INTERNET AND NETWORK TIPS

 

   
   

 

Get the most out of your wireless network:
Got a wireless network? Not happy with the performance? Remember that WiFi is a radio technology with a limited range and can be considerably affected by obstacles like walls or ceilings. Get the most out of your wireless with these positioning tips.

 

Locate your wireless Access Point (AP) centrally: Don't put your AP next to an outside wall. Put it as close to the middle of your home or office as you can. In this way, you get more of the signal and others get less.

 

Keep your antenna up: Generally speaking, the higher the antenna is on your wireless AP and adaptors, the better the reception will be.

 

Keep wireless out of the kitchen: Other 2.4 GHz devices can really mess up wireless signals, especially microwave ovens. Cordless phones can also have an impact. Keep this in mind when placing your devices.

 

Obstacles to your signal: Metal objects or surfaces provide the biggest obstacle to WiFi performance. Keep your AP and wireless adaptors away from such things as much as possible.

 

 

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Hiding your computer from other systems in the same network:

 

If you are on a network you do not really trust, and would like to hide your computer from curious eyes while still being able to share files, one simple solution is to conceal your system from the "network neighborhood" type applications.

 

Normally in Windows XP, the "workgroup computers" command executed from the "my network places"' screen will bring up a list of any systems in the same network and workgroup as your system, and allow you to browse any shared resources on these systems. If you would like to stop your system from showing up in this location, bring up the command prompt (start>> run and type "cmd") and type "'net config server /hidden:yes."

 

 

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Change web page font size automatically:

 

Here's a quick web browser tip which you might find worthwhile if you sometimes have trouble reading website text. By holding down the CTRL key and moving your mouse's scroll wheel, you can increase or decrease the font size of the text on most web pages.

 

 

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Address shortcut for Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox.:

 

Here's a nifty and quick keyboard shortcut for Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox. Press ALT+D to move the cursor to the address bar instantly and highlight all text so that typing will immediately start a new address.

 

 

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Save web pages for offline viewing:

 

There are a couple of ways to save your favorite web pages for viewing when you are not connected to the Internet. The most direct method is to save the current web page using the "file\save as" option.

 

This will save the current page in one of four formats, accessed via the "save as type" dropdown box in the save dialog: "Web page, complete" will save all of the contents of the current web page, including graphics, animations, etc. It will create a folder at the save location which holds these extras in addition to the file for the website itself. "Web archive, single file" saves the complete page as a single compressed file which can be opened by IE directly.

 

The last two modes, html only and text only store just the basic contents of the page in either html or text only format.

 

The better method for accessing web pages offline, especially if you regularly access them, is to add them to your favorites list and check the "make this page available offline" option. Internet Explorer will then download and store the page on your system at regular intervals when connected. You can use the 'customize' button to specify whether links on the page will also be downloaded and stored for offline access, and how many. Or, to simply make the web page just a favorite, use the keyboard shortcut CTRL + D.

 

 

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Open web pages in a new window quickly:

 

Another quick and handy web browser tip: To open links in a new window, simply hold down the SHIFT key as you click on them, or click the middle mouse button.

 

 

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Tips & tricks