If you get interrupted in the middle of composing an e-mail message, or if you want to finish writing a message later, you don't have to lose your work. You can instead save a draft of the message to complete later. Here's how to do it:

Netscape Communicator 4.51:

1. To save an e-mail message as a draft...
• In the composition window, open the File menu
• Click on Save.
• The message is saved in the Drafts folder in your local mail until you send it or delete it.
2. To retrieve a message draft to continue working on it...
• Re-open Netscape's e-mail application.
• Open the Drafts folder in the Messenger window/Local Mail.
  
  
  
  
• Double-click the message you want to finish and continue your composition.
3. To send a message draft...
• Click Send in the message composition window.

Pine:

1. To save an e-mail message as a draft...
• Press the Ctrl and o keys to postpone your message composition.
• Pine will confirm this by replying " [Writing postponed message...]".
• Pine saves your draft in the "postponed-msgs" folder until you send it or delete it.
2. To retrieve a message draft to continue working on it...
• Re-open Pine
• Press the c key
• Pine will ask, "Continue postponed composition (answering "No" won't erase it)?" Press the y key.
• Pine will either...
1. automagically open your postponed message,
2. or it will open the postponed-msgs folder. At a minimum there will be two items in this folder: a "Placeholder message created by PINE" item, and your postponed composition. Open your postponed composition by arrowing down to the item and pressing the s key or the Enter key.
• Continue work on your postponed message.
3. To send a postponed message...
• Press the Ctrl and x keys.

Have you visited a Web page that has so many blinking, moving, animated ads or images on it that it's too distracting to read? Don't despair -- no longer will you need to click the Back button to escape, or apply Post-it® notes to the screen!

In many cases simply clicking the browser's Stop button will cause the annoying movement to cease. If you'd like to give this a try, visit an example at Web Pages That Suck to see the control you can have over some Web pages.

However, the browser's Stop button doesn't have an effect on every flashing object. As illustrated by How to Create Really Cool Web Sites (satire) the Stop button doesn't have an effect on movement created by JavaScript, a Java applet, Macromedia Flash, etc. It does however stop motion in HTML "blink" tags and animated gif images.

One way to tell if the Stop button will be effective is to check the status of the button itself:

• After the page is finished loading, If the button is in color it means that it will probably work on the annoying stuff you want to bring to a halt.
• However, if after the page is finished loading the button is "grayed out", it won't help you in this instance.

Did you write a memo last year, forget what filename you gave it, and now need to look it up again? Or have you recently visited a Web site you want to return to, but you didn't bookmark it? Luckily Windows 95 and Windows NT allow you to locate any file on your computer or any Web site stored in your Netscape's cache.

You can search for a document based on a key word or text, the document's file name or portion of a file name, or even by date. Windows can find any incidence of a keyword in a cached web site, a word processing document, and can even search through your computer's recycle bin.

To begin the search,

1. Click the Windows Start button
2. Place your mouse pointer over Find
3. Click on Files or Folders
4. Fill in the blanks accordingly.

For additional information (like how to use wildcards if you don't know the exact name of a file you are seeking) take a look at Windweaver's Windows 95 Manual Finding Files: Basic Searching and Finding Files: Advanced Searching.

Take a look at Entrepreneurial Libraries: Bright Ideas for Today's Libraries sponsored by Multnomah County Library. The site says, "Entrepreneurial libraries is not an oxymoron. In the broadest sense, it includes a variety of enterprises that libraries can sell to serve patrons better and to generate additional revenue. Above all, it has to do with demonstrating to taxpayers that libraries can think out of the box. That libraries can be resourceful. That they can take a page or two from the private sector."

And if opening an espresso bar in your library isn't feasible right now, check out their "Bright Ideas from Near and Far" for lots more examples of projects you can try at your library.

You know you've been on the Internet too long when you've reached this page.

is Cheese Stollen.

This issue of The Ides was written on May 15, 2000
Copyright 2000, Winnefox Library System

The Ides is written by Joy Schwarz.
Please direct any questions, comments or recipes to schwarz@winnefox.org

URL: http://www.winnefox.org/ides/idesmay00.html