ASK MR. MODEM

Stuttering Keyboards, Vanishing Icons

and Other E-Mysteries Solved . . .

PLUS Mr. Modem’s Picks for

‘Don’t-Miss-‘Em’ Web Sites of the Month

By Richard A. Sherman

Q.  I didn't listen to your advice about not letting others use my computer, so I let my neighbor use my PC while I was on vacation. Now that I'm back, I notice that the My Computer icon is missing from the desktop, and I can't find it. I'm using Windows XP. Can you help me out on this one? I promise I'll follow your advice from now on!

A.  Shame on you for not following Mr. Modem's advice. You've got a lot in common with Mrs. Modem, now that I think about it. Here's an easy fix for your digital dilemma: To return the My Computer icon to its previous location, right-click anywhere on your Windows Desktop and select Properties.  From the Display Properties window, select the Desktop tab, then click the Customize Desktop button that appears near the bottom of the screen.  Next, select the General tab and, near the top, where it says, "Desktop Icons," place a checkmark in front of My Computer and click OK twice to save your settings and exit. 

Q.  How can I find out what version of Windows I’m using? I know I’ve got Windows 98, but I understand there are several different versions.

A.  From your Windows Desktop, double-click the My Computer icon, then click Help, followed by About Windows. The version number will be displayed.  This works with all Windows programs, so if you would like to know what version number you’re using, just click Help on the toolbar menu at the top of your screen, followed by About (name of program).

Q.  Whenn I’m typpingg, I keepp getting reppeat charrracters. I’m not a fassst tyypist, and I’m thinkking that mightt be parrt of the probblemm. It’ss veryy annoyiing.

A. If you hold down any key on your keyboard, depending how fast the repeat delay is configured, a slight pause in your typing may result in character repetition such as you’re experiencing. To remedy the problem, double-click My Computer > Control Panel > Keyboard and adjust the Repeat Delay and Repeat Rate by moving each respective slider bar (also called “the little slidey thing”). The Repeat Delay adjusts the amount of time that elapses before a character begins to repeat (which is what you want); the Repeat Rate determines the speed at which a character repeats when you hold down a key. You may have to make several adjustments to find the perrrrrrfect rate. Be sure to click Apply > OK to save your new setting. 

Q.  Can I store my saved e-mail in My Documents, instead of in Outlook Express?

A.  You sure can. Start by creating a folder in My Documents called "My Mail" (or any other name you wish), by clicking  File > New > Folder. Next, open Outlook Express and click Tools > Options > Maintenance tab > Store Folder.  Click the Change button, and in the “Browse for Folder” window, navigate to your newly created "My Mail" folder. Double-click to select it as the file in which to save your e-mail.  To save an e-mail, with it displayed on screen, click Edit > Move to Folder and select your new folder. 

Bad Scrabble  Hands  (http://heybro.com/badscrabble)

            What does LLLJWZQ mean to you?  If it doesn't mean anything, chances are you're not a Scrabble player.  LLLJWZQ is one of the worst "hands" you can be dealt in Scrabble. It’s almost as dreadful as QTTNNEF. This site is an archive of genuine, unmanipulated examples of Scrabble hands so mind-bogglingly miserable that photos just had to be taken.

Lemon  Law America  (www.lemonlawamerica.com) 

            A wonderful resource for consumers with defective vehicles or products—better known as "lemons." Here you can get up-close-and-personal with the lemon statutes in your state and find tips ("lemon-aid"?) regarding how to proceed if you think you have a lemon on your hands.

Smithsonian Air & Space Museum (www.nasm.si.edu)

            This is one Web site that is almost as cool as the real thing. Tour all 23 main exhibitions, view photos and read flight histories. Covers the major milestones of flight, including legends of the World Wars, commercial aviation, and space flight. "How Things Fly" can be particularly comforting the next time you're waiting to take off and thinking, "How can anything this big get off the ground?"

UPI  Photo  Search  Engine  (http://about.upi.com/products/newspictures/photos/)

            Search more than 150,000 United Press International photos, with more than 1800 new photos added each month. You can search by simple keyword or date-based searching. A search for "Bill Gates" yielded 167 results, sorted by date. Results include a thumbnail of the picture and an excerpt from the UPI story relevant to the picture. Click the picture and you'll see a slightly larger photo, plus additional information about the photo, including date, photographer, location, and format.

Word Chowder (www.wordchowder.com)

            A collection of light verse in a variety of categories that include Genius, the Bible, Rants, Torn from the Headlines, and a number of life's absurdities.

            Example:

"I don't want to complain, but it tortures my brain…
When I try to make sense of humanity.
It's disturbing to see, but I think you'll agree…
That the world's on the brink of insanity!"

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Richard A. Sherman, a k a Mr. Modem, is a nationally syndicated columnist, whose “Ask Mr. Modem!” column appears in more than 60 publications throughout the U.S. and in Canada. As publisher of the popular “Ask Mr. Modem” weekly newsletter, he provides easy-to-understand, non-technical, computer- and Internet-related answers to questions received from subscribers worldwide. He is the author of eight books, including “Mr. Modem’s Internet Guide for Seniors” (Sybex) and “Ask Mr. Modem,” a collection of hundreds of frequently asked computer and Internet questions received from readers. Richard is a contributing editor to TechTV and host of the daily “Mr. Modem Minute” television segment produced by FOX-TV.

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