Keyboard Power: Using Your Computer Even If Your Mouse “Dies”

There are various accessories that could help operating a computer easier. The mouse is just an example of an accessory which makes navigation simple with just one click. However, most of these accessories have short “lifespan” and can be considered disposable. This is when the accessories can become bothersome. What are you to do, when in the middle of an important document, your mouse decides to “die”? Would you worry? Would you panic and run to the nearest store? What if it’s night time and the stores are closed and you are rushing up your work? On your keyboard, immediately press CTRL + S simultaneously to save whatever it is you’re doing. That way, you don’t lose your work. This is a common and one of the most familiar tasks without using the mouse. If the mouse is not functioning and you need to do something important but you don’t have the time to repair the mouse or change it, you can actually still do your work even with just the keyboard around. Here are some key combinations you need to navigate your way through your PC sans the mouse: Ctrl + O – to open a file or document Ctrl + B – to use the “Bold” feature of fonts Ctrl + I – to italize fonts Ctrl + U – to underline texts in a document Ctrl + X – to cut texts, cells, or icons from files Ctrl + W – to close existing windows Ctrl + R – to align document to the right Ctrl + L – to align document to the left Ctrl + E – to align document to the center (especially in Word Documents) Ctrl + Z – to undo last action done in a document Ctrl + Y – to redo last action done in a document Shift F7 – to prompt the Thesaurus tool in a document F7 – to prompt the spelling and grammar check tool in a document F12 – or save as, to save same document with another filename or to another drive Windows + D - shows desktop Alt + Tab – switches you from one window to another F5 – refreshes your browser when it seems to have stopped moving (when you are using the Internet) Ctrl + Esc – prompts the “Start Menu” when you are using the old 101-key keyboard without the Windows keys on it. F6 – enables you to change the URL on the address field when you are using the Internet. Shift + Tab – when you need to go back to a previous cell (in a spreadsheet) or entry in a form (in the Internet) Ctrl + V or Shift + Insert – to paste copied text to another document Windows + F – when you need to find and open a file recently saved Windows + Pause/Break – to directly open and view your system properties without going through the control panel windows Windows + E – to directly open and view Windows Explorer without going though the Start Menu Alt + F4 – to prompt shut down menu When you get used to using these shortcuts, you will certainly be able to finish the task you are doing even without the mouse. And this ability will make you look like a computer whiz.

Hard Drives- Choosing the Right One

Hard drives come in many different sizes and configurations. How much data a hard drive can hold is measured in gigabytes (GB). The latest hard drives can hold anywhere from 80 GB to 1000 GB (1 TB)! When buying a hard drive, size isn't the only factor to look at, however. By choosing the right hard drive for your needs, you'll enjoy your computer more. Hard drives are inexpensive and you should never skimp on one to save money. For business or basic home use, an 80 GB hard drive should suffice. If you plan on downloading music, movies, or installing a lot of games on your computer, your hard drive should be at least 160 GB. For laptop users, the same space requirements apply, however, many laptops come with small hard drives. Many laptop users choose to keep the small hard drive and buy an external hard drive for excess files to keep costs down. You can have a huge hard drive, but it will be worthless if it doesn't move data fast enough for your computer! To find data, hard drives have platters on spindles that spin, similar to a CD. How fast a hard drive spins is measured in RPM (revolutions per minute). The higher a hard drive's RPM is, the faster it will perform. Desktop hard drives almost always have 7200 RPM hard drives. Laptop hard drives can range from 4200 RPM to 5400 RPM for budget and midrange uses and 7200 RPM for high end use. Hard drives with RPMs of 10,000 or more are available, but those are mainly for gamers, computer enthusiasts, and servers. If you are computer user looking for performance, you should know about RAID. RAID lets you put 2 or more hard drives of the same brand and model together and run them at once, which results in faster performance. You can also use RAID so the second hard drives automatically backs up data from the first hard drive, so you always have a backup of your data. There are numerous possible RAID configurations out there, too many to mention in this article. A hard drive's cache is also another important performance indicator. A hard drive's cache will hold frequently accessed data for faster access by the computer. A good hard drive will have at least 8 MB of cache. As with RPM, the more cache a hard drive has, the better. Hard drives generally have either an SATA or IDE connection. Both connections are for attaching the hard drive to the motherboard via a cable so that data can be sent and received to and from the computer and drive. SATA is the newest connection and is better than IDE in that it can be faster and uses a much smaller cable. IDE, however, is just as fast as IDE in real world performance testa and hard drives that use IDE are cheaper than SATA hard drives. However, IDE hard drives use large cables that can restrict airflow. Fortunately, you can buy a rounded IDE cable that is not as big for $5-$10 at almost any computer supply store or online computer part retailer, such as Newegg.com or Fry's Electronics.