June 26, 2006

Dear Sassy: Sometimes when I am typing a name or address in the “To:” field in my Outlook email – name(s) automatically come up. Is there a way to delete those?
~ Nameless in LA

Dear Nameless: What a great question! Occasionally Sassy has sent an email to the wrong person due to misclicking on those automatic selections. How embarrassing for Sassy! However, there is a quick fix for to avoid this embarrassment. While you are typing a name or address in the “To:” field if there are other names that begin with the same letter sequence you will receive an option to select one.

If you would like to delete one or all of these options, use the arrow key on your keyboard to select the one you would like to delete and press “Delete” on your keyboard. Remember, deleting this entry from this window will not delete the name/address from your Address Book.


Dear Sassy: In a previous column you talked about the difference between Windows updates and Office updates. I didn’t understand exactly what you were talking about. I mean, my computer is set to automatically update – I shouldn’t have to do anything else regarding updating … right?
~ Confused in the Library

Dear Confused: Sassy appreciates your honesty with being confused about a previous entry. Please at anytime if something doesn’t make sense let Sassy know (sometimes Sassy gets off her medication). Since Microsoft is in both of the names (Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office) Sassy can definitely see how it would be confusing. Your computer is set to automatically update Windows. This is the operating system for your machine – the big cheese – the big kahuna – where the rubber meets the road… Whew! The Office updates are for your Office products: Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook. Office is a “Family” of programs that when placed on your computer will need updates just like we discussed with Adobe Acrobat. Please refer to a previous column for explicit instructions on updating Office. Even though both of these entities are Microsoft based, they require separate updating. Windows updates automatically while Office requires manual intervention. Sassy hopes that this helped to clarify any confusion that you may have had regarding Microsoft Windows vs. Office, if it didn’t please let me know.

As always, if you would like a member of the Systems Department to assist you with this or any other problem, please let us know.

May 22, 2006

Dear Sassy: Is there an easy way to search a website for a certain word or phrase? And could I also search a Word document?
~ Control less at LSU

Dear Control less: Excellent questions! There is in fact an easy way to search a website for a certain word or phrase. You will want to use the shortcut key of “Find” (Ctrl F) to search. Hold down the “Ctrl” key and press the letter “F” on the keyboard. This should bring up a search box in which you can enter you word or phrase. If you are using Internet Explorer the box should appear in the middle of the screen.


However, if you are using Mozilla Firefox the search box will appear at the bottom of the page. Nonetheless a search box will appear using the shortcut key of Ctrl F. This shortcut key will work in your Word and WordPerfect documents, and other programs as well.

You might be thinking – thanks Sassy, but how am I ever going to remember Ctrl F for searching? Well… If you select the Edit option from your toolbar you will see “Find” with “Ctrl+F” beside it. You will also see other options with their shortcuts listed out beside them. For example: Select All = Ctrl+A, Copy = Ctrl+C, Paste = Ctrl+V, Save = Ctrl+S, and so on. Even if you happen to forget the shortcut keys, you can always refer to your toolbar for assistance.


Dear Sassy: I have noticed that my computer is set to automatically update Windows. Do I need to update my Microsoft Office (Word, Outlook, PowerPoint) software as well?
~ Update or not to update? in the library

Dear Update: Glad to know that your computer is updating Windows on a regular basis! But what impresses Sassy the most is that you are aware that it is updating – great job! You do want to keep your Microsoft Office software up to date – this will increase the stability and security of your machine. (And we all like to be stable and secure!)

In order to run these updates you will need to open an Internet browser window. Once that is open click on “Tools” on your toolbar and then “Windows update.” Once the new window opens you should have “Office Family” as one of the tabs at the top of the page. Click on “Office Family.” On the top left of the screen you should see “Office Update” and under that “Check for Updates.” Click on “Check for Updates.” If updates are listed, go ahead and click on “Agree and Install.” Occasionally a screen will pop up asking if you have the Office CD – go ahead and say “Yes” normally it does not require the CD for installation but if it does, I have a copy in my office.

You will need to run the Microsoft Office update every few weeks. Office does not put out as many updates as Windows does so it does not need to be run as frequently. If you would like a reminder set up on your machine, please let me know and I can assist you with that or with running your updates.