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03-23-12 Ask Mr. Modem! Weekly Column
Locate Archived Gmail
Q. When I check the box by the sender's name in Gmail and then click Archive, the message disappears from the Inbox. Where does it go? I guess I don't really understand Gmail archiving. Can you help, Mr. M?
A. When you receive an email in your Gmail account, it is automatically assigned an "Inbox" label. Archiving a message simply removes the Inbox label so the message won't show up in the Inbox view anymore.
Where the message goes depends if you applied a label to that particular email or not. If you did, it is moved to the appropriate label listing. It can also be seen in the All Mail view. If you did not create a label for it, it can only be viewed in All Mail.
Q. When I select File > Print, a little box pops up that includes the option to “Print to File." What is that and why would I want to print to file?
A. Printing to a file is useful for documents that need to be printed by a commercial printer. When you print to a file, layout information, along with spacing, fonts, margins, etc., is stored in the .PRN file that is created. You can then provide this file to a commercial printer to reproduce large quantities or to print in a higher resolution than your home printer.
You might be wondering what happens if some unusual font used in your document is not installed on the system of the commercial printer? Or perhaps that thought never entered your mind. In either case, the commercial printer will replace the font with something that closely replicates your selection.
The best way to avoid this situation is to inform your commercial printer of any off-the-beaten-path fonts you have selected, such as Unbatang, Phetsarath, or the always popular Mukti. The printer will then update his or her system, or will ask you to update your document with fonts compatible with its printers.
Q. I'm using Apple's iCloud backup with my iPad, but I come from the old school and sometimes like to manually make backups, just to be safe. Is there some way I can back up the data on my iPad?
A. There is nothing wrong with the belt-and-suspenders approach to backing up data, so if a local backup would make you feel more comfortable, that's easily accomplished. When you connect your iPad to your computer, launch iTunes, then right-click your iPad in the Devices section and select Back Up. That's all there is to it. For oodles more iPad tips, check out “Mr. Modem's Top 50 iPad Tips” on amazon.com.
Mr. Modem's Sites of the Week
DictSearch
To use this global dictionary, choose the source language to translate from, then choose the target language to translate to, and a dictionary. Enter your term and click Go. You can use DictSearch to search 275 dictionaries and translate from 69 source languages into 73 target languages, spanning everything from Afrikaans to Yiddish.
http://bit.ly/czG0QV
Mensa Workout
This quiz allows 30 minutes for you to answer 30 questions. Tough questions. Mensa-like questions. Answers to the questions and discussion of the answers are provided at the time you submit your responses. I took the test and finished just before my head exploded. I don't like to brag, but my score qualified me to seek employment cleaning up after Mensa meetings.
www.mensa.org/workout.php
Viral Video Chart
Repeatedly visited by media mavens looking for the next big thing, and poured over by creative types hoping to see their work make the cut, the Viral Video Chart is the world's largest, most comprehensive database of videos that have gone viral, being seen by millions of viewer in a very short period of time.
http://bit.ly/cQMZbD
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Published: Mar 5,2012 18:49
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Andy Cowan
Andy Cowan, an award-winning writer, whose credits include Cheers and Seinfeld, regularly contributes humor pieces to the Los Angeles Times and the CBS Jack FM Radio Network.
Paul M. J. Suchecki
Paul M. J. Suchecki has more than 30 years of experience as an award winning writer, producer, and cameraman. He's written numerous newspaper and magazine articles. Currently he writes, produces and shoots for LA CityView Channel 35 and his more than 250 articles for Ehow.com are approaching half a million readers.
Coby Kindles
Coby Kindles is a freelance journalist, screenplay writer and essayist. She has been a staff writer at Knight Ridder and a regular contributor to The Associated Press.
Debbie Milam
Debbie Milam is a syndicated columnist for United Press International, an occupational therapist, family success consultant, and motivational speaker with more than 20 years experience. Her work on stress management, spirituality, parenting, and special-needs children has been featured in over 300 media outlets including First for Women, The Miami Herald, Elle, Ladies Home Journal, The Hallmark Channel, PBS and WebMD.
Dan Rafter
Dan Rafter has covered the residential real estate industry for more than 15 years. He has contributed real estate stories to the Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Business 2.0 Magazine, Home Magazine, Smart HomeOwner Magazine and many others.
Jack Nargundkar
Jack Nargundkar has been repeatedly published in Business Week, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and The New York Times. He is also an author of "The Bush Diaries" published in July 2005.
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