While they have your computer, be sure to have them take the necessary steps to make it as secure as possible.
Q: I hired someone to hook up my printer. He insisted on turning off my firewall while doing the installation. Was he legit?
A: Yes. Sometimes when installing (or copying) new software onto a computer it is necessary to turn off the firewall. Just be sure to turn it back on after installation (see page 216).
Q: What can I do to let people know that the e-mail I’m sending is from me and not someone pretending to be me?
A: First of all, know that getting your e-mail address hijacked by someone else is far from a regular occurrence. That said, the subject and the body of every e-mail should be specific and personal. Don’t send an e-mail with the subject “hi” or “thinking of you.” Instead, type “enjoyed seeing you at Yolanda’s birthday” or “how’s life with the new puppy?” I know that an e-mail is from my mom because she always signs off “L, M” = Love, Mom. I always sign off “ML, P” = Much Love, Peach. It’s our code, which was secret until now… oops!
MAKE NEW FRIENDS AND KEEP THE OLD
CHAPTER 17
Advanced E-mail
Let�
�s go to the next level—web links, attachments, and more
As you’ve discovered by now, e-mail is a wonderful way to stay in touch with family and friends. It’s also an efficient means to communicate with co-workers and business associates. But surely it can’t replace snail mail entirely. What if you apply for a job and your prospective employer wants a copy of your résumé? That would require the U.S. Postal Service, right? No, not really. What if you want your daughter to send pictures from your grandson’s graduation? She’d have to mail them, right? Not anymore. Sit back and let me explain. But before we get into attachments, let’s go over some other e-mail details you should know as you become more experienced on your computer.
E-mail Services
Web-based e-mail does not require software to be installed on your computer but instead allows you to access all of its features from a website. That means you don’t have to use your own computer to get the e-mail. You could be on any computer anywhere in the world and access your e-mail. Many web-based e-mail services are free, such as Yahoo, Gmail (Google mail), and Hotmail.
As I said in Chapter 14, your computer may have come with e-mail services already installed, such as Outlook, Entourage, or Apple Mail. Microsoft Outlook comes bundled in the Microsoft Office Suite software. Outlook offers you e-mail, a calendar, an address book, task and content management, and a journal. Entourage is the Mac version of Outlook designed by Microsoft. It also offers e-mail along with a task manager and a personal information manager that will organize your calendar, addresses, and notes, as does Apple Mail. The advantage of all these, over web-based e-mail accounts, is that you can access previously received or sent e-mails and write e-mail without connecting to the Internet. Your newly drafted e-mails will be held in your computer’s memory until you connect to the Internet and send them.
Because free e-mail accounts are available to you, why not have more than one e-mail address, as mentioned in Chapter 16? Consider having a secondary e-mail address that you use when making purchases or when being added to a newsletter or desired mailing list. This will help prevent too much junk mail from being received in your primary e-mail account.
Why Choose Web-based E-mail?
I strongly suggest that you do not use the e-mail provided by the company you pay to connect to the Internet. Why? If you accumulate reasons to take your business elsewhere, you may hesitate because you like the e-mail address you currently have. It’s better if your e-mail address can be used with any company you choose to pay to connect to the Internet.
* * *
“It took me quite some time to get used to how casual e-mail is. Now I appreciate the lack of formality.”
—Grant
* * *
E-Manners
Netiquette was introduced to you back in Chapter 14, but here are some additional guidelines to keep in mind.
• Remember you are corresponding with a human being. No matter how faceless and casual e-mail may appear, abrupt and curt e-mails are rude. I open my e-mails with “hello” or “dear…” I close with “best,” “cheers,” or maybe just my initials.
• Less is more. Not to contradict my previous point, but convey your message in sentences rather than paragraphs. A lot of people read e-mail at work, where time is limited, and a computer screen is no place to read a novel. If you must write a lengthy e-mail, use paragraphs to break up the text. Avoid indentation because the format of your e-mail may change through transmission. Indentations can make e-mail difficult to decipher.
• Try to be specific in your subject line. Unless you’re writing a chatty hello, don’t bother with a benign “hi” or “it’s me” for a subject. Let the recipient know specifically what the e-mail is about. It allows him or her to prioritize and identify it at a later date.
• Watch what you say. E-mail is easily forwarded, and really remarkable ones can make the rounds all the way to the news.
• Do not lose your cool. Serious matters of the heart or workplace warrant one-on-one interactive audio projection dialogue (in other words, speaking face-to-face). As is possible with any writing, but especially in this abbreviated form, e-mails can be open for misinterpretation. If you’re determined to send a scathing e-mail, send it to yourself first, and feel what it’s like to receive your harsh words.
• Discriminate about how and what e-mail you pass on. Just because you received an e-mail doesn’t mean the contents are true or worthy of passing on to your loved ones, acquaintances, the pharmacist, your milkman, and that lady you sat next to on the bus. If you must share an e-mail, be sure to tidy it up before you hit Send. Read “Break the Chain” on page 236 for instructions on the tidiest way to share an e-mail.
• Include the portion of the e-mail you refer to. If someone asks questions in an e-mail, sending them the answers alone may cause confusion. Either include their entire e-mail for reference or the specific text relating to your responses. You can use copy and paste as described on page 237 to bring chosen text from one e-mail into another.
• Reread the e-mail address and message before you click on Send. I’ve warned my students to be cautious about inputting the correct recipient for years and recently found my face red when a slightly bawdy e-mail I wrote accidentally made its way to an elderly student rather than the intended close friend. Oops! Check for typos and spelling errors as well. Most e-mail services offer spell check capabilities.
• If you feel like it, add visual expression to your words. Use emoticons to add a little levity or emotion to your e-mail.
E-MAIL IS NOT ANONYMOUS
E-mail can be traced to the computer where it was generated, even if you take on a false e-mail identity.
* * *
“I am so sick of getting e-mails that have obviously been forwarded several times before I was added to the heap of recipients.”
—Jimenez
* * *
Say It with an Emoticon
:-)
smile
:’-(
crying
: )
also a smile
; )
wink
:-D
laughing
:’-)
happy and crying
:-}
grin
:-@
screaming
:-(
frown
:-&
tongue-tied
WARNING: If you or others you know use a work e-mail account for personal matters, beware. (Work e-mail can be identified by the company name as the suffix of the e-mail address, e.g., johndoe @westinghouse.com.) The employer owns the e-mail account and has a legal right to view all incoming and outgoing e-mail. Not only can this prove embarrassing, but it also reveals, by virtue of the volume of personal e-mail received or sent, time spent on one’s private life and not work. Companies are monitoring work e-mail accounts more and more. You should open a personal e-mail account for yourself, if you haven’t, and stop using work e-mail for personal communications.
Break the Chain
At some point you will receive an e-mail warning of a terribly destructive virus or relating a tragic story of a child suffering from cancer or a chain letter that cautions if you don’t send the e-mail on to ten friends bad luck will befall you, but if you do, good luck or even money will come your way. It is only responsible for you to send the e-mail on to loved ones who should be warned, may want to help, or are in need of luck or miraculous funds. Or is it?
What if the e-mail is a hoax? Most of these types of e-mails are designed to see how many people can be reached. Or, even more insidious, the e-mail addresses accumulated in the forwarded e-mails are culled by spammers to fill inboxes with junk mail. Before you decide to pass on this type of e-mail, check to see if it is a hoax at hoaxbusters.org.
DO THE MATH
You send the e-mail on to 10 people. Those 10 send it to 10 more = 100. Those 100 send it to 10 more = 1,000 and so on. By the time the e-mail has made the rounds only six times, it will
have reached 1,000,000 people!
If you deem the e-mail worthy of sending on, do not click on Forward and possibly forward all of the past e-mail recipients into the land of spam. Instead, copy and paste the important text into a new e-mail. While you’re at it, let’s not expose each recipient to the other’s e-mail address. Use BCC: (for guidance, see page 239) instead of using TO: or CC: when addressing the e-mail.
• The technique of copy and paste was introduced to you on page 206 in Chapter 15. If you haven’t yet used copy and paste, feel free to go back and review. With e-mail you’ve received there’s only one way to highlight the text to be copied. You must click and drag over the text. The easiest way to accomplish this is to start at the end of the text.
• Open the e-mail that contains the text you want to copy.
• Place the mouse arrow, which probably now is the mouse I-beam, at the end of the chosen text.
• Click and hold down the mouse while you drag across the text to the left and then straight up until you reach the start of the text. (If you’re using a touch pad, this may require both hands.)
CLICK AND GO
1. Highlight text.
2. Click Edit.
3. Click Copy.
4. Click Compose.
This is a tricky operation and may take a few attempts before you get it right. Be patient. You will conquer it, I promise. If you don’t succeed in highlighting the desired text, click the mouse anywhere in the window to eliminate the erroneous highlighting and try again at the end of the desired text.