basics

The tools of your trade

Like a carpenter you have tools that you use to get your job done, a carpenter has a hammer and office workers have a pen or maybe a computer. If you spend the majority of your time working on a computer, the computer becomes your “tool of the trade”, thus it becomes quite important to know how to use the tools of your trade just like the carpenter needs to know how to properly use a saw or hammer.

In today's working environment it has become critical that employees continually hone their computer skills in order to remain a valuable employee.

As technology advances rapidly many folks find themselves learning how to use new things. In many cases we find these new things can really save us time or money. Think about how long it would take you to do everything in your job without a computer. The number of computer files you handle each day alone would keep you busy running back and forth to the file cabinet. Having near instant communication and information exchange has allow us to do more things faster and more efficiently, but with that it requires we learn how to use these things properly. Lets face it, change is here to stay, get over it! As Americans we pride ourselves over the ability to overcome obstacles, in an order to be worldly competitive in what we do. We must confront change and accept the fact we will always be learning new things. With this we must rely on ourselves to learn these new things and learn how to apply them in our everyday lives. If you wish to become a highly valued employee, you know that you need to stay on top of things in order to do your job. Would you hire a carpenter that had all new tools, but didn't know what to do with them?

One of the biggest issues concerning computer usage in offices today is the ability of common workers not having basic computer skills. They may be able to use portions of complex programs or applications, but their basic skills like what an icon is or how & where to save files is lacking. A computer can be a wonderful and powerful tool in the hands of an experienced user. It can reduce your workload many times over if you know how to use it. Computers are great tools when it comes to repetitive tasks, things you do several times a day for example. With a click of the mouse you have near instant information, the ability to print it out on paper or more. Learning how to properly use the computer and programs can save you up to 80% of your time doing your job.

Unfortunately when folks fail to keep up with technology they fall behind and their value as a worker drops, sometimes to where they become least useful in the workplace. When this happens your employer begins to examine your productivity and usefulness against profits. In a nut shell, when you can't keep up with changes in technology you can't do your job very effectively

Yes you can teach an old dog new tricks! I have seen this myself many times. All over in life we are confronted with having to learn something new. From learning how to use an ATM to learning how to program our VCRs or cable boxes. Once you learn the basics it seems like we operate them without thinking, it becomes automatic. The same is true with computers, once you learn the basics you just go into autopilot.

Currently there is a tremendous lack of office/computer skill training available, so the best way to stay on top of things would be to find the time and equipment you need to improve your skills and just do it.

Basically folks computers are not new, they have been around for a while now. 20 years ago you could buy an IBM PC and use it in your business or home. Sure the technology has advanced and the stuff you can do with computers has become more sophisticated in 20 years, but it's quite difficult to refer to computers as something new today. Children today are coming out of public and private schools with the basic computer knowledge that will allow them to go through life with the ability to do a better job.

Some things that common office workers should know about the computer;

Critical information you need to know

1. The components that make up the computer system
    a. The computer box
    b. The keyboard & mouse
    c. The monitor
    d. The operating system & version (ie. Windows98, Windows2000, WindowsXP, Linux)

2. Computers have intelligence.
    a. Computers make decisions based on conditions.
    b. Computers will sometimes tell you it can't do something.
    c. Computers don't behave exactly the same way all the time.

3. And most of all, computers always do things for a reason.
    a. User error
    b. Software failure.
    c. Hardware failure
    d. Or they work correctly

Computers 101

1. It’s a machine! They can fail like any other machine.
2. How to properly turn on and off a computer
3. How to log onto a computer or network (user name & password)
4. How to see what is on the computer (My Computer icon)
5. What the different drives are and what to do with them
6. How to start and end programs or applications
7. How to print from any program
8. How to open and save files on your system
9. The difference between a single left click or a double left click on a mouse
10. How to use a single right click on the mouse and what it does
11. How to use a word processor (MS Word)
12. How to use a spread sheet (MS Excel)
13. What the “Desktop” is and how to use it
14. What the different status bars are and what they mean
15. How to find programs that don’t have desktop icons (Start menu)
16. And most of all how to use the help systems

Computers 201

1. Knowing what drives you have and if they are local or network drives
2. The use of “My Documents” and network drives for saving files
3. How to use the internet & email
4. How to use a filing system for data (like using a file cabinet)
5. The different types of CD disks and how to use them
6. How to backup your system
7. How to install or remove programs
8. What to do when a problem occurs and describing it accurately
9. How to care for floppy disks and CD disks
10. How to adjust windows size or shape (minimize or maximize)
11. How to turn on or off screen savers
12. How to kill a program that is not responding (Ctrl, Alt Delete)
13. The difference between tool bars and button bars

Computers 301

1. How to connect and disconnect a network drive (Network Neighborhood)
2. How to do regular maintenance on your system (Scan disk & Defrag)
3. How to “burn” a CD and read it afterwards
4. How to adjust your monitor viewing for size & shape
5. How to copy & paste or move data
6. How to use an Anti virus program

These are just a few of the basic functions that common office workers should know how to do, and are no longer considered technical.

Everyday that goes by not knowing the basics, makes it much more difficult to learn the new things coming out tomorrow.

And the juggernaut of technology rolls on.

RETURN