FOR about the 50th time I have been demonstrating how NOT to find my way around a recently installed software program . I believe rodents cannot learn by trial and error, so obviously I have much in common with rats.
Perhaps if I share my latest experience some of you may avoid the pitfalls.
As part of a seemingly never ending quest to create an attractive eBook I finally purchased the necessary software (fairly complicated), then decided to try it out at once.
After skimming through the extensive instructions in 10 minutes I was 'ready' for a dummy run. I usually begin these projects in the late afternoon so I finally went to bed at 2 a.m confused, cross, frustrated,and exhausted. Need I add I was also without a 'dummy' eBook?
The following afternoon, having recovered a certain amount of equanimity, I tried again. And this time I printed out the instructions (approximately 50 A4 pages), which I should have done in the first place. Then I read them carefully - which took a lot longer than the original 10 minutes.
Reading something complex and unfamiliar on a PC screen doesn't work for me so for a few days I will be toting all those pages to bed. And no, I'm not murdering trees and wasting paper. When I've finished reading - and rereading - I will 'recycle ' the same pages through my printer, the next time I need to study something in depth.
Once I have absorbed the basics the creation of the trial eBook will proceed as the author of the software program intended. What a pity I continue to do everything the hard way.
Naturally I have several under-utilised programs on my PC, never having taken the trouble to investigate them properly. Every now and again I discover, usually by mistake, some brilliant shortcut I could have been using for months. Only yesterday I found I had a program which instantly converted a document to HTML. I won't tell you about the contortions I became involved in, before that.
The moral of the story is don't attempt to run with a new program before you have a clue how to walk. This also applies to new hardware. I own a scanner which I am still attempting to operate in a hit and miss manner (I still haven't read all the instructions), and it took me a year to discover I could highlight text in a document and then print it. To think of all the paper, to say nothing of the expensive ink, I could have saved!
All I had to do was read the Print dialogue box, properly, and I would have noticed the Selection 'button' under Print Range.
I don't know why I'm choosing this moment to reveal more stupidities but here's another paper and time saving method which took me ages to cotton on to.
When you only want to save bits and pieces of a lengthy document, open a text editor (such as Wordpad which comes with Windows). Resize the two windows (by holding the cursor over the edges of each window and moving it in the direction you want when it changes to a two-headed arrow) When the two windows are arranged side by side, highlight the text you wish to keep. Place the cursor on this highlighted text, left click and hold down, then drag the highlighted text into the other window. When you have assembled all the text 'fragments' you want, save, print, or do whatever you like with them.
I'm always thrilled when I unearth these little tricks - even if it is a bit late in the day.
Copyright 2001 Sheldene Chant
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How NOT To Go About New Programs
