Tips for Today

Google image search
You can find pictures of just about anything on there, but did you know that the rabbit hole goes much deeper than just typing in a word or phrase into the search box?
For example, say you want to look for an image of a specific size. Simply use the drop-down box to choose large, extra large, medium or small image sizes. Additionally, you can refine your search using the other drop-down to specify search terms for faces, line drawings, clip art and much more! You can even search by color if you like! t doesn't stop there, though! If you click the “Advanced Image Search” link a whole array of extra options spring up! Here, you can get really, really specific as to what you're looking for. Exact dimensions, specific filetypes; you can even look for images that match your desktop resolution!

Printing "This Way and That" in MS Word

Here's a situation that's a bit perplexing for some…

Let's suppose that you have a Word document and you need some pages printed in portrait and some printed in landscape orientation.

First thing that needs to be done is to decide where the breaks in the printing orientation should occur.

Both before and after the information to be landscape printed we need to insert section breaks.

• In older versions of Word you'll need to use the Insert menu, Breaks choice. Choose the Next Page type of break and click OK.

• In Word 2007 you'll find what you need on the Page Layout tab of the Ribbon. We need the Breaks button and then in the Section Breaks section, choose Next Page.

Again, be sure to insert this type of section break at any point where the page orientation will change - including when you change it back to portrait.

Now it's time to actually make the orientation change:

To do this you need to place your cursor on the page to be switched to landscape.

People using older versions of Word should then go to the File menu, Page Setup choice. In the Page Setup dialog box, on the Margins tab, you need to select Landscape, make sure that at the bottom it's set for "This Section" and click OK. For those of you with Word 2007 you're back to the Page Layout tab of the Ribbon. This time click the Orientation button and choose Landscape. that Word 2007 didn't need to be told to apply it to a section - it just knew what to do.

Icon Hide & Seek

Do you have awesome wallpaper that's obscured by all those nasty little icons cluttering your desktop ? Well, here's how to make them all disappear, at least temporarily...

Win XP Instructions:

Just right-click your Desktop , Arrange Icons By , then click the " Show Desktop Icons " item.

Windows Vista Instructions:

Almost the same procedure here, just a slightly different location.

Right-Click your desktop, and under View un-check "Show Desktop Icons".Now bask in your awesomely un-obscured wallpaper!

Change the Size of Vista's Desktop Icons

The option to change icon size is hiding in plain sight

Here's how to resize them:

Right-click in any open area of the desktop (meaning not on a program icon).

In the pop-up menu that appears, mouse over View to see your three icon-size choices. Vista's default is Medium. If you want XP-style icons, choose Classic Icons. For super-big icons, choose Large Icons.

Save Your Desktop Icon Layout

You know the routine: Some game or application changes your screen resolution, and when it changes back again, your carefully crafted icon layout is totally messed up.

: DesktopOK. freeware lets you save and restore icon layouts. Set your icons the way you like them, save the layout, then just restore it later when the need arises.

And you're not limited to one layout: You can save as many as you want, which is great if you want different layouts for use with, say, your laptop with and without an external monitor.

DesktopOK works with Windows XP and Vista, but I haven't tested it with Windows 7.

Want more nifty Windows desktop tweaks? Check out the desktop utilities section in PCWorld.com Downloads.

Restoring Previously Opened Folders

Are there folders you open up habitually every time you start up your computer? If so, did you know that you can set up your computer to open those folders automatically each time you boot up? Windows Vista users need only apply for this one!

Here's what you need to do to make it happen:

1.) First, open Windows Explorer or browse to any folder.

2.) Next, select "Organize" from the toolbar at the top of the window.

3.) Click on Folder and Search Options and the following window will open up on your screen:

4.) Now, click on the View tab.

5.) Check the option that says “Restore previous folder windows on log on."

6.) Click Apply and then OK.

Now, when you log off, restart or shut down Vista, it will automatically open the previously opened folders on the next boot.

Take a Shorter Shortcut!

Did you know that you can assign a shortcut key to your shortcuts

First, why would you want to? Well, if you usually work with your programs maximized (i.e. you can't see the desktop), it's easier to press a shortcut key combination than to minimize the current application and click a desktop shortcut.

Now, if I'm working in MS Word and need to hop over to one of these sites, I simply press it's shortcut key. A browser window opens and I'm at the site. Much easier than minimizing Word, opening up Explorer, hunting through my favorites, clicking the link and having the page load. With shortcut keys, I'm only a keystroke (or two) away!

OK, here's how to set up shortcut keys:

1. Right click the shortcut you wish to have a shortcut key for and select Properties .

Note that this seems to work best when the icon in question lives on your desktop. I've tried it time after time for icons on the Quick Launch tool bar (next to the Start button) and it just doesn't seem to work for me.

2. You'll see a box for the shortcut key. Click it.

3. You won't be able to delete the " none " label that's currently sitting there, so don't try Instead, just press the key that you would like to use for your shortcut. You can use either letters, numbers, or (my favorite) function keys. Finally, click OK .

If you decide to use letters or numbers, you'll have to use CTRL+ALT+yourkey to activate the shortcut. Function keys are a single keystroke affair (just be sure to pick ones that you don't use in your favorite programs or you may be launching apps when you're trying to do a function).

http://www.pixisnap.com/

Do you use a lot of symbols in MS Word?

, I'd like to suggest using the AutoCorrect feature for some of your symbol shortcuts.

To begin, go to the Insert menu, Symbol choice.

When the Symbol window opens, locate the symbol you need and click on it, just like normal.

It's at this point that we head off to the AutoCorrect feature using the AutoCorrect button

located on the bottom left side.

When the AutoCorrect window opens, the symbol you selected will already be filled in and all you need to do is enter the characters that should initiate the AutoCorrect replacement.

For example, maybe you need to use the math symbol for "not equal to." You might use "not=" as the keyword to trigger the symbol replacement, but if you can't remember a keyword so obvious, you're probably not going to remember anything else either.

It goes without saying that you do need to be careful with your choice of characters used to signal the AutoCorrect you use to make the exchange. You don't want to pick anything that's a legitimate word or character combinations you may need to use for real. You don't want Word accidentally creating gibberish of your document, now do you?

When you're done, click the Add button to register the entry and then click OK to return to the Symbol window. Once there, click the Close button to return to your document.