By Shirley M. Carolan
Whether you are a novice or a seasoned speaker, if you incorporate “WIFFM” into all of your presentations you will succeed in capturing your audience’s attention,loyalty and patronage. That’s a pretty strong statement but it works every time.
For starters, what is “WIIFM?” WIIFM is an acronym for “What’s In It For Me?” WIIFM is very simply having and keeping your audience’s interest and attention uppermost throughout your entire presentation. Any presentation you give must address what’s of importance or of interest to your audience.
How can you be sure this will work for you? Before you script any presentation take a moment and ask yourself the following questions:
• Why have they come to hear me speak?
• Is it because I am an expert in my field?
• What are their needs, wants, goals, objectives?
• What are their expectations?
• Do I have the requisite skills and knowledge?
Now ask yourself “what are MY objectives? What would I like them to take away today?
• An idea
• A valuable shortcut
• A new product, research, etc.
• A commitment to take action on something?
• A cosr effective business technique?
• A desire to learn more and become my client?
Once, you know your audience, what makes them tick, why they are here, and can answer the above questions truthfully, you are on your way to success! You will be able to demonstrate your integrity and credibility, combined with your business expertise! This is also known as a win-win situation.
You may be the novice speaker or new Toastmaster reading this and saying “Yes, but ... what does this have to do with giving manual speeches? Good question! Everything! Once you know your audience’s expectations you will know how to fill them and leave them clamoring for more!
Start now to think about your audience first, their expectations and then craft your presentation around their interests. It’s a matter of WIIFM!
Most folks fail to do this because they are too busy “telling” the audience something vs. "showing” them. Why doesn’t this work? When you “tell” the audience something you run the risk of being boring, preachy, self-absorbed, uncaring, and/or totally inept. (Incidentally, I’ve written about this topic previously entitled “Show ...Don’t Tell! Please check out my blogsite http://smcarolan.blogspot.com to see the entire article)
You also run the risk of rambling because your presentation is not organized into meaningful parts, i.e., an opening, a body, and a conclusion! There are no transitions between the parts, nothing in it for the audience, and nothing to keep their attention focused on what you are saying. Consequently, folks will tune out on you. Later on, they may even misquote you because they take things out of context because they didn’t fully pay attention to what you said! Good organization, therefore, is tantamount to giving your audience what it needs and deserves!
Paying attention to and incorporating these few tips into your next presentation will pay you dividends! It will catapult you from being a mediocre speaker, give you more credibility in your chosen field, name recognition, and a desire by others to do business with you!
Voila, you have killed two birds with one stone and are on your way to speaking success and/or increased business!
If you would like more information on how to structure a presentation making good use of WIIFM, please email me your request and I will be happy to send you my free article “How To Use What’s In It For Me (WIIFM) Effectively!” My email address is: artistwithaflair@att.net.
Shirley M. Carolan
artistwithaflair@att.net
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0332
www.shirleycarolan.com
http://smcarolan.blogspot.com
http://angelscross.blogspot.com
Copyright 2007 by Shirley Carolan. All rights reserved. To reprint any part of this article simply contact Shirley Carolan at artistwithaflair@att.net.
Saturday, June 23, 2007
Thursday, May 31, 2007
“OCEANSIDE 15th ANNUAL DAYS OF ART”
By Shirley M. Carolan
This year marked the 15th Annual Art Show in Oceanside in April. It followed on the heels of Mira Costa College Theater’s wonderful production of “Lend Me A Tenor!“ which I wrote about earlier. What a great weekend of cultural activities in our little town. We are blessed in Oceanside to have such outstanding events. I’m sure when that new downtown hotel is completed the guests will come flocking to see what we have to offer.
This year the Show was even more exciting and interesting. Despite inclement weather where I live, I was delighted when I reached the coast to find beautiful sunshine and good parking. This is one event you won’t want to miss next year so be forewarned to mark your calendars now!
As usual, there was something for everyone from young tots to seniors like myself. There was food, sweets, live music, dancing, in addition to all the wonderful art work from pottery, exquisitely blown glassware, oil paintings, watercolors, mixed media, carvings, etc. I renewed acquaintances with folks and artists that I met last year and beyond. I found the artists so eager to talk about their work and share “secrets” with me. Artists are definitely a different breed of cat from other types of professionals. They seem so laid back and not at all pushy or needy, or hustling you to buy their wares! How refreshing!
I was overjoyed when I came upon one of my favorite artists, Jacqueline Tyree. This spry young woman of 84 is a living legend. As an oil painter myself, I appreciate her beautiful seascapes of the San Diego area. She is a member of the San Diego Art Guild and her paintings are on display at “On Track” gallery in Encinitas. Also, you can learn more about her and her paintings can be seen on www.coastalartprints.com. She caught me mesmerized by one of her paintings and came over to talk to me. This year she shared her secret for drawing people quickly on canvas. Last year she showed me a short cut to drawing all kinds of birds. I am indebted to her professional expertise. In seven years of taking oil painting lessons I had not learned these wonderful techniques.
In addition to her beautiful paintings she has photos of her work made into greeting cards. Don’t you know I was the lucky recipient of one of them entitled “Surf’s Up.” She generously placed one in my hand as I started to depart.
Jacqueline is just one of the many artists you will enjoy meeting and hopefully going home with a piece of her art. Other folks told me about the Vista Art League and the great exhibits there on Main Street. Since I intend to join an Art Guild this year to exhibit and sell some of my own oil paintings I am also going to check out the Carlsbad Oceanside Art League which also had several members exhibiting their work at this show.
As a result of hobnobbing and enjoying all this art I decided to upgrade my computer, email system, etc. I wanted digital pictures of my work for my new website, etc. Unfortunately, Windows Vista has proved to be a really unexpected challenge. I’ve had several computer crashes as a result of incompatible software, as well as losing many files and articles, including this original article. Hence, I’m cutting this article a bit short because I have some follow-up stories I want to share with you.
In the meantime, here’s my new email address: artistwithaflair@att.net. I look forward to hearing from you and definitely seeing you at next year’s Art Show.
Shirley M. Carolan, ATM
Artist ● Speaker ● Writer
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0663
artistwithaflair@att.net
www.shirleycarolan.com
http://smcarolan.blogspot.com
http://angelscross.blogspot.com
This year marked the 15th Annual Art Show in Oceanside in April. It followed on the heels of Mira Costa College Theater’s wonderful production of “Lend Me A Tenor!“ which I wrote about earlier. What a great weekend of cultural activities in our little town. We are blessed in Oceanside to have such outstanding events. I’m sure when that new downtown hotel is completed the guests will come flocking to see what we have to offer.
This year the Show was even more exciting and interesting. Despite inclement weather where I live, I was delighted when I reached the coast to find beautiful sunshine and good parking. This is one event you won’t want to miss next year so be forewarned to mark your calendars now!
As usual, there was something for everyone from young tots to seniors like myself. There was food, sweets, live music, dancing, in addition to all the wonderful art work from pottery, exquisitely blown glassware, oil paintings, watercolors, mixed media, carvings, etc. I renewed acquaintances with folks and artists that I met last year and beyond. I found the artists so eager to talk about their work and share “secrets” with me. Artists are definitely a different breed of cat from other types of professionals. They seem so laid back and not at all pushy or needy, or hustling you to buy their wares! How refreshing!
I was overjoyed when I came upon one of my favorite artists, Jacqueline Tyree. This spry young woman of 84 is a living legend. As an oil painter myself, I appreciate her beautiful seascapes of the San Diego area. She is a member of the San Diego Art Guild and her paintings are on display at “On Track” gallery in Encinitas. Also, you can learn more about her and her paintings can be seen on www.coastalartprints.com. She caught me mesmerized by one of her paintings and came over to talk to me. This year she shared her secret for drawing people quickly on canvas. Last year she showed me a short cut to drawing all kinds of birds. I am indebted to her professional expertise. In seven years of taking oil painting lessons I had not learned these wonderful techniques.
In addition to her beautiful paintings she has photos of her work made into greeting cards. Don’t you know I was the lucky recipient of one of them entitled “Surf’s Up.” She generously placed one in my hand as I started to depart.
Jacqueline is just one of the many artists you will enjoy meeting and hopefully going home with a piece of her art. Other folks told me about the Vista Art League and the great exhibits there on Main Street. Since I intend to join an Art Guild this year to exhibit and sell some of my own oil paintings I am also going to check out the Carlsbad Oceanside Art League which also had several members exhibiting their work at this show.
As a result of hobnobbing and enjoying all this art I decided to upgrade my computer, email system, etc. I wanted digital pictures of my work for my new website, etc. Unfortunately, Windows Vista has proved to be a really unexpected challenge. I’ve had several computer crashes as a result of incompatible software, as well as losing many files and articles, including this original article. Hence, I’m cutting this article a bit short because I have some follow-up stories I want to share with you.
In the meantime, here’s my new email address: artistwithaflair@att.net. I look forward to hearing from you and definitely seeing you at next year’s Art Show.
Shirley M. Carolan, ATM
Artist ● Speaker ● Writer
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0663
artistwithaflair@att.net
www.shirleycarolan.com
http://smcarolan.blogspot.com
http://angelscross.blogspot.com
Monday, May 21, 2007
MIRA COSTA COLLEGE WORKSHOPS
By Shirley M. Carolan
It is with much delight that I can tell you that my Mira Costa College “Journaling” workshops have been confirmed and are being offered on the main, Oceanside, campus this summer. If you did not receive their summer brochure, the classes are scheduled for Saturday, June 9 from 9:00 am-12:00 pm, Saturday, August 4, from 9:00 am-12:00 pm, and Tuesday, July 10 from 6:00 pm-9:00 pm.
The workshop is entitled “JOURNAL YOUR WAY TO SUCCESS!” ‘Take a journey to healing, wholeness, and self-discovery. This unique and revealing workshop will help you to identify the areas of your life that need more attention and will equip you to address your unfinished business. By the end of the course, you will have a clearer picture of what success means to you and a plan for using the skills you already possess to achieve your goals.’
For more information on registration please contact Mira Costa College directly at http://www.miracosta.edu/commsvcs, or, call 760-795-6820. I look forward to seeing you in class! If you have any further questions feel free to contact me at 760-732-0663, or artistwithaflair@att.net.
Thank you.
Shirley M. Carolan, ATM
Speaker•Writer•Artist
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0663
artistwithaflair@att.net
www.shirleycarolan.com
http://smcarolan.blogspot.com
http://angelscross.blogspot.com
It is with much delight that I can tell you that my Mira Costa College “Journaling” workshops have been confirmed and are being offered on the main, Oceanside, campus this summer. If you did not receive their summer brochure, the classes are scheduled for Saturday, June 9 from 9:00 am-12:00 pm, Saturday, August 4, from 9:00 am-12:00 pm, and Tuesday, July 10 from 6:00 pm-9:00 pm.
The workshop is entitled “JOURNAL YOUR WAY TO SUCCESS!” ‘Take a journey to healing, wholeness, and self-discovery. This unique and revealing workshop will help you to identify the areas of your life that need more attention and will equip you to address your unfinished business. By the end of the course, you will have a clearer picture of what success means to you and a plan for using the skills you already possess to achieve your goals.’
For more information on registration please contact Mira Costa College directly at http://www.miracosta.edu/commsvcs, or, call 760-795-6820. I look forward to seeing you in class! If you have any further questions feel free to contact me at 760-732-0663, or artistwithaflair@att.net.
Thank you.
Shirley M. Carolan, ATM
Speaker•Writer•Artist
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0663
artistwithaflair@att.net
www.shirleycarolan.com
http://smcarolan.blogspot.com
http://angelscross.blogspot.com
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
“LEND ME A TENOR”
By Shirley M. Carolan
As a young girl raised and educated in London, England I grew up with a love of the English language and a passion for Shakespeare, for his astute way with words and particularly his gift of farce. Later, I was selected to act in many of his plays. As a result, I knew most of his soliloquies by heart. Upon emigrating to the United States, the nuns at Queen of the Rosary Academy, Amityville, New York promptly entered me in the Long Island Oratorical Championships, feeling I had the best chance to represent the Academy. Alas, my English accent worked against me as I was considered a "professional."
But, I never lost my love for words. To this day, I firmly believe that "Words are the poetry of the soul. They are as unique as your fingerprints. You owe it to yourself to leave the finest imprint!©" Theater continued to be an important part of my life. Living in New York, I was in awe of all the Broadway productions. It was a smorgasbord of talent, sights and sounds. I tried to see as many plays as my meager salary allowed.
Moving to San Francisco in the mid 1960s was also a thespian’s paradise. I bought season tickets to ACT so that I would not miss out on the theatrical scene. Of course, like any great cosmopolitan city, it also offered wonderful Opera and exquisite ballet. "The Nutcracker" quickly became my favorite. To this day, Christmas is not Christmas for me without seeing some performance of The Nutcracker! How fortunate we are in San Diego County to have so many venues to choose from!
Methinks I have digressed too much. I only wanted to show how much I enjoy theatre and that we are so lucky to have the best at our fingertips! I speak of Mira Costa College Performing Arts Theater here in Oceanside, CA. They just changed their name to "Mira Costa Theatre Spotlight Circle." Last Saturday night I saw the wonderful production of Ken Ludwig’s "Lend Me A Tenor," directed by Eric Bishop. If you like farce then this will be your cup of tea. As Eric Bishop says "Farce is one of the most demanding of the comic performing styles. Playing farce requires a learned style of acting that embraces heightened reality. It requires a great deal of skill, commitment, courage, cracker-jack timing, vocal energy/power, specificity and pure physical stamina."
Seeing this production brought back fond memories of my own professional stage debut in 1994 in the British comedy "It Runs In The Family" by Ray Cooney, at the Alterena Playhouse, Alameda, CA. In addition to learning the rigors of comedy, we also had to learn how to enter and exit the stage appropriately, since the Alterena Playhouse is a theater-in-the-round and at any given time we would have our backs to one side of the audience. The role of "Matron," the head nurse of a London hospital was tailor made for me. Albeit I did have to learn how to act mean and project my voice. Ah, but the roar of the crowd, the curtain calls, and meeting the public in the foyer at the end of every performance were more than worth it!
Again, if you like theatre, particularly farce, I encourage you to see this delightful production of "Lend Me A Tenor," at Mira Costa Theatre Spotlight Circle. The Theatre is conveniently located right off Highway 78 at College Boulevard. The address is One Barnard Drive, Oceanside, CA.
Reservations can be made at the box office: 760-795-6815. Senior citizens get a special rate. Unfortunately this is the final weekend of this wonderful production. No excuses, just pick yourself up and treat yourself to a wonderful evening or matinee! You'll be glad you did!
Shirley M. Carolan, ATM
Author • Writer • Coach
Carolan Communications
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0663
carolcom@qwestinternet.net
www.shirleycarolan.com
As a young girl raised and educated in London, England I grew up with a love of the English language and a passion for Shakespeare, for his astute way with words and particularly his gift of farce. Later, I was selected to act in many of his plays. As a result, I knew most of his soliloquies by heart. Upon emigrating to the United States, the nuns at Queen of the Rosary Academy, Amityville, New York promptly entered me in the Long Island Oratorical Championships, feeling I had the best chance to represent the Academy. Alas, my English accent worked against me as I was considered a "professional."
But, I never lost my love for words. To this day, I firmly believe that "Words are the poetry of the soul. They are as unique as your fingerprints. You owe it to yourself to leave the finest imprint!©" Theater continued to be an important part of my life. Living in New York, I was in awe of all the Broadway productions. It was a smorgasbord of talent, sights and sounds. I tried to see as many plays as my meager salary allowed.
Moving to San Francisco in the mid 1960s was also a thespian’s paradise. I bought season tickets to ACT so that I would not miss out on the theatrical scene. Of course, like any great cosmopolitan city, it also offered wonderful Opera and exquisite ballet. "The Nutcracker" quickly became my favorite. To this day, Christmas is not Christmas for me without seeing some performance of The Nutcracker! How fortunate we are in San Diego County to have so many venues to choose from!
Methinks I have digressed too much. I only wanted to show how much I enjoy theatre and that we are so lucky to have the best at our fingertips! I speak of Mira Costa College Performing Arts Theater here in Oceanside, CA. They just changed their name to "Mira Costa Theatre Spotlight Circle." Last Saturday night I saw the wonderful production of Ken Ludwig’s "Lend Me A Tenor," directed by Eric Bishop. If you like farce then this will be your cup of tea. As Eric Bishop says "Farce is one of the most demanding of the comic performing styles. Playing farce requires a learned style of acting that embraces heightened reality. It requires a great deal of skill, commitment, courage, cracker-jack timing, vocal energy/power, specificity and pure physical stamina."
Seeing this production brought back fond memories of my own professional stage debut in 1994 in the British comedy "It Runs In The Family" by Ray Cooney, at the Alterena Playhouse, Alameda, CA. In addition to learning the rigors of comedy, we also had to learn how to enter and exit the stage appropriately, since the Alterena Playhouse is a theater-in-the-round and at any given time we would have our backs to one side of the audience. The role of "Matron," the head nurse of a London hospital was tailor made for me. Albeit I did have to learn how to act mean and project my voice. Ah, but the roar of the crowd, the curtain calls, and meeting the public in the foyer at the end of every performance were more than worth it!
Again, if you like theatre, particularly farce, I encourage you to see this delightful production of "Lend Me A Tenor," at Mira Costa Theatre Spotlight Circle. The Theatre is conveniently located right off Highway 78 at College Boulevard. The address is One Barnard Drive, Oceanside, CA.
Reservations can be made at the box office: 760-795-6815. Senior citizens get a special rate. Unfortunately this is the final weekend of this wonderful production. No excuses, just pick yourself up and treat yourself to a wonderful evening or matinee! You'll be glad you did!
Shirley M. Carolan, ATM
Author • Writer • Coach
Carolan Communications
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0663
carolcom@qwestinternet.net
www.shirleycarolan.com
WHO SAYS OCEANSIDE IS A CULTURAL VOID?
By Shirley M. Carolan
For far too long, I feel that Oceanside has been the brunt of snickers that we, as a community, are devoid of cultural events, educational opportunities in the Arts, Art Shows, galleries and wonderful theatre and film.
This past weekend, I got out of my usual rut and excuses and had the cultural time of my life! I didn’t wait for others to decide to go with me, as I generally do. Instead, I chose to go alone despite what seemed like inclement weather on Sunday and had the time of my life!
The point is, whether you are young, old, retired, married, widowed, divorced, single, or even physically challenged, there is something in this wonderful town for everyone’s taste and pocketbook! As a young at heart, mature, high-energy, accomplished, single woman, I can vouch that my generation is certainly not excluded or wanting for cultural and fun things to enjoy in Oceanside.
While I feel I have just scratched the surface of what my town has to offer, my whole world has just done an about face! I hope you will read and enjoy the following two events I attended this past weekend. Perhaps they will inspire YOU to attend Mira Costa College’s wonderful theatre treats, and next year’s Annual Art Show. In fact, next year I intend to exhibit my own oil paintings at the Show! See you there!
Shirley M. Carolan, ATM
Author • Writer • Coach
Carolan Communications
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0663
carolcom@qwestinternet.net
www.shirleycarolan.com
For far too long, I feel that Oceanside has been the brunt of snickers that we, as a community, are devoid of cultural events, educational opportunities in the Arts, Art Shows, galleries and wonderful theatre and film.
This past weekend, I got out of my usual rut and excuses and had the cultural time of my life! I didn’t wait for others to decide to go with me, as I generally do. Instead, I chose to go alone despite what seemed like inclement weather on Sunday and had the time of my life!
The point is, whether you are young, old, retired, married, widowed, divorced, single, or even physically challenged, there is something in this wonderful town for everyone’s taste and pocketbook! As a young at heart, mature, high-energy, accomplished, single woman, I can vouch that my generation is certainly not excluded or wanting for cultural and fun things to enjoy in Oceanside.
While I feel I have just scratched the surface of what my town has to offer, my whole world has just done an about face! I hope you will read and enjoy the following two events I attended this past weekend. Perhaps they will inspire YOU to attend Mira Costa College’s wonderful theatre treats, and next year’s Annual Art Show. In fact, next year I intend to exhibit my own oil paintings at the Show! See you there!
Shirley M. Carolan, ATM
Author • Writer • Coach
Carolan Communications
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0663
carolcom@qwestinternet.net
www.shirleycarolan.com
Saturday, March 31, 2007
PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE!
By Shirley M. Carolan
This month, the old adage "Patience is a Virtue," combined with Murphy’s Law, was brought home to me with a vengeance! It has been several years since I’ve invested in a new computer system. But I was fed up with my HP crashing all the time and getting it overhauled, so I decided it was time to bite the bullet and invest in a new system. I wanted something I could depend upon and was not overly concerned with getting all the latest bells and whistles.
Not being a techie, I enlisted the aid of a friend to help me research best buys and compatability with the type of usage I would give it. That certainly speeded up the process and saved some valuable time. After deciding upon what, and where to buy it, I brought my new system home full of enthusiasm. Connecting everything, I was sure, would not be a problem, since I’d purchased many computers over the years and never had a problem hooking up all the cables and cords to the various hardware.
Alas, that was my first mistake! I assumed that was all I needed to do and voila I would be up and running and enjoying my new computer and software (including Microsoft Windows Vista). Three weeks later and many frantic calls to India for help (Hewlett-Packard outsources its on-line help to folks in India) I am finally up and but not as completely running as I would like to be.
Murphy’s Law took over from the time I installed the first cable. Glitches that Microsoft, Hewlett Packard, my ISP, the phone company, etc. could not help me with I learned on my own by trial and error! For example, when I went to establish my Internet connection I used the Area Code, as well as the number, that my ISP had given me to connect to. This was the biggest mistake of all! Everyone insisted it was a "working number" and couldn’t figure out why I was getting an error message and could not connect to the Internet. It seems I didn’t need to type in the Area Code in order to connect to the Internet, just the telephone number! In pure desperation I figured this one out. But, multiply that glitch by 10 more and you have some idea of the daunting tasks I faced.
Another serious glitch was that the hard drive had not been configured to allow me to save my work to a CD drive. All indications were that I had a C, D, F, G. and H drive but no E drive! I struggled to find a solution on my own. Another fatal mistake ... Meanwhile, I was saving all my hard work and documents to the C drive expecting a solution to miraculously appear.
Would you believe that on my final call to India and Hewlett Packard help, I ended up losing three week’s of work? The hard drive had to be reconfigured to include the E drive (the one that allows CDs to be written to). Why this was not done before it left the factory I will never know! Sadly, there are some files and emails that I will never recover, including all my latest blog posts.
These are but a few of the things that can sorely test one’s patience. Of course, I had some choice words to say about my new system but they are gradually fading from memory. It has taught me that gone are the days when you can bring home a new computer, monitor, printer, etc. and just plug it in, register it, and expect everything to work just fine.
Today, you have to be a lot more savvy about software, drivers, updates, and whether your new system can accept your "old" software, whether you can upgrade it, or whether, heaven forbid, you have to purchase all new software. For a non-techie like myself, this is quite a daunting task. My last system dates back to the "Dark Ages" of 2002. At the time I had purchased MS Office 2000 Professional and was very happy with it. Of course, the new system (MS Vista Home Edition) does not accept it, and it only came with MS Works and Notepad, no MS Word. Right now I am not in a mood to upgrade, although I know eventually I will have to. But, I did upgrade my WordPerfect software on my "old" PC sufficiently that it will work with MS Vista! Yippee! I grew up with WordPerfect in the early 1980's. It’s a wonderful software package and has Quatro Pro, etc. I intend to relearn everything I’ve forgotten about this wonderful software, including saving/sending documents with file endings that others can open!
Take that Microsoft and Mr. Gates! My patience and confidence have been restored!
Shirley M. Carolan
Speaker/Writer/Coach
Carolan Communications
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0663
carolcom@qwestinternet.net
www.shirleycarolan.com
http://angelscross.blogspot.com
This month, the old adage "Patience is a Virtue," combined with Murphy’s Law, was brought home to me with a vengeance! It has been several years since I’ve invested in a new computer system. But I was fed up with my HP crashing all the time and getting it overhauled, so I decided it was time to bite the bullet and invest in a new system. I wanted something I could depend upon and was not overly concerned with getting all the latest bells and whistles.
Not being a techie, I enlisted the aid of a friend to help me research best buys and compatability with the type of usage I would give it. That certainly speeded up the process and saved some valuable time. After deciding upon what, and where to buy it, I brought my new system home full of enthusiasm. Connecting everything, I was sure, would not be a problem, since I’d purchased many computers over the years and never had a problem hooking up all the cables and cords to the various hardware.
Alas, that was my first mistake! I assumed that was all I needed to do and voila I would be up and running and enjoying my new computer and software (including Microsoft Windows Vista). Three weeks later and many frantic calls to India for help (Hewlett-Packard outsources its on-line help to folks in India) I am finally up and but not as completely running as I would like to be.
Murphy’s Law took over from the time I installed the first cable. Glitches that Microsoft, Hewlett Packard, my ISP, the phone company, etc. could not help me with I learned on my own by trial and error! For example, when I went to establish my Internet connection I used the Area Code, as well as the number, that my ISP had given me to connect to. This was the biggest mistake of all! Everyone insisted it was a "working number" and couldn’t figure out why I was getting an error message and could not connect to the Internet. It seems I didn’t need to type in the Area Code in order to connect to the Internet, just the telephone number! In pure desperation I figured this one out. But, multiply that glitch by 10 more and you have some idea of the daunting tasks I faced.
Another serious glitch was that the hard drive had not been configured to allow me to save my work to a CD drive. All indications were that I had a C, D, F, G. and H drive but no E drive! I struggled to find a solution on my own. Another fatal mistake ... Meanwhile, I was saving all my hard work and documents to the C drive expecting a solution to miraculously appear.
Would you believe that on my final call to India and Hewlett Packard help, I ended up losing three week’s of work? The hard drive had to be reconfigured to include the E drive (the one that allows CDs to be written to). Why this was not done before it left the factory I will never know! Sadly, there are some files and emails that I will never recover, including all my latest blog posts.
These are but a few of the things that can sorely test one’s patience. Of course, I had some choice words to say about my new system but they are gradually fading from memory. It has taught me that gone are the days when you can bring home a new computer, monitor, printer, etc. and just plug it in, register it, and expect everything to work just fine.
Today, you have to be a lot more savvy about software, drivers, updates, and whether your new system can accept your "old" software, whether you can upgrade it, or whether, heaven forbid, you have to purchase all new software. For a non-techie like myself, this is quite a daunting task. My last system dates back to the "Dark Ages" of 2002. At the time I had purchased MS Office 2000 Professional and was very happy with it. Of course, the new system (MS Vista Home Edition) does not accept it, and it only came with MS Works and Notepad, no MS Word. Right now I am not in a mood to upgrade, although I know eventually I will have to. But, I did upgrade my WordPerfect software on my "old" PC sufficiently that it will work with MS Vista! Yippee! I grew up with WordPerfect in the early 1980's. It’s a wonderful software package and has Quatro Pro, etc. I intend to relearn everything I’ve forgotten about this wonderful software, including saving/sending documents with file endings that others can open!
Take that Microsoft and Mr. Gates! My patience and confidence have been restored!
Shirley M. Carolan
Speaker/Writer/Coach
Carolan Communications
Phone/Fax: 760-732-0663
carolcom@qwestinternet.net
www.shirleycarolan.com
http://angelscross.blogspot.com
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