Do You See What I See? (Part One)

How to use "Print Screen"

From time to time, our clients call or email to describe a problem they are seeing on their computer screens. Often times, we can't see what they are describing, because it doesn't happen on our computers. There is indeed a reason for this, which I'll explain in part two.

In order for us to accurately "see" what people are talking about, we usually ask them to send us a "Print Screen". A Print Screen essentially captures a "screen shot" of exactly what your monitor looks like at that moment, including all windows you have open. It does not, as some might understandably assume, actually "print" anything.

This is my screenshot on the right. It shows an accurate image of what my monitor looks like at this very moment.

Print Screen on PC

• Find the Print Screen key (usually F13)
• Press ALT+PRINT SCREEN (this grabs the image of your screen by "copying" it)
  
• Open up a graphics program (i.e. Paint, or even Word can do it).
  
• Use the "paste" option (ctrl+v or use the program's menu) to paste in the screen shot image. The image should appear in the graphics program window.
• Save the image.
  

(For more details, look up "screen capture" under the Windows Help.)

Print Screen on Mac

• command-shift-3: capture screen to file
• command-fn-shift-3: capture screen to clipboard
• command-shift-4: capture selection to file
• command-fn-shift-4: capture selection to keyboard

Print Screen can be used for many things! It's a great tool to have, one of my favorites that I use all the time.

Do You See What I See? (Part Two)

I'll show you mine if you show me yours ...

Did you know not everyone uses the same web browsers to view the Internet? This means not everyone sees stuff on the web the exact same way, as the different browsers interpret data differently. Which is a huge headache at times to web designers like us! Even an newly updated browser may not display things the same way the previous version just did two days ago. What can you do? Well, nothing, really. That's the sad truth. We just try to work out the bugs we find with each update, and manage the quirks between the browsers as we find them. That and complain about it. A lot.

I digress. The majority of web users use Internet Explorer, and indeed many believe this is all there is. But a growing number of users have switched to Firefox (myself included). And there are several other browsers that are used very infrequently. Check out this site for the current "market share." In November 2007, it looked like this:


You can see how easily IE tops out it's competitors!

To learn more about how web browsers do their job, go here. I bet you haven't ever really thought about it before now. You have to decide which browser works best for how you use the Internet. (Of course, you can always just go with the flow!)

"Girls Gone Wired"

I should know, I'm one of them!

Guys shopping for a gift for the gal in their life should be having a bit more fun this year. A recent “Girls Gone Wired” survey for a cable network found that three out of four women would prefer a plasma TV to a diamond necklace. A top-of-the-line cell phone trumped a pair of designer shoes. And a little white iPod beat out a little black dress. It appears men and women alike can’t get enough of the latest gadgets.

Less than one week of Christmas shopping remains! Want to know the latest on this year’s best new products? Check Out “29 Exceptional Products for Tech Lovers” From laptops to printers, to GPS devices and cell phones, PC World highlights a few of the products that broke performance, design and price barriers in 2007. And don’t get scrooged! Check out product reviews and ratings on independent site ConsumerReports.org to make sure you’re getting a good deal on a quality product.

We've certainly never been opposed to a wired (or wireLESS!) gift or two :)

What's (Right) With a Web Form

I'm continually shocked these days to see businesses display their email addresses on their web sites.

I say to thee, 'Have ye not tired of spam?' Maybe you like the variety of offers you receive. Or, maybe you are inspired or amused by the creative spelling that tricks your spam filter into allowing such messages to reach your inbox. I'm not sure why anyone would knowingly post their email address anywhere near the vicinity of the World Wide Web! But alas, I see it all the time.

There is such an easy solution. Create a web form (or have one created for you!). It's simple, inexpensive, and will save you all kinds of headaches, not to mention room in your inbox. How? A web form camouflages your email address through some nifty code (called "server-side scripting) so that spambots can't find it. That's all there is to it.

And of course, we can help you do it. Just use our own handy-dandy contact form to reach us!

Take a Shortcut, Please!

Everyone loves a good shortcut.

Today, I'm feeling the need to share some of my favorite shortcuts with you. I'm guessing half of you already know most of these. But surprisingly, there are a lot of people out there wandering around the web aimlessly, not taking full advantage of all that our keyboards and operating systems have to offer.

Here are a few shortcuts you ought to love and use regularly, if not daily! Most of these work in a variety of applications, i.e. web browsing, email, Windows, etc...

Standard shortcuts

• ctrl + s = save
• ctrl + z = undo
• ctrl + a = select all
• ctrl + p = print

For word processing or online content:

Highlight your selection (by clicking and holding down your mouse) , then:

• ctrl + x = cut
• ctrl + c = copy
• ctrl + v = paste
• ctrl + b = bold
• ctrl + u = underline
• ctrl + i = italics

For more advanced users:

• End = takes you to the end of the line you are on
• Ctrl + end = takes you to the very end of a document
• Home = takes you to the beginning of the line you are on
• Ctrl + home = takes you to the very beginning of the document.

Last but not least:

• Double click over a word = select the entire word
• Triple click over a line, or in the margin next to a line = select the entire line

These last two are especially helpful when you are trying to copy a url, or a long phrase of text. (Also pairs well with copy (ctrl+c) and paste (ctrl+v)).

Bonus tip of the day:
An all important key for web pages ...

• F5 = refresh page

You'll be surprised how much faster this than looking for the refresh icon on your screen.

DIY Keyboard Shortcuts - When the standards just aren't enough

Want to type "tfn" and have it expand to "Thanks so much for your note"? Try the free AutoHotkey for Windows or the $30 Text-Expander for Mac. Now this is for the true short-cut enthusiast!

Well, this concludes your brief tutorial on keyboard shortcuts. Now, what will you do with all the time you're going to save?

GeekSpeak of the Week (2.0)

Once again, we proudly bring you our GeekSpeak of the Week.

Today's entry: CMS

What is it? In our business, CMS stands for a Content Management System (or more accurately Web Content Management System, or WCMS). In simple terms, we are referring to any system used to manage content on a website.

Not surprisingly, many average business people began looking for a way to manage the content on their websites without having to learn anything about HTML. Many people were frustrated with slow turn-around time on update requests from their web service providers, and wished they could easily make changes to their sites on their own time.

The Web Hounds have developed several unique ways to accomplish this for our customers. Our custom Content Management Systems range from a simple blog function, where users can regularly post blogs to their websites, to intricate database-driven applications which allow users to post and edit many aspects of their sites. Each system is unique to the business we've created it for.

On the flip-side, we have developed a reputation with our clients for extremely quick turn-around time on update requests, in almost all cases within 24 hours. Many people would rather simply shoot us an email, and let us do the work on the site, since that is our specialty! Without ever worrying about learning new software or applications, our customers can rest assured their sites will stay fresh -- and look cool!

Ready or Not, Year-End Comes

Barreling at the speed of light toward the end of the year, many people feel overwhelmed as all of life’s demands seem destined for a spectacular collision. Family responsibilities, work deadlines, commitments with friends, charitable giving, financial obligations …. all at once it is too tempting to put off some nagging tasks until January rolls around. If you remember them, that is. And that’s assuming you survive the holiday chaos.

Getting organized at the office might be the first step in handling the reigns and preventing social catastrophe. The Web Hounds favorite geeky magazine, Wired, has offered some helpful tips on cleaning up your desk and clearing out your mental to-do’s (according to our favorite "getting-things-done-guru", David Allen). The keys to success lay in writing things down and prioritizing. Sounds simple, but for some people (ahem, yours truly) it takes years to get the hang of systematic organization. I guess the best thing to do is simply take action, start somewhere – anywhere! – and smile to yourself as your to-do’s become to-done’s. Crises averted.

Portfolio Updates

We've recently added some new sites to our online Portfolio.

Take a look at some of the features listed to get a better idea of our broad spectrum of services. We've done everything from online communities to lead generation systems. We hope you'll let us help you find solutions for your company website.

GeekSpeak of the Week (1.0)

What can we say, we love a little nerdy lingo. In an effort to keep you up to date on all that's new in the world of tech (and the jargon that goes with it), we bring you GeekSpeak of the Week.

Today's entry: Blu-ray

What is it? Blu-ray is the name of a next-generation optical disc format that was developed to enable recording, rewriting and playback of high-definition video (HD), as well as storing large amounts of data. In a sense, Blu-ray is to HD-DVD as the compact disc (CD) was to the 8-track. Just a whole lot cooler.

But will this new format catch on? Or will it go the way of the laser disc?

Wired Magazine's new "Geekipedia" publication suggests Sony's Blu-ray disc format is poised to defeat it's HD-DVD competitor.

We say "let the format wars begin."

The Pack Mentality

Like all true hounds, we like to travel in packs. Especially in this ever evolving climate of Web 2.0 (or maybe you agree we've moved on to 3.0!) it simply isn't wise nor productive to go it alone.

For this reason, we've assembled a team of very talented people around us that we constantly partner up with on a variety of projects. We've learned to find people who do both what we do (so we can do it well), and what we can't do (so they can do it for you). And to keep them as close as possible. This means our clients have direct access to the very people we trust most in this business.

Visit our site to check out a current list of our favorite "pack members".

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"The nice thing about teamwork is that you always
have others on your side." -- Margaret Carty