Options and Preferences

I had a brief epiphany today as I helped two of my customers. When I'm setting up a computer or troubleshooting one, I am constantly in an out of the Options or Preferences of many programs. Almost all programs, from Quicken to Word to image editing software and of course Internet and email software, contain a section that allows you to customize the experience. For example, in Internet Explorer, I always click Tools --> Options, then the Settings button to lower the amount of saved temporary files to 4 or 5 megabytes. Sometimes this setting is set as high as 3000 megabytes! That's a lot of temporary files.

Look for the Settings, Options, or Preferences section of a computer program in either the Edit or Tools menu for most programs. Some programs may hide these jewels in the File or View menu. It isn't consistent unfortunately, so don't be afraid to poke around and look for them. Once there, don't be afraid to poke around and change settings. If you are unsure of yourself, just make some notes of what the settings were BEFORE you change them so that you can always revert back if something goes awry. Also, don't make multiple changes at one time, unless you are completely sure of yourself.

Often times, you will find settings and options that make your life easier with a particular program by tweaking these settings. And since 90% of the settings are toggles either on or off, you can't get into to deep of trouble. 

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