ABC ~ All 'Bout Computers
The Online Web-azine for Computer Enthusiasts
-- brought to you by

contents page for this issue

Tip To Use Favicons in Conjunction with Your Site Statistics

If any of you have websites with hosts which allow you to view the stats of your site to see how many visitors you get per page, etc., I wanted to share a helpful tip with you.  I use a favicon on my site so people will see a special icon in their list of Favorites if they bookmark my site. (If you don't know how to use a favicon, I explain that on my FrontPage page, here:  http://personal-computer-tutor.com/frontpage.htm - scroll down til you see the section on "Making your site STANDOUT" - and Vic Ferri expounds on this so you can use different icons on different pages, here: http://personal-computer-tutor.com/abc2/v12/vic12.htm#web ) 

So, this is nice cuz it makes your site name more obvious in someone's list of Favorites. However, there's also a way you can use this to learn how many visitors come to your site from their Favorites and also, how many people add your site to their Favorites ...  IF YOUR HOST SUPPLIES YOU WITH THIS INFORMATION.  (If not, I recommend you find a host that does.)

My host is Hostway and they use Urchin stats, which give me LOTS of info.  One of the things I can check is which files were accessed.  It also lets me check which file was accessed on entry and which file was accessed on exit.  So, by having a favicon file, I can see the number of visitors who entered my site via the favicon file (this means they clicked my site name in their favorites list in IE) and I can see how many exited my site via the favicon file (which means they added me to their Favorites before they left). I can also see the total number of times my favicon was accessed in any way.  So, let's say favicon was accessed 475 times yesterday and it was accessed on entry 100 times and accessed on exit 150 times.  That tells me that 100 visitors returned to my site by clicking on the link in their Favorites list and 150 visitors added my site to their Favorites when they left, and the balance of 225 hits to my favicon tells me that others added one or more of my pages to their Favorites and continued to browse my site by visiting other pages before they left.

So, adding a favicon to your site is more than just a way to put a special icon in people's Favorites menus.  It also gives you some information about how many people are using it.  And, if you use Vic's method of assigning different icons to different pages, you can actually see which page they added to their Favorites. 

favicons are not supported by all browsers and we know that clearing the Temporary Internet Files removes the favicon, but it's still a way to get some idea, percentage wise, of how popular your pages are and how often people return to them.   So, you might want to explore the possibilities.

Results of Last Month's Survey on the ABC Format YOU Prefer:

Well, now I guess I have some documentation to back up my belief that the current format suits *most* of your needs.  Last month I asked you to fill out a survey to let me know what you want (see the survey here).  ABC now has over 5000 subscribers, but I only received votes from 272 people (though I'm told that's a good percentage).  I'm assuming those that did not vote either don't really care about the format or don't read ABC when they get it anyway.  I assume anyone who had strong opinions about the format took the time to vote.  And here's what you said:

214 said "I like ABC just the way it is. Do not change a thing. I want to continue receiving the FULL newsletter in plain text email, and choose which articles I prefer to read in the online version."

29 said "I want to receive a once-a-month html email Table of Contents only, that will include ads and links to the online articles."

4 said "I want to receive a once-a-month plain text email Table of Contents only, that will include links to the online articles. Along with this, I agree to receive one plain text email per week which will be a compilation of the ads that I'm used to seeing in the email version of ABC."

23 said "I want to receive a once-a-month plain text email Table of Contents only, that will include links to the online articles. The online version will contain the ads."

2 said "I don't want to receive any ads and would prefer to pay for an email Table of Contents that includes no advertising, with links to the online articles."

Thanks to all of you who took the time to complete the short survey.  And, as I promised, I will stick with what the majority wants, so ABC stays just the way it is ... for now, anyway.

Some More Computer Humor from Frankie Boy

Subscriber "Frankie Boy from the frigid Northeast" won the Custom Keyboard in our contest last month and here's his report on how he likes it:

Dear Linda,

Here is the report you asked me to write upon receipt of my new keyboard. Once again my thanks to you for making all this possible.

I was the 1st place winner in Linda's computer contest, and was awarded a Zboard (custom keyboard ) starter system from Ideazon located in Toronto, Canada. I have been using this keyboard for over a week now and I am really impressed with this system. There are two parts to the keyboard; a base and on top the keyboard itself, and by lifting a latch the keyboard lifts up, folds up like an accordion and then can be set aside. Now the base is ready to accept the many different keysets sold by Ideazon.  A lot of engineering went into devising this system to make it as easy to use as possible. I would strongly suggest anyone in the market for a new keyboard to go to their web site and read about this new innovation.

"Frankie Boy from the frigid Northeast"

And, to show you just how much Frankie Boy deserved this prize for finding good Computer Humor, here's another one he sent me recently:

Instructions for Microsoft TV Dinner Product

You must first remove the plastic cover. By doing so you agree to accept and honor Microsoft rights to all TV dinners. You may not give anyone else a bite of your dinner (which would constitute an infringement of Microsoft's rights). You may, however, let others smell and look at your dinner and are encouraged to tell them how good it is.

If you have a PC microwave oven, insert the dinner into the oven. Set the oven using these keystrokes: mstv.dinn.//08.5min@50%heat Then enter: ms//start.cook_dindin/yummy\|/yum~yum:-)gohot#cookme.

If you have a Macintosh microwave oven, insert the dinner and press start. The oven will set itself and cook the dinner.

If you have a Unix microwave oven, insert the dinner, enter the ingredients of the dinner found on the package label, the weight of the dinner, and the desired level of cooking and press start. The oven will calculate the time and heat and cook the dinner exactly to your specification.

Be forewarned that Microsoft dinners may crash, in which case your oven must be restarted. This is a simple procedure. Remove the dinner from the oven and enter: ms.nodamn.good/tryagain\again/again.crap

This process may have to be repeated. Try unplugging the microwave and then doing a cold reboot. If this doesn't work, contact your oven vendor. The oven itself is obviously on the blink.

Many users have reported that the dinner tray is far too big, larger than the dinner itself, having many useless compartments, most of which are empty. These are for future menu items. If the tray is too large to fit in your oven, you will need to upgrade your equipment.

Dinners are only available from registered outlets, and only the chicken variety is currently produced. If you want another variety, call Microsoft Help and they will explain that you really don't want another variety. Microsoft Chicken is all you really need.

Microsoft has disclosed plans to discontinue all smaller versions of their chicken dinners. Future releases will only be in the larger family size. Excess chicken may be stored for future use, but must be saved only in Microsoft approved packaging.

Microsoft promises a dessert with every dinner under their new operating system. However, that version has yet to be released. Users have permission to get thrilled in advance.

Microsoft dinners may be incompatible with other dinners in the freezer, causing your freezer to self-defrost. This is a feature, not a bug. Your freezer probably should have been defrosted anyway.

Messy, Messy, Messy!

Thanks, Frankie Boy, for helping to keep ABC Fun, Fun, Fun!  And I hope you continue to enjoy that new keyboard.  I just bought my FOURTH keyset, so I'm a total Ideazon junkie here. LOL

Special Promo Offer for NeatNetTricks Subscribers

My buddy Jack Teems who publishes NetNetTricks to over 100,000 subscribers invited me to promote my latest versions of my Microsoft Word ebooks in his great newsletter.  I've recently updated most of my ebooks to include instructions for the latest versions of Microsoft Office and now, if you subscribe to Jack's newsletter for free, you can get them for half price!  Read the details of what they include here, then click on the link to go to Jack's website and subscribe NOW...This offer will only be available for a limited time and it's ONLY available to NeatNetTricks subscribers, so don't miss it.

Corrupt Office Documents?

Recently I've acquired some new software that is supposed to repair corrupted Access, Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and Outlook files. Anybody have any corrupt documents laying around that they need repaired? Obviously, they can't be too huge cuz you will have to email them to me, but if anyone has any corrupt files, we can see if this puppy works.  Just send them to linda@personal-computer-tutor.com  and keep your fingies crossed.

Another Great Offer for ABC Readers from FrontLook:

FrontLook is offering an exclusive for ABC Readers!  Buy Two FrontLook Products and Get One FREE!

Have you been thinking about buying more FrontLook products to enhance your FrontPage web site? Well now is the time!  During the month of March, see How You Can Save at least $19 or $29, $39, $59 or even $99! Follow the link below and then place three items in your shopping cart. Now go to the checkout page. If you are logged in, then you will note a discount equal to the least expensive product in the cart.
 
Save At Least $19 when you purchase 2 Products: This is an exclusive offer for ABC patrons, so you won't find this offer on the FrontLook.com web site. Click below to buy your favorite FrontLook products:
http://www.frontlook.com/?promoid=PB2G1F03AFF&ref=abc

From FrontLook:

*Sale good until March 31st 2004. This is a one time discount. Discount is automatically applied to transaction on the Checkout page. Note: you must put at least three products in the cart to receive the discount on least expensive product.

This one came to me from Larry B. in the FPList group :

<<<back to contents

Linda Johnson is a college instructor of all of the Microsoft Office Programs, as well as Adobe PhotoShop and Windows. She also teaches online distance learning classes in Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, Publisher, and Word at Eclectic Academy. She has worked helpdesk and teaches and lectures at many local businesses and tech schools in her area. Support this newsletter by checking out Linda's eBooks, MS Word MAGIC!, Book I: Fonts, Fun & Formats and Book II: Table Wizardry, How To Get Started As a Software Trainer, and her newest series of MSOffice eBook Tutorials and CD