People who don’t consider themselves good with computers have been trained to believe they will never be able to learn computers. People who don’t enjoy using computers, will continue to struggle with computers because they honestly believe they will never be able to understand computers.
Computers used to be the domain of scientists, programmers and geeks. Today, there is no reason anyone, and I mean anyone can’t be good with computers. Windows has not drastically changed in well over a decade. Windows XP was released in 2001 and has not changed how it looks and works since then.
Windows 7 is a nice collection of minor changes. But it’s really the same thing as it ever was with a different coat of paint. WIndows 8 is where the craziness happens. Just like the Ribbon interface in Microsoft Office 2007 and 2010. These are both big changes. But they are both understandable with a bit of time and a little learning each day.
I am not saying everyone should become a computer expert. But there are a few secrets that can make sure experience using them far more pleasant.
Computers are big and scary and there are so many moving parts they intimidate the average user. Let me share a couple of secrets of technology which will hopefully make computers friendlier.
First Big Technology Secret
It is very hard to break anything on a computer so it can’t be repaired quickly. Let me say that again. You really have to try to break a computer to where it can’t be easily repaired. And often times, if you try, the computer will warn you that what you’re doing is not a good idea.
There is very little you can do to seriously damage your computer. You’re not going to catch a virus or delete your programs without a fair amount of work. Sure, you can do things that confuse you or make a computer act oddly. But with some help, they can be undone. No permanent harm will befall you or your computer.
Second Big Tech Secret
Once you learn the basics, the rest is just details.
I’m serious. Don’t think about all the things you can’t do. Focus on what you can. You can surely turn the computer on and login. Now, you can find and open programs and files you need. Need to print? You know where that is! Need to save? You’re a pro already!
Now that you know the basics, the rest is just details. Make an effort to learn one new thing everyday. It will speed up your work and make you more productive.
For instance, you copy and paste often don’t you? Did you know you can hold the Ctrl key down and press C to copy and then hold Ctrl and press V to paste.
Isn’t this faster than moving your mouse up to the Edit menu, locating Copy, clicking it. Moving your mouse to where you’d like to paste. Going up to the Edit menu again, locating and selecting Paste.
Ctrl + C and Ctrl + V is much faster. And Ctrl + X is Cut. Now you can Cut, Copy and Paste like a pro. All without moving your hands from the keyboard. Now you are ready to type and keep working. It’s not a huge thing, but it will save you a couple of seconds every time you do that. Even 5 seconds multiplied by every single time you need to copy and paste turns into hours at the end of a month or a year.
Let me share another tip with you. I live by a mantra, Save Early. Save Often. Whenever I am working on anything, I make sure I am always saving it. When I have made a little progress I press Ctrl + S. This will open the Save dialog. I create a file name and save it. Now I can keep working without fear. Many programs such as Microsoft Word will automatically save your work. But you need to have saved it at least once first.
Even as I am typing this, I am pressing Ctrl + S every couple of sentences. This makes sure if something were to happen to my document, it’s being saved early and often. The worst feeling in the world is completing your work, and when you go to print or save it for the first time and there is an error, or your computer crashes. All that work you’ve just done is gone. It’s like you never did it! Save Early. Save Often. It will keep you from having to redo your work. And who likes redoing work?
If you are feeling adventurous, open the control panel. Look at what’s there. Everything is very clearly marked. Printers. Networking. Display. All of these things are self-explanatory. Do you need to add a printer? Click Add Printer. Are things too big or too small? Click on Displays grab that slider. Make it bigger or smaller and the screen will change. But don’t worry if you’ve made a mistake, in 15 seconds it will revert to where you were.
Third Big Technology Secret
You don’t need to know everything.
You only need to learn what you’ll actually use. There are a huge amount of settings and options. Most people only use a tiny number of them. Computer techs familiarize themselves with every menu and option so we can act as guides.
We dig into the nooks and crannies of an application to learn them so we can help our customers. Most people have absolutely no need to do this and can safely ignore most of the options. Just learn what you need and leave the rest. It’s not worth filling your head with knowledge you’ll never use.
Fourth Big Technology Secret
Computer techs don’t know what everything is either.
It may seem like your IT guy knows every inch of the computer you have. They know exactly what that weird error means and what this program is. The truth is we know a lot from seeing it over and over. And we search. If I don’t know what a program is, I’ll search its name and usually the first couple results will have what I need.
In most technology matters, my knowledge is a mile wide and an inch deep. I know a bit about a lot of things. But I only know a lot about a very few things. The rest I search when I need to. The knowledge is out there, you just have to know how to look.
IT Guys and Gals are not lords of their domain. We just do this day in and day out so we learn by repetition. Most of the customers I serve do jobs which are completely foreign to me and I’d be terrible at them.
Everyone has something they love and are extremely knowledgeable about. Everyone has something they know more about than anyone else they know. It may be computers, science, literature or music. Everyone has their niche. I hope this has made working with computers a little less scary. We’re all in this together.
