Mouse Droppings

Vietnam POW/MIA Finally Comes Home

2008-10-09T12:06:00.024-05:00

I experienced a couple of very touching moments recently. Back in the 60s, I was given a POW/MIA bracelet. I wore it for many years. Decades later, it took up a prominent place in my jewelry box. Over recent years, I've tried posting notices about Lt. Ralph Bisz's bracelet in the hopes of possibly returning it to someone who knew him and/or maybe learning what ever happened to this man whose

Help Give Our Soldiers a Better Holiday

2008-08-25T01:52:00.011-05:00

When peri-menopause moved into it's final stages last November and I started going nuts...unable to concentrate, experiencing major writer's block, sleeplessness and was losing interest in life, which was causing bouts of depression, my wise 20-something daughter told me "Ma...you NEED a hobby to keep you sane." Computers had been my life and I hadn't had much time for a hobby. But now I was

Throw Dian from a Plane

2008-08-22T02:14:00.003-05:00

Yes, TechTrax has been out of commission for several months now. True, it may appear that the last issue was published in June, 2007. Yes, that is the last issue date, but that one was actually published in December. Learning to be mom's primary caretaker after her stroke and heart attack was taking a toll on my time...and on me! I was lacking the ability to keep up with TechTrax as much as I

Gotcha Last!

2007-11-07T01:15:00.000-06:00

My brother is only 58, but he's very sick battling a blood disease (hemocromitosis), as well as cancers that have been hitting him due to internal organ deterioration from the blood disease that is killing him (and did kill my dad at 57). But one of the things my family does is try to laugh in the face of hard times. So whenever we get together, we try to look at the funny things we've endured

Office 2003, Service Pack 3 is Now Available

2007-09-25T01:00:00.000-05:00

If you're running Office 2003, you can now download and install the latest service pack for Office 2003, which contains various fixes and greater security for your system. At some point, your version of Office 2003 may let you know about this update and ask you if you want to install it. However, if you don't want to wait until your turn rolls around, you can go to the Microsoft Office Update

Stop Painful Leg Cramps, Instantly

2007-09-15T22:12:00.000-05:00

Have you ever experienced a leg cramp? EeeeeOwwww! Nasty, eh? I remember when I was a teen. I'd be sleeping away, peacefully. Suddenly I'd be jolted awake as searing pain grabbed my calf, squeezing the muscle and causing incredible pain. I thought it was the worse pain in the world. Of course, that's before I had the pleasure of experiencing the labor of child birth! Whoa baby...that one wins!

Create Your Own Computer Fireworks

2007-07-05T13:09:00.000-05:00

Okay, so I'm a day late with this one. I was busy watching live fireworks yesterday, but you can always save this for next year. Although, it's addicting enough to play with anytime! Go to this web site: http://www.wtv-zone.com/cal731/FEA/LL/LL.html There you can click anywhere, as often as you like, to have fireworks light up the New York sky (virtually, of course). Lady Liberty stands

Resurrecting Dreamweaver 8 After a Cache Death

2007-06-29T11:46:00.001-05:00

I'd spend way too much time trying to fix a serious problem with Dreamweaver 8, one that had been causing it to permanently crash on my main system. I'd given up on the problem for months and resigned myself to going back to Dreamweaver 2004 MX, but I missed some of the cool improvements in DW 8 (particularly the working in the Background feature). As I'm currently working on getting out the next

Zap the Developer

2007-06-20T23:34:00.000-05:00

Ever wish you could send a little shock to the developer who designed the software program you're using...when it crashes? Who hasn't! Of course, the error is never our fault, it's always the fault of the stupid software program, right? Or, it must be a bug because the developer messed up, eh? Being a developer myself, I know that's not usually the case. But even I have had my moments

Beauty Shops Cause Strokes?

2007-06-03T21:34:00.000-05:00

If you have someone in your life who goes to the beauty shop and you want to save them from possibly devastating their life, READ THE ARTICLE at the link below! It explains how doctors are now seeing a correlation between some women who go to the beauty shop, have their necks cocked far back for washes and such and shortly after suffer a stroke. "Beauty parlor stroke usually occur when

TechTrax Update

2007-05-16T23:05:00.000-05:00

For those of you wondering why the April issue of TechTrax isn’t out yet, it’s because serious family health issues are on the rise again. But I am working on it and hope to have it out in the next week or two. I also am not planning on taking a summer hiatus this year. I’ll save my vacation time for family leave this round. Many of you know my 58 yr old brother was given a year to live in April

We Have Our Winners

2007-05-06T11:31:00.000-05:00

The true winners are the dogs and cats who benefit from the funds we managed to collect from all the very generous people who contributed to our Bark in the Park walk. Lexi and I, as well as Stacy and Simon, managed to collect over $2,800 to help needy dogs and cats through Anti Cruelty Society. It costs about $50-$90 to shelter a cat or dog at ACS for a week. Thanks to your generosity, we have

Bark...We DID it!

2007-05-05T21:56:00.000-05:00

We survived! Although, I must tell you that...as we tried to get home through traffic afterwards...I was concerned Lexi may have a heart attack on the way home! She literally panted for hours. She was so excited that she got herself into a panting jag and was hardly able to swallow due to her constant and heavy panting on the way home. But she did great! Thank you Cesar Millan! Cesar (the dog

I'm Giving Away Microsoft Software!

2007-04-29T12:56:00.000-05:00

This is the last week before my Bark in the Park charity walk and I've decided to pull out all the stops! With 3 dogs of my own, 2 grand puppies and 2 cats...I'm determined to raise the most money for needy dogs/cats...so I'm adding MORE FREE MICROSOFT SOFTWARE to the pot! Feel free to spread the word! Anyone who donates to my Bark in the Park charity walk (minimum $10) will be in the running

Office 2007 Compatibility Pack

2007-04-28T11:55:00.000-05:00

If you're not using Office 2007, but someone with whom you communicate is and you need to be able to access information in documents they send you, you can install an update that will allow you to open 2007 files. Granted, if you have the latest updates in your older version, you should receive a message when attempting to open 2007 files. The message will tell you that you need the

TechTrax...it's up, it's down, it's up again

2007-04-27T22:08:00.000-05:00

If you were trying to get into TechTrax, (my very popular free technical ezine) this week, chances are you may have gotten a Page Not Found error. Although later the error was upgraded to Page Unable to be Displayed. Also, if you've been trying to use any of my article links to get to any of my additional free tutorials in Computor Companion, you're still getting errors. Not to worry, the sites

You MUST Watch This Video!

2007-04-25T12:24:00.001-05:00

If you've never been scammed on the Internet, it may only mean that your time has not yet come. And if you think you're too smart to be taken in…know that they even got me a couple years ago! I've been using the Internet since 1993 and am a computer/Internet professional. Yet one day I ventured into new territory, was in a hurry and wasn't paying attention…and they got me! Feel free to read all

Moment of Silence

2007-04-17T22:27:00.001-05:00

With heartfelt sorrow…I send my personal sympathies and condolences to the families and friends of those who lost their lives, as well as those who were wounded and also those who were terrorized in the tragedy yesterday at Virginia Tech. {tears & hugs}

My New Software LOVE!

2007-04-15T00:31:00.001-05:00

Okay, saying I'm in love with software is a bit extreme…but I must admit that one software program once did literally change my life. Microsoft Word came into my world back in 1994 when I was forced to learn it. Which I did…kicking and screaming! I'd been a Word Perfect guru and instructor when my boss dumped a 1,300 page Word developer's book on my desk and asked me how fast I could learn

Beware of Tax Time Identity Thieves!

2007-04-13T08:15:00.000-05:00

Tax time is of particular interest to identity thieves because they know a lot of people are dealing with their last minute forms, are anxiously awaiting refunds, or would be highly susceptible to emails appearing to be from the IRS. Don't be fooled! The IRS would NOT contact you via email. They would write or possibly phone you. So any email you get saying it's from the IRS is bogus. Thieves

Happy Easter!

2007-04-08T01:01:00.000-05:00

'nuff said! Cheers! Dian ~

Quiet Those Dog Tags

2007-04-05T09:40:00.000-05:00

If you have a dog, you may not even notice how much jingling those dog tags do. With three dogs, and a couple of grand-puppies who also come by for their weekly doggie-daycare play date in my home, all those tags can make you crazy. I also create a lot of free computer training videos . There I am sitting at my desk trying to concentrate on what I'm teaching users and hoping for a few minutes

Did Google…Get Ya?

2007-04-03T11:47:00.001-05:00

The popular search engine, Google, has become the much anticipated April Fool's jokester. Several years ago, Google came out with its first April Fool's bogus web site promotion. Since then, Google fans watch to see what spoof those comedians at Google will come up with each year. You may have noticed that Google occasionally promotes their latest beta (in testing) offering. These can be

Bark in the Park, 2007

2007-03-30T21:40:00.000-05:00

Lexi, my middle dog, is busy working out on the treadmill, so she'll be in shape to walk at Bark in the Park. Bark is an annual charity event benefitting the many dogs and cats that find their way to Anti Cruelty Society in Chicago, as well as those who live in low-income homes and need medical care. If they couldn't get it there, their owners might not be able to afford to get them the proper

Initial Dropping

2007-03-11T12:32:00.001-05:00

Sure, everybody is doing it. But that's not a reason to jump into the Blog pool. For the most part, I find blogs useless and who knows, Mouse Droppings may become that way, too. But as I rush to pack for my flight tomorrow morning to my 6th MVP Summit at Microsoft (since becoming an MVP in 1995), I've been reading other's accounts of the event. So I figured it was time to chime in with some