by Laura Katz
More bugs, eech- gross -I hate bugs-but computer bugs are a fact of life. As soon as you install new programs, or upgrade your current programs you face the pain of conflict between your current programs and your new programs. What’s a person to do? Ther e is a solution. No, there is no Prince Charming on a white horse to rescue you, but look in the mirror, there is your rescuer right there!
Who me? Yes you-you can fix it, let me tell you how. The first solution is to read the pamphlet that came with your software. Often you aren’t the first one to have a problem, the solution may be in the help section. You should also read the “read me fir st article” before you do anything. If your problem is mentioned, follow the directions. If your problem isn’t mentioned, look for an 800 number to call for help, or go to the web site for help. Recently I had trouble with the game Titanic-I kept getting GP faults. I emailed the company-they said to wash the CDs with cleaner-since it didn’t help, they told me to mail the disks back to them. I had new disks less than two weeks later.
You can also try reinstalling the software. I was having strange messages each time I turned on the computer. Finally my solution was to go to C prompt and type ”del windows”. Then I went back and reinstalled Windows 95. I did have to reinstall many of m y original programs, but my computer is working much better now.
Since doing the last article, I have come across many problems with the Windows 97 Excel program. It seems that Excel adds down but not across. As of this article there doesn’t seem to be a solution. (Actually there is-buy a copy of Office 95 instead of Office 97.) Some times the latest is not the greatest!
One other place for great solutions to your bugs is the Internet. First go to the company’s site. They usually have a place to leave a message. A second great place to go is the newsgroups. There are many devoted to computer problems. The third place I s uggest is to the SIG meetings. Many of them are devoted to specific computer programs such as Word, Access etc.
A really great site for Microsoft Office Bugs is WOODY’S OFFICE WATCH. The address is http://www.wopr.com. You can even subscribe to his weekly newsletter on Microsoft’s Office. He has the latest information on what’s wrong (and what’s right with the office suite). Then he tells you how to fix the problems. He also provides simple shortcuts. For example, t o indent a paragraph in Word just do ctrl+m . See, if you hit it more than once, it keeps indenting.
I also subscribe to Jesse Berst’s AnchorDesk. He has the latest news on what’s going on in the computer industry. He has tips, articles and lots of free stuff to download as well as articles on bugs and solutions. That’s at http://www.zdnet.com.
Finally don’t forget http://www.bugnet.com, they list the top ten bugs plus the solutions. If you want more bugs, you can subscribe to their service for a nominal fee if you’re a consumer, or a little more if you’re a business client. The most recent article, as of when this was written, tells co nsumers to be careful if they own a 3Com X2 model. They can destroy their modem while they are upgrading it. Before upgrading, they must turn off all screen savers, virus protection software, and anything else that could make a call to the system while t he upgrade is in progress.
Most help is only a phone call away. One note of caution however: be careful when you make a call. Be aware of the costs from certain companies that charge you for help by the minute. Make sure you are dialing an 800 number, or be aware of the price of t he long distance call. Do everything you can before you call. Don’t forget the prime directive-make sure your computer is plugged in!!
Laura Katz, a HAL-PC member and a third grade teacher at Milne Elementary school.
E-mail me at webmaster@hal-pc.org with any comments you have and tell me what you want to see here.