Copywriter, technical writer, translator (FR>EN, ES>EN, IT>EN), journalist

TechnoZen

Simplifying a word processing document

Have you ever set the format in one part of a long document only to find it messed up when you went back to it? The gremlin you’re hunting may be the flipside of a feature known as styles.

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The Digital SHIFT: A New Age of Freelancing

Like the rest of us, freelancers wonder how they’re supposed to navigate this new electronic media world of ours. PWAC Toronto will host a panel at the University of Toronto downtown campus (a few minutes’ walk from the Queen’s Park subway station) to discuss thriving in a

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Applying a word processing style

Styles are neat things. They let you minimize the amount of time you spend fiddling with the formatting in documents. This rarely matters if you only write two- or three-page memos, but try making a 185-page book look consistent – all fonts, headings, margins, graphical elements and

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Editing a Google Form

Normally, I answer other people’s questions here, but since this is the second time I’ve forgotten (and then found) the method to do this, I figure I need to write this one down. 😉 Google Forms can be a journalist’s best friend. I’m going to use one

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Differences between Windows and Macs

Have you jumped to the Mac? Feel like you’re floundering? You aren’t alone. The interface – the minimize buttons, the keyboard, even file icons – seems to confuse people for the first week or two after they abandon a years-long relationship with Microsoft Windows. Apple answers common

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Posting video on your website or blog

Toronto freelance writer Sharon Crawford asked about putting video on a website or blog. You can embed videos posted elsewhere on the Internet (or that you have uploaded to your own web space) on any page in your website or blog. You just need to know the

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Speeding up a slow computer

Computers can slow down as they “age” but following two simple pieces of advice can keep them relatively spry and useful for years to come. And if you’re handy with a screwdriver, you can do some of these things on your own.

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First steps: troubleshooting Internet connection problems

People sometimes lose their home Internet connections. If this ever happens to you, there’s a chance that you might fix the problem in five minutes or less. The next time your connection fails, try the following steps. Keep going through the list until one provides results: Check

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Seven steps to handling group work online

Ah, group work. You need to keep dates straight, understand who does what, work on only the latest files, and you do all this with phone calls and email – big piles of email. Or not.

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Handy Windows shortcuts

Sometimes an article pops up online that fits perfectly in this blog. Marc Saltzman wrote one on Windows shortcuts that every Windows computer owner needs to read. Here are a few gems: 1. Windows Key (by itself) This launches your Start menu, instead of having to click

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