Setting your computer for multi monitor output.

    Go to Start, Control Panel, Display (Personalization in Vista), Settings, select the big number 2, check the box,  "Extend the desktop to this monitor"

    This will set the computer to output to a second monitor.  If your monitor still does not display an extension of your desktop you now have to set your monitor to the be display the right input channel.  Is your receiver set to the proper line in?
    Some times you may need to restart the computer, external monitor, or both in different orders to get your hardware to detect each other but if your hardware is correct, and all the cables are the right type and in the right places it will eventually work.

How to capture a screenshot for your blog

    It took me a little practice to get good at capturing a screenshot and adding it to my blog, so I thought some of you might appreciate a couple of tips!

    I am using the PrtSc (Print Screen) button on my laptop to capture the screenshot.  This automatically Copies the visible part of the screen to your Clipboard.
    Next I open Paint and grab the select tool (the square dotted line on the left top of the sidebar), rightclick anywhere in the large white field and click paste.

    You will notice that the screenshot is surrounded by a dotted line (selected) while the image is selected go up to Image and click Crop.  This will keep the saved screenshot from having a large white border.
    Now is the time to make any extra comments or changes to the image like write comments.  I removed my email address using Paint's Eyedropper to pick the color, zoom in and use the Brush tool to paint out my email address.
    Your image is still too large to display  properly in a blogger window so I suggest you go back up to Image, Resize/Skew and type a percentage into both fields;

    This works to take an exact copy of what is currently visible on your screen. If you want to take capture the entire web page to save in an image format such as .jpg you can use the new Chrome Extension "Explain And Send Screenshots.

    There are options to " Grab visible part of this page"  "Grab a selected area" or "Grab the entire page"

    Notice the capture is a little different than the images captured using PrtSc.  Only the web page is visible, not all my tabs and Taskbar etc.  This my be better in some applications.  The ability to quickly comment on the page and to capture the entire page rather than just the visible part is also handy!

Process Explorer, Microsoft's Task Manager-zilla!

   Sysinternals Process Explorer is an advanced Task Manager with better descriptions and the ability to replace Task Manager when you click Ctrl. Alt. Del. or right click on the lower Taskbar!

   Where Task Manager tells me I have the process "avp.exe" running, I have to select and click Properties to see that it is my anti virus program, Kaspersky.  With Process Explorer all I have to do is scroll over and a descriptive paragraph pops up!

It's also got a nice graphical System Information window with ability to graph each processor separately.

You can learn a lot about your system and how Windows works by studying your system using Process Explorer.

Process Explorer at Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Process_Explorer

Process Explorers user forum;
http://forum.sysinternals.com/topic10998.html

Authors site;
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb896653.aspx

Download Process Explorer

Managing your Download folder

   

Managing your Download folder

    Ever download something and not know where it went?  In XP you can go to Start, My Computer, Local Disk (C), Downloads.  In Vista to get to the default Downloads folder go to Start, User Name, Downloads.
    If it didn't go there, and you are not sure where your downloads are set to go the only option is to bring up the Downloads Dialog Box and right click the download in question.  Then you can either click Open, which will run the program if it is an Executable, or Open Containing Folder, which will bring you to the folder in which your file is stored and highlight the Downloaded file (can be handy if the file name is not obvious or the Download Folder is large).

    But how do you bring up the Downloads Dialog Box?  Maybe I am slow, but for years the only way I could figure out to bring up the box was to navigate to a site which offered a download, click on it to start downloading and up would pop my Downloads Dialog Box.  A convoluted and time consuming method, there had to be a better way, and of course there is.
    In Firefox simply click on Tools in the Menu Bar at the very top of your browser and go to Downloads!  In Chrome go to the Customize and Control Google Chrome button (the little crescent wrench on the top right of your browser) and down to Downloads.

    

    To control where your Downloads go in the future, in Firefox click on Tools in the Menu Bar.  Go past Downloads down to click Options.
    In the General tab there are controls for Downloads.  You have several options.  You can check the box for [always] Save Files To:  Where the default is your Downloads file but you can use Browse to pick or even create another file, or you can click the box marked Always Ask Me Where To Save Files.

    In Chrome go up to the wrench on the top right of your browser (Customize And Control Google Chrome) pass up Downloads and go down to click Options, Click Minor Tweaks, or Under The Hood, if you are using Chrome Beta.  Scroll down and you will find the controls to either choose a Download folder or have the program ask you where to put each downloaded file separately. 

   Using these features should save you from ever losing a download in the bowels of your computer again!