1. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 1 Section 3 Computing with Confidence Prepared by: Mr. Zakaria Al-Rababa ’ h zakaria@aou.org.bhzakaria@aou.org.bh Mr. Ammar Al-Qaragholi aalqaragholi@aou.org.bhaalqaragholi@aou.org.bh Mr. Ahmad Kananah kananah@aou.org.bhkananah@aou.org.bh MR. Mahmoud Mustafa mmustafa@aou.org.bhmmustafa@aou.org.bh

2. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 2 Introduction 1) In this Section:  You will meet a range of new software packages  You will learn the skills necessary to be a confident computer user. 2) What is confident computing?  knowing how to cope when things go wrong  knowing how to learn on your own.

3. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 3 Coping Strategies  Save your work often, every few minutes.  Back up all important work regularly.  There is usually more than one way of getting what you want done. If one way doesn't work, look for another.  Most software has built-in sources of help, use it when necessary.  Especially, with computing, it is important to have a support network.

4. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 4 Learning to learn  Don't be afraid to try things out and explore. You aren't going to do any harm by making mistakes.  Look for patterns. Find the differences and similarities between the ways in which things are done in different software, so you can begin to guess what to expect.  Use your support network. You will learn a lot by helping other people in addition to getting your own problems solved by them.

5. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 5 Software  more about word processors  an introduction to graphics software for drawing and painting  the basic features of spreadsheets  a brief look at databases,  and finally a look at 'integrated documents' in which you combine parts of several of these in a single document.

6. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 6 By the end of Section 3  You have increased the range of software you can use.  You feel much more confident as a computer user.

7. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 7 Basic steps in learning new software Get some general sense of what it is supposed to do by reading the introduction to its manual. Systematically explore its toolbars. Give examples (like commands for bold, italic & etc..) Systematically explore its menus. Give examples (like commands on a file menu, edit menu & etc..) Look for menu items called preferences or options. Create a new document, or whatever. Then change it around and look to the different formats in which it can be saved. Have a brief look at the built-in help files

8. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 8 Developing a suitably cynical attitude towards computers  The technology of personal computers has been changing so fast that it never has a chance to become mature  The problem is caused by the complexity of computers and software  The reliability problem is linked to the super-competitive nature of the computer and software industries  Older versions cannot read files created by new versions because they cannot interpret the new features  More complex software takes up more memory, more space on your hard disk, and needs a faster processor to work at an acceptable speed.

9. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 9 What to do about this  Act defensively: Get in the habit of saving your documents all the time.  Look for work-arounds: You will often find that there is more than one way of doing something. sometimes you cannot open a document by double clicking on its icon.  Shut down the application program then restart it.  Restarting your PC: If your computer crashes restart it by pressing the three keys Control-Alt-Delete all at once.  Reinstalling software: If you find that one program consistently gives you trouble, it might mean that part of it has become corrupted. You can try uninstalling it, and then reinstalling it.

10. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 10 Develop a healthy curiosity about your computer

11. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 11 What is a word processor?  The most commonly used computer software today  They have revolutionized writing and publishing  Modern word processors also treat text as a string of codes  You cannot see the codes a word processor uses, most word processors have a command or other setting which allows you to 'show hidden text'. They often use a button with the symbol  word processors have become too complex.

12. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 12 How to Cope Problems  Different word processors can't read each others' documents without first converting the codes.  The same problem occurs between versions of the same word processor.  People are often forced to buy later versions of software not because they want all the features, but because they want to be able to open the files of people they work with (for example, in another company) which use the later version.  There is a standard format, which most word processors can read, called 'Rich Text Format', rtf, or 'Interchange Format'.  There is another standard format, which is useful if nothing else works. That is 'text' or txt format.

13. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 13 Finally Do Exercise 8 : Computer Tools for Word

14. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 14 Graphics Software  From the earliest days creating pictures meant learning how to program.  With the coming of the first Apple Macintosh computer and with it the popularization of the mouse, it became easier for the average user to create pictures.  Now even some word processors include tools for creating simple line drawings.  The most sophisticated graphics packages are the everyday tools of professional designers.  You are almost certain to have some graphics software on your PC.

15. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 15 Types of graphics software 1) Paint program, such as Windows Paint.  The image is made up of lots of tiny colored dots, like the image on a television screen.  called 'bitmaps', and often have file names which end in '.bmp'  Bitmap images are stored as descriptions of the color and brightness of each dot  A large picture will have a large number of dots, and will be a large file  Pictures produced by digital cameras, or by scanning photographs, are paint images, or bitmaps.  Two of the standard formats for storing compressed bitmaps are called 'jpeg' and 'gif' and are commonly used for images on the World Wide Web.

16. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 16 2) 'drawing' program, such as FreeHand, Illustrator or Corel Draw  Drawing images are made up of lots of different 'objects', where each object is a line, rectangle, or other shape.  These objects require much less storage than bitmaps.  You can freely change in the drawing. Types of graphics software

17. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 17 3) page layout programs, such as Quark Express or Pagemaker.  combining the features of a word processor with a drawing program  They are used to produce books, magazines or advertisements. 4) Image-manipulation programs, such as Photoshop.  These are used not so much for creating paint images, but for modifying them in sophisticated ways.  They are used for retouching images, stretching or distorting parts of them, changing areas of colour, etc. Types of graphics software

18. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 18 Finally Do Exercises Exercise 9: Drawing a face

19. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 19 Finally Do Exercises Exercise 10: Draw a group of faces Finally Do Exercises

20. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 20 Finally Do Exercises Exercise 11: Adding Captions Finally Do Exercises

21. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 21 Working with numbers and graphs What is a spreadsheet?  A spreadsheet is a program which allows you to enter and manipulate data, including numbers, text, dates and formulas. It is arranged in a set of columns and rows.

22. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 22 Common features of a spreadsheet  Entering Data  Formatting data: for example 31/1/02, 31-Jan- 02, currency using £, $), time (13:30, 1.30 PM, etc.), and so on.  Selecting cells  Using Formulas: =(B2+C2+D2)/3  Using Functions: Sum, Average, Max, Min,...  Using Charts

23. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 23 Finally Do Exercises  Exercise 13: Study times and TV times

24. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 24 Finally Do Exercises  Exercise 14: Adding Averages and Totals Finally Do Exercises

25. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 25 Finally Do Exercises  Exercise 15: Creating a graph Finally Do Exercises

26. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 26 Sorting and finding information - Database What is a Database?  A database is a collection of records about a particular area.  The power of a computer database lies in the amount you can store, and the ways you can access the data  A large organization may have databases for staff records, stock, customer accounts, sales …  Databases are in use in all large organizations, and there is probably a surprising amount of information about you held in databases in various places  Many people who only use a computer for personal use do not use databases, because they have less information to store and handle than a large company.

27. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 27 Features of databases  Fields: Characters, Numbers, Symbols  Records: Group of fields.  Tables: Group of records.  Files: Group of: 1. Tables 2. Forms 3. Reports

28. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 28 Finally Do Exercises  Exercise 17: TU170 Students Database Open the File TU170 Student Database

29. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 29 Finally Do Exercises Exercise 18: Creating your own Database  Create your own database about something which will be of continuing use to you, like a personal address book, list of books, CDs or tapes, membership list for some organization, or any collection of items of interest to, before you start the database program, is to decide what it is you want your database to show. For example, in an address book, you might have fields for:  name (or separate fields for first and last names),  address (or several fields, including street address, town, postcode, etc.),  one or more phone or fax numbers, e-mail address and/or website,  a place for notes or keywords. Finally Do Exercises

30. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 30 Books Database Data Types

31. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 31 Entering Data Table View

32. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 32 Entering Data Form View

33. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 33 Retrieving Data Report View

34. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 34 Creating an Integrated Documents  An 'integrated document' is one in which elements of different software types are mixed.  There are many ways of linking documents so that information in one is easily accessible to another.  Copy and Paste.  Drag and Drop.  Import a document.  Link a document.  Embed a document.  Using Hyperlinks.

35. Zakaria - Ammar - Kananah - Mahmoud Arab Open University - Baharin 35 The End