This page is to answer your questions concerning questions that were asked about Office, the Internet and this site. One calls also this kind of page the "FAQ" for " Frequently Asked Questions " page. It's cut into 6 categories: general information, Internet, Word, PowerPoint, Access and Excel. It's in this order that the subjects are covered during the seminars of the class ADM 1421 at the university of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM).
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as possible.
Q1: What are the advantages and the disadvantages of such or such software?
Contrary to other questions, I will not answer this one. The professors generally
ask this question in their first homework. To help you, here is a guide of what
is necessary to look at.
What does it do of better (or worse) than the other software of the
same category? By reports(connections) in the other software?
What does it domore (or less) than the other software?
Is it easy to use? To learn? Is the help of the software adequate? And the
documentation?
These questions force to dive you into the subject. To read books and magazines
on information technology to find comparisons and determine the new options
of the software. To try the software by you even and those of it's competitors.
It's exactly the intention of the question. It would be cheating to help you,
but also the loss of a magnificent opportunity to learn more.
Q2: I don't understand what the professor asks of me to make with this question
of the homework.
Once again, the best person to answer this question is your professor. This
site was created to give you more help with the software and not with specific
questions of your homework.
Q3: Your site contains many pictures of the software. How did you get these
pictures?
Any computer can make of the screen shot. It's easy:
To
press the key PrtScr (Print Screen) located just in the right-hand side of the
F12 key. Open
any software. From
the Edit menu, select the Paste option.
You can also "paste" the screen shot in an picture editor software to be able
to change it to fit your needs. If you want to use the Photoshop software, the
procedure is slightly different.
From
the File menu, select the option New.
The size of the picture will be already determined.
You
can then change the name of the picture and press the OK button. From
the Edit menu, select the Paste option.
To only take the screen shot of a window with the options, press the Alt and
PrtScr keys.
Q4: What are the categories of software?
There are many. Too many. Much more than I can name. Furthermore, others categories
keep adding themselves with the growth of the possibilities of computers. Here
are those that are most easily recognized:
Word processor: Editorial staff and correction of text. Addition of
tables, charts besides correction of spelling you will find in almost all the
software of this category and much more.
Worksheet: Calculation of figures, use of mathematical functions headaways(overhangs),
creation of the financial and other models (modelling), creation of charts according
to the advanced figures.
Data base: Entered by data a structure, query for data in
a mass of data, a creation of forms and reports(connections), a programming
to automate repetitive tasks.
Graph: Creating a drawings to insert into a word processor or the other
software that accept charts.
Presentation: Creating a presentations with tables, charts,
drawings and the others to present to a public.
Counting: Answer the accounting(countable) needs of small and big
companies.
Electronic publishing: Preparation of documents for professionals: advertisement,
articles of newspapers or magazines.
Educationnal: Help to children's learning; young and old.
Conception of Web pages or sites: Allows to create documents or sites
completely that will be accessible by the World Wide Web. Some of these most
evolved software can even create ready sites for the electronic business.
Statistics: Allow to analyze data or to stand out(go out again) from
it of the relevant data.
Project management: Allow to manage a project according to time and
the available resources.
Web browser: Software to allow you to"surf the World Wide Web" and the
Internet.
Multimedia: Creating a software or interactive presentations having
of video and of the sound.
Video assembly: Conversion of "similar" video (on ribbon) in digital
size(format) and assembly of several video "clips" for a presentation or to
add special effects.
Videoconference: audio and video Communication through dedicated communication lines or by the Internet.
CAD / FAO: Computer-aided design with software such as AutoCAD. Manufacture
assisted by computer: Programming of devices and robots of a conveyer belt to
create a product.
Reference: Big database on a specific subject: pictures, statistics, finances,
census(inventory), goods(articles) of publications...
Simulation: Simulation of process such as conveyer belts or traffic.
And many many others...
Q5: If one looks on certain floppy disks, one sees that the capacity is 1
MB or 2 MB. Nevertheless the "true" capacity formated time is 720 KB or 1,44
MB. Why is there a difference?
The figure written on the floppy disk indicates the maximal capacity of the
floppy disk if one used it only to store data. It's necessary to reserve a part
of this floppy disk to place the equivalent of a table of contents. It's necessary
to know that are the names of files and where they are located on the floppy
disk. This reserved part is called the " File Allocation Table" or simply the
"FAT".
There is also a little space that is lost to separate the sectors of the floppy
disk. It's in these sectors that the data is stored on the floppy disk.
Q6: I worked on Windows when the program and the document disappeared. I
try to open the document but Windows says me that it's already opened. Why?
This was a mostly a problem before Windows 95 and the taskbar. The program
and your document are opened. They are simply hidden. There are two possibilities.
The document is hidden last one another document or, more often, the software
is hidden by another software or by desktop. To find the document.
If
the software is visible, select the option Makes windows of the menu.
look
if the name of your document is available. If yes,
click the name of the document.
If the document is not available or the software is not visible:
For
Windows 3.x, press the keys Ctrl+ Esc. For
Windows 95, press the keys Alt and Tab.
For
Windows 3.x, of the list of opened software, select the check and press the
button Fall over towards.
For
Windows 95, click the good software from the taskbar that is generally located
at the bottom of the screen.
If the software is untraceable in the list of the opened software, it's very
possible that you lost your modifications to your document. try however the
next time to find it. ask to a technician to use.
Internet
Q1: What is the difference enters the Merlin server and the server Nobel?
Both servers are there to give a service to the students of the University
of Quebec in Montreal. You have access to the internet and an address of E-mail
and an access to the other services of the internet. The Merlin server is reserved
for the students of the first cycle (certificate or high school diploma). The
server Nobel is reserved for the students of the second and third cycle (mastery
and doctorate) as well as to the professors. Furthermore, the users of Merlin
have a menu in the opening of the account to facilitate its use what the other
server has not (the last time that I verified).
Q2: Where is "" on the keyboard?
The commercial " a " or the arobas is necessary to write the address of E-mail
of a person. For the keyboards of Canadian-French type, it's necessary to use
the combination of the keys Alt Car and 2. The key Alt Car is the
one that is stuck on the right-hand side of spacebar. If you don't find, go
to see the page explaining the keyboard to see where
is located this key. For the keyboard of American type, use the combination
of key Shift key and the key 2.
Q3: How to erase a character when one made(did) a spelling mistake?
use the combination of the keys Ctrl and Backspace. " Backspace "
is just above the Enter key on the standard keyboard, the long key in the
right superior corner.
Q4: Why when I am in the computer lab Netscape refuses to
send my message when I press the button with the envelope?
On the internet, it's impossible to send "anonymous" messages. You could
enter the necessary data, such as your name and your own address of E-mail,
from the options of Netscape. But too many persons forget afterward to delete
the option and to verify it. He can so arrive later that a person sends a "uncalled-for"
message by using your identity. You are responsible for this data any time.
To avoid this situation, send your message by using the software of E-mail
of your account Merlin or Nobel.
Q5: I can use Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Access from my account Merlin?
No. To my knowledge, these software were created for computers. There
is no available version for the system of operation Unix used by the Merlin
server.
Q6: What is the difference among one Web page and a Web site?
A Web page is a file, as this one, that contains of the text, the pictures
and the links on the other pages. A Web site is a group pages on a subject.
For example, this site has 85 pages containing more than 950 pictures.
Q7: I don't find any more my messages when I return in the E-mail of Merlin.
My messages are erased?
No. They are automatically moved in the mbox file when you close the
software of E-mail: that you read the message or not. To see again(revise) your
"archived" messages.
From
the main menu. Press the key c. In
the line " Name of folder: ", write mbox and press the Enter key.
You should now see your former(ancient) messages.
Q8: I am capable of seeing the pictures of my Web page from my floppy disk but
not from the public directory. What happens?
There are three possible reasons: you forgot to transfer the files of pictures
to the public directory or there is a problem with the names of the files of
pictures or you have to transfer the pictures in a size(format) of picture not supported(born)
by the World Wide Web.
When you transfer your Web page to the Merlin server by using the procedure
written in the pharmacopoeia(codex), you forgot to transfer the pictures. The
HTML format does not include the pictures in the document. It reserves simply
a place for the picture in the screen. use the procedure in the pharmacopoeia(codex)
also to transfer the pictures.
The Merlin server is "more sensitive" to the names of the files than Windows
95 / 98 / NT. It makes(does) the difference between letters in capital letters
and those in small letters. So, for the Merlin server, files picture1.gif and
picture1. GIF is although different Windows says that they are identical. To solve
the problem, the name asked in the Web page and the name of the picture should
be identical; including small letters and capital letters. To do it, it will
a little be necessary to change code of the Web page.
Open
the Microsoft Word 1997 application. Open
the Web page the picture of that you don't see. From
the Edit menu, select the option Codes HTML source.
It's maybe the first time when you see the instructions that compose a Web page. To help you to recognize the codes, there is a page on this site that
discusses some conception
of Web pages and little of the basic instructions. You noticed that it's
about very simple codes. The pictures are not integrated into the file. One space
is simply "reserved" for them on the page. It's for that reason that you should
transfer the Web page and the pictures to your public directory.
The next part is to demonstrate how to change you the name of the
file in the page. To help you to find the codes of pictures among all the instructions
of the page, to use the option of query for Word.
From
the Edit menu, select the option Look for.
In
the box " Look for: ", write < img. Press the Next button.
Word will move the cursor in the first command of picture of
the Web page. Let's take for example that you find the following code:
< IMG SRC = " picture1.gif "...
The name of the file meets itself between quotation marks.
Change
letters in capital letter in small letter. Continue
the query for the other codes of pictures in the Web page. bring corrections
when necessities. When
you ended the corrections, press the button To
return to the normal publishing(edition) of Word.
Once correct version, transfer your page in the public directory and look at
the result.
A last possibility is that you chose the bad size(format) of picture. There are
several sizes(formats) of pictures resulting from several companies. But, on the
World Wide Web, there are only three sizes(formats) that are supported(born)
at the moment: the size(format) GIF ( Graphic Interchange Format), the size(format)
JPEG (pronounced j-peg in English for Joint Photographic Expert Group) and PNG
(Portable Network Graphics).
To be certain that your picture is in one of these sizes(formats), verify the
extension of the file. Is it .gif.jpg or .png? If yes,
everything is well. If there is one the other extension such as .bmp,
to .cdr.cmx.tif.wmf or other, it will not be shown
on Web. It's necessary that you use a publisher(editor) of pictures such as Photoshop,
Paint shop pro or the others to convert your picture in one of the three sizes(formats)
mentioned above.
Q9: I try to copy and to paste pictures of the World Wide Web on the Web page.
Why it does not work?
It's first necessary to save the pictures to insert
them then on the Web page. Copy and to paste will work for this case. To
save an picture, it's necessary:
Place
the cursor over the wished picture. Press the right mouse button. From the context menu, select the option Save the picture under or
Save picture As. Select the right drive (Hard disk, CD, diskette ...) and the name for the picture. Press the OK button or Save.
assure as well that there are not copyrights on the picture that you want to
use. Certain companies or persons protect deeply their logos or their picture.
pay attention to their custom(usage).
Word
Q1: I pressed on a button and suddenly I write over the text that I have
already wrote. How do I solve this problem?
You activated the " overwrite " option . You will know if the overwrite option is active if you see the letters " OVR " at the bottom of the screen. Press the key "Insert" key to deactivate this function.
Q2: How can I change a block of text from lowercase to uppercase or vice versa?
Select the text you wish to change and press the Shift and F3 keys. By pressing these keys many times, the text will change from lowercase to the first letters in uppercase and then to all the letters in uppercase and back again to lowercase.
Excel
Q1: Because Excel prints blank pages?
Excel prints only the pages that have a contents, even if the contents of
a cell are a space. Somewhere on the back page of the printing, there is a cell
the only contents of that are a space. It's so impossible to see it.
The best thing to be made is to try to erase the contents of
the back page.
Make
a block with all this page. (The empty cells only) From
the Edit menu, select To erase, Everything.
This should settle(adjust) the situation. To be certain of it, made a preview before printing.
Press
the button .
In the left lower corner of the screen, Excel will inform you
about the number of ready pages for the printing. This total number of pages
should be lower it(him) to was previously. Otherwise, re-try the previous operation
with more empty cells. verify then with the outline before printing.
If the problem persists. use the other way of printing.
Make
a block with the cells that you need for the printing. From
the File menu, select the Print option. Of
the section Printing, click the radio button Selection.
If you want, you can have an idea of the printing by pressing on the Preview
button.
To
begin the printing, press the OK button.
Q2: How to show and to print the Formulas of my working sheets?
From
the Tools menu, select the Options option. Under
the tab View, select the option Formulas. Press the OK button.
Excel will show you the formula instead of showing yourselves the
result of the formula. It will however be necessary to adjust the width of columns.
Then you can ask for the printing of Formulas.
To
return to the "normal", deactivate the option Formulas from the options.
Access
Q1: Because the data what I entered a table are not any more in this order
when I show them later?
It's because you activated the option index to the one or some of the fields
of the table. Or you put a primary key to one of the fields of this table. The
primary key needs that the index is activated to work correctly. Because the
option index is activated, Access will show the data according to the index
and not according to the order that the data were entered.
General
To
press the key PrtScr (Print Screen) located just in the right-hand side of the
F12 key. 
If
the software is visible, select the option Makes windows of the menu.
To
return to the normal publishing(edition) of Word.
.
