Goulburn Valley U3A
Communicating With Technology
Communicating with Technology
Originally titled Communicating with Computers, this course has been renamed as we are having to deal with mobile phones, iPads, other tablets and watches as we face an increasingly technological world.
Technology classes are run weekly. There is no set course. Small class sizes allow us to cover whatever each individual requires. Activities we have covered have been Microsoft Word and Excel, Ebay, PayPal, Email, surfing the Web, organising and editing photos, Facebook, creating photobooks, creating and sorting files and folders or just generally coming to grips with a computer amongst many other things.
Using phones and tablets/iPads has us looking at how to make effective use of the Apps (applications) that can help us sort out our busy schedules as well as enjoy a variety of fun activities.
Zoom
With a number of classes now being run via Zoom sessions, here is a link to the Zoom download page.
There are a number of resources, including video how-tos on the Zoom website that can be accessed here.
Be Connected
Be Connected is an Australian government initiative committed to building the confidence, digital skills and online safety of older Australians. Whether you want to pick up new skills or dive into a new topic, you can access our free learning resources online or join one of the thousands of community organisations running free computer classes across Australia.
- Especially useful in helping to avoid scamming.
FaceTime
For those people who own an Apple iphone, ipad, laptop or desktop, FaceTime is already on your device.
It can be used to talk face-to-face with one other person, or up to 32 others at the same time.
To find out how to use FaceTime, click here
To see how to set up a group call, check out this site
Cyber Security
This Government site deals more specifically with making yourself more secure when dealing with online matters and is well worth a visit to look through their tutorial guides.
So you want to buy a computer.
Click here for a list of things to consider.
Getting started with Photobooks
The classes will be using a program downloaded from:
Photobooks Express
Click here for a help guide
Classes in how to use Facebook will be run during the year. A number of useful resources can be found on the page linked below.
Buying and Selling Online - eBay/Gumtree/PayPal
Classes on how to buy and sell on each of eBay, Gumtree and how to purchase online using PayPal will be run during the year. A number of useful resources can be found on the page linked below.
Microsoft Office Tutorials
Working with Microsoft Word.
Don't have Microsoft Office?
Try Apache Open Office
Open Office provides the same functions as Microsoft Office, but is free. To download, click on the Open Office link above. There is a small learning curve, but it is possible to open Microsoft documents and to save your own documents so that those with Microsoft Office can open them.
Open Office provides the same suite as the paid programs - Writer (word processor - Microsoft Word), Calc (spreadsheet - Microsoft Excel), Impress (presentation - PowerPoint) and Draw (drawing/illustrations).
There is an excellent Support page here.
A number of GVU3A members are now using Open Office for writing, creating newsletters and keeping records.