BajaNomad - Computers, Yer never to old to...

Computers, Yer never to old to...

Sharksbaja - 7-10-2008 at 02:30 PM

learn a new trick. Now while this keyboard option is cool for photos and maps and small stuff, it ain't so great with text. :lol:

Try this: hold down the control key and toggle the view with the (-) and (+) keys.

[Edited on 7-11-2008 by Sharksbaja]

bajalou - 7-10-2008 at 02:41 PM

Using Firefox?

OK Just checked - IE has it now too. I need it all the time.

[Edited on 7-10-2008 by bajalou]

toneart - 7-10-2008 at 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by bajalou
Using Firefox?

Yep. It works well with Firefox. Right now I am using it for text and it really magnifies it and makes the print darker, when you use ctrl +

Sharks, are you too old to not use it? :lol:

[Edited on 7-10-2008 by toneart]

woody with a view - 7-10-2008 at 06:10 PM

great tip.

and i thought this had something to do with retirees and their spare time....

Tricks and Tips

MrBillM - 7-11-2008 at 09:53 AM

Anytime a new OS comes out, a short time later various books come out with "Tricks and Tips" that are filled with information like this. I've got many dating back to DOS. I once knew more about DOS than the company instructors. They are handy. Check out Barnes and Noble or Amazon.

For Firefox, Mozilla.com has numerous "Tricks and Tips" info.

Alternately, PC World and PC magazine are filled with things like this every month.

woody with a view - 7-11-2008 at 01:54 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by MrBillM
Anytime a new OS comes out, a short time later various books come out with "Tricks and Tips" that are filled with information like this. I've got many dating back to DOS. I once knew more about DOS than the company instructors. They are handy. Check out Barnes and Noble or Amazon.

For Firefox, Mozilla.com has numerous "Tricks and Tips" info.

Alternately, PC World and PC magazine are filled with things like this every month.

yes, DOS 5.0 was when i got my start. learned it in and out.....

Sharksbaja - 7-11-2008 at 01:58 PM

Yeah, it sucked. Especially making those stupid floppy boot disks. If you didn't know MS-DOS computers were worthless.

Then came Windows 3.1 ahhhhhhhhhh! :lol:

805gregg - 7-11-2008 at 02:25 PM

Didn't do a thing, what am I doing wrong?

woody with a view - 7-11-2008 at 03:35 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by 805gregg
Didn't do a thing, what am I doing wrong?

not trying hard enough?

:lol:

Doing the DOS

MrBillM - 7-11-2008 at 06:35 PM

My first DOS class with GTE was for DOS 1.0. A one-day class that had trouble filling the time because there wasn't that much you could do without getting into applications, which was beyond the scope of the class, but the DOS class was a prerequisite for the application classes: Multimate (word processing), Lotus 1-2-3 and Dbase. The Lotus class was notable because we had the latest and greatest "Bubble-Jet" Monochrome printers. We were warned not to do pie-charts with filled segments because it shortened the life of the cartridges.

Although there were a few IBM PCs purchased early, the bulk were XTs.

AND, the IBM XTs had no hard drives. Just two 5.25 Floppies. Only middle and upper-level management got the deluxe units with a 10MB hard drive. In later years, I kept an XT in the shop to show people what the old days were like. You could eat lunch waiting for it to boot up.

I Loved DOS. Knew every command and rarely typed a command string incorrectly. Through Win 3x and even into Win 95, I would frequently use DOS to execute commands because it was quicker. When Win 98 abbreviated the DOS platform, I changed with it, but STILL use the command line frequently, especially when I have a batch of files that need renaming.

Speaking of Floppies, I did a Network installation upgrade in Los Gatos back in 1999 because the cost of repairing the existing IBM controller became too high. It used 8-inch floppies and there was only one repair facility in the entire bay area that worked on them at a premium price.

The controller was still doing the job, though, ten years after supposedly being obsolete.

Beats Me, I guess !

MrBillM - 7-11-2008 at 08:21 PM

Prior to 1980, I was working as a Switching Equipment Maintainer with Automatic Electric (Stroger) SXS Switching, AE Toll Ticketing and PCM carrier maintenance. There was some older Honeywell equipment used by the business office for data input into the mainframe, but I never worked on that. It was all contracted out.

One thing notable about the durability of that old switching equipment was how long it had worked so well. I was working on a switch one night in 76 and I pulled the print. The switch was an Issue One Originally put in service in 1927.

One of the few things I've saved from the stacks of manuals and prints over the years is my IBM-XT troubleshooting and repair manual. Back then, we traced the problems down to individual DIP-mounted (or soldered) components and replaced them.

I have a close friend and co-worker in Network Support who was hired by IBM after graduation in Germany and went to Saudi Arabia to work on IBM mainframes in the early-mid 70s. He told of the RAM memory boards that were on large square edge cards. Doing a ONE MB memory-add took a two-man crew an overnight shift.

Learning Octal was something that I only put to use in the field on some toll-access equipment we installed into Ontario around 78. Hex, on the other hand, I used all the time.

They were Good Times.

BUT, I NEVER did see one of those Individual Bits. Eyesight, I guess. You win.