Stickies
By Cate Eales
Appeared October 3, 2008 on castanet.net
This week, grab some digital stickies, remove unwanted
debris from your photos, and find out if your PC has what it takes to play
some popular games.
Stickies
Sometimes I wonder how we kept track of things before
Post-It Notes were invented in 1968. (My apologies to those of you who
are young enough that there were always Post-It Notes.) Everywhere I go, I
see "stickies" on people's computer monitors.
But what about those of us with laptops, or with those nice flat screen
monitors? Where do we put those notes? Why, right on our computer screens,
of course, using the digital version of stickies.
Last week's column mentioned
using Vista gadgets, and it turns out that Vista has a built-in stickies
gadget. Click on the Sidebar, and then on "Add Gadgets." Select the gadget
called "Notes" and drag it into the Sidebar. You can leave the notes in
the Sidebar, or drag them right onto the Desktop, just like any other
gadget. You can change some settings by clicking on the tiny wrench icon
right by the note, and other settings by right-clicking on the title of
the note.
XP doesn't have built in gadgets, but there are several
free programs that will give you stickies. Two of the best are
"Stickies for
Windows", available here, and
"Stickies", available here. Both programs work in Vista, too. And yes,
3-M, the original Post-It Notes company, has a digital version. It's
available for US$9.99
here.
PhotoWipe
If you ever need to remove an object (or even a person!) from a digital
photo, I recommend PhotoWipe. It's very easy to use, it does a good enough
job for most amateur photographers, and its free. I've used it on XP, and
it works fine. I don't know if it works in Vista; I couldn't find any
documentation on the website. You can
grab PhotoWipe here.
Can you run it?
Here's a utility that will come in handy for gamers --- and parents of
gamers.
Can You RUN It? is a website that compares your computer's
capabilities to the requirements for popular PC games. It will identify
what upgrades would improve game performance. You can find out in two or
three clicks and just a few minutes whether or not you should invest in
Halo2 PC or World of Warcraft. (And if you don't know what those are, you
probably remember how we kept track of things before Post-It Notes were
invented!)
Do you need help with your computer? Do you have something interesting to
ask or tell? I'm here to help you and your computer get along! To ask a
question, make a comment or suggestion, or schedule a visit, email
cate@rlis.com. You can read previous columns
here. If you'd like to
subscribe to this column by email,
please visit this link. It's easy, and free. If you'd prefer the
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Links
Wikipedia article: Post-It Notes
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Post-it_note
Gadgets, Surges, and Shutdowns
http://rlis.com/columns/column165.htm
Stickies for Windows
http://www.stickiesforwindows.com/
Stickies
http://www.zhornsoftware.co.uk/stickies/
Post-It Notes Digital
http://www.3m.com/us/office/postit/digital/?WT.mc_id=www.post-it.com/digital
PhotoWipe
http://www.hanovsolutions.com/?prod=PhotoWipe
Can You RUN It?
http://www.systemrequirementslab.com/referrer/srtest
Getting Along With Your Computer Column Archives
http://rlis.com/column.htm
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---
Cate Eales has been helping people make online computing safe, accessible
and fun for over 20 years. She lives in Kelowna with her husband, Eric,
and her dog, Sandy. Cate is a partner in Real Life Internet Solutions,
helping individuals and small businesses with virus, spyware and malware
eradication; personal computer training and management; digital image
management; music transfer; and website design, hosting and management.
Email Cate at cate@rlis.com with your
comments, suggestions, or questions. To browse the column archives, visit
the Real Life Internet Solutions website at
www.rlis.com.
©
Cate Eales 2008 – All Rights Reserved
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