Ever tried to get a relative or a friend to explain the Internet to you and it's all gone a bit wrong? Don't you sometimes wish they could slow down a bit until you feel you've really got it? And what about all the jargon? Everyone else seems to understand it...
Well, of course, not everyone does. It takes time: time to make mistakes, to experiment, to refer to Help, to ask. And then you probably will find out as much as you need to know. But it's not going to be automatic. Like anything else it has to be learned...and practised.
So why not make it a bit easier? One of the best Online Courses for beginners I've come across is The BBC Webwise Course.
It is a simple step-by-step guide to using the Internet and Email. And even quite experienced users may find they learn something.
On the same site, there is also a Jargon Buster...do you know what a handshake is in computer-speak? What about netiquette? Or URL? And who the heck is BETSIE?
And if you'd like to go right back to the basics of how to use a computer there is also The BBC Computer Tutor to help you get started.
More later...
Hi there
As so many of our students are parents and grandparents, I thought it might be worth introducing you to an exciting website designed expecially for grandparents.
BeGrand recommend that you register and it certainly is worth it. Without just paraphrasing the website, the main advantage is that you can feel part of an online community who share your interests. You can also learn a great deal, not only about grandchildren but also about feeling confident with computers.
One area of the website that has plenty of potential is the Events section. At the moment, most of the events are in England. However, as there is about to be a Create Your Own Event facility, I'm sure that will change.
The website itself is clean and unfussy, making it easy to navigate. So, save it to your favourites and tell your friends about it.
More later....
Well, as those of you who have taken any of our courses will know, we close over July so that we can come back refreshed for our summer school in August.
This month we've been running a Young Photographers Course with the theme of the Beach....it's summer and we're just round the corner from the lovely Portobello Beach. Despite the fact that it's been raining quite a lot, we managed to start our assignment in fab sunshine with the tide way out...plenty to take pictures of. In fact, we walked all the way along to see the weird Big Things on the Beach installation. First time I've ever seen fruit machines in the sand....or Wild Swans as they were called.
Towards the end of the morning, the rain moved in, giving us some ominous cloud photo ops....so it was all pretty successful. Thanks to our students, we've had a great 3 days of snapping, editing, sharing and printing our photos.
What else?
We're feeling generous this month, so anyone keen to get kick-started on their computer classes this session should take advantage of our Summer Special...£10 off any 10-hour course. Offer ends on the last day of August so, you know where we are...just call us or pop round for a chat.
More later......
