Hello All,
What follows is a ro-post of the December Workshops offered at no charge by SLO Bytes' parent group, APCUG
Ralph Sutter

DECEMBER
WEDNESDAY WORKSHOPS

December 1
Electronic Holiday Greeting Cards
Not Your Parent’s PowerPoint
 
December 8
Make Your Own 2022 Photo Calendar at Home
 
December 15
Learning Linux #11 - Software Installations and Removals
 
9 am PT, 10 am MT, 11 am CT, 12 pm ET
 
Have you experienced your own problems in the “supply chain dilemma” caused by the current crisis? At this time of year, not only are some things hard to find, but many of us don’t want to go “out there in all of that” and spend a lot of time searching for them. APCUG has come to your rescue with our first two December Wednesday Workshops. Rather than trying to “find” things like holiday cards or just the right calendar to give or use, you can create/design/make them yourself with a bit of help. Check out our lineup of DIY (Do It Yourself) projects.

December 1
Register here – https://forms.gle/iBC1obhWN1D3QqLG6
Electronic Holiday Greeting Cards
Bob Bowser, Director, The Senior Computer User Group of Greater Kansas City
Bob will show us several options for sending holiday greetings to our friends and family. He will take us on a visit to several websites varying from free electronic cards to membership-based electronic cards and options to purchase physical cards from home with ways to distribute them and/or get them sent to your home for you to mail.
Not Your Parent’s PowerPoint
Marcia Berkey, Class Instructor, Sarasota Technology Users Group
PowerPoint is more than just presentation software. This presentation will demonstrate many unusual uses for PowerPoint, from documenting your memories to creating greeting cards for the holidays. You will learn how to create a Photo Album for life events, not to be confused with Photo Books from other vendors. However, there is a cool trick that you can use in PowerPoint to make your Photo Books better. You will also learn how to narrate your slideshows, add music to them, and how to export your PowerPoint as an .mp4 video. You can share your creations through your favorite social media sites. Have fun with Marcia learning more about PowerPoint.

December 8
Register Here - https://forms.gle/zzcjN43MQKkc5JW9A
Make Your Own 2022 Photo Calendar at Home
John Krout, Presenter & Newsletter Contributor, Potomac Area Technology And Computer society
We are all awash in digital photos, not only our own but those of our relatives and friends. So why not make a calendar to show off the best ones? All you need is PowerPoint or LibreOffice Impress and a color printer. Learn how you can download and customize the calendar table files (containing 12 calendar months and white space for photos) by adding your photos and calendar entries such as birthdays, anniversaries, and so forth. This presentation also includes information on how John prints and binds his calendar copies at home and ways you might work with commercial printing companies to do that. Note: As of April 2021, the 2022 calendar files are posted online for free downloading.

December 15
Register Here - https://forms.gle/YCkUVaocK52CtebK9
Learning Linux #11 - Software Installations and Removals
There have been numerous questions about software asked at previous Linux Workshops, where do you get the software, how do you install software, and how do you remove the software. At today’s workshop, we are going to focus on those very topics. There are several places you can get the software, and we’ll cover them (starting with the distro’s software center and going out to the Internet). And there are many ways to install the software, and we’ll cover them (starting with the distro’s package manager, the newest container packages, the command line, and even compiling them yourself). Finally, we’ll discuss reversing the process (uninstalling) based on the way you installed it. You can choose precisely how technical you want to get in this whole software process (including being safe).

Hello All,
My goal was to replace my C drive with a larger drive.  What follows is the path that I followed

Background Information
The computer is a Dell 8930 desktop running Windows 11 Pro.
The operating system resides on a Samsung 512Gb NVMe M.2 solid state drive.  The 512Gb drive (C drive) contains only the Operating System though  the computer has 6 additional drives
I will replace the C drive with a Samsung 1Tb EVO Plus M.2 NVMe solid state drive (same manufacturer, twice as large)

In order to have access to the 1Tb drive, I installed it inside a RIITOP NVME  USB enclosure;
https://www.riitop.com/collections/msata-ssd-adapter/products/riitop-m-2-nvme-to-usb-c-enclosure-external-usb-3-1-to-pci-e-m-key-nvme-2280-ssd-adapter-reader
and plugged it into a USB-c port on the computer.

Since both drives are Samsung NVME, I initially attempted to use Samsung Migration; https://www.samsung.com/semiconductor/minisite/ssd/download/tools/
 for cloning the smaller drive to the larger one.  That process failed repeatedly, reaching 99% before displaying that the process had failed for an unknown reason.
Next, I tried the Cloning Tool inside Acronis True Image 2021; https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1591424-REG/acronis_tih4b2ens_true_image_2021_box.html/
That worked.

Here is the procedure that I followed
Launch Acronis True Image
Click on Tools/Clone Disk
Choose Clone Mode – Manual
Select the source from the list.  (This is the drive that you wish to duplicate/clone)  I chose 464GB NVMe Samsung SSD 970

Next, select the target from the list,  (This is the new drive to which you will copy the contents of the source drive.)  I chose JMicron Tech 0204.  This is actually the name of the RIITOP USB enclosure, not the Samsung 1Tb EVO Plus drive inside.

Follow the prompts given by Acronis True Image.

When the process completes successfully, turn off the computer, remove the original C drive and replace it with the newly created C drive.  Restart the computer.

Note Correctly identifying the source and target disks is critical.  This won’t be an issue if your computer only has 1 drive.  Mine has 7. 
If you mis-identify the source and target drives, you will over-write files and disable your computer.

Proper identification is complicated by the fact that Acronis lists drives with different names than those shown in (Windows) File Explorer.
If you are unsure that you have the right source drive, using (Windows) File Explorer, right click on the C drive, left click on Properties and note the size of the drive. 

If your Operating System is located on another drive, note the file size of that drive. Do the same to confirm the size of the target drive.
When using Acronis, compare the size of the drives and choose the source and target drives whose size matches those that you saw in Windows File Explorer

Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
Here are my Notes for the SLO Bytes Photo Group Meeting of 11/15/2021

TOPIC: Each One Teach One; Share with others a program that you use or a technique that you practice
The SLO Bytes Photo Group added the First Session to our monthly meetings so that we could present our own historical images and those of others found on-line. 
For the past several months, no one has offered such content. 
For this reason, we decided to suspend the First Session indefinitely.  The December 2021 Photo Group will begin at 2:00 pm with members sharing original images taken since the November 2021 meeting.

The November Second Session opened with Ralph Sutter showing images of sunsets and palm trees shot at home and land/seascapes seen while hiking near Cayucos and Avila Beach.

Stanford Brown followed offering shots of the Salinas River, Paso Robles and surrounding areas.  His selection included dogs, alpacas, foxes and squirrels as seen on his walks through the countryside.

Alan Raul presented next.  He used the Linux photo display program, Eye of Mate, to show thumbnails and exposure data.  We saw sunsets, seascapes and cairns.  Alan added interest with the selective use of black and white inside color images. 

Kaye Raul demoed several recent Adobe releases; Creative Cloud, Premiere Rush and Photoshop Express.
She compared the sky replacement capabilities of Photoshop to that of Luminar AI, highlighting the strengths and shortcoming of each.  See Kaye’s links at https://www.slobytes.org/digital/documents/kaye-notes-1121.docx

John Waller used the Object Selection Tool, just added to Adobe Photoshop, to highlight multiple objects in the same image and transform them.  He used neural filters for manipulating depth of field and changing selective focus.

Our next meeting will take place on December 12th
The topic is Portraits; Share images of people
The meeting will take place via Zoom  A Zoom invitation will be e-mailed to Photo Group members shortly before the meeting.
See the Links page for tutorials and other resources at https://www.slobytes.org/digital/links.html

Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
Today, I updated three of my computers to Windows 11 when that option was offered through Windows Update.  I had previously updated another computer; same scenario.
All of the updates installed without incident.  However, in all cases, more Windows 11 updates appeared after the installation.  The second updates also installed without a hitch.
Below, I have listed my computers that are now updated to Windows 11. 

Dell 8930:  Windows 11 Pro Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-8700 CPU @ 3.20GHz 32Gb RAM

Lenovo X1 Yoga: Windows 11 Pro Intel i7 8650U 1.90Ghz 16Gb RAM

HP Pavilion Laptop 15-eg0xxx: Windows 11 Home Intel 11th Gen Core i7-1165G7 2.80 gigahertz 16Gb RAM

Intel NUC: Windows 11 Pro Intel i5 8259U CPU @ 2.30GHz 16Gb RAM

Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
I recently uploaded three batches of PUSH articles from SLO Bytes' parent group, APCUG, to our web site.
They are intended to be used as filler material in affiliate club newsletters.  I don't do that.  Instead,
I upload all of them to the SLO Bytes web site.
They cover a wide range of computer-related topics
View them at the following locations
https://www.slobytes.org/push/1021/index.html
https://www.slobytes.org/push/1021-security/index.html
https://www.slobytes.org/push/1021-1/index.html
Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
This is a re-post of a message regarding the free October webinars offered by SLO Bytes' parent organization, APCUG
Ralph Sutter

---
WEDNESDAY WORKSHOPS
October 13
Complete Robocall Defense, John Krout
October 20
Learning Linux with Orv Beach and John Kennedy
October 27
Windows 11 Presentation & Demo
Tom Burt
 
9 am PT, 10 am MT, 11 am CT, 12 pm ET
 
10/13 – Complete Robocall Defense, John Krout, Presenter & Newsletter Contributor, Potomac Area Technology and Computer Society
Register Here https://forms.gle/ppnY9ooVVL3hFtqD9
Registration closes at 11:30 ET on October 12.
 
This presentation will show you:
•   How to prevent your smartphone from ringing when someone outside of your Contacts list calls.
•   How to create and install a custom voicemail greeting that includes the Special Information Tones (SIT) to convince robocaller systems that your number is not in service.
•   How to use the free Audacity app to create a custom voicemail greeting, including the SIT recording posted online by the presenter.
•   How a free app for Android enables the installation of a custom voicemail greeting via Wi-Fi.
•   Learn how simple cables allow iPhone users to install a custom voicemail greeting. 
In 2019, John’s smartphone received about 25 robocalls per week and recorded nearly ten robocall voicemails per week. He applied deterrence techniques to his phone in mid-2020. Using the custom voicemail greeting technique, as of April 2021, the presenter's smartphone now receives an average of 2 robocalls per week and no robocall voicemails.
 
________________________________________
 
10/20 - Learning Linux with Orv Beach and John Kennedy, Linux Evangelists
Register Here    https://forms.gle/FGgzQNDLiHpgEpCF9
Registration closes at 11:30 ET on October 19.
 
Join us this month as Orv will start things off by reminding us "Why Linux is So Secure." He'll follow that review presentation with information about vi/vim, nano, ne, and tilde? Say what? He'll tell us what they are, why we would use them, and how to use them.
 
Then John will tell us about another feature of Linux in a presentation entitled "User Groups in Linux: Another Layer of Protection and Security."  Following that, he will be sharing with us "Workspaces and Virtual Desktops." What are they and the benefits of using them? And how do you set them up and use them efficiently?
 
And maybe, if there's time, a few keyboard shortcuts to head you down the road to becoming a "power user" (this is for beginners as well as experienced users). We'll also look at how you can create custom keyboard shortcuts that add to what's available in your Linux distro. Finally, of course, we'll have time for Q&A and some lively conversation.
 
________________________________________

10/27 - Windows 11 presentation & demo with Tom Burt, Vice President, Sun City Summerlin Computer Club, Nevada 
Register Here   https://forms.gle/YGn4qCfGaTXg67eK9
Registration closes at 11:30 ET on October 26.
 
Tom will give us a tour of Windows 11 with what's new, what's changed, and more. If your computer is Win 11 ready, you have a notice in Settings>Update & Security letting you know if your computer is ready for the download, mine is but….

 
We will need to decide if we want to upgrade or keep Windows 10 for a while longer, try Linux, or even WindowsFX, or there might be a Chromebook in our future.

Hello All,
When viewing on line video tutorials, I often notice that many screen captures directed my attention to a particular tab or icon by using an enhanced cursor
The normal cursor was surrounded by a large halo making it easier for me to follow.
I wondered how I could add that feature to my own tutorials using free, safe software.
I found out one way to do so at https://youtu.be/kwSqtNvT7tohttps://youtu.be/kwSqtNvT7to
After following the directions presented, I succeeded.
I then created my own simplified how-to version of what I learned.
View my offering at https://www.fullbean.com/tutorials/cursor-highlighter.html

Ralph Sutter

Hello All,
Frustrated that Google Chrome often didn't remember to open full-screen, I searched for a solution and created a video screen capture of the solution
View it on YouTube at https://youtu.be/SAouG5ylSoA
I also saved it on my personal web page at https://www.fullbean.com/tutorials/chrome-maximized.mp4

NOTE:  Yes, I always clicked on the Maximize icon in the upper right hand corner of the Google Chrome Screen.  However, the browser usually didn't remember that setting.
That's why I searched for a long-term solution as shown in the video screen capture.
Ralph Sutter