How to be computer-savvy

Want to be computer savvy?  Here is the secret: forget about being computer savvy!  I know.  There is so much you don't know.  

There is so much I don't know either.  Lynn has a PhD in instructional technology and there is plenty she doesn't know.  There is plenty everyone doesn't know.  It's just different things for different people.  I admit that the help desk crew knows tons more than my great grandson but they don't know everything.

I find I am helped by keeping in mind that the computer is a machine but one with a great deal of complexity built into it.  It may help to do a little computer programming since that may give you a feel for how computer languages express routines that the computer goes through.  

Another aid is keeping in mind that what you want to do is quite possibly something your machine or favorite program is already capable of doing since you are probably not the first or only person with the aim you have in mind.

I always get a kick out of seeing someone who is sure they are the most ignorant human there is react to being told by a friend or relative that they seem so knowledgeable.  It happens rather often, in my estimation.  In fact, one of the signs that you may be moving toward being labeled the computer guru in your group or circle is the fact that you think about how much you really know or how you can learn more or how you can make your machine do something you want.

Any time something weird happens or something good won't happen, the first rule is to try what should happen again, quite consciously and with full awareness.  If the same undesired outcome occurs, one or two more conscious attempts are called for.  The machine is not organic, it's mechanical.  But, you find have hit a wrong key or failed to get a genuine mouse click.  The machine might not have been in the state of readiness you need and supposed.  

Another preliminary step is to shut down everything properly and turn the machine off.  That can be a pain if it means you will lose something that hasn't been saved and maybe you will think of a way that work you have just done can be saved.  One of the things I like about Gmail and Google Docs is that they save automatically and frequently.  That way, I am never far from having saved what I just did.  

If things are still amiss after a 20 second or more wait and re-start, describe what is going wrong to someone.  The effort of making the description may help you think of an angle that helps and the person listening might have an idea.  Just as modern cars often need the attention of a trained mechanic, so it is not uncommon to have to take the machine somewhere to get professional help.  Having a good relation with such help is always a good idea.

Bill
Main blog: Fear, Fun and Filoz
Main web site: Kirbyvariety