• Intro
  
• Article - Referrals and Testimonials by Judy Vorfeld
  
• The Office Corner
  
• Grammar Question of the Month - Subject/Verb Agreement
  
• Tech Tips by Terence Kierans - Access, Publisher, and Email
  
• Tech Corner
  
• Writing Corner
  
• Word of the Month - Exponential
  
• Recommendations
  
• Judy's Corner
  

* If you're responsible for creating business card, letterhead, brochure, ads, etc. layout, you may already subscribe to Before & After Magazine. It is one of the finest Desktop Publishing tools available today. Now they've come out with something else: "Before & After is now available in PDF. And it's PDF with a difference! Online is comfortable, slide-show-style viewing; printed, it fits a lightweight binder. A subscription costs $18 per year, and costs nothing for print subscribers. http://www.bamagazine.com

Did you know that one of the best advertising mediums for most businesses is a satisfied customer? It's said that in one month a satisfied customer tells three people of a positive experience, but within one week an unhappy customer tells seven people of a bad experience. On the Internet, these numbers grow exponentially. (Big word, but it works!)

Are you wondering how to increase effective online press for your business? Here's one way: find non-intrusive, go-with-the-flow ways to get referrals and testimonials.

"Okay," you say, "but how do I go about approaching people? I'm a low-key kind of a person." Here's how: after you've finished assignments, why not mention to your clients that if they hear of anyone wanting the same type of professional help, you'd appreciate their telling others about your services. Ask if they'd like a few of your business cards to pass around when the time is right. Be generous with your business cards.

How about testimonials? Think not only of clients, but colleagues you've given free advice to. And what about community service? If you've done volunteer work and people have written to thank you, respond by asking if you can use their words on your website's testimonials page. Ask if they want you to edit their statement before you upload it. Most of mine want this option.

Not only can you use their testimonials on a special page of your website, you can place some of the comments--or excerpts from them--in special places around the website. Be sure to give a link back to their websites, if they have one. Go to these sites to see how testimonials are creatively woven into websites.

http://www.whatsnextonline.com/index.html
http://www.netprofitnow.com/
http://www.editingandwritingservices.com/

Note: If you need someone to edit a brief testimonial or two, contact me. I'll be happy to do it at no cost for my subscribers.

1. MICROSOFT OFFICE: 106 TIPS & TRICKS
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1566561,00.asp

2. HOME OFFICE TIPS:
www.small-business-consultants.net/home_office_computer/home_office_tips.htm

3. 7 GREAT OFFLINE MARKETING TIPS
http://www.btbroadbandoffice.com/businesstoday/0,,5638887,00.html

When I have two singular nouns connected by "and", don't they get a singular verb? Example: Bear and Shadow are Judy's cats.

No. In this case, Bear and Shadow become a unit of one. Amy Einsohn, in "The Copyeditor's Handbook," says that when a pair of singular nouns are joined by "and," a plural verb is required. There are two exceptions:

1. Appositive nouns joined by "and" are treated as similar. Example: Such an injustice and inequity is intolerable.

2. Nouns joined by "and" to form a collective idea or unitary whole are singular. Example: Bacon and eggs is his favorite breakfast.

ACCESS

LINKING EXCEL

You are probably aware that you can link to tables in other databases. However, did you know you could also link to an Excel spreadsheet? To do this the data in the spreadsheet must be organized in database format- with columns as fields.

Once you have link to an Excel spreadsheet, the changes you make to the data in Access will also be reflected in the actual Excel spreadsheet, so be extra careful if you use this feature. You will recognize a linked table or spreadsheet by the black arrow and the icon (in the Database window) that indicates the type of application for the original data.

To link an Excel spreadsheet:

• Select File / Get External Data / Link Tables.
• In the Link dialog box, browse to the relevant folder and be sure to update the Files Of Type control to Microsoft Excel (*.xls).
• Select the spreadsheet file to which you want to link, and then click the Link button. This will launch the Link Spreadsheet Wizard. From here just respond to the wizard's questions.

EMAIL

FREE EMAIL SERVICES

One method of combating the deluge of spam that invades our in boxes is to have multiple email addresses. Then when one mailbox gets inundated with junk mail just close it down. You can choose from an extensive database of free services in multiple countries at the Free Email Providers Guide http://www.fepg.net.

Bear in mind that it might require a bit of extra organisation to avoid confusing your legitimate correspondents. Plus, with "free" you get what you pay for.

PUBLISHER

CHANGE FONT SIZE

The usual way to change the size of text in Publisher is to highlight the text, then, in Publisher's Font Size box on the Formatting toolbar, choose or type the text size you want.

An easier option for relatively small incremental changes is as follows:

• To increase the font size by one point, press Ctrl+close bracket (]).
• To decrease the font size by one point, press Ctrl+open bracket ([).

Terence Kierans
Cyberspace Virtual Services
tkierans@virtualservices.com.au
http://www.virtualservices.com.au/
We keep your project on the boil, while you sleep

1. SAVE SPACE!
Every time you go into a folder which contains either pictures or movies, Windows creates a thumbnail image so you can get an idea of what the picture/movie content will be. The thumbnail cache helps speed up access to the thumbnails instead of having them load up every time you go into a folder, but each picture you have in a folder will take up around 2kb's, so imagine a folder with 200 photos and what size the cache could end up being. The file name is THUMBS.DB and you may sometimes see it if you are copying files from that folder.

The fact is though that these days having a thumbnail cache isn't that important, the thumbnails load up here in my machine in seconds without it. So here is how you remove the caching system for thumbnails:

1. Click on "CONTROL PANEL" from the Start Menu.
2. Click on "FOLDER OPTIONS" in the Control Panel.
3. Click the view tab
4. Finally - check the "DO NOT CACHE THUMBNAILS" box and then click APPLY.

Your Windows XP system will now no longer cache thumbnails. If you wish to go back to caching them, get back to the folder options menu and uncheck the box.

Submitted by Patricia L. Johnson, Application Training Specialist www.mhric.org

2. FILE CONVERSION SERVICES:
http://www.acii.com/

1. YOU SHOULD WRITE YOUR BOOK: If you have knowledge that can help someone improve their life; learn a craft, trade or hobby; solve a problem, find a solution; understand a product or process; or share an adventure or experience...you should write your book.
http://www.youshouldwriteyourbook.com/index.html

2. GOOGLE PRINT: Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. Google Print puts the content of books where you can find it most easily – right in Google search results. It's well worth investigating.
http://print.google.com/

3. GOOGLE LOCAL: As of March it's in beta testing, but it looks interesting. It's a good way to find local businesses in a hurry.
http://www.google.com/lochp?hl=en&tab=wl&q=

Main Entry:ex po nen tial
Pronunciation:*ek-sp*-*nen-ch*l
Function:adjective
Date:1704

1 : of or relating to an exponent
2 : involving a variable in an exponent *10x is an exponential expression*
3 : expressible or approximately expressible by an exponential function; especially : characterized by or being an extremely rapid increase (as in size or extent) *an exponential growth rate* –ex£po£nen£tial£ly \-*nench-(*-)l*\ adverb

*By permission. From Merriam-Webster's Collegiate(R) Dictionary at www.m-w.com by Merriam-Webster, Incorporated.

1. CYBER TELEPHONE MUSEUM: An Exhibit of Common & Rare Antique Telephones.
http://www.museumphones.com/

2. PROGNOSTICATE: Fun for people who love to work with words, and for newshounds as well. Pick a current news article from CNN or the BBC. The article appears as a slowly scrolling series of words. Every few sentences the scrolling text stops, and it's up to you to supply a key missing word.
http://www.prognosticate.com/

3. ABSURD MATH: An interactive mathematical problem-solving game series. The player proceeds on missions in a strange world where the ultimate power consists of mathematical skill and knowledge.
http://www.learningwave.com/abmath/

March provided many pleasant activities. My brother and I drove to Tucson to have a potluck/photo session with Martha Retallick and Will and Mari Bontrager. We enjoyed the visit so much that we got back to the Phoenix area a bit late.

Then the Bontragers stopped by for a Phoenix visit, and I got to learn about Will's upcoming software. It is awesome. Just like the other www.willmaster.com software I use. Will makes his software easy to use, and he's always accessible when problems arise.

Stay tuned. And if you don't already subscribe to the Bontragers' ezine, Willmaster Possibilities, go here: http://willmaster.com/possibilities/

I'm still being broken in by my miracle kitten, Shadow. He has a good deal of training ahead before he'll be satisfied with my behavior.

Have a wonderful month!

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Questions, comments, recommendations?
Contact Judy Vorfeld at judyvorfeld@ossweb.com

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