Affordable Care Website from a Programmer by Sandy Berger, Compu-KISS (approx. 1,021 words). We have heard the word “glitch” over and over again in reference to the government’s new health care website, Healthcare.gov. As a person who has personally coded thousands of lines of code and run several websites, I can assure you that what we are seeing with this website is not a bunch of small glitches.

What You Need to Know about QR Codes by Sandy Berger, Compu-KISS (approx. 767 words). If you’ve seen QR or Quick Response Codes, but don’t know what they mean, this article will explain it all for you.

Using a Publisher by Jim Cerny, Director, Sarasota PCUG, FL (approx. 981 words). If you use email or a word-processing application (like Microsoft Word or WordPad) you probably have no trouble entering and editing text. But when it comes to putting things exactly where you want on the page, well, word processing programs can become difficult. Enter Microsoft Publisher….

Fun with your scanner by Jim Cerny, Director, Sarasota PCUG, FL (approx. 978 words). Scanners have been around for a long time and their technology keeps improving. If you have a scanner, you can think of it as a digital camera – it is really taking a digital photo of what you are scanning and making a new file of that image on your computer.

Interesting Internet Finds - Oct by Steve Costello, President / Editor, Boca Raton Computer Society, FL (approx. 177 words). More of Steve’s interesting I-net finds.

SHOULD I UPGRADE TO i0S7 by Bill Crowe, 2nd VP, Sarasota PCUG, FL (approx. 555 words). Apple’s iPhone/iPad operating system, called iOS, got a huge makeover and you may consider not upgrading. The changes, while numerous, are not difficult.

Google Translate by Bill Crowe, 2nd VP, Sarasota PCUG, FL (approx. 132 words). Google Translate is a simple mobile translation tool that supports more than 60 languages, and even speaks some of your translations aloud.

Going to a Digital Newsletter by Nancy DeMarte, 1st VP, Sarasota PCUG, Florida (approx. 317 words). If you are thinking of going to a digital newsletter, this article might have some tips for you.

Legacy with a View by Bill Ellis, member, Computer Users of Erie, PA (approx. 1,201 words). The Legacy program gives us the options of starting it up in several different ways. For most software programs, this is called the startup screen. For the Legacy program, it’s called the startup view.

Linux Magazines by Cal Esneault, Former Pres and leader of many Open Source Workshops and SIGs, Cajun Clickers Computer Club, LA (approx. 563 words). Since Linux is not as commonly used as some other computer operating systems, users frequently resort to online sources for instructional information. Cal suggests two free, online magazines for Linux users.

Protect Your Laptop by Kathy Frey, member, Computer Club of Green Valley, AZ (approx. 208 words). Kathy gives us 8 tips for protecting our laptop while traveling.

Get Plain Textby Linda Gonse, Editor and Webmaster, Orange County PC Users’ Group, CA (approx. 410 words). It’s probably safe to say that everyone has copied text from a webpage at some time and pasted it into an email or into a Word-like program. So, of course, you can relate to my dismay of pasting the type complete with its formatting riding piggyback on it. Enter Get Plain Text.

The Jeopardy Answer Is by Linda Gonse, Editor and Webmaster, Orange County PC Users’ Group, CA (approx. 220 words). The final question on Jeopardy on its September 26 episode was based on the category “Internet.” The question was “The animal for which this computer program is named is actually a red panda.” Do you have any idea what this program is?

Otterbox Cases by George Harding, Treasurer, Tucson Computer Society, AZ (approx. 397 words). Here’s a company that has grown by providing just what the customer wants. It started with a line of waterproof cases and continued with cases through which the enclosed device could be manipulated. From that point on it was a matter of adapting cases to the continuing flow of new types of devices, still keeping each case waterproof and protective.

808 Headphones review by George Harding, Treasurer, Tucson Computer Society, AZ (approx. 309 words). Our mobile devices usually play sound, especially music. Most cell phones and all MP3 players come with earbuds which are convenient and easy to carry. But cords often get so tangled that using them is too much trouble. George finds that the 808 Headphones are really nice and are reasonably priced.

Release of Windows 8.1 Update by Rosita Herrick, Director, Sarasota PCUG, FL (approx. 183 words). Using the version 8.1 that was made available for testing, Rosita states that the improvements make access easier.

Windows 8 Defender by Rosita Herrick, Director, Sarasota PCUG, FL (approx. 218 words). One of the security options in Windows 8 is Windows Defender – it comes installed with the program.

strobist Lighting 101 by Mike Lyons, President, Orange County PC Users’ Group, CA (approx. 157 words). Started in March 2006, David Hobby created a lighting tutorial to help beginning photo students learn flash photography with a minimum of equipment. He has just completely a rewrite of Lighting 101, called Lighting 102. Check out this tutorial.

The Way of the Digital Photographer by Harold David, review by Mark Mattson, Editor, Computer Users of Erie, PA (approx. 743 words). At first glance, the title may seem to some to indicate that this volume deals with how to improve your digital photography skills. As you travel along the journey this book takes you on, you discover many gems of wisdom Harold had learned over the years, and passes them on to you.

Tiny Computers by Dick Maybach, Member, Brookdale Computer Users’ Group, NJ (approx. 1,458 words). Personal computers are vital appliances for most of us. We use them to balance our checkbooks, calculate our taxes, communicate with friends and family, store our memories, and keep us informed. There are dozens of tiny computers and Dick’s article covers the Arduino and the Raspberry Pi.

Goodbye XP by Dick Maybach, member, Brookdale Computer Users’ Group, NJ (approx. 1,385 words). On April 8, 2014 Microsoft will stop supporting XP and Office 2003. After that date there will be no new security updates, non-security hot-fixes, free or paid assisted support options, or on-line technical content updates. However, all your software will continue to work just as well as it did on April 7, so you needn’t panic, but it would be prudent to come up with a rational transition plan.

Junk Email Filter by Lynn Page, Editor, Crystal River Users Group, FL (approx. 421 words). Lynn has used Outlook for her email since her first version of Office (97). She keeps her junk email protection level at high and has Outlook disable links in messages considered to be phishing and warm her about suspicious domain names. This article shows you how to do some or all of what Lynn does with her Outlook.

Tip Corner - November by Bill Sheff, Novice SIG Coordinator, Lehigh Valley Computer Group, PA (approx. 1,495 words). Bill’s tips include: Buying a Computer – laptop or desktop?, wattage, processors, ports, motherboards, warranty and support, reinstalling your OS – and What do I do with a Flash Drive?

Nibblers by Jeannine Sloan, Member, Twin Cities PCUG, MN (approx. 1,490 words). Jeannine offers us 31 tips from Grandparents Develop iPad App to Stay in Touch With Family, to Backing Up Network Settings, Managing Wireless Networks, YouTube Video Link Customization and more.

IO IO by Phil Sorrentino, Past Pres, Sarasota PCUG, FL (approx. 1,149 words). I/O or Input/Output is a term used to collect all the ways you can move data into and/or out of a computer. This article may be a review for some, but there are a few new ideas that might make it worth the time.

Windows Media by Phil Sorrentino, Past Pres, Sarasota PCUG, FL (approx. 1,162 words). Microsoft gave us a gift when they included Media Center in Windows. WMC is a media player (organize and show pictures, slideshows and videos) and a digital video recorder (view and record line TV).