Facebook "is going" Places

Have you heard?  Facebook has a new feature called Places.  It's a feature that allows you to see where your friends are and share your location with them.  You'll be able to see if any of your friends are currently "checked in" nearby and connect with them easily.  To learn more about this feature, sign up for a Facebook class with The PC Teacher (Helping You Click with Technology in Ramsey).  Click here for more information: www.thepcteacher.com or to sign up for a class click here

You can check into nearby Places to tell your friends where you are, tag your friends in the Places you visit, and view comments your friends have made about the Places you visit. Use Places to experience connecting with people on Facebook in a completely new way. (Facebook Help Manual)


The Places feature is available to users in the United States with mobile access to the Facebook application for iPhone or touch.facebook.com. Places will be available to other mobile devices and the internet in the future. Please make sure that you are using the most up-to-date software version for your iPhone, Android, or mobile device or the Places application may not function properly. Alternatively, you can access the Places application through your device’s web browser by following these steps:

1. In your browser go to http://touch.facebook.com.
2. Tap the Places tab.
3. When you are prompted to share your location, tap "Share Location."

To check in at a Place:

1. Access the Places application on your mobile device.
2. Click "Check In."
3. Select the Place where you are from the Nearby Places list. If you don't see the Place name, type the name of the Place where you are into the "Search Nearby Places" box. Alternatively, you can toggle the left-right arrows on the right of the search box to display lists of other Nearby Places.
4. Write an optional description of what you are doing at the Place where you are checking in. You can also tag your friends at the Place where you are.
5. Click the "Check In" button again to share your visit.

You control and own all of the information you contribute to Facebook, including your Places information. You decide how you share it and who gets to see it. Your location is never automatically shared: not when you use your mobile device, not when you use the Facebook application and not when you use the Places feature. Your location is only ever shared when you check in to a Place. You have full control over whether and with whom you share your check-ins.   This is how to adjust those settings:

From the Facebook page, click on Account in the upper right corner of the screen then click Privacy Settings then at the bottom click Customize Settings.

In the "Customize settings" section of the screen, simply select the drop-down box next to "Places I check in to" to control who you share that information with and select one of the four recommended settings: Everyone, Friends and Networks, Friends of Friends, or Friends Only. Alternatively, you can make the locations you check in to visible to or hidden from specific people by clicking "Custom."  (If you don't want anyone to see where you are checked in to then set Custom to Only Me)

A little lower down on the screen, in the "Things Others Share" section, you can also control whether or not your friends can check you in to a Place by selecting "Enable" or "Disable" in the box next to "Friends can check me in to Places." Just as with photos, your friends can tag you at Places they check into. You can always remove your name when a friend tags you.

For more information on how to use Facebook, Places or to change your Privacy Settings, contact the The PC Teacher or check out our website at: www.thepcteacher.com

Happy clicking,

Betsy Sabatini Coyne

The PC Teacher

201-327-0830

www.thepcteacher.com

The PC Teacher

1000-B Lake Street, Ramsey, NJ  07446

August 14, 2010

updated 8/10/10, 9:30pm

Song credits:
"She's a Butterfly" - Martina McBride
"I'm Yours" - Jason Mraz
"Marry Me" - Train

Gone MAC

Today, The PC Teacher taught a group of public school teachers how to use Office for MAC.  That's using PowerPoint, Word and Excel on a MAC.  It looks similar to a Windows PC yet different in many ways.

In PowerPoint and Word, you use palettes instead of toolbars to access formatting options such as font type, size, color, etc.

On the keyboard, you use the Command key instead of the Ctrl key to access shortcuts for Copy, Cut, Paste, Bold, Italic, Underline and Print.

When inserting clipart, the clip gallery displays in its own window.  Use the Online button to get to Microsoft.com and search for clipart for thousands on the web.  Or use the Object palette to view clipart that you insert from your personal collection.

Office for MAC 2008


Happy clicking,
Betsy

The PC Teacher

Tag Your Friends in your Facebook Status

A very popular feature on Facebook is tagging, which gives you the ability to identify people in photos, videos and notes. 


Facebook has added another way to tag people and other things you're connected to on Facebook.  You can tag a person in your status updated.

People often update their status to express their thoughts, mention things they did or who they did them with. Sometimes that includes referencing friends, groups or even events they are attending — for example, you might post the following: "Having lunch with Betsy Coyne" or "I'm heading to a class at The PC Teacher - looking forward to learning how to use my computer!".

When you are writing a status update and want to add a friend's name to something you are posting, just include the "@" symbol before their name. When you begin to type the letters spelling what you would like to reference, a drop-down menu appears allowing you to choose from your list of friends and other connections, including groups, events, applications and Pages. The "@" symbol does not show up in the published status update or post after you've added your tags.

(image courtesy of http://blog.facebook.com/blog.php)


Friends you tag in your status updates will receive a notification and a Wall post linking them to your post. They also will have the option to remove tags of themselves from your posts. 


To learn more about Facebook, attend a class with The PC Teacher in Ramsey, NJ.


For more information, check out the calendar of events.


Happy clicking,
Betsy
The PC Teacher
bcoyne@thepcteacher.com

Spring/Summer Classes at The PC Teacher

Click on a day in the calendar below (or to the right) to view computer classes offered by The PC Teacher, Ramsey, NJ

Click the arrow next to the month to view future class dates.

Click on the Register Now button to sign up online.

Happy clicking,
Betsy Sabatini Coyne
The PC Teacher
bcoyne@thepcteacher.com

Sell Tickets through Eventbrite

From Blogger to Facebook

When you are using programs that are internet-based, things change from time to time.  A year ago I set up this blog to automatically send posts to my facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/betsythepcteacher)

Today I realized that the posts were no longer being sent to Facebook or Twitter.  Everyone needs to do a little troubleshooting.  Even The PC Teacher.

Happy Clicking,

Betsy Sabatini Coyne
The PC Teacher

Google Doodle Logos

If you misssed the interactive PAC-MAN Google Logo, check out this website:

http://www.google.com/logos/

You can browse Google's Doodle Logos from the past.

Happy clicking,

Betsy Sabatini Coyne

The PC Teacher

http://www.thepcteacher.com/

Pac-Man: 1 player or 2 player

Today is the last day to enjoy the Google Logo: an interactive PAC-MAN game to celebrate it's 30th anniversary.

Did you notice the Insert Coin button? 
Go to http://www.google.com/

1. Click the Insert Coin button (where the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button usually is located)
2. or wait 10 seconds and the game begins.
3. Use your arrow keys on your computer keyboard to move Pac-Man around the screen.
4. or Click the Insert Coin button a second and Ms. Pac-Man appears!
5. Now the game is 2-player!
6. Player one is Pac-Man: use your arrow keys to move your player up, down, left, right
7. Player two is Ms. Pac-Man: use your W,A,S,D keys to move your player up (w), down (s), left (a) and right (d).
8. Stay away from the red, pink, yellow, and turquoise ghosts.  They will eat you and the game is over.
9. Pac-Man eats up the dots on the screen to earn points.
10. Earn extra points by eating the ghosts when the turn blue!  But you must chase them before they turn back into their original colors.

As always, happy clicking......

Betsy Sabatini Coyne
The PC Teacher
http://www.thepcteacher.com/

USB Media Card Reader

During The PC Clique held last week, we discussed methods for transferring your photos from digital camera to your computer.  The PC Clique is a technology support group held every 3rd Thursday of the month in Ramsey, NJ.   For more info: http://www.thepcteacher.com/

Below is a link describing the media card reader we were discussing.  This type of reader is great for transferring photos from your digital camera to your computer.  The type below is compatible with the Secure Digital (SD) card as well as the MultiMediaCard (MMC) type.  This type of card reader is small and fits in your pocket..



Another option is a card reader that fits all types of media cards.   These types usually come with a cable and are slightly bigger than the one above.

How to Rent a Movie with iTunes

How to rent a movie from the iTunes Store on your computer

iTunes can be downloaded to a PC and is compatible with Windows.

You can use iTunes even if you don't own an iPod or iPad.

1.In iTunes on your computer, click iTunes Store.Some of the newer computers out there, usually the smaller ones, are starting to appear on the market without CD or DVD drives.  This is a convenient way to watch a movie on-the-go if you don't have a DVD drive to play a movie from disk. 

 

2.In the iTunes Store, search for a movie that you want to rent.

 

3.Click Rent. Your movie will begin to download immediately.

 

Once the movie is downloaded, you can watch it on your computer.  If you own an iPod, iPad or Apple TV, you can transfer the rental and take it with you commuting or on vacation.

To transfer the rental:

 

1.Connect the device and select it in iTunes.

 

2.Click the Movies tab (for iPod), or the Videos tab (iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV)

 

3.Select the movie, and then click Move.

 

4.After all movies have been moved, click Apply in the lower right corner of iTunes.

 

You must be connected to the Internet to transfer a rented movie.

1. After you transfer a rental, it is removed from your iTunes library.
2. You can move the movie between devices as many times as you wish during the rental period, but the movie can only be played on one device at a time.
4. You have 30 days to watch your movie and 24 hours after you've started viewing to finish.
5. Once you start watching your movie, you can watch it as many times as you want during the 24-hour period.
6. iTunes version 9.0 is needed in order for you to rent movies.
7. If you don't watch your rented movie, it will expire in 30 days and disappear from your iTunes library.