Whether you author a freebie WordPress-hosted blog at WordPress.com or self-host it on your own site via a downloaded version from WordPress.org, both operate the same way. Here are 5 tips and tricks when using WP that make it more fun (and productive) to use.

1. Use IE when authoring

WHAT?! Yes, the animations on the menus in WP 2.7 are smoother in IE than Firefox. Sad but true.

Example: Login to your WP admin and expand any one of the menus from the left, such as Tools. Watch how smooth the animation is compared to Firefox where menus and other functions are “jerky”.

This is not to say Firefox can’t author with WordPress. Far from it. But the animations with the admin panel are smoother on IE.

If you use IE for just WP authoring and nothing else, your neighbors will not storm your house with torches and pitchforks, not to worry.

2. Use full-screen mode when editing

When using full-screen mode you can put your browser in windowed mode (meaning not maximized) and your browser truly looks like a word processing app when editing a blog post.

Full screen mode can be activated by a keyboard shortcut (Alt+SHIFT+G) or by the small “screen” icon directly next to the spell-check “ABC” icon.

Example of the difference:

Above: Standard interface. This can get cluttered quickly.

Above: What happens when I press Alt+SHIFT+G. I am still in WordPress but in full-screen edit mode looks and feels a whole lot better when authoring.

To get out of full-screen mode, click the full-screen icon again or press Alt+SHIFT+G again.

Note: This is not the same as using full-screen mode in your browser (which is F11).

3. Know your keyboard shortcuts

You know Alt+SHIFT+G is full-screen mode from the previous tip. Here are the rest:

• Bold: Highlight text, then Ctrl+B or Alt+SHIFT+B
• Italic: Highlight text, then Ctrl+I or Alt+SHIFT+I
• Strikethrough/Strikeout: Highlight text, then Alt+SHIFT+D
• Unordered (i.e. bulleted) list: Alt+SHIFT+U
• Ordered (ex: 1, 2, 3) list: Alt+SHIFT+O (as in letter O, not zero)
• Blockquote: Alt+SHIFT+Q
• Align text to the left: Alt+SHIFT+L
• Align text to the center: Alt+SHIFT+C
• Align text to the right: Alt+SHIFT+R
• Align text “full”: Alt+SHIFT+J
• Hyperlink text: Highlight text, then Alt+SHIFT+A
• Remove hyperlink: Highlight text, then Alt+SHIFT+S
• Insert a “more” tag: Alt+SHIFT+T
• Toggle a spellcheck: Alt+SHIFT+N
• Show or hide “Kitchen Sink” (extra functions): Alt+SHIFT+Z
• Undo: Ctrl+Z
• Redo: Ctrl+Y
• Help: Alt+SHIFT+H

4. Use the draft feature, use it often.

When writing anything the draft feature will save anything you were working on directly to the web server.

While it’s true that WP will auto-save drafts while editing in the interface, it’s suggested that you get in the habit of physically click that “Save Draft” button, because there many be times when what was auto-saved as a revision doesn’t include the new stuff you wrote.

5. Speed up the admin interface by using screen options

When you login to WP admin, a feature that is really easy to miss is “Screen Options” at top right. It’s a gray button directly next to “Help”.

When clicked a bunch of checkboxes appear. If you uncheck them all you can “blank out” your admin panel for greater speed, like this:

There is nothing broken with the above screen shot. This is what happens when you uncheck everything.

My suggestion for those that use WP is to have “Right Now” and “Recent Drafts” checked and nothing else, mainly because you don’t need anything else. But of course that’s up to you.

Also bear in mind you can drag and drop these items and sort them however you like.

Do you use WordPress?

What tips would you recommend?

Right now a lot of people are tightening belts concerning money and one way to save cash is by using a pre-paid cell phone instead of post-paid. Here are some tips to maximize minutes and minimize hassle.

1. Check voicemail from another number

On many pre-paid phones it chews up minutes checking your voicemail. Solution: Check it from another line. Call your cell phone number, wait for the greeting, press star (*), enter your voicemail password then press pound (#). You’ll be able to log right in and take all the time you want without using any minutes at all. And you can keep your phone free for use while checking voicemail.

2. Do not register the phone with the provider’s web site

Pre-paid phone companies strongly urge you to register the phone with their web site for one reason – to spam you. Don’t fall for the convenience of buying minutes online if you can. Buy your minutes with cards from local retailers instead.

And no, you don’t save any cash buying online compared to retail because you still have to pay the tax no matter what method you use, so you might as well buy the card(s) in the store.

3. Avoid using text alerts from other providers

You lose either time or "text allowance" each time you receive a text message alert. Don’t bother with these.

4. Do not "tie in" your phone with your instant messenger.

Many instant messenger services allow you to "tie in" or "link" your IM account with your cell phone. For those with unlimited messaging this may be fine, but for pre-paid, not so much. Sure, it may be convenient but it will chew up time/allowance for text messages fast.

5. Buy an identical phone just for the battery.

Your pre-paid phone was most likely inexpensive. If it was a Motorola W175g for example, the phone probably cost you only ten dollars.

Buy a second phone just for the battery. When you get it, don’t bother activating it. Just plug it in to the wall and keep it on charge for a fresh battery. When the battery in your primary phone runs out, swap out the batteries and ta-da, extra battery when you need it.

STRANGE BUT TRUE: If you were to buy a battery outright for that same 10-dollar phone, it can cost up to 30 dollars. Why bother when the entire phone is 10 and you get the same battery with an extra "charger" (the other phone)?

Remember all those "web accelerators" from the days of dial-up internet which basically acted like a filter and/or cached more to appear as if you were doing things faster on the web? Maybe you do.

Google had their own version of it called the Google Web Accelerator and have officially killed it.

Yes, I did try one several accelerator-style products during the old days of dial-up, and they were all terrible. Most of them slowed down your computer to a crawl which actually made your browsing slower.

In the modern day of broadband there is no need for accelerators anymore. And if you’re using dial-up I still wouldn’t use one.

The way to browse faster today is the same way you browsed faster back then:

• Try not to use plugins or add-ons in your browser. Keep it minimal or alternatively don’t use any.
• Use an email client instead of web-based mail and download "headers only" for each mail received.
• Use alternative lightweight instant messengers that don’t load ads.
• Avoid sites that make extensive use of Flash.
• Use RSS to get content for web sites.
• Use things on the internet that require minimalist bandwidth (like IRC).

If you have "slow broadband", what do you do to save bandwidth?

When it comes to instructing people on how to do something, I operate on a three-strike rule. If I have to tell anyone how to do anything more than three times in a row, I write documentation for that person.

Writing documentation for others is not as easy as it appears.

I have my own formula of sorts when writing instructional documents. It took me a while to develop the right mix of what to include and what to leave out, but for the most part it works out.

If you are in a position where it would be helpful to type up an instructional doc for someone else, here are my recommendations on how to go about it.

1. Descriptive title

The title of this article is "9 Tips On Writing Documentation For Other People". From this title, you know exactly what to expect. Your title should be as informative for whatever you’re instructing your reader to do in your doc.

It is okay to go with long titles for instructional docs, by the way. However I would try to keep it under 15 words.

2. Pictures

Pictures always work. You’re probably saying to yourself "Well, duh, I knew that part.." Yes, you did. But you’d be surprised at how many people don’t bother – especially when the doc needs them.

If for example you were writing about how to change sparkplugs on a 1987 Ford Escort, yes the pictures would absolutely have to be there to assist the reader in understanding what the words mean.

This document doesn’t need any image examples because it’s purely about writing style.

3. Sections

You are reading section 3 at the moment. It’s easy to follow and understand; this is why you use sections in the first place.

4. Make section titles/breaks obvious

Each section in this doc is in bold text, making it easy to differentiate one from the other.

If you want to make it even more obvious, you can make your section titles a different color and/or italicized. This may seem like a bit of overkill, however one can never be too obvious when writing instructional docs.

5. Write a short introduction on the assumption the reader knows next to nothing about the material contained within.

Copying myself from above:

"If you are in a position where it would be helpful to type up an instructional doc for someone else, here are my recommendations on how to go about it."

If for whatever reason the reader did not understand the title, the short introduction copied above reinforces what it is again. Consider the short introduction to be a longer, more descriptive title.

6. Assume the reader knows next to nothing but not absolutely nothing.

It is incorrect to assume the reader knows absolutely nothing because you’ll never get started. For example, I know you, the reader, know how to use a word processor application like Word or OpenOffice Writer – so it is not necessary for me to instruct you how to do that. Furthermore if I actually did take the time to explain it, that goes against the title of what this article is actually about.

7. Describe steps in ridiculously simplistic terms with cautionary notes (if necessary).

If I were writing a doc explaining how to change a light bulb, this is how it would go:

1. Turn off the light so it is no longer illuminated.
2. Wait 5 minutes until the bulb has cooled down.
3. Gently grasp the TOP of the light bulb and turn counter-clockwise.
4. Continue to turn until light bulb becomes loose enough to remove.
5. Take new light blub, insert into socket and turn clockwise.
6. Continue to turn clockwise until bulb has a snug fit. NOTE: Do not overturn the bulb as it will break.
7. Turn on the light.

Yes, you probably chuckled at that, thinking, "What fool wouldn’t know how to change a light bulb and need instructions like that?"

There are plenty of fools to go around, trust me on that one.

If I did not instruct the reader to turn off the light bulb first, said moron would grab the bulb while illuminated, still piping hot and burn himself.

If I did not instruct to wait until the bulb cooled down, same result. Moron burns himself.

If I did not instruct to grasp the top, moron will grasp the bottom.

The reason you say "clockwise" and "counter-clockwise" is because there are many people who literally don’t know their right from their left – but DO know what clockwise/counter-clockwise means. I’m not joking. If I said "twist to the left", it’s a guarantee someone would twist to the right and break the bulb.

The "NOTE" part is a warning, and if not said, someone will twist in the bulb too tightly and break it.

8. Use ordered/unordered lists to emphasize steps/points.

This is an unordered list:

• Item 1
• Item 2
• Item 3

Most people know this simply as a bulleted list. It gives indentation to each item and makes them stick out. This is good for listing items you’d need (such as when writing a recipe).

This is an ordered list:

1. Read PCMech.
2. Become enlightened from reading the fountain of knowledge herein.
3. Tell your friends.
4. Have their friends tell their friends.
5. Increase Dave’s chances of world domination.

or..

1. Take computer.
2. Put under the wheel of your car.
3. Drive over computer.
4. Feel satisfaction.
5. Throw computer in dumpster.
6. Buy new computer.
7. Feel crappy you had to buy yet another computer.
8. Repeat process every 3 years.
9. Consider switching to abacus out of frustration.

It’s either 1, 2, 3, etc. or A, B, C, etc. It says "this is the order of the things you’re supposed to do".

9. Try to keep it all on one page.

Admittedly this is tough sometimes. But if you can, keep all instructions on a single page while keeping the text legible (meaning not to make it too small).

Got instructional doc writing tips of your own?

Chime in with a comment or two.

As an author of PCMech I download and try out a ton of software. Of course, this means not only installing but uninstalling as well which leaves behind a bunch of Windows registry crap in many instances.

My preferred registry cleaner of choice is CCleaner because a) it works and b) the price is nice (free). In fact my use of it has been since it was formerly named “Crap Cleaner”.

There are a few things I’ve learned in my use of the software that allows it to do a “better job”, so to speak.

Continued

Laptops traditionally command a high price tag than desktops and their resale value is undisputed.

You may have entertained the idea of buying a used laptop. Personally I recommend against doing this as new ones are easily under $500 these days. However, if you’re insistent on going used, here are a few tips. Continued

Everyone’s heard tips on how to manage e-mail, deal with spam and so on – so here are a few other bits of info to help make your e-mail more manageable.

Forwarded e-mail sometimes has a tendency to bypass spam filters

You’ve been a good e-mail user but for whatever reason there are still spams that get thru to your inbox, even though you’ve flagged them a ba-zillion times and they still seem to get thru.

The answer could be you may have forwarded mails that are bypassing the spam filter.

In this instance I’m not referring to e-mail that other people send to you but rather the e-mail that you are downloading in from other e-mail accounts you have.

For example, in Gmail there is the option to bring in mail from other accounts via POP. Other mail services such as Hotmail and Yahoo! Mail also have this feature available. The mail that comes in from these accounts is usually deemed as "trusted" because after all, you did want it there.

If you are currently bringing in other e-mail from other accounts via POP, not doing so may decrease the likelihood of spam bypassing the filter and getting to your inbox.

If you send out mail to over 25 recipients at a time, many mail servers will flag that as spam

The general rule of thumb when it comes to mass mail-outs is that if you’re sending a mail to over 25 different addresses, there is a strong chance several of those you sent the mail to will have it flagged as spam by their mail server.

Some mail providers rely on stronger spam filters (like Gmail and Hotmail) while others operate "by the numbers" to decrease the spam flow. Many ISPs for example will do this. Some have a recipient mail-out limit as low as 20.

The solution to this is either to send out the same mail a few times with the recipient list "broken up" not to exceed 25 at a time, or alternatively use a separate mailing list service.

There are free options for mailing list services such as Yahoo! Groups, MSN Groups and Google Groups. If your recipient list is over 25, I strongly recommend at least checking those offerings to see if they can work for you. Additionally you can also use social media means of lists such as MySpace and Facebook (posting bulletins is essentially the same as mass e-mailing since everyone in the group will get the message).

Sending mail where the recipients are undisclosed

Although this is a simple tip, many people are unaware of how to do this.

When sending an e-mail to multiple recipients, most people usually just put everyone’s e-mail address into the To field. The problem with this is that everyone who receives that mail can see everyone on the list.

Using the cc (carbon copy) field doesn’t help because everyone can still see everyone else’s address.

The way to send a mail to multiple recipients where your address is the only one visible is to do it like this:

1. In To, put your e-mail address.
2. In cc, leave blank.
3. In bcc (blind carbon copy), this is where you put all the other recipients.

If you bcc everybody on the mail you send out and have your address as the only one in the To field, nobody will see the list of addresses. Instead they’ll only see yours because you’re in the To field.

Why do you have to put an e-mail address in the To field? Because it’s required, else the mail won’t send. There must be at least one address there, hence the reason you put in yours.

In Gmail, bcc is done by clicking Add Bcc just below the To field.

In Hotmail, bcc is done by clicking Show Cc & Bcc at the far top right when composing a message. When clicked, the Cc… and Bcc… fields will become visible.

In Yahoo! Mail, bcc is done by clicking Show BCC at the far top right of the To field when composing a message. When clicked, the Bcc: will become visible.

Continued

Chances are there’s a local computer exposition that takes places a few times a year near where you live. I’ve attended several of these over the years and I can honestly say that yes, you should go to one if you haven’t.

There’s usually only one reason to go to one of these: To buy computer stuff.

What type of stuff will you see at an expo? For the better ones, anything and everything computer.

Is it true you’ll save a few bucks buying stuff from an expo? It depends what you’re looking to buy. More often than not the answer is yes because you’re usually buying things "direct" at a discounted rate.

Tip 1. Never buy RAM from a vendor that doesn’t have a RAM tester at the booth.

Any good vendor who sells computer memory always has a RAM tester right there to test it before purchase. This is only way of knowing the RAM you bought is good or not.

Tip 2. Beware of boxes with damaged corners.

Whether it’s a new video card, motherboard or anything that comes in a box, if the corners are crunched a bit, give the box right back and get one that’s completely undamaged. Ones that have perfect boxes haven’t been dropped.

Tip 3. Always call the return center phone number before purchasing.

Better vendors will explain to you that if you want to return a product for a refund to call a certain number listed on the receipt or in the documentation. CALL that number right there at the expo with your cell phone to see if anyone actually picks up. If there’s no answer, don’t buy because if it breaks you’ll never get your money back.

Tip 4. Always buy in cash.

When you buy in cash you can wheel’n'deal a bit and get the price knocked down for some vendors desperate enough to sell stuff. On credit you can’t do that.

Tip 5. Prices will change depending on when you go.

At the beginning of an expo everything is listed at full price. But at the near-end of the expo vendors are desperately looking to get rid of stuff even if it means selling at a loss. Granted, there won’t be as much selection but you’ll notice the prices have magically dropped at that point.

You can be the worst photographer armed with the cheapest digital camera and still get great shots if you’re willing to seek out subjects that look interesting.

Here’s a few examples of what I’m talking about.

(click any image for larger size)

This is the prop car from Back to the Future, taken at Universal Studios in Orlando Florida in March 2007. This shot was an absolute no-brainer. Center the car in the shot, point, shoot, done. There is absolutely no thinking necessary (other than centering the subject) when taking a photo like this. Not only is the subject interesting but the background is also complementary as well.

This is a shot of some sunrays breaking thru a cloud. For all intents and purposes, this is a bad shot. There’s a big ugly phone pole and an ugly sign to the right, but for some reason this shot actually works. I couldn’t tell you why. To get a shot like this, it’s real simple. Wait for dusk. You can get a shot like this just driving home from work. (This is why I tell anyone to always have a digital camera in your car whenever you go anywhere – you never know when a shot will present itself.)

I took this shot while out on a date. It’s a theater that’s built-in to a mall. There was enough light blasted out by the neon and signs to “get away” with taking a shot like this. To be honest I didn’t even know if it would come out correctly, but it did. I took a risk and it worked. Luck? Yes.

Location doesn’t necessarily mean exotic (like Universal Studios); it means anything that looks particularly interesting.

The best advice I can give anyone is to always carry a digital camera wherever you go. If your camera is too bulky to do that, buy a thinner one. Then you won’t be kicking yourself every time you see something and think Oh wow, what a shot I could get.. ah rats.. my camera is at home… Locations will present themselves to you if you have your camera at-the-ready.

A domain in relation to the internet is [Domain Name].[TLD], such as PCMECH.COM. The domain name itself is PCMECH. The TLD, a.k.a. Top Level Domain is the dot com. Or moreover, just com.

Generally speaking you can have up to 60 characters in a domain name before the TLD, so if you wanted..

Hi-There-This-Is-My-Domain-Name-and-I-Really-Like-It.com

..you could get it.

And by the way, the above is a 52-character domain name because the dashes do count as characters.

5 quick tips on domain names

1. Watch where you search.

Have you ever searched for a domain name to purchase and it’s snapped up FIVE SECONDS before you buy it? It’s probably because where you were searching was broadcasted out somewhere, a bot picked it up and auto-registered the domain name.

You can avoid this very annoying situation by using a domain search site that does not broadcast the search results, such as DomainTools.com.

2. Don’t use dashes.

If your domain name contains dashes it’s most likely true that you’ll have to deal with people mistyping your domain all the time. Try to avoid this.

3. If stuck for ideas, use your business name + location.

If your business name is taken as a dot-com (and it most likely is), just add your business’ location. So instead of ExampleBusiness.com it could be ExampleBusinessFlorida.com or ExampleBusinessUSA.com or ExampleBusinessUK.com and so on. You get the idea.

4. Stick with dot-com.

The internet revolves around dot-com. If you have dot-net, dot-org or dot-whatever it will not be as easy to remember.

5. When you get your domain name, register every single type of free service possible for easiest communication.

Register with AIM, Yahoo, MSN/Live, Skype, eBay, Google, MySpace, FaceBook and anything else you can think of with your newly registered name. By doing this you are branding yourself in a good way.

Granted, there is a distinct possibility you won’t be able to get them all, but try your best. Even if you never use them, register with the services regardless. You may encounter a customer, friend or what-have-you that wants to communicate in a specific way, and guess what – you’re covered.

Some have found Adobe Reader to be annoying, bloated, and just a plain pain in the rear. There are alternatives like FoxIt, but if you want to abolish PDF readers all together and still be able to look at the occasional PDF, here’s a nifty service called PDFMENOT.

This service allows you to either view PDFs that are linked somewhere on the web, or upload a PDF from your computer. While this service does fine with standard text and image PDFs, you may run into issues with highly interactive PDFs.

Many people like navigating by keyboard.  It can sometimes be faster and more efficient then using a mouse once you get the hang of it.  Here’s two useful shortcuts that may help in that regard.

To open up Windows Explorer (not Internet Explorer), simply hold the Windows key and press E.  No matter where you are, this will open Windows Explorer.

To navigate up and down, simply use the arrow keys.

To open and close subfolders use the * and – keys on the num pad.  Note that these shortcut keys open and close *all* subfolders on the selected folder, not just one level, so if you have a lot of files and subfolders, opening them may take a few moments.

To open only one level of subfolders, use the + key on the num pad.

While TinyURLs can sometimes be handy and short and pretty to pass around and post in your blog, they also effectively hide the original URL.  What this means, is that sometimes, people can hide all sorts of URLs behind it, including those you may not really want to visit.

Here are two ways you can unmask those URLs.

The first way is to bookmark this link (right click on the link, bookmark link or add to favorites):

<a href=”javascript:Embiggen={”runNow”:true}; var s=document.createElement(”script”); s.type=”text/javascript”; s.src=”http://ghill.customer.netspace.net.au/embiggen/embiggen.js”; document.getElementsByTagName(”head”)[0].appendChild(s); void(0);”>Embiggen</a>

Whenever you visit a page that has TinyURLs on it, click the bookmarked link, and it will replace all the TinyURLs with their actual URLs.  You can visit the author’s site for this tool here: http://ghill.customer.netspace.net.au/embiggen/

The second way is go directly to the TinyURL site and click the “enable previews” link: http://tinyurl.com/preview.php?disable=1

You can also bookmark the enable link directly: http://tinyurl.com/preview.php?enable=1

You will have to have cookies enabled for this to work.  Basically, what it does is visit the TinyURL website when you click on a TinyURL, show you what the actual link looks like, and at which time, you can choose whether or not you really want to visit the link.

Back in the days of olde (i.e. late 90s) web browsers were distinctively different in the way they worked as far as user commands were concerned. Today all of them act more or less identical to each other. I personally feel this is good because when going from one browser to the next there’s not too much of a learning curve, if any at all.

My favorite shortcuts are the ones that require the absolute least amount of effort to do, such as single-key functions or double-clicking a mouse in a certain spot.

I’ll be going over a few (but not all) of these shortcuts in the "big three" web browsers: Internet Explorer 7 (IE7), Firefox 2 (FF2) and Opera 9.26 (OP9).

Keystroke: CTRL+T
Function: Open new tab
Works in: IE7 FF2 OP9

Keystroke: CTRL+W
Function: Close currently selected tab
Works in: IE7 FF2 OP9

Keystroke for only one tab open: CTRL+W
Function: Closes browser
Works in: IE7 FF2

Keystroke: F5
Function: Refresh/Reload web page
Works in: IE7 FF2 OP9

Keystroke: F6
Function: Go to address (URL) bar
Works in: IE7 FF2

Keystroke: / (forward slash)
Function: Quick-find text in current web page
Works in: FF2 OP9

Keystroke: Home
Function: Go to top of current web page
Works in: IE7 FF2 OP9

Keystroke: End
Function: Go to bottom of current web page
Works in: IE7 FF2 OP9

Keystroke: CTRL+(number of tab)
Function: Go to specific tab by order of load (CTRL+1, CTRL+2, etc.)
Works in: IE7 FF2

Mouse: Double-click in blank area of tab bar
Function: Opens new blank tab
Works in: IE7 FF2 OP9

Mouse+Keyboard: ALT+Scroll
Function: Scroll by line
Works in: FF2

Mouse+Keyboard: SHIFT+Scroll (up or down)
Function: Go back/forward thru web page history
Works in: IE7 FF2 OP9

As you can see, most functions are more or less identical across all browsers. The two that are almost identical to each other are IE and FF. There’s very little FF can do that IE can’t.

Opera, while a great browser, seems to be the only one that falls behind in the shortcut department. F6 has been "go to address" bar pretty much ever since web browsers were invented, yet Opera doesn’t do it. Yes, I know you can do a CTRL+L for the same function but it shouldn’t take two keys when you can do it in just one. A nitpick? Yes, obviously. But hey, I notice these things, what can I say..