Monday, October 19, 2009

TIP-Knowing what the program is capable of

You don't have to be an expert to work any program but you can make great strides towards greatness with regards to how to use any program, by getting to know the 'options/preferences/tools'.  From within every program there will be a menu item allowing for the various changes and settings to the program. This can be quite elaborate or very simple,depending on the varied levels of settings provided to you through the menus.  In many cases you may see "advanced" or "custom" quite often with (advanced users only) warning.  This should only provide you with an additional cautionary reminder that you will most likely be prompted with various questions, ones that you may or may not be able to answer... just remember you can always CANCEL your way out, if not with the RED X, which should close the window, if there is no CANCEL button provided.  

The "tools" or "options" or "preferences" section is where you do all of the customizing and changing to the settings that can truly change the way you 'enjoy' the program you are using.  The 'default' settings are how they are shipped from the factory. As you browse through the options/preferences/settings, you will find this to be like a table of contents of any book.  Not only is this where you can make the changes in settings, but learn exactly what the program is capable of doing.  When you click APPLY the changes will be made and the settings window remains open. On the other hand, if you click CANCEL it will close the menu window without making any changes, therefore you should never be afraid to go beyond an area within any program's options that warns of 'advanced users only', just remember you do not have to make changes, and if you think you accidentally did or not sure but to be safe, just click CANCEL.  

If you find yourself getting frustrated, remember you have the power to turn off the computer and walk away from it... it is when that power is questioned by the computer asking you what you are doing is when you should begin to feel concerned!