Paragraph 1 below describes the Computer Club.
Note that this entire message, contains pretty much the same text as the "Bits & Bytes" newspaper article, that appeared on the Technology Section, Page B-9 in the Sunday 5/4/08 Sun-Gazette.
At 4:34 PM -0400 5/1/08, Marge Shaw wrote:
Bits & Bytes May 2008
Computer Club Features Computer Gadgets
1. Wed May 14 Computer Club, 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm
One more step into computer literacy! Most of us are getting proficient at surfing the Net and e-mails but it seems there is always something new coming over the horizon. Here’s some help. I’d like to invite you to our next SeniorNet computer Club on Computer Gadgets and also share some of my research on Web cams and Skype.
SeniorNet is offering a free Computer Club meeting on the subject of Computer Gadgets such as iPhones, Palm Pilots, MP3 players and on Wednesday, May 14 from 5:30-7:30 pm on the 4th floor of the Brown Library. The speaker will be John Beirne, a SeniorNet instructor, who we have dubbed Professor of explaining complicated things in simple terms. John will discuss using these gadgets to make phone calls, store addresses and phone numbers, keep a personal calendar, display street maps, photos and web pages, plus play video and music", and he will demonstrate some of these functions on his iPhone and also his Palm Pilot" (Whew!) I always wanted to see a Blackberry, such a delicious name. Maybe John can tell me what it is.
John will also show us how to back up the phone numbers from our cell phones to our computers, a very useful item. I know from experience. My son was recently asked by his wife to hold her cell phone (for safe keeping) in his jeans’ pocket. Unfortunately, he forgot to remove the phone when he washed his jeans. Oops! I’m going to pass along the back up information to him for sure.
LOCATION: 4th floor SeniorNet Learning Center, JV Brown Library, 19 East Fourth Street.
Free and open to all, no reservations req'd.
2. Audio Books At Library
I have personally acquired an MP3 player but for none of the above mentioned reasons.
I want to download audio books from the library’s recently launched e-branch (
www.lycolibrary.org).
This website and all the goodies on it are available to all residents of Lycoming County.
Once you sign up for a free e-card you will have access to a boggling array of media and information.
Under “Get it Now” you will find not only audio books, but music, radio stations, films and video.
The other categories are “Ask it Now”, “Learn it Now”, “For Kids Now”, and “Look it up Now”.
WOW!
Also, if you have an e-card and an MP3 player but need some help in navigating the first download, Charles Ormsbee, the library’s technical trainer, is available upon request on Tuesday afternoons to walk you through it.
I call that good service!
3. Web Cams and Skype
On to Web cams and Skype. I am due to become a grandmother any day now. The baby and her family are 4-5 hours away and the other grandparents are in Chicago. Thus we won’t be able to see the little one as often as we’d like, so, we have decided that we can communicate, including hearing and seeing each other, via the Internet using web cams and Skype. According to the book, Web Cams for Dummies, “a Web cam is a tiny camera that connects to your personal computer. Unlike an ordinary still or video cameras, a Web cam stores and displays images directly onto your computer screen so you can edit, save, or send these images to other people.”
You can take snapshots or videos and attach them to e-mail. Live video, which is what I want to do, is used for videoconferencing or “chatting” so you can see what the other person is doing. A regular, video camera can also be used with your computer if it has video capabilities, but it is usually used for prerecorded video. Video may also be uploaded to a web site or blog. There are many many live web cam sites from around the world such as Yellowstone Park geysers, African animals, the Las Vegas Strip, almost anything you could name as well as those you’d rather not.
We at SeniorNet have our own web site and blog spot, www.SusquehannaSeniorNet.org, with videos of some of our instructors giving an overview of their courses.
4. About Purchasing A Web Cam
I talked with Andrew Borgess, computer consultant with CompuGen for guidelines on what to look for when purchasing a Web cam. He told me first; make sure the cam is compatible with your computer. Most newer computers that are running Window XP or Visa, or newer Macintoshes are ok. Some computers even have a camera built in. Since my computer is a notebook, I will need a smaller cam to clip on top if I want it portable. Other things to consider are an integrated microphone and resolution, at least 1.3 mega pixels and 30 frames per second for video. Extras, if you are willing to spend more are a glass lens for clearer images, auto lighting adjustment, auto focus, face tracking, and add on software for editing and special effects.
I then visited Staples. They carry 3 brands, Logitech, Microsoft and Creative Technologies ranging in price from about $30 to over $100. I’m aiming somewhere in the middle. Once I get the Web cam I will have to install the software that comes with it. This should be easy (famous last words). Usually all you have to do is put the disc into your disc drive and click a few times.
5. Transmitting The Images
The last step is transmitting the images on the Internet. For this I could use instant messaging (IM) such as the ones offered by AOL, Yahoo and Microsoft. However my kids use Skype and I plan to use it too. Described as “Awesome” by the younger generation, Skype is a free worldwide phone and video phone service. That is, it is free if you communicate computer to computer. You can also use it to communicate with cell phones and what my kids call land lines and I call my regular phone. There is a fee for this which Skype describes as modest. I have already downloaded Skype, so as soon as I get my Web cam I’m good to go.
I will leave you with a thought from John McPhee’s book about Alaska, Coming into the Country. The first night out backpacking with a friend in the Alaskan wilderness he somewhat sheepishly pulled a silk pillowcase out of his backpack which he stuffed with a sweatshirt to make a pillow. He was anticipating a bit of teasing, but instead his friend said, it’s OK, “We’re not here to rough it, we’re here to smooth it.” That’s what we want to do at SeniorNet, to make all those seemingly complicated computer gadgets or tools easy to use to do the things you want to do in your life. So join us for computer club, it’s free and open to all, check out the ebranch, and I’ll let you know next time how the web cam and Skype work out.
Have fun and keep clicking.
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Thanks. - Jim Ingram VMS/Land 570.322.7597
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