More Handy Windows & Internet
Shortcuts!
- To send a single message to a group of recipients, put your
email address on the TO line and their addresses as BCC's (Blind Carbon Copy).
This procedure eliminates the long list of email addresses that everyone on the
list would have to wade through (if you put the addresses on TO or CC lines) in
order to get to the body of your message. In other words, the message each
person on the list receives shows only their email address (and no others),
which makes it look as if you sent your message specifically to them, rather
than a whole group of people.
- Streamline sending emails to a specific group of individuals,
clients or customers by creating new mailing lists in your address
book.
In Communicator's MESSENGER, click COMMUNICATOR on the menu bar at
the top of the window, then choose ADDRESS BOOK (A much faster method is to
press Ctrl+Shift+2). When that window opens, from its menu bar, click on FILE,
then NEW ADDRESS BOOK. In Outlook, select ADDRESS BOOK, then NEW GROUP. Now,
type in the name you want to call it and press ENTER.
Next, add the
email addresses you want in this book. You can type in the new addresses one by
one, drag and drop them in from existing address books or import them.
When you're ready to send to the group, open your NEW MESSAGE window and then
put the group name in the TO or BCC field of your message (remember, if you use
the TO field, everyone sees the entire list to which you are mailing). In
MESSENGER, you must click on the particular address book you want, then in the
right window, click on the first name in the list. Next, press and hold the
SHIFT key, then scroll to the last name in the list and click on it, which
causes all of the names in between to be selected. Now simply click on the BCC
button. Put your address on the TO line and click SEND!
- Sign your email! If you haven't already added a signature to
your email messages, here's how: First, create one or more signature files. Do
this by opening NOTEPAD (START, PROGRAMS, ACCESSORIES, NOTEPAD). Let's say you
want to include your company name, phone and a link to its website. Using
Office Helper as an example, type:
Office Helper ~ Super-fast, FREE,
Next Day Delivery (800) 862-4963 ~ Fax FREE (800) 933-7964 On-line at:
http://officehelper.com
Now choose FILE from the menu bar, then SAVE.
Name the file SIG.TXT and save it to your NETSCAPE folder (probably c:\Program
Files\Netscape...use Window's Explorer to find the correct path to its exact
location if you must). If you want, create several of these signature files,
saving them in the same place with different names, of course. For example, you
could call your business file BUSSIG.TXT and your personal file PERSIG.TXT.
In Netscape Communicator, choose EDIT from the menu bar and click on
PREFERENCES. From the drop down menu, click on the "+" next to the MAIL AND
NEWSGROUPS, then click IDENTITY. On the line where it says SIGNATURE, type in
the path to the file. In the example above, you would enter: c:\Program
Files\Netscape\bussig.txt for your business signature, then click OK.
All of your outgoing messages will now have the copy in the BUSSIG.TXT file at
the end of your message. To change to a different signature message, just
change the name of the file, i.e. from BUSSIG.TXT to PERSIG.TXT and click OK.
DESKTOP SHORTCUTS:
- I know I've described this one in a previous article, but it's
good enough to be worth mentioning again. If you email someone regularly, put a
shortcut on your DESKTOP that will automatically open your SEND window. To do
it, simply RIGHT CLICK anywhere on your DESKTOP and choose NEW, then SHORTCUT.
On the COMMAND line, type in the appropriate email address preceded by the
phrase mailto: For example, for a shortcut to Office Helper, type:
mailto:oh@officehelper.com and press ENTER. Name the shortcut and click
OK.
- You can do the same for websites or particular pages within a
site. On the COMMAND line, type http://officehelper.com to create a shortcut to
our website, press ENTER (or click NEXT), name it and press ENTER or click
FINISH. If you find a particular page you want to check in at regularly, when
you're at the page, right click anywhere on its background and choose CREATE
SHORTCUT. Either leave the default name Windows chooses for it or type in the
name you wish to call it and press ENTER or click OK. Presto, it's on your
desktop.
OTHER GOOD STUFF!!
There are so many neat and easy ways to get around in Windows which will make
you a more efficient user. For example, to close a program or open a window
quickly, make sure it is the "active" window, and press Alt+F4 and it closes.
Control+Esc brings up the START menu. When you have buttons to click on like OK
and FINISH and they are highlighted (a dotted rectangle inside the button or a
heavy border around it), just press the ENTER key instead of clicking the
button.
Of course, if you use Windows the way it was meant to be used,
like you're typing a letter for your boss, playing solitaire, checking your
email and listening to a CD...all at the same time, use the Alt+Tab combination
to quickly switch between windows. This way your boss doesn't catch you playing
when he's "paying"!
THE FUTURE
There is no question
that the Internet is changing the way we live and interact with one another. In
one sense it is expanding horizons in new frontiers, yet it has its downside as
well, and that concerns me.
I'm a people kind of person, you know,
warm and fuzzy so to speak. Making physical contact with others is an important
aspect of society and life at which the Net is whittling away. Heck, many
people haven't ever met the neighbor who lives more than two doors away, if
that far! You probably know your hairdresser, barber or bank teller better than
you know your neighbors.
With the advent of on-line banking, bill
paying, grocery shopping and even postage, who needs to ever leave the comfort
of home. Net-voting is just around the corner, also!
We must not let
the digital age consume us. Personal human interaction is a key ingredient in a
healthy society, so as you become more of a 'techie', at the same, meet someone
new 'live', wave at your neighbors and don't forget to call your friends and
family once in a while, rather than just emailing them!
Thanks for
reading. Hopefully you learned something for yourself. Pass it on to others so
they may benefit as well. We at Office Helper appreciate your business very
much. Remember, if we don't have it or can't get it, it probably hasn't been
invented yet!
...Rich
Poremba
P.S. Don't forget to check out this week's
HOT TIP!
RETURN TO
ARCHIVES |
