How-To Articles and Tutorials

Online Learning is what DiscoverSkills is all about, and in this section you will find short explanations and answers to the most common questions we are asked with regards to computer and digital imaging technology.

As you scroll down the list below, you are only seeing an “excerpt” of the article, but you can click on the article title or the “Click to Read Entire Article” link to see the whole thing.

And since many of our How-To articles are actually in video form, we also have included the full transcript of the video, just in case you prefer reading or want to print the article for future use.

We also encourage you to leave comments or questions in the Comment Box below the articles, or drop us an email (jlortz@DiscoverSkills.com) if you have any ideas for future articles.

Windows Update - An Important Part of Internet Safety

I tend to be on a lot of “techie” newsletter lists, with the best intentions of trying to keep up with all that’s going on with computer technology so that I can pass along the most important news to my students. Every day there are at least 4 or 5 newsletters to read, and although [...]

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iTunes - A great way to organize and play your music and media

[Click on the Video, below, to watch it] Having just finished up another one of our iDevice and Digital Music classes at our teaching lab in Lincoln, Nebraska, fresh on my mind is what a great program, iTunes is. If you’re not familiar with iTunes, it’s a free program you can download from Apple.com, and [...]

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Using the Word 2007 & 2010 Ribbon

[Click on the Video, below, to watch it] Back in the “old days” we had those things called pull-down menus and toolbars. Sure, at first it took us a while to get use them, but after 10 years of clicking here and clicking there, most folks finally got that hang of it, and were able [...]

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Working with the Photoshop Element Side Panel

In a recent Photoshop Elements class at the Lincoln Computer Education Center, I discovered (along with the class) that the side-panel area of  Elements tends to have a mind of its own when it comes to opening, closing, sizing, and positioning bins. After spending some quality out-of-class time with the side-panel, I think I finally [...]

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Rescue CD - Create One for Free

We spend quite a bit of time talking about how to stay safe on the Internet, and especially how to protect yourselves from computer viruses and malware. (CLICK HERE to see a list of Internet Safety/Security Articles). But what if you do get infected? That’s where creating a Rescue CD comes in. A Rescue CD [...]

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How to Set Up Google Alerts

I’ll bet you have a hobby or interest that you’re pretty passionate about. Maybe it’s cooking, or fly fishing, or collecting political buttons, or who knows what… we all have SOMETHING that interests us beyond the ordinary. Well, if you DO have an interest that you think about almost every day, Google has a great [...]

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Camera ISO - How to take low light pictures!

Many of you know that we offer a lot of digital photography related classes at the Computer Education Center in Lincoln, NE. One reason is because we, ourselves, just love photography, and have for a very long time. And there’s nothing quite as fun as sitting around with other folks who enjoy the same hobby, [...]

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Backups - Make Them a Priority! Part 1

This morning as I was wading through my daily deluge of technology emails, one in particular caught my eye… “World Backup Day 2011 – March 31st” No kidding, is this day REALLY backup day? Well, no and yes. After opening the email I discovered that a guy up on Reddit.com started a message thread about [...]

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De-emphasize a Photo Background Using Photoshop Elements

In a lot of pictures you take, the background can seem to get in the way.  If you are someone who enjoys photography and has learned the ins and outs of camera aperture, you know how to tone-down the background by reducing the camera depth-of-field (which is done by opening the aperture). But if you [...]

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Windows 7 Service Pack 1 - What's it about?

As expected, Microsoft has finally released to the general public, Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (SP1). The pack has been available for some time to some corporate and OEMs (computer manufacturers), but it was just released this past Tuesday, February 22nd, to the rest of us. If you are new to Service Packs, they are [...]

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Internet Security Solutions - A Commercial Look...

Last week I examined free Internet Security programs, discussing the differences between those free solutions and what commercial programs offer. To read that blog you can click here. A few days after we posted that blog, PC World released their early review of the 2011 commercial antivirus programs, and their opinion on which is the [...]

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Are Free Internet Security Solutions OK?

UPDATE – Since doing this article, I’ve added another one about commercial security solutions – “Internet Security Solutions – A Commercial Look” – CLICK HERE to read it. This past September, Microsoft released a free Internet security suite called Microsoft Security Essentials (you can download it from here). The free download replaced a pay-for subscription-based [...]

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Using and Enjoying YouTube - Part 1

Part 1 of 5 of “Using and Enjoying YouTube”, a live DiscoverSkills.com Webinar. The webinar covered YouTube basics, including how to search for video clips, how use the YouTube player, creating a YouTube account, and how to add a clip as a favorite and subscribe to a YouTube channel. Please leave any comments or questions [...]

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Using and Enjoying YouTube - Part 2

Part 2 of 5 of “Using and Enjoying YouTube”, a live DiscoverSkills.com Webinar. The webinar covered YouTube basics, including how to search for video clips, how use the YouTube player, creating a YouTube account, and how to add a clip as a favorite and subscribe to a YouTube channel. Please leave any comments or questions [...]

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Using and Enjoying YouTube - Part 3

Part 3 of 5 of “Using and Enjoying YouTube”, a live DiscoverSkills.com Webinar. The webinar covered YouTube basics, including how to search for video clips, how use the YouTube player, creating a YouTube account, and how to add a clip as a favorite and subscribe to a YouTube channel. Please leave any comments or questions [...]

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Using and Enjoying YouTube - Part 4

Part 4 of 5 of “Using and Enjoying YouTube”, a live DiscoverSkills.com Webinar. The webinar covered YouTube basics, including how to search for video clips, how use the YouTube player, creating a YouTube account, and how to add a clip as a favorite and subscribe to a YouTube channel. Please leave any comments or questions [...]

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Using and Enjoying YouTube - Part 5

Part 5 of 5 of “Using and Enjoying YouTube”, a live DiscoverSkills.com Webinar. The webinar covered YouTube basics, including how to search for video clips, how use the YouTube player, creating a YouTube account, and how to add a clip as a favorite and subscribe to a YouTube channel. Please leave any comments or questions [...]

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Online Learning - Overview - DiscoverSkills Webinar part 1

This is part one of a live DiscoverSkills.com Webinar. This episode provides an overview of online learning methods, and specifically talks about Webinars. During the 50 minute webinar, the first by John Lortz at Discoverskills.com, Online Learning was discussed, including Webinars, eBooks, blogging, and online video. As the DiscoverSkills moves more and more of it’s [...]

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Online Learning - eBooks - DiscoverSkills Webinar part 2

This is part two of a live DiscoverSkills.com Webinar. In this episode, we specifically discuss eBooks. During the 50 minute webinar, the first by John Lortz at Discoverskills.com, Online Learning was discussed, including Webinars, eBooks, blogging, and online video. As DiscoverSkills moves more and more of it’s computer and digital photography learning materials online, it’s [...]

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Online Learning - Blogging - DiscoverSkills Webinar part 3

This is part three of a live DiscoverSkills.com Webinar. In this episode, we specifically discuss blogging. During the 50 minute webinar, the first by John Lortz at Discoverskills.com, Online Learning was discussed, including Webinars, eBooks, blogging, and online video. As DiscoverSkills moves more and more of it’s computer and digital photography learning materials online, it’s [...]

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