
Windows 3.1 Tips #11



*1. WHAT, ME? WARRIOR PRINCESS?          
          
July 13th, 1999          
          
If you enjoy television's Hercules and Xena so much that you're ready to
 spend time in their fantasy world, you might get a kick out of an
 interactive online adventure game called Hercules and Xena: Alliance of
 Heroes. On the game, you create and roleplay a character, exploring the
 terrain, fighting evil creatures, and gaining experience and rank as
 you go--not to mention picking up treasure and magical knick-knacks
 along the way. 

It's easy enough to get the hang of the game, especially if you've already
 chatted online or played on a MUD. Real people are available to help you
 get started, and you're bound to make friends as you go. The game will
 run under Windows 3.1 as long as you're also using Netscape Navigator
 Version 3.04 or later or Microsoft Internet Explorer Version 3.02 or
 later. To try out the game, you can sign up for a 30-day trial (though
 they will want a credit card number before you begin).
 For more information, visit 

http://www.play.net/simunet_public/hx/hxhome.asp


*2. PUT A TRAIL ON YOUR MOUSE          
          
July 14th, 1999          
          
Can't keep your eye on that mouse pointer? If you want to know just where
 your mouse is at all times, trail it. The Mouse Trails option makes
 seeing exactly where your pointer is easy, because whenever you move
 the mouse, lots of little shadow pointers follow along. To set this
 option, do the following: 

1. In Program Manager's Main group, double-click Control Panel and then
 double-click Mouse. 2. In the resulting dialog box, select Mouse Trails.
 (To test this new effect, move the pointer around inside the Mouse
 dialog box.) 
3. Click OK. 

Happy trails!


*3. COLOR YOUR WORLD          
          
July 16th, 1999          
          
In our last tip, we showed you how to select a new color scheme.
 (In Program Manager's Main group, double-click Control Panel, double-click
 Color, select a scheme under Color Schemes, and click OK.) What's that?
 You say you can't find a color scheme to match your ideal desktop look?
 If Rose, Lilac, Pumpkin, and the various other fruit, vegetable,
 and flower-based schemes don't do it for you, just modify an
 existing scheme: 

1. Select the scheme that most closely matches what you want and then click
 the Color Palette button. The dialog box expands to the right to reveal
 a list of screen elements and a palette of colors. 
2. One at a time, select an element, click a color, and watch the preview
 on the left to see whether you like the effect. 
3. When you're satisfied with your selected color for any particular item,
 select another element and choose a color. 
4. Repeat these steps until you create the perfect look. 
5. When you're finished customizing, click Save Scheme. 
6. In the dialog box that appears, type a name for the scheme and click OK.
 From now on, you can select this scheme by name from the Color Scheme list. 
7. Click OK again. 

The new color scheme takes over your desktop. (Note: If you don't save the
 color scheme, it still goes into effect when you click OK; you just
 can't select the scheme by name in the future.)


*4. APPEARANCE COUNTS          
          
July 15th, 1999          
          
The default Windows color scheme will do in a pinch, but wouldn't you
 rather look at more interesting colors all day? You can, if you change
 your color scheme: 

1. In Program Manager's Main group, double-click Control Panel and then
 double-click Color. 
2. Click the down arrow under Color Schemes and pick a scheme, any scheme,
 to see what it looks like in the preview. 
3. When you find a color scheme you like, click OK. 

-From now on--or until you change it again--your screen appears in the
 color scheme you chose.


*5. UPS AND DOWNS          
          
July 19th, 1999          
          
If you're in File Manager and want to move up to the parent of the
 directory you're in, here's a mouse-free way to get there: 

Press the left arrow or the Backspace key on your keyboard. Up you go. 

As you would expect, the right arrow takes you down the tree to the first
 directory within the selected directory.


*6. FLOPPY COPIES          
          
July 20th, 1999          
          
Need to copy a whole disk? If so, all you need is the original disk,
 a formatted blank disk, and File Manager: 

1. In Program Manager's Main group, double-click File Manager. 
2. Choose Disk + Copy Disk and then click Yes to confirm that you want
 to proceed. 
3. Insert the disk you want to copy and click OK. You have to wait while
 Windows copies that disk's information to a temporary storage area. 
4. When Windows prompts you, insert the blank destination disk (actually,
 the disk can have data on it; the copying process just erases it all)
 and click OK. Again, you have to wait as Windows copies the information
 from the first disk onto the second. 

Aw . . . twins.


*7. WORK YOUR APPS          
          
July 21st, 1999          
          
In Windows, it's almost impossible not to multitask (that is, keep several
 applications and windows open at the same time). So what could be more
 important than getting quickly from one open task to the next? Not much,
 at least as far as multitasking goes. 

When you want to switch to another window, give your keyboard the ol'
 left-handed one-two: press Alt + Tab. 

Doing so brings up a box with the next open application or window. Holding
 down Alt while you continue to press Tab lets you rotate through all open
 items. When you get to the one you want, let go. Windows hops to
 that window.


*8. AUTO-START YOUR APPS          
          
July 22nd, 1999          
          
Is there a program you want to load automatically whenever you start
 Windows? If so, place a copy of that application's icon inside Program
 Manager's Startup group: 

1. In Program Manager, highlight the icon of the program you want to open
 automatically and select File + Copy (or press F8 on your keyboard). 
2. In the Copy Program Item dialog box, click the down arrow under To Group,
 select Startup, and click OK. 
3. To confirm, double-click the Startup group to open its window.
 There's that icon. 
4. Repeat these steps for any other programs you want to load automatically. 

Ready for a test spin? Exit Windows; then restart it and watch as your
 programs get loaded all by themselves!


*9. F5--VERY REFRESHING          
          
July 23rd, 1999          
          
If you're viewing the contents of a floppy disk inside File Manager and
 then place a new disk in your floppy drive, you can quickly refocus
 File Manager on the new disk's contents. Just press F5 on your keyboard
 to refresh the current view.


*10. CUSTOM DESKTOP DESIGNS--PART 1 OF 2          
          
July 26th, 1999          
          
Tired of a plain, solid-colored desktop? Then spiff things up a little by
 using one of the ready-made wallpapers available in Windows 3.x: 

1. Inside Program Manager, open the Main group and double-click
 Control Panel. 
2. Double-click Desktop. You see some options under Wallpaper. 
3. Select the wallpaper you want to use, click Tile (otherwise,
 the wallpaper design appears as one little square in the center of
 your desktop), and click OK. 

Look, ma, no seams! In our next tip, we show you how to create your
 own wallpaper.
