A card and little present

By | December 15, 2010
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In the Computers newsletter this month:

  • A card and little present
  • Watch out when Christmas shopping
  • Repeat prescriptions online
  • Creating a web page – as easy as sending an email
  • If you have Windows XP or Vista…

Hello

Well, amazingly enough it’s the last newsletter of 2010!  I can hardly believe that Christmas is only just over a week away.  I have to admit I’m looking forward to my first Christmas with little Alastair, though.  We put the tree up last weekend and he’s very curious about this big green thing in the corner with lights and tinsel on it!

So since you won’t hear from me again until after Christmas, I’d like to say Merry Christmas from all here at The Helpful Book Company.

In fact, here’s a Christmas card for you from us all.


It’s worth having a look at – there’s a little present for you there, too.  Just a little one but worth having none the less!

Watch out when you’re doing your Christmas shopping
I’ve heard about a new scam recently.  It’s not exactly a computer thing but it’s important so I’ll tell you about it anyway.  There are several slightly different versions but in a nutshell, when you pay by card in a shop, some dodgy sales assistants are adding on cashback to your order.  Then if you spot it they say the machine is playing up… if you don’t spot it they hand it to their friend, behind you in the queue.  Then they split the takings.

Protecting yourself is simple – check the amount on the machine you type your PIN into.  And check your receipt before you leave the checkout.  If they don’t give you one, ask for it.

I’m not sure how widespread this scam is but it’s easy to protect against now you know about it!

On the subject of scams to watch out for, if you travel much, you might want to see this video, showing just how easy it is for a thief to open your baggage and close it up again so you don’t know it’s been opened.  If you’ve got something valuable, best try to keep it in hand luggage on planes.  Here’s the video.

Repeat Prescriptions Online
I was in the doctors’ the other day, waiting for Alastair to have his jabs.  I was looking at all the leaflets, trying to take my mind off what was coming for him, when I saw a poster about getting repeat prescriptions online.  It turns out that in a lot of surgeries, if you get a regular prescription, you can nip online to tell them to make up your next prescription instead of going in.  Saves a bit of time and could be particularly handy if we have any more thick snow, when it’s hard to get out and about.  The website is
here but the first thing it’ll do is say to ask your doctor’s receptionist whether they’re signed up – not all are but it’s worth checking.

Of course, you might not mind dropping your bit of paper in to get your repeat prescription – our doctor is just opposite a bakery that does very nice Vienesse whirls, so going in has its advantages…

(By the way, Alastair did cry a bit at his jabs but he was very brave and wasn’t upset for very long.)

The easiest way to create your own web page
Every so often, someone asks me how to create a web page.  And there are several different ways.  Which one is best depends on what you want it for.  But the easiest way I’ve come across is this.
You can sign up for the service if you want but the easiest way is simply to take what you want to be on your web page and email it to them at [email protected] – they turn it into a webpage (at no charge – it’s done automatically by computer) and email you to let you know it’s done.  That’s all there is too it.  You can include photos or links to webpages, whatever you like.

It’s clever stuff.  To be fair, if you want a fancy website, it’s not the best thing for that.  But for a simple webpage it’s great.

If you have Windows XP or Windows Vista and don’t have the Tame Your PC videos…
I’m currently working on something new – it won’t be out until next year, but I was looking round our little warehouse making sure we had space and everything was tidy.

And I came across some first edition sets of our videos, from before Windows 7 came out.

If you have Windows 7, they’re no use to you, but if you have Windows XP or Vista and don’t plan to upgrade any time soon, you might be interested in seeing this.

Right, that’s it for now.  A huge Merry Christmas from all here at the Helpful Book Company.  And don’t forget your card and little present!Yours

Tim Wakeling

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