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the illinois 4-h computer project - College of Tropical Agriculture and

1. Make an arrangement to visit an office or classroom in which the computers are connected via a network Explain that you wish to see how a network operates and how the computers are connected Take your sketch with you Use a pen with different colored ink to draw a sketch of the real network so that you can compare your previous sketch to the real thing REVIEW IT How did the actual network diagram differ from your original sketch How could the computers in the networked office be arranged for more efficient operation Does the location of each computer make a difference How would you describe the office network in words How does a diagram make it easier to understand PURSUE IT Talk with the manager of an office What does he she consider when setting up and maintaining an office Visit a second office and compare their networked operation to the first one you visited Which one is more efficient and pleasant to work in DATA BANK For a fun and complete review of Internet basics check out this Web site http www sierramm com smpinst html You can download an interactive presentation on Internet from this site and play it back to yourself on your computer Follow the downloading and installation instructions on the Web page Beginner s Guide to the Internet http Awww screen com start guide default html Illinois 4 H Computer Project 61 UNIT Networking DATE LEVEL Beginning COMPLETED AC
2. So far you ve looked at diagramming situations you understood well or were making up as you went along Another thing flowcharting is very good for is helping you discover the correct sequence of steps to accomplish something that you don t already fully understand In the process of making the flowchart you either come to understand the activity or you at least break it down into a series of smaller steps you do understand In such situations you can often make a series of partial flowcharts around the small portions you do understand then link these together with flow lines as you assemble these parts into the larger sequence diagram Discuss with your Project Leader and perhaps try to flowchart more complex tasks that someone your age generally never would be asked to do Here s some examples 1 Scheduling an overnight field trip including busses parental permission slips payment of expenses in advance getting all the students to the pick up spot on time paying an advance deposit on the hotel etc 2 Write a driver s education lecture that will address all the sequence of events associated with backing a car out of the garage starting with the car not running and the garage door shut 3 Figure out a description of a set of rules about when to buy sell or hold shares of a stock depending on how well a company is doing This can get as complex as you want adding quarterly earnings reports and industry profiles but start with j
3. 1 15 Z 2 1 2 492 3 4 06 2 492 2 11 9 2 492 1 15 Procedure calls Lengthy operation sequences that are performed from many points in a program typically on different target data each time are often best packaged into procedures that can be activated called with different starting data Procedures are similar to functions in that they do things you want but unlike functions they don t return a value The procedures generally do a task or set of tasks themselves such as opening an output file or printing a paycheck and there is no particular value to return Note that some programming languages do not make much distinction between procedures and functions Projects at the intermediate level should use more advanced programming constructs such as these as the construct aids in the construction of the program That is these new command types need not be used only for their own sake but should be used wherever they make creating the program easier Projects at the intermediate level should never be close derivatives of material from a book even if they are not being entered in a contest REVIEW IT Discuss adding functionality features and how to make said modifications Critique the program s usability Have other people try it PURSUE IT Expand the scope of the undertaking a direction you like Link with other program packages e g get data from a database not from type in Get real users doing real work with
4. 23 UNIT Operation and Maintenance DATE LEVEL Beginning COMPLETED ACTIVITY Complete a computer tutorial program PROJECT SKILL Learn to use an operating system HELPER S LIFE SKILL Marketable skills INITIALS TAKE THE TOUR Not too many years ago getting help on how to use a computer meant going to school or reading books Today we have on line help Modern personal computers nearly all use either Microsoft Windows or Apple Macintosh operating systems Both brag about how easy they are to use and both provide lots of on line help If you haven t a clue how to figure out what a computer can do for you the on line help can be your best friend Even if you ve been using a computer for a while you might be surprised what you ll learn by taking a few minutes to tour your computer s capabilities Materials needed A computer with either Microsoft Windows or Apple Macintosh operating system DO IT Both Microsoft and Apple try hard to make their computers as easy to use as possible Find out how to access on line help on the computer that you re using Because you need to find help to get help it should be pretty easy to find Check the DATA BANK for directions on how to access your computer s on line help feature One option that on line help usually provides is an overview of how the program works often called a tutorial Spend a few minutes going through the on line tutorial Do what
5. D EH HO H HI OM AO Aa A x Er 4 A U A ct Un M OAH Ga OUMMAH SY 1H NOE NO QE 4 0 WY lt L un m ag gt O H Hreeanoaod Ah gt INTRANET GIGABYTE Illinois 4 H Computer Project 10 STILL SEARCHING ON N BoM OT FH PR BO KR DX YO LW YoU W EE PE NT TD UM DE WEP 506 i BY WW U P EE MSA EC RP U R M E H D PLX EDL SLS LB TORX ER G FN PCMEFTSTGSOHENOWDSDOQOK E SMLPMMWELPEEMDWEJTN RDDGNAIWOIMRBNEPEFERP B A UE TOGT GC R REN Je TO HRR TJAATUKEALDEOKRPQOKONW L TK EEK 4 EM DX TRE Y J PRG NRVIRGAQONBMJYYPBFERK Ge Be POTS R GT Ma 8e DaS LE A 1 SNNFEKGTAOHYWOIXVXML YKTJFEFMUENEPXIAOTXHMO SONUSMANDDMHERNNXSEB TNEVRTGPTXWSEDUDRBURY ERR STIEF Oo EL ad SD oD KT o RMI DI E 5 un Um EH 2 DOMA M HE Z D HH HA M amp A Z ag O lt H H A ag a H x O am KOZH AhMHO OCA gt 21 Fr H 90 un A A 0 H ow ct Ay ge x mw gt QU O A TAOMAN PROGRAMMER PENTIUM GOPHER OS NK PORT HTML DISKETTE KILOBYTE PHONEBOOK Illinois 4 H Computer Project Computer Crossword Across D
6. DO IT Event processing and notes on windowing systems If you are using a development environment for windowing systems e g Mac OS Microsoft Windows you will need to read the material concerning how to send output to the screen and how to accept input from things such as text entry boxes i e the rectangles on the screen at which you re allowed to type things in and pushbuttons Although these instructions may appear as several lines of strange stuff you probably can find an example program in the early part of the book that shows exactly what to type in to create a small program that does these things You can follow suit from that hopefully Eventually you ll be able to construct programs that are much easier to use and interact with and that produce a much nicer form of output to the user However there s much more to learn in order to make the windowing system itself work so you might want to start your programming experimentation using only the typed in interface that doesn t have all the attractive graphics For example to read a number from the keyboard using BASIC a command such as READ X is all you need and that s pretty easy to understand Creating your first program Almost every programming language book ever written first shows you how to write an extremely simple program often entitled hello world The program just prints something really easy such as the words hello and world and then quits But by creati
7. and 1 being not useful Also write down some notes about each site as well as the address that site is located at Repeat your search a second time using a different search engine Compare your findings for the second search with your original search Did the search turn up the same sites or different ones Develop a small chart for at least five of the sites that you reviewed from this search Compare this chart to the first chart you developed If your search turns up too many hits or the information doesn t seem helpful to you consider limiting or changing the search in some way so you have fewer entries to examine The second search will probably result in less information that will actually be more helpful to you For instance instead of doing a search on Fiber Arts for your report on Quilting why not use Quilting or Quilting History or Quilt Patterns as the item you search for REVIEW IT Using the chart you constructed for this activity share the results of your searches with your helper or another leader or volunteer Tell them about the process you went through to decide what to search for Explain to this person how you used the information you found Which of the search engines did you like best Why Which of the two searches resulted in better information for you Did you find some of the same sites through both searches PURSUE IT Is all the information on the Internet true and c
8. www 4 h org chat listserv html Illinois 4 H Computer Project 69 UNIT Networking DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Participate in a 4 H chat session PROJECT SKILL Chat environments HELPER S LIFE SKILL Communications INITIALS LET S TALK You know how great it is to have the chance to talk to someone about something you are interested in and have it turn out they are interested in the very same thing you are It s great to find someone with some of the same interests you have it s like finding someone who speaks the same language you do The Internet allows a chance to have those kinds of great discussions across thousands of miles in gatherings called chat sessions Through this activity you will have the chance to find out about chat sessions how to participate in them and some safety precautions you should always observe when visiting cyberspace Materials needed This activity will require access to a computer that is Internet accessible Additionally before joining a chat session please read the Rules for Online Safety included with this activity Also see the previous activity News Views for guidelines on internet safety and communications DO IT Chat sessions help people with common interests to come together over the Internet to share ideas and interests and solve problems They can be very valuable tools Some chat sessions are ongoing and available 24 hours a day
9. Here are some suggestions Keep track of your busy schedule Create a calendar like spreadsheet in which days of the month are 58 Illinois 4 H Computer Project the rows and hours of the day are the columns Record activities meetings and practices you have planned for the month Also record when school assignments are due You may find this helps you to get to the right place at the right time having completed the right assignment List the things you have to do and prioritize them into priority number 1 2 Also categorize them as school home chores work etc Then use the spreadsheet to sort by priority or by category Do you have other 4 H projects How could you use a spreadsheet program to help you keep records on your other projects Conduct a survey of people s opinions on a topic of interest to you The topic could be related to a school project in which you ask people a series of questions about an issue currently in the news It could be a test of people s knowledge of a history or science topic You may even be able to help a community leader who has to make an important decision and would appreciate a survey to help make it That person would probably help you select the questions for your survey Or you could just conduct a People s Choice survey of the pre season Super Bowl pick Academy Award best picture winner etc Enter and analyze your data on the spreadsheet program DATA BANK Most electronic sp
10. S LIFE SKILL Planning and organizing INITIALS THE FAMILY TREE Most operating systems organize the thousands of files that they use a tree structure on the computer s hard disk Actually it s more like a tree turned upside down Starting with one file system or drive at the top of the tree they branch to several main folders Each folder becomes a parent to files and other folders stored beneath it These children perform similar functions to the parent folder or hold information that relates somehow to the parent folder Believe it or not when your computer recovers after a power loss or other crash it even calls a file that it finds an orphan if it doesn t know in which folder the file belongs A very simple organization of a family s files on a computer running Windows 95 is shown in the DATA BANK Don t even think of changing the organization of the Windows folder or the Program Files folder on your computer but the My Documents folder is where you can work your magic Materials needed Your family s computer or someone else s computer that you have permission to organize Or if you don t have a computer to organize paper and pencil is all you need DO IT The average computer owner doesn t keep the computer s storage space organized and clean As a result they become frustrated when they can t find their files They also may r
11. To compare the functions and features of different software programs and brands To use word processing software To use spreadsheet software To use database management software To use presentation software To use other specialized software programs About the laws governing the use of software programs ONO OTE WN Along the way you will also learn important life skills such as making decisions planning amp organizing finding and using information communicating with others keeping records TE NE 42 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Using Software DATE LEVEL Beginning Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Take a software shopping trip PROJECT SKILL Compare software features HELPER S LIFE SKILL Making decisions INITIALS ATTENTION SOFTWARE SHOPPERS Each year computers and the software that the computers run become more and more sophisticated Each year there are also more versions and brands of software on the market It s hard to know where to turn for good information and where to begin when you go software shopping You want to get the most for your money and a product that will best meet your needs but what is that Materials needed For this activity you will need to create a chart either on paper or using your computer Also you will need to plan at least one visit to a store that sells computer software or have a computer with access to the Internet DOIT One of the mo
12. computers actually respond These translation software tools include compilers interpreters and development environments The purpose of all of them is to allow you to work in a manner that is at least reasonably familiar using simple operations such as picking items from a menu list or giving written instructions in a language that looks no worse than a mixture of English and algebra Unlike English with its 2 000 000 or so different words a computer language typically has only about 100 words So many find learning a programming language far easier than learning a second human language In this project you will learn to use one of these programming languages to construct modify and analyze a computer program for your own purposes There are many such languages available but the one most used in introductory programming experimentation is BASIC standing for Beginner s All purpose Symbolic Instruction Code Although not containing many of the powerful capabilities developed by the software industry in the last 30 years BASIC has a near English appearance that is often appreciated by beginners A very large number of books are available on BASIC and on exploratory programming projects for beginners using BASIC Note that there are slight differences between different company s implementations of BASIC or any programming language so consulting the manual for your specific language is sometimes pretty well mandatory As there is no
13. down menu Click on 3 1 2 floppy A The file will be copied to the floppy diskette py ied Backing up a file from the hard drive to a floppy diskette on a Macintosh Insert a 3 5 diskette into the floppy disk drive A floppy diskette icon will appear on your screen Click on it to open the floppy diskette window Click on the Macintosh HD icon on the computer screen In the Macintosh HD window click on the folder that contains the file you want to back up Hold down the mouse button and drag the file icon into the floppy diskette window You should see a message like copying filename The file icon and name should appear in the floppy diskette window indicating that the file has been copied For additional information try conducting a Web search for the term job aid URLs _ http Avww kidsandcomputers com kids lessons starter htm Computer Lessons for Kids and Small Adults 36 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Operation and Maintenance DATE LEVEL Advanced COMPLETED ACTIVITY Disassemble an old computer PROJECT SKILL Identify computer parts HELPER S LIFE SKILL Planning and organizing INITIALS WHAT S IT GOT UNDER THE HOOD We know that computers can do wonderful things They can take us places we have never been through the Internet they can help us organize our lives and they can help us to find and use information Have you ever wondered how a c
14. or download a freeware or shareware game from the Internet You will be manipulating the keyboard and the mouse as you play the game REVIEW Name of game Type of game cards board game etc Where you got it software store free Internet download etc Difficulty Hard to Play Just Right Too Easy Rating Great Pretty Good OK Not So Hot Terrible Was the game fun Would you want to play it over and over again Offer to teach the game to a friend PURSUE IT Develop a similar game using paper and pencil to play with one or more friends How will you change the rules to adapt to a paper and pencil game How can you change the game to make it more interesting Use the game format to develop a paper and pencil game with a different theme Example if the computer game featured a medieval knight adapt it to feature an Air Force pilot After you have made that change what other changes will be needed Create your own game Sketch out the rules and background with pencil and paper See if a friend will program it into a computer game Learn to program simple games on a computer DATA BANK If your computer s operating system is Windows 95 there a couple of simple card games built into the accessories folder A collection of downloadable shareware including several games is found at http www 1smarisite com 22 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Illinois 4 H Computer Project
15. spot html To link to the Spot page from within your own homepage the tag looks like have a 9 year old Labrador retriever named lt A HREF spot html gt Spot lt A gt that you can also read about Notice that this link doesn t look much like the White House link There s no http part or machine name www whitehouse gov If these not given the Web browser simply assumes to do the same as was done to retrieve the current page Because we ll be starting from your own homepage in some directory folder on your disk the Web browser will go looking on your machine in that same place for a file called spot html and will then load Spot s homepage Here s some more tags for experiments show this lt B gt bolded lt B gt show this lt U gt underlined lt U gt show this in lt l gt italics lt l gt lt P gt This is a paragraph lt P gt Illinois 4 H Computer Project 85 lt P gt And keep it separate from the paragraph that follows it lt P gt lt H1 gt Headline for Today s News lt H1 gt lt H4 gt By roving reporter me lt H4 gt Note that header tags take the numbers 1 through 6 1 being the largest lettering lt P gt Here s a list of my pets have lt UL gt lt gt a dog lt A HREF spot html gt Spot lt A gt who has his own homepage lt LI gt a cat Socks and lt LI gt 4 goldfish that don t have names lt UL gt also have a sister but Mom said not to list her with
16. AAY C N E D G EX PE U AP OR OB R BNV R E T H CP GR I D P TDT HE RYG M Y IE Y E rL WwW Y XU Y L PRU RT A U P BE C P A XX DBD Y E A b LN B O INFVJNRMOUSEOOFELKX A I J I FAE FMFLPUXFDMONITORTGND YKMRDNENWSGROUPJOVYPM IWUMNSPREADSHEETSHRX HTTP WEBSITE MOUSE INTERNET DATA VIRUS SPREADSHEET SCANNER BROWSER 4 m 2 H OU lt Gade en D 190 9 H 9 H El AWN LOAK Z gt EH gt OU Z fr H H H HHA gt M 5 m UN Honea gt Illinois 4 H Computer Project SEARCH SOME MORE JADYYAYOOMHNLGGUYRDK N YROFYVREGMODEMMHORBTD HY OHV JDOMRKRUPBRRED SL UES Be AHURCLOCKSPEEDRADBOQOS RE ILCONXYJRRIIUMMOAR K DMINTRANETEVCUEYMCDE WM Ha U ULM ee RKR RT A B J Y D U H 0 E R U S T RYDUHVLAJIYOXYRULPEE EL YY V EvS G L P GYW U Boy X F 6 XS LEJMPCKLIADNKOGSAHAH OCOMTKAUWBBILMLCPHIAN QJ DSRBIWGTYROGRBRILITNN ESLCRALFGTGASEEANDSB MBEEXQ0OQOCYEGDWENNCURY EWS R DG E D ALP A B A E U HE MXVTENXURP ROCES Be Ss ANDE AJ A GC D GGe L S HOIYMRDIRECTORYWBF V P BYRGWBWHPEHJGLINYQYV Q H lt L A OH H H H NN gt
17. Another general site that lists several chat session is Chat Planet http www chatplanet com surf html the British Broadcasting Company http www bbc co uk radio5 index html ABC s Internet Hourly News http Avww realaudio com contentp abc html Illinois 4 H Computer Project 71 UNIT Networking DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Evaluate a Web site PROJECT SKILL Access information on the WWW HELPER S LIFE SKILL Decision making INITIALS CHECK IT OUT The World Wide Web gives us access to more information than we can possibly use TV networks sports stars and teams companies schools everything seems to have Web site How good is the information we get on the Web How can we tell a good Web site from a bad one In this activity you will evaluate a Web site of your own choosing Materials needed You will need a computer with Internet access and a Web browser DO IT Choose a topic that interests you there are a few suggestions in the DATA BANK Locate at least three Web sites related to your topic After you have explored each site record the URL and evaluate each site using the following guidelines Topic URL Site Name Author Company Sponsoring Agency Evaluate using a numerical rating scale 1 to 5 for example for the following elements or add your own Use of color Speed of downloading Ease of navigation Quality of information Free from bias Strengt
18. To Get Zapped The household current supplying your computer with power also can destroy it The voltage flowing into our homes is far from consistent There are frequent variations called spikes or surges These spikes in power can zap your PC and result in serious damage To prevent harmful zapping you need to buy a surge protector There are many kinds of surge protectors on the market and most of them are not very good You should go to your computer store and look at the line of surge protectors Don t buy a cheap surge protector and think you ve solved your problem Look for protectors that have a first stage peak clamping voltage of at least 190 volts The smaller the voltage number the better the surge protector Probably the best way to deal with electrical surge is to buy an uninterruptible power supply sometimes called a UPS The UPS will convert the dirty electricity coming in from the wall into a clean regular supply A UPS will continue to supply power for a period of time after the power goes off This gives you time to save your work and shut your computer down safely As you might expect an uninterruptible power supply is more expensive than a surge protector A good piece of advice is to shut down your computer and unplug it during electrical storms Also unplug the telephone connection to the modem if you have one That way you re sure not to get zapped Another kind of electrical problem you need to
19. access the Internet also may be able to find the necessary resource information in print form at the school library public library or bookstore They also may be able to get information from the computer teacher at their school IMPORTANT A WORD ABOUT VIRUSES Computer viruses are a very real threat to your computer and your data A computer virus is a program that attaches itself to overwrites or otherwise replaces another program in order to reproduce itself without the knowledge of the computer user Viruses can cause damage to and or destroy data files and disks Viruses can enter your computer through infected floppy disks or files downloaded from the Internet It is strongly recommended that a reputable anti virus software program be installed and running on any computer that is used for this project especially the activities in which files may be downloaded from the Internet Illinois 4 H Computer Project 3 FOR THE MEMBER Welcome to the Illinois 4 H computer project The activities in this project guide are designed to help you learn about all aspects of computing from what a computer is to advanced programming While learning about computers you also will be learning important life skills such as problem solving and decision making skills that are needed in school on the job in life More importantly you will gain computer knowledge and skills that will be required for success in the 2000s Most im
20. activity you will plan and develop a job aid to help people perform basic computer operations Materials needed You will need pencil and paper or a computer with a word processing program Depending on the job aid format you choose you also may need a binder and or sheets of clear contact paper DO IT Job aids come in various forms Some are mostly words others mostly pictures and some are a combination of words and pictures One of the most common is a printed sheet with simple directions for the task at hand Often these sheets are laminated and mounted somewhere handy like on the side of a computer monitor Some job aids that are more than a single page are bound with plastic binders for easy page turning Your task is to create a job aid that will help a person who has little or no computer experience a fellow 4 H member for example The job aid should assist the person complete a computer related task that can be done in fewer than five minutes Some examples are formatting a diskette locating a file in a directory launching an application program from the hard drive diskette or CD ROM starting a new file or document or saving a file You may choose one of these or another computer task as the focus of your job aid Check in the DATA BANK for sources of information to include in your job aid When you have finished your job aid try it out on a few people Talk them through it then let them try it to see if they can do the ta
21. allow the program to take different actions depending on conditions it encounters while it is running For example to modify the above program to continue accepting numbers and adding them until the user says something other than y for yes add the BASIC lines 45 PRINT CONTINUE Y or N 46 INPUT A 47 IF A Y OR THEN GOTO 10 Work with your Project Leader to examine and try sample programs from books that use these kinds of statements Then identify a very clear programming project with your Project Leader that will involve at least one of each of these kinds of statements Generally this project should not be taken directly from a book To be entered in competition this project must not be taken or lightly adapted from a book and must be the member s own work Note that the State Fair terms programming projects at the Beginner level as Category TBD Contest nomenclature at county and regional fairs may differ A member should only enter a contest in the Beginner Programming category once For the intermediate level You need to be completely familiar with all the types of commands in the beginner level In addition other types of commands have been created in all languages for the purpose of allowing people to understand what they are doing when they build larger more complex programs These commands include Iteration or looping additional commands to control repeating steps multiple times particularly in situations in
22. are the bugs that you catch from other systems or software In their worst form they can crash your system or erase information Illinois 4 H Computer Project 33 The risk of getting a computer virus is really very slim It does happen but not often In spite of the limited risk you should probably buy and install an anti virus program You ll find a large supply of them at your dealer These programs scan your system and diagnose your problem If you have a virus the program can often remove them from your programs Some anti virus programs act as gatekeepers and attempt to identify virus strains before they have a chance to inflict damage Disk Maintenance Your hard disk is an indispensable part of your system It contains the programs you use any work you do and the operating system that makes your computer work Hard disks are mechanical devices that suffer wear and tear as you use your computer When files are written they are often not stored together The first part may be at the head of the hard disk and the middle and end in another area The drive must spend time looking for these parts On today s large hard disks this can slow down your computer This is called hard disk fragmentation and it happens on PCs as well as Macs To solve this problem you need to defragment your disk The process is known as optimization This involves moving the files together or rewriting the material into continuous blocks There are a number
23. been said that the best way to make sure you understand something is to teach it to someone else Now that you know a little bit about computers you are probably anxious to share what you have learned with others For this activity you will be teaching some basic computer operation to another person or small group You probably won t have any problem finding a willing audience as many people are anxious to learn about computers DOIT This activity will require access to a computer or if you are working with a group a pool of computers that group members can share Also you might want to develop visuals that you can use in your presentation see Lights Camera Presentation Develop a presentation that you can give to your target audience on basic computer operation Before your presentation try to find out from your audience what it is they already know about computers You will want to base your presentation on that information If for instance no one in your group has ever even turned on a computer your presentation will be much different than a presentation you might develop for more experienced users Some items you will probably want to include in your presentation are turning the computer off and on basic navigation in the operating system you are using opening programs within that operating system saving files within programs and basic computer capabilities word processing Internet databases spreadsheets etc
24. club to join you next time there is a 4 H Chat Room session Teach them what you have already learned about chat sessions Develop your own set of guidelines for on line safety Share your guidelines with other young people who are likely to participate in chat sessions DATA BANK Chat sessions allow us to communicate in real time with others who have similar interests Don t be deceived however this chatting isn t really talking it s typing It s different from e mail though because 70 Illinois 4 H Computer Project there is no delay in communication The person you are communicating with can answer you almost immediately Chat sessions also are different from e mail in that usually they are public This means that nearly anyone could be reading what you are saying to your fellow chatter This could mean a parent a younger child anyone Because of this it is wise to be very cautious when communicating with others through chat sessions Safety is a big concern especially for young people visiting the Internet While surfing the Web can be dangerous enough participating in some chat sessions can be even more dangerous This is because people sometimes misrepresent themselves and are not what they appear when they are on line The list below are My Rules for Online Safety taken from the 4 H Chat page Please read through them before visiting the World Wide Web will not give out personal information su
25. contains this material Save that file to your disk with a name such as homepage html then look at it with your Web browser using it s provisions to open a local that is non Internet file If you see a page that says only Put whatever you want on your Web page here It can get pretty long and the title bar at the top of the browser window says Put the title you want for your page here then you ve done it all right Otherwise look for mistakes such as typing errors Notice how the HTML tags here indicate both the beginning and the ending of the region they control Without a correct ending the Web browser keeps reading ahead forever and may produce worthless results Try deliberately making this mistake by removing the gt on the end of the lt BODY gt tag above saving the file and reloading that page into your Web browser Remember to put the gt back after you re done experimenting Now modify the text in the file to personalize it For example change Put the title you want for your page here to The official Jimmy Bob Fan Club Web or Lynn s Homepage or anything else you d like Change the content of the BODY too putting in something of your own writing Now let s explore linking to other Web pages Make another Web page using the starting text above but modify this text and title to be something about my dog Spot or any other pet you have or wish you had Save that second file under a name like
26. design the table but a general example is given below DATE FROM TO MODE GAS AIRFARE MEALS LODGING OTHER 6 12 98 home Chicago car Chicago Orlando air 200 55 150 25 6 13 98 Orlando Orlando 70 150 44 6 20 98 Orlando Chicago air 200 35 60 Chicago home car 20 TOTALS 20 400 160 300 129 GRAND TOTAL 1009 REVIEW Write up a brief description of the activity Include such things as the amount of time it took to do the activity the procedures you followed the name s and URL s of the Web sites you used any problems you encountered and what you particularly enjoyed about the exercise Discuss the activity with your project helper your club or class What did you find most appealing about planning the vacation online versus using other information sources Describe some other activities that you could plan and organize online PURSUE IT 78 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Go online to plan an actual family vacation See how closely your family is able to stay to your itinerary and cost estimates Have a travel agent plan the same vacation and compare the agent s itinerary and estimates to yours Develop a vacation tip sheet for a well known destination Use information you are able to gather from official and unofficial Web sites and Usenet news groups to develop your tips DATA BANK URLs http Awww disney com DisneyWorld index html The official Walt Disney World page http Awww yahoo com Regional U_S_
27. each day Other chat sessions happen at a regular scheduled time Still other chat sessions happen only one time For this activity you will be joining the 4 H Chat Room This is a chat session developed specifically for 4 H members It is held every fourth Saturday of each month at 4 p m C S T This chat session is sponsored by the National 4 H Council To find out more check out the 4 H Chat Web Page http Awww 4 h org chat After you have visited the 4 H Chat Room write a brief report 1 2 paragraphs of what you learned from participating and what other interests you hope to explore through chat sessions REVIEW Share the report you created with a parent or with an adult volunteer Explain the process you went through in order to participate in the 4 H Chat Room and what topics were discussed while you were in the Chat Room Did you find the 4 H Chat Room interesting Why or why not Did you participate directly or just observe Were you hesitant to join in the chatting Why or why not Were there safety precautions that you took while you were on line If so what were those precautions PURSUE IT Investigate other chat sessions that are of interest to you Check with your parent s before visiting any chat session Visit with someone who is more experienced with chat sessions Ask him or her what was the most interesting chat session they participated in What made it interesting Ask someone from your 4 H
28. it Enter the addresses and voila you have an address book Print it out keep it on a disk in your desk or leave it as a file on the computer Now use the program s sort function to sort your database by different categories last name first name nickname phone number city state zip code REVIEW IT What advantages does the computer database have over a printed address book What additional information would you like to put into your address book PURSUE ITD Use your database to learn to print out address labels Set up a database of information for your family such as favorite family recipes DATA BANK The instruction manual and or online help feature of your database software should contain all the necessary information to help you set up your database Illinois 4 H Computer Project 55 UNIT Using Software DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Balance an account with an accounting program PROJECT SKILL Use an accounting program HELPER S LIFE SKILL Keeping records planning and organizing INITIALS marketable skills KEEPING YOUR BALANCE Are you the treasurer of your 4 H club or any other club for that matter Do you find keeping an accurate treasurer s book or balancing your checkbook to be boring and difficult Believe it or not the task can be oh Try using a computerized accounting program such as Quicken Microsoft Money etc to make the job easy Mat
29. it asks you to do to learn how the computer you are using works and how it can help you REVIEW IT What did you learn The great thing about learning is that the more you know the more you realize you don t know Write down some questions that you d like your computer to answer Hint a topic or topics from some of the activities you have already completed things you would like to know more about Use the on line help s index to search for the answers to your questions Use the word processor on your computer to create a document of FAQ s frequently asked questions and their answers You may find these helpful as you continue your computer travels PURSUE IT Not only does the operating system have a tutorial but also most programs word processors spreadsheets databases games etc also have a built in tutorial to get you started using the program Try the tutorial on several of these applications as well and continue to build your FAQ list Make a new chapter for each program with tutorials you use Your FAQ may be a valuable resource for you as well as others who don t know how easy it is to take the tour Teach someone else what you ve learned The world is full of people who d like to know about computers but lack your courage to find out on their own Your parents grandparents or your brothers or sisters may be just waiting to be given a personalized guided tour DATA BANK Introduction About this computer
30. on a computer REVIEW What problems did you encounter during this activity How did you solve them Use your computer s file manager to see the complete tree that exists on your hard disk and see if you can figure out what the major folders are used to store Caution Don t move files out of any folders other than files your family has created PURSUE IT A file s name can be very useful in helping its owner determine its contents without having to open it to look inside One advantage of good file management is that the name need not be wasted in telling the computer s users who the file belongs to or what its basic subject is For example before the file system was organized a report on Harry Truman that John created for his history class may have needed the name John s History Report Truman so John could tell what it was After the files were organized there is a 28 Illinois 4 H Computer Project folder titled John Inside that folder is one called history So instead of a long file name John could name his file Truman and he would still know what it is Look over the files you have relocated and see if you can rename them to be more specific taking advantage of the fact that the file s location in the tree makes a lot of information about a file apparent File extensions are three letter suffixes that programs place on the end of file names to indicate what type of file it is See if
31. or income They ll find it very helpful at income tax time to be able to have a list of all their charitable donations their interest income medical expenses etc Ask them for a list of categories they d like you to keep track of for them Then figure out how to enter those categories into your accounting program and how to assign each transaction to a category Once again if their account balance can be reconciled to agree with the bank s each month you ll know you ve succeeded Your parents will appreciate the help and you ll be preparing yourself for a balanced future Many banks now offer on line payment of bills and most accounting software programs allow on line payments as well They also offer the ability to print checks from a transaction that is entered DATA BANK Most computer software programs for accounting and money management are accompanied by a manual that will lead you through all you need to know to use that particular program Also the program s on line help lets you search for a topic and provides instructions about that topic 56 Illinois 4 H Computer Project URLs Intuit maker of Quicken http www intuit com Setting up the categories correctly will take some time but it is time well spent Doing a good job of identifying the categories will greatly simplify your work with the program in the future Work carefully with your helper to get the program set up to best meet your needs Illinois 4 H C
32. pages Also it won t be possible to rapidly read or to do an electronic search through the whole document at once Consider this situation applied to yourself a small store near you and a big company with offices or stores all over How could you keep track of all that gets written by all those employees How could you make sure the Web pages stay easily readable for new readers Do too many links eventually just get tiring to your readers Look into using active content parts that move and interact with the reader in your Web pages including such technologies as XML Java JavaScript and ActiveX This could easily turn into a computer programming project if you re so inclined Look into using more complex HTML such as TABLEs and FRAMEs to control the layout and appearance of your pages Some types of pages need this assistance more than others Investigate creating programs that run on a Web server to process inquiries from Web page users Such applications include looking someone up in a phone book taking an opinion poll and keeping track of grades for students in a class This is definitely a programming project Discuss implications of the copyright laws on your freedom to use images and other parts of other people s Web pages within your own Web page or within a new Web page you re making for a friend s company Learn to use a program that helps you lay out Web pages easily and pictorially Evaluate whether the time spent learnin
33. parent and find out what computer jobs exist in their line of work How many different people or jobs can you list Talk to one of those people who earns his or her living doing computer work Materials needed This activity requires only your ability to ask questions and a pencil and paper DO IT Make your list of computer jobs and persons you know or know about who work with computers Ask your helper or your parent to look it over and help you think of more Get as many as you can Arrange to visit one of the people on your list and interview him or her The first step is to call and ask for an appointment with the individual Tell him or her what you are doing and arrange a time when you could do an interview Tip speaking can be in a face to face interview by telephone or even by e mail Make a list of questions you want to ask before you conduct the interview Things to consider What does the person do What training education did he need to get this position What other computer related careers does he know about What advise does he have for people who want to get a job with computers What does he think the opportunities are for future jobs in the field Record the answers take notes REVIEW Share what you learned about this career with other members of your club or group Give a brief report to the group What surprised you about the career of the person you interviewed Are there things you would nee
34. posted articles Also these machines talk among themselves and if one machine is missing a recent posting the other machines send it a copy Within a couple days an article posted to one news host gets copied onto thousands of news hosts around the world Your Internet service provider should tell you how to connect to your local news host To get started connect to your news host and then look at the list of all the publicly visible news groups on that host Not all news hosts carry all news groups some are left out because no customer is interested others are left out because they contain potentially offensive material and others are left out because they re so new the operator hasn t heard of them Go down the list of news groups and subscribe to any that look interesting to you There are very many on travel each specific to a destination country hobbies music by instrument or by performer computer stuff and the like Show this list of subscriptions to your parents or guardians for approval Now open any one of the news groups you ve subscribed to You ll probably see a large number of articles and notes written over the last several days You can read through as many of these as you d like It s generally considered good Internet manners to read before posting writing to the group so that you see if your question has already been answered This way you don t waste everybody s time Remember this news group is probably distr
35. stuff lt B gt as bold The most widely used markup language on the Web today and the original is HTML Hyper Text Markup Language Hyper Text refers to the ability to link to other documents from any place you wish within your document Other commands are not so obvious visually The sentence Last summer we visited the lt A HREF http www whitehouse gov gt White House lt A gt in Washington D C instructs the Web browser that when the user does a mouse click on the displayed words White House the browser is to use the connection rules called HTTP Hyper Text Transport Protocol to load the Web page from the computer www whitehouse gov That site is obviously the White House homepage One of the main features of the Web that made it so popular is that the person reading the document doesn t have to know anything about protocols or Internet machine addresses or physical locations they just click on what they want to have loaded for them Web browsers usually display the active spots in which mouse clicks are allowed somewhat differently such as using blue lettering and underlining At this point you need a place to start Here s one lt HTML gt lt HEAD gt lt TITLE gt Put the title you want for your page here lt TITLE gt lt HEAD gt lt BODY gt Put whatever you want on your Web page here It can get pretty long lt BODY gt lt HTML gt First create a file using your editor that
36. this information on the World Wide Web Are there other sources of information that go along with what have found through this source In recent years it has become easier for people to get information published and placed on the World Wide Web Because of this it is very important that we consider the source of information and the quality of the information On the World Wide Web you will find sites from individuals government agencies businesses organizations and universities These individuals and groups put information on the World Wide Web for many reasons Increasingly the Internet has become a way for companies to market their product Because of that you need to be just as careful when you gather information from some Web sites as you would if you were gathering information from a television commercial Search engines are a little like a table of contents for a book or a card catalog in a library They help Internet visitors to find the information they are looking for They do this by taking the key words the visitor types in and searching its references for matches After it has had time to search it lists the items that most closely match the words the person typed in These lists include a few brief lines from the Web page as well as a hyperlink to the page itself The words you type in to start a search can be the difference between a successful search and one that is overwhelming Try to be as specific as possible when you st
37. to a variable In BASIC the syntax of an assignment statement for a numeric variable one that contains a number is 10 B 3 Note that 10 is only the line number not required with all BASICs and that the statement itself puts a number into A that is the result of getting the number in B and adding 3 to it Input and Output to communicate with the human user Note that input means going in to the computer and output means coming out of the computer In order to do most forms of really useful work a program needs to be able to have you tell it what input data is to be processed And once the processing is done there has to be a way to tell you what the answers are Otherwise it s not much use Combining both of these plus the assignment statement we have a BASIC program that reads two numbers and prints out their total 10 INPUT A 20 INPUT B 30T B A 40 PRINT T 50 END Illinois 4 H Computer Project 89 Comments to include notes to yourself or others concerning what you re doing and why This gets to be really important in long programs where it s easy to get confused It s also really important if you write a really useful program such as a multi function calculator and decide you want to make changes to it a few years later on The computer ignores these To the program above we might add the BASIC comment 35 REM wrote this because lost my calculator and have math homework tonight Conditional branching to
38. universally available standardized no cost language at this time you may need the help of your Project Leader or a friend in determining exactly what to do to fix a specific problem on the model of computer you re using with the specific vendor and version of the programming language you re using In practice there s a good deal of similarity but not exactness so many people may be able to help you even though they haven t used exactly your set up before Unfortunately with the release of Windows 95 BASIC is no longer a pre installed no cost part of the Microsoft operating system software package Other operating systems e g Macintosh may or may not include BASIC So whatever programming language you want to use you or a helper may have to legally obtain a copy and install it on your computer in order to do this project If you don t want to use BASIC other widely available reasonably priced or sometimes even free extensively documented beginner friendly languages include PASCAL and JAVA Materials needed A compiler or interpreter or a development environment for the programming language you choose Reference manuals on the programming language or environment Books on sample programs for beginners with your programming language Frequent access to the computer where you will be doing your programming A printer connected to this computer directly or via network is very helpful 88 Illinois 4 H Computer Project
39. use of recording hardware and software e g SoundBlaster cards and similar devices by other firms must be obtained Access to a Web server is desirable but optional Web pages may be loaded directly off your own disk drive although other people will be unable to load your Web page Access to the Internet is desirable but optional A variety of reference material images and sample files are available via the Internet Without access to the Internet links from your Web page to those of other people cannot be followed by the Web browser A reference book on HTML would be very helpful These became widely available in about 1994 so there may be some in your local library Bookstores that deal in computer books will certainly have some Or perfectly usable HTML training materials are available on the Web itself Note that XML SGML Java JavaScript and other advanced topics are beyond the scope of this activity DO IT Web pages are usually combinations of text instructions about loading certain images and instructions about how to arrange and display these on the computer screen Authors give instructions to the Web 84 Illinois 4 H Computer Project browser software via a markup language that indicates which parts of the document are treated as logically one group e g a paragraph Many of these instructions are very obvious such as the commands to display lt I gt this stuff lt I gt in italics and lt B gt this
40. which large groups of numbers or records must be processed the same If the number of repetitions needed is known in advance a BASIC FOR loop is useful as in this example that adds all the numbers from 1 to 1000 10 T 0 20 FOR l 1 TO 1000 30T T 40 NEXT 50 PRINT T 60 END Other forms of loops repeat processing until a condition is true e g until the last pay stub has been processed or while a condition is true e g a cruise control accelerating while the vehicle speed is in the too slow category Selection between these alternative forms is usually on the basis of what fits the real world problem description the best Function calls Complex calculations that are repeated at many points in a program often are best handled as programmer defined functions These behave like the built in functions to do common mathematical operations such as sine cosine square root etc but they may be any function you wish For example if a program of yours that is investigating engine fuel economy is repeatedly using the calculation 2 1 X 3 4 06 X 2 11 9 X 1 15 a helpful shortcut is to define the BASIC unction DEF FNA X 2 1 X 3 4 06 X 2 11 9 1 15 and then to simply use that function like this W FNA 1 25 Y FNA 1 88 Z FNA 2 492 rather than typing W 2 1 1 25 3 4 06 1 25 2 11 9 1 25 1 15 90 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Y 2 1 1 88 3 4 06 1 88 2 11 9 1 88
41. wish to share computer time when searching for project information on the Web You will notice that the DATA BANK section of many of the project activities lists the Web addresses or URLs Universal Resource Locators of resources related to the activity Unfortunately many Web sites tend to be temporary or to move to different places Therefore all of the Web sites listed in this project guide also will be accessible through the new Illinois 4 H Web site The list of links will be maintained and upgraded as necessary Other project information and updates also will be available on this new site The URL for the Illinois 4 H Web page is http www 4 H uiuc edu Check it out early and often 2 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Members who do not know how to navigate the WWW should first complete with your help the activity entitled Search com in the Networking unit This gives them the bare basics of Web navigation needed to complete the activities As members progress they will become more comfortable and proficient at finding evaluating and using information from the Web NOTE You may wish to give the member alternative or additional training in Web browsing Please also remember that these Web sites were chosen for their content Though some are written in kid friendly language others are not The member may need your help in interpreting some of the vocabulary While Web resources are recommended members who cannot readily
42. with others Illinois 4 H Computer Project 7 UNIT What a Computer Is and Does DATE LEVEL Beginning COMPLETED ACTIVITY Do a computer word search and crossword PROJECT SKILL Learn Computer Vocabulary HELPER S LIFE SKILL Learning to learn INITIALS TALKING THE TALK Sometimes it s hard to get involved in something new if you don t know the language it uses Computers have a language all their own and it changes and grows every day Although it s impossible to keep up with all that s new learning the basics is essential to getting really involved with computers Sometimes learning the basics can be fun and it doesn t even require a computer Materials needed Pencil computer reference material either online or printed books magazines DO IT You don t need a computer to learn some computer words Find the computer words in the word searches in this exercise Computer Word Search Search Some More and Still Searching But what do those words mean Try using the words from the word searches to match the definitions in the crossword puzzles Computer Crossword and More Cross Words Of course not necessarily all the words from the searches will be used in the crossword puzzles REVIEW Did you learn any new computer terms Do you understand what those words mean Can you use them in sentences correctly Look up the words that weren t defined in the puzzles to fu
43. you can find what the following file extensions mean doc txt xls ppt jpg pic Organized CA Entire hard disk My Documents Program Files DATA BANK Unorganized Entire hard disk Windows Windows Files System John s History Report Truman Conan Phone List Config Word Processing Program Chess game Jenny s lab report Dad s accounting file Virus Scanner Sunday school lesson PTA meeting minutes Dad s work file Another Dad s work file Mom s work file John s baseball card collection John s 4 H project file Correspondence 4 H Projects Lab Reports Word Perfect Lotus 123 Quicken Star Blaster Virus Scanner Illinois 4 H Computer Project 29 UNIT Operation and Maintenance DATE LEVEL Advanced COMPLETED ACTIVITY Set up a new computer PROJECT SKILL Identify computer parts amp functions HELPER S LIFE SKILL Planning and organizing INITIALS PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER Getting a new computer is great Trying out all the new features and seeing just what it can do is great fun Have you ever considered m
44. 98 THE ILLINOIS 4 H COMPUTER PROJ LOST I N CYBERSPACE MEMBER S MANUAL HELPER S GUIDE NAME AGE COUNTY TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR THE PROJECT HELPER urnes aie sa uae i ade headin FOR THE MEMBER EXHIBIT OPPORTUNITIES UNIT 1 WHAT A COMPUTER IS AND DOES TALKING THE TALK a Et teenager ns An enon SCAVENGER HUNT sis 5eme en de nd tee ceeds tel a tan ta Rd nou abd devs PE Sd rt rt enter HI HO ITS OFF TO WORK WE GO iii 17 UNIT 2 OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE iii 19 WHAT GOES WHERE e ee ee oe ete ren a sv el 20 GAME TIME ne SR ictal BO E Ss Mech Ste malady 22 MKE THE TOUR men nas tn ds ments nie hs ns OGM teeth iid tues 24 PLAYING WITH THE FILING CABINET iii 26 THE FAMILY TREE icc te A ne A a Met S 28 PUTTING ITAEL TOGETHER so mur ue ere vee efor dues 30 32 CHEAT SHEET 35 WHATS IT GOT UNDER THE HOOD iii 37 YOU VE GOT A CLASS diino Masts ani nal ani a Madi aan 40 UNIT 3 USING SOFTWARE ane ae chk Megha at ti attestant Dune 42 ATTENTION SOFTWARE SHOPPERS etre a ne ne te en tn 43 LEAVE THE WORK TO YOUR COMPUTER iii 45 THE TEACHER HA
45. Development of the Internet reached a point at which a wide variety of information could be provided to people by 1990 Soon thereafter a much more general purpose access mechanism called the World Wide Web was invented Easy to use browser software made it possible for people to travel through information collections around the world without requiring a detailed knowledge of how to interact with all those computers At the same time Internet access started becoming much easier with a large number of firms now providing these services at prices affordable in many private homes The combination of these factors led to an explosive period of growth for the Web with sites homepages providing information on companies government agencies and private individuals This activity explores creating Web pages for personal interest or for use by community groups or even businesses Materials needed Easy frequent access to a computer that has a Web browser If the use of graphics or sound or more advanced features such as embedded Java programs is desired the computer must have a windowing operating system e g Microsoft Windows Mac OS and a suitably advanced Web browser must be used Your Internet service provider company may provide you with a Web browser or you may obtain one from companies such as Microsoft http Awww microsoft com or Netscape http www netscape com possibly without charge A simple text editor something as si
46. Getting started Operating tips How to Example of a typical help menu Troubleshooting Illinois 4 H Computer Project Display Cancel Highlight the topic you want information about and click on Display Accessing Help in Windows 95 1 Click the Start button at the lower left corner of the screen 2 Highlight Help and click the mouse the help window will appear Accessing Help on a Macintosh 1 Click the question mark located near the upper right hand corner of the screen 2 help window will appear If you are operating a software program there should be a Help menu option along the top of the screen usually toward the right hand side Illinois 4 H Computer Project 25 UNIT Operation and Maintenance DATE LEVEL Beginning COMPLETED ACTIVITY Creating and manipulating a file PROJECT SKILL Performing basic operations with files HELPER S LIFE SKILL Marketable skills INITIALS PLAYING WITH THE FILING CABINET Computers store information in groups of electronic bits but we the users don t have to worry about such things We typically work with documents letters research papers etc In computer language these documents are called files To make them easier for us to understand computer operating systems organize our files into folders or directories A file on your computer may be part of your computer s operatin
47. How does Internet research compare with library research What was the most difficult part of conducting your Internet research How did you ensure that the information you found on the WWW was reliable PURSUE IT Mentor a classmate in conducting Internet research or give a demonstration to your club or class on finding information on the Web Offer to help children in a younger grade learn research skills on the Internet DATA BANK Refer to the activity Search com for information on conducting an internet search A good place to begin searching for topics is the Yahoo Website at http www yahoo com Citing Internet Resources 74 Illinois 4 H Computer Project A complete reference to citing Internet addresses is available online at http www classroom com resource citingnetresources asp Here is a fictitious example of a Web page citation Doe John How to build a better mousetrap Online Available http Avww nothingnet net doe mousetrap html March 9 1998 Illinois 4 H Computer Project 75 UNIT Networking DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Take a shopping trip on the WWW PROJECT SKILL Commerce on the WWW HELPER S LIFE SKILL Decision making INITIALS SHOP TIL YOU DROP Are you a shop holic Then have we got a treat for you The WWW is a shopper s paradise even bigger than Mall of America It s a worldwide mall You can buy everything from cars to computers o
48. If possible be sure to allow time for hands on learning by your audience REVIEW After your presentation visit with your audience Find out from them what additional information they are interested in learning Also ask them to make suggestions for ways that you can improve your presentation next time Write down reflections that you have on your presentation What parts of your presentation went well What parts could use some polish What can you do to improve the areas that need improvement Were you surprised at how your audience responded to your presentation Why or why not PURSUE IT Visit an instructor who teaches computer classes This could be at your school or at a local community college Ask the instructor what techniques and methods they use to help teach effectively Volunteer to teach a basic computer operation class to a different audience Consider volunteering at a retirement center a youth group or at a public library Carefully consider how your approach and message may need to be different based on the needs of your audience Develop a mutli media computer based presentation based on the presentation you developed consider using presentation software like Freelance Graphics or PowerPoint for this assignment Volunteer to place your presentation on a computer so it can be accessed by people who would like to learn about computer operation on their own Schools and libraries are both likely outle
49. L would be L C could be CCC L C L C LLLL CCC Concepts used assignment conditional branching 2 Here s a little number juggling program Ask a user for the year of his or her birth and his or her age Then double the birth year add five multiply by fifty add the age subtract 250 and divide by 100 Write the answer out with 2 digits of decimal accuracy What is it Be sure your program tells the user what it s doing with each step Concepts used requesting user input assignment to variables and formatting output 92 Illinois 4 H Computer Project 3 Write a program that asks for a person s age in years months and days and tell that user how many seconds old they are Write the answer with comma s in the appropriate places in the number if you can Continue to ask for another age to convert to seconds until the user enters a 0 which is the signal to end the program Concepts used assignment to variables requesting user input iteration formatting output 4 Because a program user can t actually look inside the computer to see what a program does it s possible to make a program seem more intelligent than it really is Write a program that appears to engage in small talk by asking the user questions but which in reality ignores the answers because everybody s answers will be more or less the same You can create a more convincing sense of interaction by periodically prompting for and echoing integer or singl
50. NFORMATION SAFARI When you need to conduct research for a 4 H club talk or a school paper your computer and the Internet have most of the information you need Best of all you never have to worry about overdue books while writing your report You can be preparing it any day of the week and any time of the day It sounds easy and it is The part you must do is evaluate the information you find and organize it into the plan that is best for you You ll also use your skills with a word processing program to write the report Oh yes plan to start early enough to have fun and explore some of the Web sites you visit during your searches This activity lets you put it all together Materials needed A computer with access to the Internet and a printer DO IT 1 Identify your topic and due date 2 Doa Web search to identify sources of information Bookmark them for future reference 3 Decide if you will include sketches or pictures in your final report 4 Download information and images that will be used Be sure these belong to the public domain Information copied from the Web should be footnoted see DATA BANK for information on citing Internet sources Consider developing a graph of data that you ve collected using a spreadsheet or graphics program Write your report Use various functions such as cut and paste and import to develop the final copy of your report 7 spell check ou REVIEW
51. S A RECTANGULAR FACE iii 48 YOU SAY IT S YOUR BIRTHDAY 49 COPYRIGHT LAWS AND ME nv Adie aoa sedi 51 LIGHTS CAMERA PRESENTATION o oo eee 53 DATABASE TO THE RESCUE ae ee ee ee et 55 KEEPING YOUR BALANCE AE agave NE E EAE 56 KEEPING THE BOOKS rr tte mine nan Me ts ne net sn ee che er at ee 58 UNIT 4 2 5 ac second sc 60 EVERYONE IS CONNEGTED eosi eei aatend raa enai aaa a Sa tat 61 SEARCH COM enet cle Bae eenaa aa 62 D LIVER D LETTER D SOONER D BETTER iii 65 NEWS VIEWS ut RE aes A hd Sar a a ane 67 LETS TALK sr ane e a a a E sete 70 CHECK TT OUT Aan ae NEE Mae cana EE AEE N AS 72 INFORMATION SAFARI isian ia iea aa a aa aaa aaa a a 74 SHOP TIL YOU DROPW a E ee ha 76 ianen Aea aT etant Roanne atout eltaw plata aaan 78 UNIT 52 PROGRAMMING 25e edit nites ive ne ine i a rit a 80 CHARTING YOUR COURSE times a a ner cts des 81 WEBMASTER Kirri teari hei rude
52. States Florida Cities Orlando Recreation and Sports Amus ement_and Theme Parks Walt Disney World Several unofficial Disney pages http www expedia com Microsoft Expedia travel planner Illinois 4 H Computer Project 79 UNIT 5 PROGRAMMING Well somebody had to design and write all the programs we use As software programs become ever more advanced we tend to forget that the programming has had to become more and more complex Software and systems designers are in high demand and command desirable salaries Programming itself has become easier with the development of software tools to help By doing the activities in this unit you will learn 1 features and differences in various programming languages 2 How to graphically represent situations and events to assist in program development 3 How to write programs to perform specific functions At the same time you will learn important life skills such as 1 communicating with others 2 problem solving 3 critical thinking 80 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Programming DATE LEVEL Advanced COMPLETED ACTIVITY Develop a flowchart PROJECT SKILL Graphic problem representation HELPER S LIFE SKILL Critical thinking problem solving INITIALS CHARTING YOUR COURSE Understanding real life situations very precisely is the first step in creating a computer program to help people in that situation But keeping track of lots of specific detai
53. T If you need to find the e mail address of a pen pal try searching for pen pal penpal or keypal using a standard search engine http mail starting point com is an example You ll find lots of interesting sounding kids from all over the world today who are looking for pen pals BE CAREFUL though to adhere to the Rules for Online Safety J Pick one or two or three pal s and write a letter of introduction about yourself It s always best to be honest as you describe yourself in your letter Not only is that the best way of finding someone who has similar interests to the real you but if this friendship you re about to begin ever has a change of growing honesty is the best way to build trust Describe yourself generally where you live your activities etc Illinois 4 H Computer Project 65 REVIEW IT How did you go about locating a keypal Was locating a keypal easier or more difficult than you thought it would be What are some advantages and disadvantages of communicating through electronic mail PURSUE IT Netiquette is the term used to describe the rules for polite and appropriate conversation on the Internet Internet etiquette Visit one or more of the Netiquette Web sites listed in the DATA BANK to brush up on your netiquette Emoticons are figures created using symbols on the keyboard to show expression when communicating electronically You need to turn the page
54. TIVITY Conduct a WWW search PROJECT SKILL Using search engines HELPER S LIFE SKILL Decision making INITIALS SEARCH COM You have probably heard people talking about finding all sorts of interesting information on the Internet and World Wide Web Maybe you have even had the chance to look around on the World Wide Web If so you are probably curious to know just exactly how people find the information that they want on the Web Through this activity you will be able to try out an Internet search of your own for information you are looking for Materials needed This activity will require a computer that is Internet accessible You also may find it helpful to have a printer in order to print out information you find DO IT Think about a subject you wish you had more information on Maybe you need to write a history report for school on the Battle of Gettysburg or maybe you are getting ready to do a 4 H demonstration on kite construction Write your ideas down on a page of paper Work with your project helper Using a search engine on the World Wide Web such as Yahoo Lycos Alta Vista or Yahooligans URLs for these are found in the DATA BANK look for information on one of the areas that you have selected Visit and review at least five of the sites that are listed on your search results page Develop a small chart on your computer or on paper Record a rating of each site on a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being a great match very useful
55. a very attractive set of communities Generally there is no additional cost to this activity beyond paying for your basic Internet access However there are good reasons to not tell complete strangers many kinds of personal information This activity will discuss the current primary means of having Internet conversations with people how to use these systems and things to avoid Materials needed Easy frequent access to a computer that can connect to the Internet You will also need a service that provides you e mail capability and a program that runs on your local computer that can connect with this e mail service to send and receive e mail Note that both Netscape s Navigator Web browser and Microsoft s Internet Explorer Web browser include such capability Optionally a service that provides you with access to Internet News Groups and a program that runs on your local computer that can connect with this News server to read and write articles are needed Note that both Netscape s Navigator Web browser and Microsoft s Internet Explorer Web browser include such capability Optionally a chat client program that allows you to connect with live sessions in which people are communicating via Internet Relay Chat IRC or just Chat is necessary DO IT Internet News Thousands of news groups each specific to one topic are established across a network of computers called news hosts These machines store copies of all the
56. aking your own custom computer With some patience and perhaps help from another computer expert you can build your very own computer Materials needed This activity will require the components of a computer a screw driver a small pair of pliers a clean work surface and an anti static wrist strap Also you will want to find a resource for specific instructions on how to construct the computer that you have chosen to put together DO IT The first step will be for you to decide what type of computer you would like to construct Be sure to consider what features your computer should have as well as how much money you would like to spend Another consideration will be the quality of the directions that come with the unassembled computer You can look for information on the World Wide Web or in computer magazines Follow the specific instructions for the computer you are constructing Remember it is essential that you keep the work area clean and you recall that the materials you are working with are static sensitive HINT see Keeping It Healthy on page 32 Try to ensure that the components you assemble are compatible If you are buying components be sure to ask a knowledgeable salesperson and it s a good idea to buy components at a store that will exchange them REVIEW IT Take pictures as you go through the process of constructing your computer Create a display that shows the various steps you went through as you were comple
57. art out and remember you can always start over with your search if the first results aren t what you hoped for Here are a couple of Web sites that will help you develop search strategies http www ultranet com egrlib tutor htm How to search the world wide Web http www bouotell com openfag browsers Web Browsers FAQ Many Internet users have a preference based on previous experience Try out some of the search engines listed below and see which ones your like best Yahoo http www vahoo com Lycos http Avww lycos com Yahooligans http Awww yahooligans com Excite http Awww excite com Alta Vista http Awww altavista digital com HotBot http Awww hotbot com Webcrawler http Awww Webcrawler com Infoseek http Awww infoseek com Goto http www goto com Dogpile http Awww dogpile com Searches several search engines all at once Illinois 4 H Computer Project 63 64 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Networking DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Establish an e mail pen pal keypal PROJECT SKILL Using electronic mail HELPER S LIFE SKILL Communicating with others INITIALS D LIVER D LETTER D SOONER D BETTER Ever have a pen pal Having a pen pal can be a great way to get to know someone someplace far away Before the days of the Internet writing to your pen pal would mean not only writing the letter but also addressing an envelope attaching a stamp and maili
58. ation You don t want to waste paper by handing out more than one invitation to the same person but you don t want to overlook anyone either Money and a budget is a big issue Fortunately Dana s committee is going to work on that Letters need to go out to potential sponsors and someone needs to keep track of who responds to your request and how much money they donate People are also paying to buy tickets to the event so that money will need to be kept track of as well Your class would like to claim at least 50 profit It s up to you and your committee to find out what type of food would best be served to go along with your theme Someone suggests a tropical fruit dip and a fruit punch No one seems to have any recipes You also need to come up with ideas for fun games that might also be found in tropical areas After the party there will be lots to do including lots of thank you notes to write bills to pay and a detailed financial statement of how much money was spent and how much money was taken in REVIEW Which tasks listed could be done with more than one type of software Perhaps both a database and word processing program Which tasks listed would take more than one type of software to complete Which of the tasks listed would be made easier by the use of a computer Are there any that would take more time by using the computer Why or why not Illinois 4 H Computer Project 45 PURSUE IT Try to think
59. ave a discussion with your parents or guardians and or project helper about the above cautionary note and find out what they require you to do in your Internet travels As on a city street you can meet many people and many kinds of people on the Internet Being allowed to go into a city by yourself is similar to being allowed access to the Internet and means your parents or guardians trust that you have the necessary maturity to deal with the situations that may reasonably arise They may impose certain limits on your use of the Net 60 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Networking DATE LEVEL All COMPLETED ACTIVITY Visit a networked office PROJECT SKILL Illustrate a computer network HELPER S LIFE SKILL Learning to learn INITIALS EVERYONE IS CONNECTED In a busy office several computers may be connected In a huge office several hundred computers may be connected Instead of bringing a finished paper to the person working in the desk beside you in a networked office you would send it to them electronically This is much faster and more efficient Let s see how a networked office works Materials needed A paper notepad and pencil or portable computer to take notes DO IT Sketch an office with six desks Each desk has a computer on it Itis a networked office All the computers have the capability of sending messages to all the other five computers Sketch in or write in how you think the computers are connected
60. be aware of is static electricity Static electricity can destroy chips and transistors and create havoc in your PC Fortunately the solution to this problem is inexpensive While you re at the computer store get a can of anti static spray to treat the area around your computer The Best Advice You ll Ever Get Here s a warning Every computer eventually crashes Today hard drives are big reliable and inexpensive They are however not immortal Ask anyone who uses a computer often and they ll tell you a horror story about how they lost information because they didn t back up As a new computer user this could be the most important piece of advice you ever get Back up your files The simplest way to back up is to copy your efforts to floppy disks Most new computers both PC s and Macintoshes come with backup and restore programs Windows 95 includes a backup program that s very easy to use If you have a lot of information to copy floppies can be time consuming Backup devices that record information on removable hard disks are better than floppies The disks hold more information but they also cost more As the use of your computer grows you may eventually need to look into purchasing a tape drive or other storage device such as a zip drive A Healthy Machine Your computer should have arrived in good health Once you start exchanging information with others or surfing around the Internet you run the risk of catching something Viruses
61. ble disk is installed in a drive or the system is unplugged how and when common software applications contribute to doing typical tasks using a computer e g typing a report for school or creating a party invitation Category 2 Using Computer Programs The main goal of projects in this category is to allow members to explore the use of computers in sufficient depth to produce genuinely usable results Members should exhibit a product that they have produced using a selected software application along with a written description of how the product was produced Recommended software applications include word processing programs spreadsheet programs database manager programs graphics and design programs accounting programs communications programs presentation programs and or Web page design programs Category 3 Beginning Computer Programming Members should exhibit a flowchart or alternative visual representation of a program that they have written Members also may choose to demonsirate the actual program NOTE Neither computers nor telephone modem connections are provided to exhibitors at the Illinois State Fair Choice of programming language is optional Programs exhibited in this category require the use of one or more of each of the following kinds of commands 1 Comments to the reader of the program e g Now subtract Taxes from GrossPay to get NetPay 2 Instructions to the user of the program e g Press Q at a
62. byists and others sharing common interests informal groups of friends people working on committees for social or civic or business reasons town governments mutual support groups e g smoking cessation plans Alcoholics Anonymous Parents Without Partners and information groups e g American Cancer Society Illinois Cooperative Extension Service Discuss if sufficient privacy is provided by these mechanisms or how that might be improved 68 Illinois 4 H Computer Project PURSUE IT How to extend the learning Work with someone who can create a local news host with your own local news groups for the benefit of a group like you discussed Help the group get started and watch to see if this new form of communication really helps them Work with someone who can create a listserv for the benefit of a group like you discussed Help the group get started and watch to see if this new form of communication really helps them DATA BANK Books Internet for Kids A Beginner s Guide to Surfing the Net by Pederson and Moss 1995 Los Angeles Price Stern Sloan URLs Beginner s Guide Life on the Internet http www screen com start quide default html Free interactive guide to the internet downloadable http Avww sierramm com smpnet html Yahoo s Beginner s Guides to Internet Links http Awww yahoo com Computers_and Internet Internet Information and Documentation Beginner s Guides 4 H guide to listservs http
63. byte Graphics Hard disk Hardware Homepage HTML HTTP Hypermedia Icon Internet VO Keyboard Kilobyte Laptop Megabyte Megahertz Memory Menu Microprocessor Modem Monitor Motherboard Mouse Multimedia Network Operating System Pentium and Pentium Il Peripheral Pixel Port Program RAM ROM Server Shareware Software Spreadsheet Text file Temp files Toolbar URL Virus WWW World Wide Web Web Web site Web Page Windows 95 NT Word processor WYSIWYG 14 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT What a Computer Is and Does DATE LEVEL Beginning COMPLETED ACTIVITY Computer scavenger hunt PROJECT SKILL Identify uses of computers HELPER S LIFE SKILL Learning to learn INITIALS SCAVENGER HUNT It seems as if computers are all around us probably even in places we would never suspect Computers have become a very important part of our lives Do you know why How can you find out In this activity you will try to find how many ways a computer affects your life Materials needed All you need is a nose for news and maybe a pencil and paper If you can this would be a fun activity to do with a friend or two DO IT You re going to go on a scavenger hunt but instead of hunting for things like feathers or leaves you will be hunting for information Your goal is to find as many things as you can that computers do for people either at home or a friend s home at sc
64. c book character To add hardware or load software onto your PC You lose all unsaved information if your computer does this 20 Content of a file DATA BANK URLs a o Down Speed at which the PC works measured in megahertz Term used to describe someone who is NEW to the Internet You can subscribe and post to one of these like a newspaper A file developed at Colombia University used to transfer files between computers also the name of a famous muppet An application whose purpose is to locate retrieve and record information from the Internet also a rodent PH is a form of one of these You may use one to look up a friend s number Used for viewing the web first developed at the University of Illinois A collection of DATA organized and designed for easy access The abbreviation is MB Networking protocol of the future You cannot get money out of THESE protocols Person who breaks into computers Word Hunt Puzzle Page http www goodnews net wordhunt html Glossary of PC and Internet Terminology Illinois 4 H Computer Project http www users bigoond com jenkos G htm Books Internet for Kids Pederson amp Moss 1995 Price Stern Sloan Terms You Need to Know ASCII Backup Bit Byte Browser CD ROM CPU Chip Cursor Database Digital Directory or folder Diskette or floppy disk DOS Download E mail Expansion slot Expansion card FTP Giga
65. ch as my address telephone number parent s work address telephone number or the name and location of my school without my parent s permission will tell my parents right away if come across any information that makes me feel uncomfortable will never agree to get together with someone meet online without first checking with my parents If my parents agree to the meeting will be sure that it is in a public place and bring my mother or father along will never send a person my picture or anything else without first checking with my parents will not respond to any messages that are mean or in any way make me feel uncomfortable It is not my fault if get a message like that If do will tell my parents right away so that they can contact the online service will talk with my parents so that we can set up rules for going online We will decide upon the time of day that can be online the length of time can be online and appropriate areas for me to visit will not access other areas or break these rules without their permission Additionally never tell anyone your last name or e mail address while you are on line in a chat room Here are some other sites you can visit to find out about chat sessions that might be of interest to you Yahoo Net Events This page has several categories that might be of interest including news science computers and sports It is located at http events yahoo com
66. d hours at a time at your computer make sure you comfortably support your wrists and keep your back straight Keep It Cool and Keep It Clean That little hum you hear when your computer is running comes from small fans Most computers have little fans that pull cool air in from the front and sides of the case and send it across the electronic components The warm air exhausts at the back near the power supply The air coming from inside your PC can be as hot as 85 degrees To operate efficiently your PC must be able to draw the cool air in cool the components and exhaust the warm air If you locate your unit without adequate circulation space you could be asking for trouble Keep the area around the computer free of papers books clothing and anything else that could reduce the air flow Keeping your computer clean is an easy way to protect your investment The inside of your computer will get dusty because the fan inside pulls in air Periodically unplug the computer remove the cover and use a vacuum cleaner with no attachments to pull dust from the components Don t touch any of the components with the vacuum cleaner just let the suction suck the loose dust from inside the machine If your mouse begins to get sticky remove the ball from the mouse and clean it and the pocket it lives in with rubbing alcohol and a Q tip or cheesecloth Keep food and beverages away from your computer area Do not eat or drink when using the computer How Not
67. d to do in this occupation which you would like to do or dislike and why What would you need to start doing in order to prepare for a career like this PURSUE IT Visit more people employed with computers and find out about their jobs Talk with people from a bank a school district a grocery store and a pharmacy Ask each of them how computers are used in their work Do a search of the WWW for careers and job opportunities related to computers For tips on searching the WWW see Search com on page 67 DATA BANK Illinois 4 H Computer Project 17 People Who Use a Computer on the Job Secretaries Teachers Journalists Farmers Grocery store clerks Accountants Bankers Doctors Coaches Artists Mechanics Engineers People Whose Job Is Computers Programmers Computer systems analysts Software designers Computer technicians 18 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT 2 OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE You wouldn t spend thousands of dollars on a tool or machine that you couldn t use If you buy a fancy new lawn tractor you re going to read the instruction manual to learn how to properly operate it You re also going to put the right kind of fuel in it change the oil change the air filter and keep the mower blade sharp You ll do these things to make sure you get your money s worth You need to do the same with a computer learn to properly operate and maintain it in order to get your money s worth By doin
68. e character data such as the user s street number age or number of brothers and sisters A more sophisticated version of this program was used to completely fool people into thinking they were typing answers that were being read and responded to by a real psychiatrist See if you can make yours that realistic and try it with your friends Concepts used processing user input formatting output assignment to variables 5 A palindrome is a number or a text phrase that reads the same backward and forward For example each of the following is a palindrome 12321 WOW 11611 Write a program that reads in a string of letters or numbers or a phrase and determines if it is a palindrome 6 Write a program that creates a schedule for a day by adding time It should ask the user for the time to start the day and the time to end the day s activities Each time should be entered with a colon between the hours and minutes 8 35 The program user should enter activities in the order they wish to do them and the time in minutes that it should take for each activity The user should continue to enter activities and the time to accomplish each activity until the end of the day The program should print to a file a schedule for the day s activities with the time each should start and stop Concepts used assignment to variables writing output to a file iteration conditional branching 7 Inthe game of Hangman a player tries to guess letters in a secre
69. e helpful for this exercise Look again at problem 6 What would you have to do differently to print the schedule to the screen after the user told you all the activities and the time for each Would the program be more difficult that way PURSUE IT Illinois 4 H Computer Project 93 Look again at problem 1 If you want to turn this into a more advanced exercise using arrays try writing first name horizontally Write problem 6 so that the schedule is printed to the screen after the user has provided all the input This will require you to store all of the information before finally printing it Consider using a 2 dimensional array to accomplish this Write problem 7 so that it is a game for one rather than for two Let the computer be the source of the words and have a random number generator select the words from a data bank of words that the program accesses Exhibit your program at the fair Make sure you have written documentation so someone else can figure out what your program is supposed to do and can evaluate whether it does it That documentation should include either a flowchart or pseudocode that is structured and readable DATA BANK The best source of information on the language you are using to write your program is the manual that comes with the compiler or interpreter or environment For more information see http www yahoo com Computers and Internet Programming Languages 94 Illinois 4 H Compute
70. eb authors use very small copies of their images thumbnails to point to the larger files This lets readers get an idea of what the picture is about without a long wait If they decide they really do want the large picture they can click on the small picture and they ll get it For example lt P gt Hi I m Spot a Labrador retriever can t really type so my owner made me this homepage Here s a life sized photo of what look like lt A HREF lifesized gif gt lt IMG SRC thumbnail gif gt lt A gt lt P gt Images are also a problem to people with visual impairments To lessen both problems there s an optional attribute that can go inside an IMG tag to specify an alternative description For example lt P gt Hi I m Spot a Labrador retriever can t really type so my owner made me this homepage Here s a life sized photo of what look like lt A HREF lifesized gif gt lt IMG SRC thumbnail gif ALT Black male Labrador retriever age 9 sitting by water dish gt lt A gt lt P gt Experiment with this by changing the preferences on your Web browser so that it does not automatically load images Most browsers will give some display of the text from the ALT but you may have to position your mouse pointer over the affected region Use your browser s provisions to view the document source to see how other Web pages you like were constructed In this way you ll be able to see fantastic quantities of examples as yo
71. ed software What are the provisions of the law that protect licensed software How does the developer copyright his her software idea For how many years is it copyrighted Describe a lawsuit that concerned illegal use of licensed software What are the penalties for illegal use of licensed software Is it okay to borrow the disk of games your friend just bought and install it on your computer 2 Shareware What are the ethical guides to using shareware Are there any laws concerning use of shareware 15 it ethical to use shareware without sending in the requested fee What is the ethical thing to do if the shareware developer cannot be located Is it okay to borrow your friend s disk of shareware games after he has sent in the requested fee and install it on your computer 3 Freeware Are there any ethical or legal guidelines concerning use of freeware Is it okay to borrow your friend s disk of freeware games and install it onto your computer REVIEW Share your knowledge of software law with your 4 H club Prepare a guide sheet to give to members Why should we know and follow legal and ethical guidelines concerning software copyright laws PURSUE IT Prepare a graph of the way your friends use licensed software shareware and freeware Which type is more useful and why Speak with a local attorney to find out more about laws that apply to computing DATA BANK URLs http Awww yahoo com Government Law Intellectual_Prop
72. er Service Amt Amt Date Total Done Billed Paid Paid Received 6 1 98 Jones Mow 25 25 6 6 98 25 6 2 98 Smith Trim 10 10 6 2 98 35 Notice that the last column needs to contain a formula that adds this row s amount paid to the last row s total received Spreadsheets are great for doing simple math for you Look under your spreadsheet s help menu to learn how to set up formulas Each time you conduct any activity in your business enter the appropriate information into your spreadsheet This will include each time you mow a lawn bill a customer or receive payment from a customer Your spreadsheet will serve as a record of your business s earnings If you have a printer you can print it and use the printed version on the job to record activity in pencil until you return to your computer to enter the activity into the computer The printed version also may be shown to your customers to remind them of the services you have performed and the payments they may still owe REVIEW IT What other information would be helpful to include in your spreadsheet Would it be helpful to have a column for customer check number if they pay by check Would you like a column that records the amount earned even if it hasn t yet been paid to you Try adding these columns and setting up the formulas necessary to let them calculate PURSUE IT Can you think of other types of information that would be good to track using an electronic spreadsheet
73. erent sites Were there many variations in prices How would you pay for the car online What would you need to have in order to pay online PURSUE IT Choose a product that you or someone in your family really intends to buy Shop for the product on the Web and compare prices to what is available to you locally Which is the better deal DATA BANK When getting ready to make a transaction or exchange any sensitive information such as credit card numbers on the Web you had better make sure that the site is secure Web transactions are encrypted to ensure that no unauthorized user can get in The two most popular Web browsers are Netscape and Microsoft Internet Explorer In Netscape there is a small key icon on the bottom left corner of the screen Normally the icon is a broken key meaning that the document or page you are viewing is not secure When the key is solid the document is secure In Internet Explorer a secure document is indicated by a solid padlock icon in the bottom right corner of the screen For more info in Web security check the following Web site http Awww genome wi mit edu WWW fags www security faq html The World Wide Web Security FAQ Illinois 4 H Computer Project 77 UNIT Networking DATE LEVEL Advanced COMPLETED ACTIVITY Plan a vacation on the WWW PROJECT SKILL Search the Web make transactions HELPER S LIFE SKILL Planning and organizing INITIALS TRIPPING OUT P
74. erials needed This activity will require the use of a computer an accounting software program that is installed on the computer and a printer DOIT Each accounting program is little different but they all do about the same thing You ll need to create a new account enter the opening balance in the account and enter each deposit withdrawal or check written as a separate transaction The accounting program will do the rest When you re finished you can print out a ledger of your account This is simply a listing of each transaction usually in order by date showing the balance in your account after each transaction If you are the treasurer of a club you can attach this ledger to your treasurer s book you won t have to hand write an entry for each check written or deposit made to the account REVIEW When the statement of the account you are tracking arrives from the bank use the accounting program s reconciling feature to balance the books You know that you ve succeeded each time your account balances with the statement from the bank Do you think this would be a helpful tool for others to use to keep track of their bank accounts Why or why not Can you suggest any ways that it could be more helpful PURSUE IT Now that you have some experience you can volunteer to balance your parents checking account Take advantage of the accounting program s ability to keep track of each category of expense
75. erm means is simply using more than one kind of media or technique to get your message across This could include using video or audio in addition to the usual computer screens For the purposes of this activity we will be relying on a presentation program to create a multi media presentation Create a presentation using a computer presentation program This presentation could be about your 4 H computer project or it could be for a class at school Include a title screen introducing your talk as well as at least five other screens Be sure to make use of as many of the features on your presentation program as possible Consider including graphics that you have scanned in from other sources or include a graph or chart that helps illustrate the point you are trying to make Additionally some presentation software will allow you to use video files such as AVI or MPEG or audio files WAV When creating your presentation be sure to consider the needs and interests of your audience Make sure that the presentation is both informative and interesting for those participating REVIEW IT Write down a short description of how you decided on the presentation that you created Consider each of the decisions you made Are there any decisions you would have made differently if you were to do this presentation again What if you were going to give this presentation to a different group After you have given your presentation consider the reaction of your a
76. ernatives PURSUE IT The average computer owner doesn t keep the computer s storage space organized and clean As a result they become frustrated when they can t find files they know they ve created Now that you know how to perform all these basic file operations try designing a scheme to organize your files on your computer You ll need to be able to create folders as well as files in order to do an effective organization See The Family Tree in this manual DATA BANK To create your file to play with most word processors will start by presenting you with a new file blank page If not click on File on the toolbar across the top of your screen Then click on new in the pull down menu This should bring up a blank page on which you can create your new document Remember to save your file The save command should be in the same pull down menu Most computers have some way of managing files This is called File Manager in Microsoft Windows version 3 11 and Windows Explorer in Microsoft Windows 95 The Macintosh uses a function called Finder to do just about everything including file management Click the computer icon in the upper right hand corner of the screen to get to finder Illinois 4 H Computer Project 27 UNIT Operation and Maintenance DATE LEVEL Beginning COMPLETED ACTIVITY Organizing files on the family computer PROJECT SKILL File Management HELPER
77. erty Copyright Suggested Outline for Your Talk 1 What the law says about copyright 2 How the copyright law applies to software Illinois 4 H Computer Project 51 3 4 Examples of copyright law violations Simple quiz 52 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Using Software DATE LEVEL Advanced COMPLETED ACTIVITY Develop a computer assisted presentation PROJECT SKILL Using presentation software HELPER S LIFE SKILL Planning and organizing INITIALS LIGHTS CAMERA PRESENTATION Think back to the last presentation that you had to give in front of a group Maybe it was the last time you did a talk or demonstration for your 4 H club or maybe it was a class presentation Did you feel as though your presentation was as interesting and well presented as it could have been Now picture the same presentation with music video clips color graphics and charts Would the presentation have been better and more interesting for your audience Probably so This section should help you give your next presentation some real pizzazz Materials needed For this activity you will need a computer that has a presentation program such as Lotus Freelance Graphics or Power Point installed on it Additionally you will need whatever information you will want to include in your presentation DOIT Multi media has become a frequently heard buzzword around computers these days Basically what this t
78. g system and do things that you never need to know an example is the autoexec bat file that starts a computer s operating system A file may be a collection of instructions used to perform a function and be called a program Or it may be a collection of information a letter a list that you have created for your use It s this last type of file that this activity is about files you have created Materials needed a personal computer DO IT Working with computer files is just like working with paper files almost First you create a file say a letter then you put it into a file folder and save it in your filing cabinet so you know where to find it later Then you can retrieve it change it add to it totally redo it copy it and put the copy into a different file folder and on and on With computer files you do all of those things and more on your monitor screen Work with a project helper friend or parent to complete the following activity Step 1 Use any available word processing program to create the following file of information about yourself Today s Date Name Address Telephone Number Height Weight Eye color Hair Color School Grade Teacher s Name s Hobbies Favorite TV show s Books have read recently Names of three friends Any other information you want to put in Step 2 When you finish use the save function on your word processor to save the file Name the f
79. g the activities in this unit you will learn 1 To identify parts of the computer and what these parts do 2 To compare different computer systems and determine which one is right for you 3 How to do some basic things with your computer like a turnit on and off b use the keyboard and mouse c find open change save and close files d use diskettes and CD ROMs 4 How to properly and safely care for your computer 5 How to troubleshoot or solve some basic computer problems Along the way you ll be learning important life skills such as following directions problem solving finding and using information comparing planning and organizing communicating with others decision making Illinois 4 H Computer Project 19 UNIT Operation and Maintenance DATE LEVEL Beginning COMPLETED ACTIVITY Make a display of computer parts PROJECT SKILL Identifying computer parts HELPER S LIFE SKILL Planning and organizing INITIALS WHAT GOES WHERE Any time you start to learn something new there is a whole new set of vocabulary words to know Think about the last hobby that you started Did you know all of the terms and words used in that area before you began your work Probably not Knowing those words and terms however probably made it easier to communicate with others about that hobby So it is with computers By learning some basics about what makes them work we are able to better understa
80. g this tool is worth it in terms of time it could eventually save DATA BANK Several sources on Web page development can be found at http Awww yahoo com Computers_and_Internet Internet World Wide Web Page Creation Illinois 4 H Computer Project 87 UNIT Programming DATE LEVEL Advanced COMPLETED ACTIVITY Write a computer program PROJECT SKILL Writing programs HELPER S LIFE SKILL Learning to learn problem solving INITIALS PROGRAMMING 101 Computers now take many forms and are available in many places in people s lives From special purpose computers such as those that monitor operation of automobiles through general purpose computers such as those used in homes and offices to specialized computers constructed to solve very large problems in mathematics and science all computers perform tasks directed by instructions software programs that someone wrote People in many walks of life can simply purchase software to assist in their work Others whose work is more specialized or who need specific variations in the operation of the computer need to be able to construct software for their own purposes Software development or computer programming now takes many forms In this project either higher order languages or visual programming may be used In both of these a piece of software exists to allow human friendly forms of expression to be translated to the highly specific form of instructions to which
81. gh for you expand this to the runner s decision making for any out of any inning starting on any base any other combination of runners on base shortstops who are known to not be very good making double plays batters whose batting averages are known pitchers whose earned run averages are known etc Note how ordinary human activities can turn out to be amazingly complex once you start to really examine them Once you ve experienced the difficulties of trying to make a single flowchart that covers a very large topic discuss with your Project Leader how making a series of flowcharts of parts of the project might result in diagrams that are easier for people to understand Explore how to connect between these different drawings so the entire system is still correctly represented Explore ways you can indicate parts and subparts easily and consistently so that other people understand what your drawings mean Many classes of problems have other things to consider in addition to a sequence of operations For example consider a large bank with many local offices in which a very large number of checks is being processed daily It s possible that two stores can simultaneously present checks written by the same person but where the account only has enough money to cover one of the checks not both A central computer or account balance storage file usually is used and all transactions are checked against that Or in game systems the program may co
82. her person in turn starting from the end with the tallest person 6 Change your drawing for 5 to show how to find your place in that line starting with the shortest person Make your changes in a different color and try to make the fewest changes you can that will still produce the correct answer 7 Make a flowchart diagramming how to make a sandwich with a lot of different ingredients Make up your own list of ingredients and make up special cases to test for e g there s no cheese left in the refrigerator or the only kind of bread we have today is whole wheat If you want use this diagram following the instructions very closely to build and then eat this sandwich If the sandwich isn t going to be something you d enjoy eating modify the flowchart using a different color to bypass the steps you want to leave out Step 3 Ask some other people to tell you what your drawings mean to them Don t answer any of their questions verbally but make them get all their information from the drawing itself If they don t understand the drawings the way you intended explore other ways of labeling the drawings or other ways of grouping related activities close together on the same sheet to aid understanding Ask the people again to see if you ve been able to make the drawing communicate better The purpose of things like flowcharts is primarily to make certain everybody understands a sequence of events in precisely the same way REVIEW IT
83. here they just don t work well Many symbols have been developed for special purpose use in flowcharting related to computer programs Most of these not widely known or consistently used For purposes of this project it s enough to know the uses of a processing block drawn as a rectangle with a written description of the activity inside a decision block drawn as a diamond with a written description of the question being asked or the criteria being used to make the decision a start and stop indicator usually drawn as a rectangle with convex sides a multi way branch usually drawn as a decision block with multiple output paths each annotated with the condition that causes that path to be taken the flow lines themselves with arrows to indicate direction of flow except that down is the assumed direction and need not be labeled and an off page connector usually drawn as a small circle with a number inside Also it s important to understand that flowcharts and other such drawings are temporary sketches for the purpose of helping you understand and helping you communicate with others They will almost certainly be changed as you go deeper and deeper into understanding the problem It s OK to revise these drawings heavily Eventually if they get marked up enough you can t follow what s going on it s time to make a new cleaned up drawing Step 1 Learn to draw all of these symbols individually not necessarily connected with o
84. hool or in the community See how many things you can write in the chart below a couple of hints are given in the HOME category Use whatever methods you want to get your information talk to people look in the phone book visit places Get together with a few friends of family members and make a contest out of it Where the computer is What the computer is used to do HOME Play games Write letters SCHOOL COMMUNITY REVIEW How did you go about doing your hunt What things did you find that you did not expect to find Was the scavenger hunt harder or easier than you expected Why Illinois 4 H Computer Project 15 PURSUE IT Use the information you found to create a short talk or a poster on The Importance of Computers in Our Lives Present it to your club or class Have your helper parent or a friend show you some of the things that they do with the computer See if you can learn how to do them too 16 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT What a Computer Is and Does DATE LEVEL Beginning COMPLETED ACTIVITY Interview someone who works with computers PROJECT SKILL Explore careers in computers HELPER S LIFE SKILL Communicating with others INITIALS HI HO HI HO IT S OFF TO WORK WE GO This computer stuff is so much fun You mean people get paid to do it They sure dol Think of all the people you know who work with computers Talk to your helper or
85. hrough the process of creating your project Which decision was easiest to make Which decision was the most difficult to make If your card or banner was for an actual person consider how they reacted when they saw your project Did they seem happy What did they like best Did you receive any comments Did you enjoy creating this card or banner Why Is this something that you enjoy more or less than other activities you have done with your computer What would you do differently next time PURSUE IT Create another card or banner Try to include elements in this project that you did not include in your first Try using different quality and weights of paper or if possible a different printer to create the same card Do either of these factors make a difference Visit a store that sells cards Visit with the manager about what types of cards they sell there and which cards are their best sellers Look at old greeting cards you have received Which are your favorites Why are they your favorites Are there ideas that you can borrow from these cards to make your cards better Visit an on line electronic card site on the World Wide Web Check out some of the designs and ideas that they are using consider Blue Mountain On line Cards http oluemountain com index html or American Greetings http Awww americangreetings com greetingcard index pd Illinois 4 H Computer Project 49 DATA BANK Most print programs are pretty user f
86. hs Weaknesses Other criteria you might want to use REVIEW Present your findings to your club or class In your presentation discuss the following Describe the process you followed in reviewing the sites Describe the variations in quality that you found Where did you find the most reliable information Why What types of features did you feel really enhanced the quality of a Web site PURSUE IT Develop and test a Web site evaluation tool for others to use Develop a multi media presentation of your findings For instructions on developing presentations see Lights Camera Presentation in Unit 3 Using Software 72 Illinois 4 H Computer Project DATA BANK Topic Ideas for Web Sites high schools computer or software companies television shows TV and movie stars TV networks NFL teams NBA teams Major League Baseball teams art URLs For additional topics see http www yahoo com For information on Web page design good and bad start with the Lycos Web Design Page at http Awww lycos com resources Webdesign index html For more detailed information on Web site evaluation including instruments visit http www capecod net schrockquide eval htm Illinois 4 H Computer Project 73 UNIT Networking DATE LEVEL Advanced COMPLETED ACTIVITY Conduct research for a report PROJECT SKILL Search the WWW HELPER S LIFE SKILL Learning to learn INITIALS I
87. ibuted worldwide Sometimes you ll see articles or inquiries in which the author wants to be contacted directly e g someone requests a recipe for German Chocolate Cake without coconut and you happen to have one to offer Use e mail for that send a message directly to the person who made the request and avoid posting articles the whole world isn t interested in reading Illinois 4 H Computer Project 67 Eventually you ll feel enough at home with some of these news groups that you want to write and post your own articles or queries That s perfectly acceptable this is what the groups are for But as a courtesy to all 1 proofread your article before you post it to the world 2 don t be hostile or abusive in your language intentionally or unintentionally and 3 only post articles along the theme of that group If you decide a group is not for you you can unsubscribe using the method by which you subscribed in the first place Listservs Distributed e mail communities also can be hosted on a listserv an e mail server that forwards copies of e mails to a list of people Someone in the group has to set up a listserv server and to establish an e mail account for that Then the membership of the group is entered into the server Whenever an e mail message is received addressed to that group the listserv server takes it and transmits it to everybody on the list The members of the list only need their e mail software to use
88. ication tables or learning the states and capitals Learn how to plan and set up a garden Select the educational game and focus on learning while having fun REVIEW IT Think about what you have learned How did the game teach you these things Use your newfound knowledge in some way You may apply it directly to something you are learning in school Build or organize something using what you learned in the educational game PURSUE IT List some specific new skills or blocks of information you want to learn Look in the public library or school library for educational software to help you do that Talk with your teacher about upcoming topics that the class will study and identify educational software to help you learn more about the topic DATA BANK URLs Newsweek s Parent s Guide to Children s Software http Awww newsweekparentsquide com SuperKids Educational Software Review http Awww superkids com 48 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Using Software DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Produce a greeting card or banner PROJECT SKILL Use graphics software HELPER S LIFE SKILL Making decisions INITIALS YOU SAY IT S YOUR BIRTHDAY Do you find yourself wandering aimlessly around the card store looking for just the right card One that has a cool picture and says just the right thing If so you probably have been frustrated because you might like the picture from one card and
89. ice gives you or the Police some degree of traceability of a person based on an idea of their age gender and other attributes Face to face meetings give you a complete description of a person Typewritten discussions give you no confirming characteristics at all Even if you have had a lengthy conversation with someone it is possible they have been lying about themselves all along They may be someone you d very much rather not meet You should never give out any personal contact information e g your address or phone number about yourself to people you ve only known from Internet contacts Extending this idea if your name can be easily looked up in a phone book you might want to only sign your materials by your first name or a nickname Also be aware that signature files in your e mail system or Internet News program are automatically attached to the bottom of anything you send out Make sure no information you want kept private e g your mailing address is in those files Be aware that the most widely used Web browsers of today are sending your e mail address to the Web sites you visit This information disclosure is generally no more a threat than you may get on some junk e mail spam lists and those e mails are easily discarded Disclosing your e mail address is almost the only way to get a reply of any kind so the risk of more junk mail is often simply tolerated Before doing any of the online activities in this unit h
90. ile myinfo or something like that something you can remember Remember the name of the folder you save your file in You may want to make a new folder called Ben s Folder if your name is Ben Save your file close it and quit the program Step 3 After a few days open your file Change the date and any other information that needs to be changed you might have switched friends or hobbies by now Save the changes If you have a printer print the file Step 4 Copy the file to another folder or to a floppy disk There are several ways to do this Use the online help or have your helper help you do it properly 26 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Step 5 Re open your file periodically and update the information Be sure to save the new information to the file before you close it Print out your updates if you want a paper copy If you can accomplish all of this then you can maintain order in your computer if you are an organized person Caution Don t try these operations on files that you didn t create If you rename move or delete a file that your computer needs to operate or you may change your computer into a useless heap of bits REVIEW IT How were you able to perform all of these operations There is probably more than one way to do all of them Some require more mouse work and others more typing See if you can find another way to do each operation Again on line help may provide you with several alt
91. itemap index htm Jeff Napier s Computer Construction Site http members aol com wbox wboxmenu htm Parts You Need to Know CPU Keyboard Mouse O Port Monitor CD ROM drive Hard drive Floppy disk drive Printer Scanner Motherboard Speakers Sound Card See also Putting It All Together on page 30 Illinois 4 H Computer Project 21 UNIT Operation and Maintenance DATE LEVEL Beginning COMPLETED ACTIVITY Play a computer game PROJECT SKILL Basic computer manipulation HELPER S LIFE SKILL Learning to learn INITIALS GAME TIME You learned in Unit 1 that there are many things we can do with a computer One of the most fun is to play computer games Computers can be our best friend and they can be our strongest opponent when playing a computer game Games are also a great way to get familiar with using the computer s keyboard mouse and joystick if the computer has one Many games also help teach us math science or language skills Materials needed A computer with games software if you don t have one at home check out the local library DOIT The idea behind this activity is for you to learn to use the computer s keyboard and mouse Select a game to play on the computer see the DATA BANK for suggestions For this activity you might want to choose a simple game such as a card or board game You may use one that is already on a computer buy and install it on your computer
92. ity REVIEW IT This section presents questions or suggestions to help the member process what has been learned PURSUE IT This section presents some additional challenges to let the member expand his or her learning DATA BANK This section provides information to help the member complete the activity and or points the member to other sources of information such as books or Internet sites The skill level for each activity is labeled Beginning Intermediate or Advanced These labels are meant to indicate the approximate level of computer experience and expertise necessary to complete the activity They have nothing to do with the member s age USING THE INTERNET AS A PROJECT RESOURCE Unfortunately the rapid technological change that renders project guides obsolete does the same to computer resource books It is literally impossible to keep the information up to date Fortunately we have a source of up to date information right at our fingertips the Internet The Internet or more specifically the World Wide Web WWW or the Web is the major source of content information for the activities in the Illinois 4 H computer project Many members who are into the 4 H computer project are probably already Internet surfers Members who do not have access to the Internet at home will need to arrange for computer time at school the local library or another place to find the necessary information Two or more members may
93. l day It s true that computers can do many things for us They can help us organize our lives find out information do complex calculations and keep in touch with distant friends Computers can do so much it is sometimes difficult to keep up with all that they can do DOIT For this activity you will need to identify what tasks could be made easier with computers from the story below After you have done that write down the type of computer application that could help you with your problem Choices of software applications include databases word processors spreadsheets the Internet print software greeting card makers etc and accounting programs So for instance if the task were Write a thank you note to Aunt Susan you would write that task down then write down what type of software in this case word processing software would best help you with that job Hint There are at least ten uses of computers in this story Computers Save the Day You and your best friend Dana are in charge of the fall fund raiser for your class at school You both decide that it would be great if your class could host a party to celebrate the beginning of school Everyone in your class agrees that a Hawaiian theme would be lots of fun First comes the guest list There s a long list of people that you need to invite but some people have their names on more than one list The committee agrees that everyone should receive a personalized invit
94. lanning a vacation is fun but also can be time consuming and expensive Whether you work through a travel agent or do it yourself the job can require dozens of phone calls which means missed calls which means return calls in short the dreaded phone tag Thanks to the Internet you now have all the information you need to plan and schedule your dream vacation literally at your fingertips Materials needed This activity will require the use of a computer with Internet and World Wide Web access a Web browser program a spreadsheet program and a printer The various programs you may need to complete the activity all can be found on the World Wide Web except for the spreadsheet Usenet news groups also can be a good source of travel information DO IT We re going to Disney World There probably is more information available for Disney World than for any other vacation destination Use an online mapping program to determine driving distances and directions don t forget to include gasoline use and cost in calculating your expenses If you want to fly to your destination you can figure in flight schedules and airfares with a flight reservation program don t forget cab bus or shuttle costs Determine lodging rates and availability Finally figure in the cost of attractions Don t forget to add any extra costs you may incur along the way Use a spreadsheet program to develop an itinerary table You can use your own imagination to
95. ls and sequences of events is hard for most people to do To help us think about complex topics it s often helpful to make drawings and notes One of the earliest systems for diagramming sequences of steps is flowcharting Flowcharts are also are used to coordinate tasks involving lots of people such as showing how to assemble large machinery or specifying policies for loan approvals at a bank Materials needed Drawing equipment A flowcharting template or computer program is useful if you have one A template is usually a plastic drawing guide with cutout shapes for the most common symbols Using one of these or a computer graphics program makes the drawing faster and neater Or you can just draw the symbols by hand and learn just as much A collection of activities to be diagramed is needed These either can be computer programming problems you re trying to figure out or multi step processes people go through in their work or activities DO IT In this project you will learn to create flowcharts for a variety of activities humans and computers need to do Some of these activities can be pre existing taken from real life situations and well understood Others can be related to sequence specifications you are trying to develop such as a computer program being developed or instructions for other people to follow or understand In the process you will discover where flowcharting and similar formal description systems are useful and w
96. ls to write programs in that language If you dare read on Materials needed A compiler or interpreter or a development environment for the programming language you choose Reference manuals on the programming language or environment Books on sample programs for beginners with your programming language Frequent access to the computer at which you will be doing your programming A printer connected to this computer directly or via network is very helpful DOIT Select one or more of the following problems and write a program to solve the problem These problems are roughly listed in order of difficulty While you may wish to use a development environment for windowing systems these problems can be solved using just a typed in interface that doesn t have all the fancy graphics Your results may not look fancy but real programmers don t care it s the of the task not the look of the results that counts Eventually you ll be able to be more concerned about the looks but for now enjoy and master the process These problems are just ideas You may have a problem of your own that you would like the computer to solve for you The sky s the limit 1 Write a program that writes your name in block letters vertically down the page If you d like to take this further write a program that asks for any user s first name and write the name in block letters Let each block letter be made up of itself For example
97. mple as Microsoft s Notepad or BBEdit for Macintosh will suffice Such editors are generally built in to any operating system so there is no additional expense The instructions in this activity description assume the use of one of these simple editors Or many companies now produce software to assist in creating Web pages by giving you a more graphical display with which to interact These tools may be available in limited use trial versions without charge Additionally major word processing programs e g Microsoft Word WordPerfect have the ability to automatically save documents in Web formats although generally they are rather inefficient at it and produce unnecessary clutter that could confuse a user If the use of personal graphics in the Web page is desired e g a photograph of the owner or the owner s cat either a digital camera must be used to produce a suitable graphics file or a scanner must be used to scan an existing photograph and produce a graphics output file It may be possible to borrow the use of these devices and simply move the file to the home computer via floppy disk or e mail Note that the most widely supported graphics formats are GIF Graphics Interchange Format and JPEG Joint Photographic Experts Group Although there are a great many image formats if you decide to use other formats some people will not be able to view your images If the use of personalized audio is desired at least temporary
98. nd computers and to better communicate with others who share our interest Materials needed This activity will require that you have access to some basic information about computers This information can be found on line if you have Internet World Wide Web access or in basic computer resource books at your local library Also you will need a large piece of paper or poster board DOIT Using the resource information that you have found create a display that shows the parts of a computer Be sure to include things found on the inside as well as the outside of the computer Some items to include are the power supply clock crystal motherboard video system modem sound card speakers CD ROM hard disk floppy disk printer monitor mouse keyboard and any other component you would like to include As part of the display write a brief description of what each part of the computer does REVIEW Describe how you went about making your display Share the display that you created with your project helper 4 H club or class Take time to explain what the function of each major component is Describe how knowing the parts of the computer will be useful to you as you continue your study of the computer PURSUE IT Alter your display to make it into a quiz board Use your display or quiz board to memorize where each part is found in the computer Visit a computer repair shop and talk with a technician who works there Ask him
99. ng and running that program you will have proved you know where the editor section of your programming language is and how to type in a program you know how to tell a program to run and whoever did it the installation of your programming language was done correctly and the computer is able to find all the various parts it needs in order to run programs So it s important to take the time to find the instructions on how to create this first program and to go ahead and do it If it won t run get help now while your system is still in its simplest form In BASIC all you need to enter for a hello world program is something like 10 PRINT Hello world 20 END RUN The steps are done in numerical order once you type in the command run After your hello world program runs you can have fun with variations such as a hello Fred program or a program that prints Hello world It s a beautiful day the neighborhood Your textbooks or manuals may have lots of simple programs you can easily type in and experiment with Note that the exact way an instruction must be typed is termed its syntax So a syntax error means you either spelled something wrong or used a comma instead of a period or some other simple mistake Exploring the most important types of programming directives For the beginner level All programming languages have commands to do these things Assignment of a value usually the result of some calculation
100. ng the letter Depending upon how far away your pen pal was your letter may take days even weeks to arrive at its destination Not any more Even a pen pal on the other side of the world can receive your letter the same day the same hour even the same minute that you send it Of course it may be the middle of the night where your pen pal lives You may think that beginning a friendship with someone you ve never met could be a bit risky What if you change your mind What if the person doesn t seem like your type and you want to end the friendship What if the person wants to meet you and you don t think that is a good idea Having an e mail pen pal called a keypal is really a lot less risky than having a traditional pen pal An e mail pen pal has way of knowing your last name and where you live if you don t tell them In fact it is recommended that you correspond on a first name basis at least until you know each other very well Make sure that your parents don t object to your having an e mail pen pal If they are concerned have them check out the information on this site http Awww 4j lane edu safety Here are some rules that you should follow These rules also came from a brochure titled Child Safety on the Information Highway and was taken from the site listed above My Rules for Online Safety 1 Iwill not give out personal information such as my address telephone number parent s work address telephone number or
101. not be able to find it because a company may have gone out of business Additional information about purchasing software can be found in computer publications such as Computer Shopper You also may want to check these sites on the Internet PCWorld Comparison of Word Processors http www peworld com software word processing Let s Keep It Simple Spreadsheet http macworld zdnet com pages september 96 Reviews 2613 html Corel WordPerfect Suite 7 Searching for Perfection http netbuyer zdnet com texis netbuyer doframe html rg r129 amp u www zdnet com netbuyer editcs hopper content 9609 cshp0023 html Microsoft Word http Avww microsoft com word default asp Computer Shopper http netbuyer zdnet com texis netbuyer doframe html rg r129 amp u www zdnet com netbuyer edit cs hopper Netbuyer http www zdnet com netbuyer Features To Consider in a Buying Decision Cost Grammar check Import export capability Font availability Flexibility Online help Toolbar functions Compatibility with other programs Multiple format conversion Spell check Automatic formatting Thesaurus Drawing capability 44 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Using Software DATE LEVEL Beginning COMPLETED ACTIVITY Match software to the job PROJECT SKILL Identify software functions HELPER S LIFE SKILL Making decisions INITIALS LEAVE THE WORK TO YOUR COMPUTER love computers can sit around and watch them do my work al
102. nsist of portions that represent the motion and actions of each of the human players and computer controlled players and a central portion that performs umpire and scorekeeper like duties The parts of the program communicate between one another much as people would when working on a project but having separate areas of responsibility In systems such as these it also helps to construct other forms of graphical sketches about how a system is to work One other form of analytical drawing is the data flow diagram in which you sketch the functional parts of the system and show with flow arrows the transfer of data between those parts In that sketch you deliberately do not try to show a sequence of operations as flowcharting would Using both systems can help you specify how to build much larger systems rule books or computer programs To see how flowcharting alone breaks down in these applications try drawing a flowchart for something based on either of these examples Advanced students can then work with Project Leaders to identify more challenging systems to represent or to design and other ways to analyze or represent organizational ideas DATA BANK Example 1 STAR Page 87 T PLA v YES NO Illinois 44H Computer Project 83 UNIT Programming DATE LEVEL All COMPLETED ACTIVITY Develop a Web page PROJECT SKILL Programming a computer HELPER S LIFE SKILL Communicating effectively INITIALS WEBMASTER
103. ny time to quit this program 3 Assignment of data into variables e g NetPay GrossPay Taxes 4 Choosing between alternatives based on the current value of a variable e g IF NetPay gt 100000 THEN PRINT THANK YOU BOSS ELSE GOTO 999 Looping that is repeating a group of instructions more than once with the number of times controlled by the value size of or limits on a variable or some other component of the program e g FOR PersonX IN EmployeeTable DO some stuff END DO The ending of the loop must be controlled not just left to loop forever e g 10 GOTO 10 Controlling the end of the looping may be done using an IF statement from item 4 6 Input from and output to a user _ 5 Category 4 Intermediate Computer Programming Exhibits in Category 4 allow members to work in more depth in those applications areas of computer programming that interest them As in Category 3 members exhibit a flowchart or alternative visual representation of a program that they have written Members also may choose to demonstrate the actual program NOTE Neither computers nor teleohone modem connections are provided to exhibitors at the Illinois State Fair Exhibits in Category 4 must meet all the content requirements of Category 3 plus as many of the following as apply 1 Checking for and dealing with errors in some reasonable way e g suppose GrossPay contains a negative number or Taxes c
104. of an activity you are currently doing without the aid of a computer that you could do easier if you use a computer Why don t you use a computer for that task Visit an office in your town Ask them to share with you what tasks they routinely do and which of those tasks involve a computer in some way Think of a job you might want when you are an adult Will you use a computer in that job If so how do you think that you might use a computer What types of applications will you use DATA BANK Computers can do many different things for us Some of the common tasks are Word Processing Examples include WordPerfect and Microsoft Word These programs function not unlike a typewriter only much better The person using this software types in words then can use this program to make words bold or change a font type 126 Look at this page you can see that someone has used a word processor to make this page look as it does can t you Most word processing programs have neat features that check your spelling and grammar and may even suggest different words for you to use You may use a program like this to type a letter or prepare a paper for school Databases Examples include Database for Windows and Paradox These programs organize data and are commonly used for things such as keeping track of addresses and other information After the information is typed into a database program they can be organized in a variety of ways ve
105. of utility programs that will do this for you Windows 95 includes such a utility If your computer is a Macintosh you may need to buy a disk maintenance program such as Norton Utilities or MacTools Pro Relax and Enjoy As your computer knowledge grows you ll discover other ways to care for your machine You ll also discover that with the new software created every month feeding your computer will be far more expensive and difficult than just keeping it fit As any seasoned computer owner will tell you there s always something new you ve just got to have Computing is an ever changing and exciting world Your new computer will bring you many hours of pleasure In a few months you ll find it hard to believe that you ever got along without it 34 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Operation and Maintenance DATE LEVEL Advanced COMPLETED ACTIVITY Develop a job aid for a computer user PROJECT SKILL Explain basic computer operation HELPER S LIFE SKILL Planning and organizing INITIALS CHEAT SHEET If you re an experienced computer user you don t even think about simple things like turning on the machine booting up an application and getting to the file or document you need These seemingly simple tasks are a major challenge however for someone who is unfamiliar with computer operations Job aids are shortcuts or cheat sheets for people to use to help them through routine tasks In this
106. omputer Project 57 UNIT Using Software DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Develop a business record keeping system PROJECT SKILL Using a spreadsheet program HELPER S LIFE SKILL Keeping records planning and organizing INITIALS marketable skills KEEPING THE BOOKS If you have had some experience using a computerized accounting program you probably understand basically how it balances a checking account You can do the same thing without all the frills using a spreadsheet program In fact sometimes you can do more You can keep track of more and different things than the accounting program will allow you to do If you have a job to earn some spending money or money for college you might want to use a spreadsheet to keep track of the money you earn If you have customers to whom you provide a regular service paper delivery lawn mowing or babysitting you can use a spreadsheet to keep track of who has paid and who has not you can also keep track of how much of it you have spent and what you have spent it on Materials needed You ll need a computer with a spreadsheet program such as Excel or Lotus 123 A printer would probably be helpful too DOIT Set up your spreadsheet with a column for each piece of information you want to track and a row for each transaction For example if you take care of lawns for two neighbors you might want your spreadsheet to look a bit like this Date Custom
107. omputer is able to do all of that To better understand computers it may be helpful for you to look inside and see what makes the computer work This activity will help you to look under the hood of a computer and see what makes it run DOIT This activity will require an old computer it need not be in working condition that you have permission to take apart Be sure to check with the owner of the computer before you begin this process Also you will need some basic tools like a screwdriver a small pliers and a clean work surface If a computer is not available for you to disassemble try removing the cover from a working computer NOTE unplug the computer first and work with a helper and finding the major parts Record the make and model type of processor and the parts you are able to identify see the checksheet in the DATA BANk Take a look at the schematic drawing of the inside of a computer found in the DATA BANK Remember your computer might be slightly different than the one pictured but this drawing should give you an idea of what your computer will look like on the inside The first step is to simply remove the screws that are holding the computer case together After you have done that the top of the case should slide off easily Compare the inside of your computer to the drawing of the computer on the following page What differences do you notice Create your own drawing of the inside of your computer and label each of the part
108. ontains a value larger than GrossPay what then 1 2 Input from and or output to a file or database or some device or program other than to the user 3 Use of defined functions procedures or macros to reduce complexity and duplication within the program 4 Clarity in the use and layout of controls and in the displays of results 5 Ways to get the user help or clues if they get stuck or they don t understand what to do next To maximize the learning in projects of this nature involvement of real users of the program is highly valuable Members are encouraged to show their work to others e g friends classmates other members Illinois 4 H Computer Project 5 teachers co workers especially those using the results the program produces to discuss likes dislikes and points of confusion with these users and to make changes in the program to try and make it better where better is reflective of the users needs and not necessarily just the members personal preference NOTE because of the widely differing backgrounds people have coming up with a program that is easily understood and used by all types of people can be very time consuming Category 5 Special Topics in Computers Projects in this category permit members to explore in detail any aspect of computers that interests them and is not within the scope of Categories 1 4 Members may exhibit such things as a computer built from component cards a repor
109. or her about the job and what is enjoyable about it Spend some time watching the technicians work Go on line and visit some of the manufacturers of computers Do the descriptions of their products make more sense now that you know more about the computer Use information that you find on line to compare two or more computer systems Talk with the computer science instructor at your school about what you have learned Ask him or her to explain to you the school s computer network DATA BANK Computers have parts that receive input keyboards mouse give output printers modems do the work processor remember things while the power is on this is known as short term memory or RAM and parts that remember things while the power is off this is known as long term memory which is generally handled by the hard drive or a floppy disk As you can see only a small amount of a computer s physical size is actually devoted to doing the work the rest is devoted to input output and remembering things 20 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Some good information on the parts of the computer can be found on the World Wide Web Consider looking at some of these sites for help as you work on this activity Computer Lessons for Kids and Small Adults Lesson 1 What do the parts do http Awww2 magmacom com dsleeth kids lessons lesson1 htm Information can also be found at the Dell Computer Support Site http Avww dell com support s
110. ou Your goal should be to finish at least 10 activities each year Start with the regular activities If you want or need more of a challenge as you progress try doing some of the PURSUE IT suggestions within each activity These are designed to let you take a step further than the regular activities Finally you may wish to design some activities of your own to really extend your learning and your achievement Dates Helper s Self Designed Activities Completed Initials EXHIBIT OPPORTUNITIES Information for members and project helpers The following are descriptions of suggested exhibit categories for the computer project Check the Illinois 4 H Web site for updates 4 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Category 1 Introduction to Computers Members should exhibit a poster display or demonstration that shows knowledge of one or more of the following the main parts of a typical home or office desktop computer the operating system the use and workings of common applications programs such as word processors or graphics drawing programs Members should be able to explain how the capacities of computer devices are measured e g Bits Bytes KiloBytes MegaBytes GigaBytes Bits Per Second instructions per second what happens in the machine when its controls are activated by a user e g a mouse button is clicked a key is pressed a power on button is pressed a remova
111. ou to take Chat Rooms Another form of typed communication is via the chat room Here unlike e mail and news groups the people communicating are connected at the same time A server machine retransmits every line you type to everyone else without waiting for you to finish a complete e mail letter practice you use chat rooms more like a telephone with many short exchanges back and forth Lengthy or detailed communication is best done via e mail if for no other reason than that it can be retained for future reference To use a chat room you ll need a chat client program These come in many forms Your Internet Service Provider may give you one Or some chats are accessed via Web browsers or you may find client software available for free download at the Web page that advertises the chat you want to join Chat software generally provides ways for you to filter out things you don t want to receive such as messages from somebody who keeps advertising MAKE BIG MONEY AT HOME IN YOUR SPARE TIME See Let s Talk chat activity on page 74 REVIEW Processing questions or strategies Discuss your experiences using these types of communications systems What did you particularly enjoy and what was uncomfortable Which mechanisms fit the kind of discussion they were used for and which did not Discuss which of these systems could be used by other groups you know of to help people communicate better Consider uses by hob
112. own 4 Drag and click tool not an animal 1 eral storage device 5 Sh Don t tell anyone this 80881 2 mputer screen 7 Dir is the abbreviation of 3 en to connect to the 8 The abbreviation is KB 6 Person who develops softw 12 One of the first types of network cabling 9 C Java Basic and HTML aie types of 13 Computer picture these 16 Windows 95 Unix Lenix and MS DOS are 10 Opposite of encryption examples of this 11 This is the brain of the PC 19 A local internet 14 When you _ you usually give a 21 Used to copy photographs assword 22 Screen location indicator 15 ound on the internet not made of 23 bits 1 papar 17 hen you access a website you usually click on one of these 18 Computer cold 20 Electronic letter 12 Illinois 4 H Computer Project 2 7 8 10 12 13 14 15 16 18 19 More Crosswords Across Code name Program that tells your computer how to respond to the mouse and keyboard Informative website about a person or business is sent received 1 bit at a time through port sounds like a breakfast food The mai main circuit board containing the vital components of a PC Smallest element of a picture To copy files onto your computer from a remote computer A standard for connecting computers and musical instruments Program that allows you to find files on the Internet that you can transfer to your PC sounds like a comi
113. p www hallmarkconnections com Hallmark s Microsoft Greeting Workshop Deluxe program http www hallmark com connections bin greet asp American Greetings Web Page http www americangreetings com Poster 5 3 a shareware program for sign and banner making may be downloaded at http hotfiles zdnet com cgi bin texis swlib hottfiles info html fcode 000N1E 50 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Using Software DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Give a talk on software copyright laws PROJECT SKILL Software law and ethics HELPER S LIFE SKILL Making decisions communicating with others INITIALS COPYRIGHT LAWS AND ME Knowing how to operate a computer is only one part of computing An equally important part is knowing computer ethics and laws Writers and software developers have legal rights to their property People who write software are making their living by doing that just as authors and songwriters make a living writing books or songs Users need to know the legality and ethics of computer software use Materials needed You will need a computer and Internet access DO IT First write down what you know about software copyright law or ethics Next do a Web search to find information to answer some of the following questions What are the legal differences between licensed software shareware and freeware What ethical questions should be understood concerning their use 1 Licens
114. portant you will have a lot of fun while doing it If computers are new to you it will be important for you to have a project helper This may be an adult or older youth who has some knowledge and experience with computers Have your project helper initial and date each activity that you finish USING THE INTERNET AS A PROJECT RESOURCE The Internet or more specifically the World Wide Web WWW or the Web is the major source of content information for the activities in the Illinois 4 H computer project You may already be a Web surfer If not or if you do not have easy access to the Internet check with your project helper for some suggestions You will notice that the DATA BANK section of many of the project activities lists the Web addresses or URLs Universal Resource Locators of resources related to the activity Many of these URLs will change frequently Therefore it is very important to check the Illinois 4 H Web site frequently for updates on URLs and other project information The URL for the Illinois 4 H Web Site is http Awww 4 H uiuc edu If you do not know how to navigate the Web you should first complete with your project helper s assistance the activity entitled Search com in the Networking unit This will give you the bare basics of Web navigation that you will need to complete the activities PLANNING YOUR COMPUTER PROJECT What you achieve in the Illinois 4 H computer project is pretty much up to y
115. porting role so do not put your whole text on slides Use your slides to remind you of what to say don t overload them Build a series of points in sequence reveal them one at a time Speak slowly NOOO gt 54 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Using Software DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Create an address book PROJECT SKILL Use a database program HELPER S LIFE SKILL Marketable skills INITIALS DATABASE TO THE RESCUE For having such a boring name database managers can do wonderful things With a click of the computer mouse they give us information we would otherwise spend hours finding Of course we must first put the information into the database This activity is designed to help you learn how to make a friend of a database as you set up an address book Materials needed You will need access to a computer with database management software or an integrated software package containing a database program and the user manual for the software DO IT Read the chapter of the software manual that describes setting up an address book using a database Check to see if there is a Help section in your software right on your computer Gather addresses to enter Decide if your addresses are to be alphabetical by category or by some creative system Usually we enter the last name of a person before we enter the first for easy alphabetization but this is your address book so have fun with
116. r Project NOTES Illinois 4 H Computer Project 95 NOTES 96 Illinois 4 H Computer Project NOTES Illinois 4 H Computer Project 97 Curriculum Coordinator Design Team Chris Roegge Christopher Anderson Mark Daniels Gonzalo Escobar Annette Jackson Larry Jackson Thomas Jackson Betty Romberg L Ann Rund Shirley Splittstoesser Lisa Woessner Copyright 1998 University of Illinois Board of Trustees le College of Agricultural Consumer and Environmental Sciences Urbana Champaign Illinois MG3020 September 1998 Issued in furtherance of Cooperative Extension Work Acts of May 8 and June 30 1914 in cooperation with the U S Department of Agriculture DENNIS R CAMPION Associate Dean University of Illinois Extension at Urbana Champaign The University of Illinois Extension provides equal opportunities in programs and employment
117. readsheet programs are accompanied by a manual that will lead you through all you need to know to use that particular program Also the program s on line help lets you search for a topic and provides instructions about that topic Illinois 4 H Computer Project 59 UNIT 4 NETWORKING When you talk to anyone about computers today you will most likely be talking about the Internet Whether you watch a TV program or read a magazine article chances are you will see a reference to something dot com The Internet is the fastest growing source of information in the world growing so fast that many people feel there is too much information How do we deal with this information overload Well we can t do much of anything if we do not understand the basics of networking and how to find our way around the Internet By doing the activities in this unit you will learn The basic elements of computer networks The many elemenis of the Internet such as usenet electronic mail and the World Wide Web How to use a Web browser How to conduct a Web search and retrieve information How to evaluate information acquired from the Web How to communicate safely and effectively on the Internet DIST Gono Along the way you will learn important life skills such as 1 Communicating with others 2 Finding and using information 3 Making decisions 4 Planning and organizing CAUTION On the telephone the nature of a person s vo
118. redible Talk with a teacher or an experienced Internet surfer to find out how you can evaluate the information that you find on the Internet Ask them what sources of information that believe are the most reliable also see the activity called Check it Out on page 77 Find out how you can use the information that you find on the World Wide Web on your own computer Specifically how can you download Web documents graphics audio and video files to your own computer Investigate the risks involved in downloading information from the Internet Talk with someone with Internet 62 Illinois 4 H Computer Project experience about copyrighted material as well as the risk about computer viruses Prepare a report for your club or class about these risks Take a poll of people you know who use the Internet Find out which search engine they prefer to use and find out why that is their preference Compile the results of your survey DATA BANK A great deal of information isavailable to us through the World Wide Web Most of the information that we find there is free and much of it is helpful It is important however that we be careful information consumers while we are on line because some of the information that you find on the Internet is misleading or just not true Excellent questions to ask yourself if you are evaluating the information you have found on the Internet is Where is this information coming from Why are they putting
119. riendly and easy to learn Before you begin however you will want to review the user guide that came with the program This will help you to be more familiar with all that this program can do before you begin You may not be able to say everything you want to say in the card or banner you are creating Remember that you have pretty limited space to work with Too many words can make your creation hard to read and not as interesting Designers make use of something called white space when they are creating White space is the space that is not taken up by words or graphics Including more white space in your card or banner may actually attract more attention to your thoughts than if you overloaded it with words or pictures Many programs also allow you to change fonts as often as you would like Although it may be tempting to go crazy with this new power remember not to get carried away Too many changes in font styles or sizes make things hard to read Usually a maximum of two font changes per project is a good guideline Some programs will let you use scanned in images for your cards and banners Consider using a picture of the person that you are honoring if appropriate Or you may want to use different clip art or images that are not included with the original program Learn how to import these pictures into your creations Other on line sites that might be of interest to you include Hallmark s Electronic Greetings page htt
120. roduct on the Internet Did it cost less more the Internet Don t forget to include things like sales tax and shipping on your Internet purchases if applicable PURSUE IT Make a similar comparison using a different type of software such as a spreadsheet database program game or educational program Conduct another software comparison using someone else s criteria as a guide Were your recommendations the same or different Visit with a local business to find out what type of software they use Ask them how they decide what type of software to purchase Find out if they feel that they are missing any features on their software that they will shop for next time they purchase software Illinois 4 H Computer Project 43 DATA BANK There are many sources of information available that will tell you what type of software you should buy Although many of these sources are well meaning often you are unique enough that it s best to handle your own comparisons Think about how you will be using the computer program you are thinking of buying Will you be doing any out of the ordinary things with it If so you probably would benefit from doing your homework Don t forget that you might want to share information with others from time to time so compatibility of software is an important issue Also beware of companies that may be in business for only a short while You may need support for your program in three years and
121. rstand what it is you find when you open up the box of a computer Taking apart a computer can be a big job Be sure that you have a good understanding of the parts of the computer before you begin your work Information can be found at your local library or bookstore as well as on the World Wide Web Some helpful Web based information can be found at Dell Computer s Support site http www dell com support sitemap index htm Microsoft s On Line Computer Museum http Awww microsoft com mscorp museum home asp Intels On Line Computer Museum http Awww intel com intel intelis museum Computers as a Second Language hitp www adita com two c htm Jeff Napier s Computer Construction Site http members aol com wbox wboxmenu htm 38 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Parts Identification Checklist Brand Model Processor Check the parts that you are able to locate ___ Motherboard ____ Hard drive Make and model number _ Floppy drive ____ Speaker s ___ ROM BIOS chip _ Microprocessor make and model number ___ CD ROM __ Sound card ____ Power supply __ Modem ____ Clock crystal Video system Illinois 4 H Computer Project 39 UNIT Operation and Maintenance DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Teach others about computer operation PROJECT SKILL Learn basic operation HELPER S LIFE SKILL Communicating with others INITIALS YOU VE GOT A CLASS It has
122. rther add to your knowledge Then use your new found knowledge to explain a computer concept to someone else If you re not sure of the knowledge explain it to someone who knows a lot about computers and he or she can verify what you ve learned PURSUE IT Both the word searches and the crossword puzzles in this activity were created by the computer by programs found on the Internet You may want to create your own puzzles using computer terms or maybe using another subject Do a search on the Internet for word search or crossword and see if you can find a program to do one or the other or both Then create your own Use the Glossary of PC and Internet Terminology Web site or another source to find the meanings to the terms listed in the DATA BANK Check out the history of computer development You will be amazed at the amount of progress that has been made in only a few years Look at different History Web sites and compare their findings Develop a time line of important events in the history of computing 8 Illinois 4 H Computer Project COMPUTER WORD SEARCH WXFSCANNERPNKQOWHUMSE GOWXFAQORPORPHLVQOERPR RB VOR V R GC H B L OJE TL Y HD E B E U AKQEOFFAPACASUOIESQX PEUGMWFONDEPUMHXWDSCE H RO N OAE EE N 5 SP oE GG OE 00 IMRKQOLIBEASARIRVNXQQ CALE 5 1 5 Or A Or Br SR ANT J T YVIRUSXIRKMNEWBIES TXVLOGONRKTVEEHIOTTD UDGCRIDJGBRTAEGKAATITPOC Gr DA X SAP
123. ry easily For instance if you wanted to organize your addresses by zip code that could be done by most database programs Spreadsheets Examples include Lotus and Excel These programs handle financial calculations and numerical data with ease These programs are often used in business to calculate income and loss for a particular product or service Print Software Examples include Print Shop Hallmark These programs are especially designed to create greeting cards and banners Accounting Software Examples include Quicken and Microsoft Money These programs help businesses and individuals manage their finances They can do things like write checks balance checkbooks and keep track of budgets Internet The Internet most commonly found as the World Wide Web provides information about a variety of topics to its users Began originally as a government project to connect researchers it has expanded greatly in its first 30 years to include millions of users Browsers are the way that people are able to look at information on the World Wide Web Examples include Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer Additional information about purchasing software can be found in computer publications such as Computer Shopper You also may want to check these sites on the Internet PCWorld Comparison of Word Processors http Avww pcworld com software word_processing Let s Keep it Simple Spreadsheet http macworld
124. s This will help you if you decide to reassemble your computer when you are done taking it apart Carefully remove each of the components found inside your computer Remember to be extra careful if you have plans to reassemble the computer When you are done you should be left with a hollow shell where your computer used to be REVIEW Create a display of your disassembled computer Label each part with its name and a basic description of the function of that part Share this display with your project helper or with your 4 H club or class Were you surprised at what you found inside the computer What things did you not find that you thought that you would PURSUE IT Visit a computer repair shop and talk with a technician who works there Ask the technician about the job and whether it is enjoyable Spend time watching the technician work Develop a worksheet page that would help other young people as they disassemble a computer What do they need to be careful to do or not do as they work Work with someone as they build a new computer What are the advantages to building your own computer instead of buying one off the shelf What special precautions do you need to take when doing this sort of work Illinois 4 H Computer Project 37 DATA BANK Keyboard Mouse Port Modem Audio Video Printer Port Cabinet Processor and Floppy CD ROM Dnve Memory on Dnve Motherboard This drawing will help you to better unde
125. s Modan ai bonnet tale Ama 84 PROGRAMMING TO Ecran ee Geen vote done tieg eda 88 IN THE DRIVER S SEAT PROGRAMMING 102 ins 92 NOTES nr E een cows etre ne nee 95 Illinois 4 H Computer Project 1 FOR THE PROJECT HELPER Please read this section carefully before proceeding This guide was developed to serve Illinois 4 Hers until a new national 4 H computer curriculum hits the shelf in the fall of 2000 You will notice that the guide is not very fancy Because it is intended only as an interim guide the focus is on the activities Resources were not expended on a kid friendly format Because computer expertise is not dependent on age there was no attempt to achieve an age appropriate writing level through the guide Therefore your guidance and help is especially important in order for youth to get the most from their computer project experience USING THE PROJECT GUIDE All the activities that make up the Illinois 4 H computer project are contained in this guide There are 35 activities organized into five topics or Units What a Computer Is and Does Operation and Maintenance Using Software Networking Programming Each activity is comprised of a brief explanation of what the activity is about and the materials required to do the activity followed by four main sections DO IT This section tells the member what to do in the activ
126. sideways to see the expressions For example this means that the writer is happy smiling Search the Web sites or other sources to see how many emoticons you can find Create some of your own Share them with your club or class DATA BANK Books Internet for Kids A Beginner s Guide to Surfing the Net by Pederson and Moss 1995 Los Angeles Price Stern Sloan URLs Internet General http www screen com start quide default html Beginner s Guide Life on the Internet http www sierramm com smpnet html Free interactive guide to the internet downloadable http Awww yahoo com Computers_and Internet Internet Information and Documentation Beginner s Guides Yahoo s Beginner s Guides to Internet Links Netiquette http www fau edu rinaldi net index htm The Net User Guidelines and Netiquette http Avwww magicpub com netprimer home html A Brief Net Primer http Awww albion com netiquette index html Netiquette Homepage 66 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT Networking DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Participate in an Internet discussion group PROJECT SKILL Communicate on the Internet HELPER S LIFE SKILL Communication INITIALS NEWS VIEWS One of the most attractive aspects of the Internet is it lets you exchange ideas and information with lots of people from all over the world Many hobby and professional groups have formed drawing membership from around the world
127. sk by following the directions Demonstrate the job aid to your club or class Make extra copies to give to club members or others who want or need them REVIEW IT Think about how you developed your job aid Was it easy or difficult What was the most difficult part Was your job aid effective How did you determine if it was or was not What revisions did you make or do you need to make for it to be more effective What are some other situations or tasks you can think of where a job aid might be helpful PURSUE IT What are some other possible formats for your job aid Develop an online job aid that will pop up on screen when the user starts the computer Develop job aids for some other computer or non computer tasks that are important in your 4 H club keeping record books chairing a meeting completing award applications etc DATA BANK Illinois 4 H Computer Project 35 Backing up a file from the C drive to a floppy diskette using Windows Explorer Insert a 3 5 diskette into the floppy disk drive on the computer From the Start button on the toolbar at the bottom of your screen open Windows Explorer Click the mouse on the C drive icon in the left frame The names of all the files on your C drive will appear in the right frame Find the file that you want to back up in the right frame Highlight the file name by clicking on the icon next to it Highlight send to under the File pull
128. something you write e g an appointment calendar program and see what that s like DATA BANK For more information see http www yahoo com Computers and Internet Programming Languages Illinois 4 H Computer Project 91 UNIT Programming DATE LEVEL Advanced COMPLETED ACTIVITY Write a computer program PROJECT SKILL Programming HELPER S LIFE SKILL Marketable skills INITIALS IN THE DRIVER S SEAT PROGRAMMING 102 Ask any programmer the best part of computers is being able to tell them what to do Every time you operate a computer or use a program to write a letter or play a game you are telling the computer what to do However someone else before you has written all the rules and you just get to use them to drive Imagine the thrill of being that someone else Imagine having a powerful tool at your disposal that you can manipulate to do almost anything you want it to do This is the ultimate thrill at least for a certain kind of computer user This activity isn t for the faint of heart or the beginner It requires that you ve done some programming maybe in the prior activity in this manual Programming 101 that you understand some or all of the following programming concepts requesting input assignment to variables formatting and displaying output iteration conditional branching procedure calls and function calls It assumes that you know a bit about at least one computer language and the too
129. st common types of computer software is the word processor It is an application that many people use every day or at least every week What is the best word processor available on the market That is what you are going to find out Because the answer will probably vary from person to person you will be coming up with the answer for you Begin by making a list of all of the features that you want and need for a word processor to have Refer to the list in the DATA BANK to get started This list should be unique to you Using the list you have created select your top ten criteria Be sure to include price as one of the criteria that you use Using these items create a chart on paper or using your computer and gather information about at least three types of word processing programs based on your list After you have collected all of the information decide which software is best suited to meet your needs REVIEW IT Why did you select the ten criteria that you did Ask a friend or classmate what they think is important in a word processor Compare their list to your list What are some of the similarities and differences in the software programs that you reviewed What was the relationship between price and the number of features Which features surprised you Did you visit more than one store If so did you notice a difference on prices for software at the different locations What about electronic shopping Were you able to find the same p
130. t on the effect of computers on the economy and or a description of a computer based service or business they operate Projects in this category should reflect the depth of analytical and critical thinking associated with Juniors and Seniors in High School or above These projects should not necessarily have a right answer that is simply looked up or memorized Instead the member should formulate an informed opinion in the process of doing this project be able to defend that opinion and apply or adapt its results in related situations 6 Illinois 4 H Computer Project UNIT 1 WHAT A COMPUTER IS AND DOES Computer technology has come a very long way in a very short time Only about 20 years have passed from the mass marketing of the first PCs personal computers to the Internet For all of their wondrous capabilities computers can frustrate us and even make us downright angry It is important to remember that the computer is a tool Just the same as any other tool a computer works best when the person using it has some skill This unit provides the background for developing your computer skills By doing the activities in this unit you will learn 1 How computers are used 2 Why computers are so important in our lives 3 How computers have developed over time 4 How to speak the language of computers Along the way you will be learning important life skills such as 1 Finding and using information 2 Communicating
131. t word With each wrong guess the stick figure of a hanging man is partially drawn When six wrong guesses have been made the figure is complete and the player loses the game Write a program to play the game with two players The first player types in the word that the other tries to guess The game displays the hanging man in one of the six stages of development each time the second player incorrectly guesses a letter For example Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6 O O O O O O l 1 It displays the status of the word being guessed with each successful guess of a letter Letters that have not yet been guessed are displayed with an underscore e g _ re_ ght 8 Write a program to convert an amount of money in numerical form to the same amount of money in text form Use this program as a procedure in a larger program to write checks Prompt the user for the payee and the amount with no dollar signs The program will print on the appropriate place on a preprinted check today s date the payee the numerical amount and the amount in words The checks will need to be purchased preprinted either on tractor fed paper for a dot matrix printer or on single sheets for a laser or ink jet printer Your bank will order checks in this format for you REVIEW IT Look again at problem 1 Why were you asked to print the letters vertically down the page rather than horizontally What is a non proportional font and why is using on
132. the computer or with booklets and manuals that you received Another good thing to have on record is your computer s BIOS settings Most PC compatible computers tell you when they are booting up how to enter setup to get these settings Give it a try and use the print screen key to print your computer s setup to store with our records Where Are You Going To Put It A computer needs a permanent place A dining room table is not the answer You need to be able to set your unit up and leave it As the computer becomes more a part of your family s daily life you ll all spend a considerable amount of time with it Most families aren t lucky enough to have a home office so they need to find a corner of the house that s both safe for the computer and comfortable for the user 32 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Because we spend much time looking at our computer screen lighting is very important Avoid spot lamps and lamps that expose the light bulb Diffused and evenly distributed lighting reduces eye strain You need a comfortable chair that firmly supports your back If you do not own an office chair look for one at garage sales Sitting up straight in a good chair can prevent back problems and help prevent carpal tunnel syndrome When we use a computer there are many repetitive movements that can create stress and eventually injure our bodies Carpal tunnel syndrome is a very real and painful problem that affects the wrist If you re going to spen
133. the list Listservs allow organized groups to readily communicate among themselves but they re not intended for huge numbers of simultaneous users Unlike news groups in which the postings remain on the server until you read them listservs send you e mail for every posting Usually lists will accept others who are interested enough to request membership But some may be privately run If you find a listserv with a topic of interest to you e g they may announce themselves to a news group or on a Web page you can request a subscription The instructions for how to subscribe vary between the kinds of listserv software being used so you should follow the stated instructions You should not e mail to the group s account as the listserv server will send your message to everyone on the list Typically subscribing a group called chocolate mail chocolate org is no harder than writing an e mail addressed to chocolate request mail chocolate org having the word subscribe in the subject line and not having a body at all The listserv gets your e mail address from the letter s header so you don t need to retype it You ll usually be sent a confirming message via e mail If so you should keep this message as it will generally tell you how to do useful things like find out who else is on the list or how to unsubscribe Note Some of these listserve on hot topics generate thousands of e mails a week Simply unsubscribe if they re too much for y
134. the name and location of my school without my parent s permission 2 will tell my parents right away if come across any information that makes me feel uncomfortable 3 will never agree to get together with someone meet online without first checking with my parents If my parents agree to the meeting will be sure that it is in a public place and bring my mother or father along 4 will never send a person my picture or anything else without first checking with my parents 5 will not respond to any messages that are mean or in any way make me feel uncomfortable It is not my fault if get a message like that If do will tell my parents right away so they can contact the online service 6 Iwill talk with my parents so that we can set up rules for going online We will decide upon the time of day that can be online the length of time be online and appropriate areas for me to visit will not access other areas or break these rules without their permission For further information on child safety please call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1 800 THE LOST 1 800 843 5678 Materials needed A computer with access to the Internet and an established e mail account You may set up a free e mail account through such Web sites as http Awww geocities com or http www hotmail com Additional information on e mail from a 4 H perspective is found at http Awww 4 h org chat e mail html DOI
135. the pets so didn t lt P gt Repeat the above replacing lt UL gt with lt OL gt and lt UL gt with lt OL gt and see what happens To link in images use the IMG tag Like the A tag in the example about Spot the IMG tag can be used to tell the Web browser to get a file from the same place as before or from somewhere else If you have a file with a picture of Spot that you ve stored in the same folder as Spot s homepage you can put that photo directly into Spot s homepage with an IMG tag like this lt P gt Hi I m Spot a Labrador retriever lt IMG SRC spot gif gt can t really type so my owner made me this homepage This is what look like lt P gt At this point you can create a pretty reasonable homepage for yourself or for someone else If you have access to a Web server you can now transfer all your files to that machine and can give the location specification URL to your friends Your Internet service provider will have to provide the information on exactly how to do this transfer where to put the files and what the resulting URL will be REVIEW Processing questions or strategies Images can become a problem They contain lots of data much more than the same layout space of typewritten text on page If you or the people you want to have read your homepage are using a modem to connect your computer to the Internet via telephone it may take a very long time to receive the picture file Sometimes W
136. the saying from another How about the last time you planned a party for one of your friends Did you find the banner that you were looking for Or did you settle for one that was OK oe it be great if you could create your own cards and banners Well thanks to technology you can do just that Materials needed For this activity you will need access to a computer that has a greeting card and banner program such as Print Shop or Hallmark s Microsoft Greeting Workshop Deluxe installed on it a color printer and any special paper that you might need for the card or banner you wish to create DOIT Using the computer program you have access to create a greeting card or banner for a friend family member and or special event It s up to you to decide how simple or elaborate you would like to make this project Try to make use of as many of the features of the program as possible Before you print your creation try to create a second version of the same card or banner changing the message and graphics used Compare the two and decide which you like best Print your creation Remember as you work to keep the person you are creating the card or banner for in mind For instance your grandmother may not want a card with a picture of a skate boarder on it and your best friend may not want a banner with roses on it to celebrate his birthday REVIEW Write down a short list of the decisions that you needed to make as you went t
137. ther symbols and how to label them Learn to use labels that are understandable by other people Step 2 Work with your Project Leader to come up with some very simple sequences then illustrate them using flowcharts Suggestions 1 Play until called for lunch then eat until you re full then go outside 2 Call a friend on the telephone If they re not home call back until you reach them Once you reach them talk about your homework then hang up 3 Change your drawing for 2 for if your friend has an answering machine or voice mail system If the friend is not home leave a message and wait until they call you before you have your conversation Make your changes in a different color and try to make the fewest changes you can that will still produce the correct answer Illinois 4 H Computer Project 81 4 A bank teller is to check a person s account balance before cashing a check They only give out money if the account balance is at least as large as the amount of the check Make a diagram to use in teaching new tellers their job of what happens when a person comes to the teller and tries to cash a check Include the cases when the balance is less than the amount of the check exactly the same as the amount of the check and when the amount of the check is greater than the account balance 5 With several other people lined up in order by their height determine your place in the line by comparing your height with each ot
138. ting this activity Share this display with your project helper or with your 4 H club or class Was the process of building your own computer easier or more difficult than you expected What was the most difficult part What was there about the construction process that surprised you Given the opportunity would you choose to go through this process again Why or why not Discuss these questions with your project helper PURSUE IT Develop a step by step worksheet for someone who is getting ready to build his or her own computer Include details that you wish you had known before you began your work Create a worksheet that would help someone to decide whether to build their own computer or buy one off the shelves Share this resource with others Visit a computer repair shop and talk with a technician who works there Ask him or her about their job and whether they enjoy it Spend some time watching them work DATA BANK Putting together a computer can be a big job Be sure that you have a good understanding of the parts of the computer before you begin your work Information can be found at your local library or bookstore as well as on the World Wide Web Some helpful Web based information can be found at http members aol com wbox wboxmenu htm 30 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Computer Construction Site This site takes you through the process of putting together a computer step by step http members aol com markbeard b
139. ts for your program DATA BANK 40 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Depending on your experience with computers it may be difficult for you to remember a time when you couldn t turn on a computer As a presenter however it is important for you to remember that everyone has different experiences with computers and some may have never turned on a computer before Because of that it is important that you do some research before you begin your work Make sure you know what your audience needs and wants before you stand in front of it Also carefully consider how you will present the information that you have to share Hands on experience is great but if you have a group of 20 people and only one or two computers that experience will be limited If this is the situation you are in consider alternative ways to present what you have to share You also may want to develop handouts you can share with your audience Remember to keep your presentation concise and to the point Try to avoid too much jargon that might intimidate the people you are trying to teach A good starting session might take 20 40 minutes Make sure that you allow time for questions Information that might be helpful to you as you develop your presentation can be found at Windows 98 Megasite Windows 98 Tips http Awww winmag com Win98 default htm Windows 95 Tips and Tricks http www geocities com SiliconValley heights 6348 tips html Windows 95 Tricks n Tips http
140. u browse around the Web Also check the HTML references to find out about other tags and optional attributes not discussed here Many of these substantially change the overall appearance of your page including the use of colors and background images Regions within images also can be clicked on as a means of user selection of the next topic to be displayed 86 Illinois 4 H Computer Project PURSUE IT How to extend the learning Discuss principles of layout and visual composition with people in art or advertising Compare your Web pages with what you learn and make modifications to make your Web appearance more effective Discuss why this would be important for businesses or groups trying to deliver lots of information over the Web Look at your Web pages with many different browsers or different versions of the same browser Note things that aren t done consistently between browsers What HTML tags cause the biggest mismatches Discuss what you should do about these inconsistencies so that your Web pages present as consistent an appearance as possible to your readers Segmenting all you want to say into a group of separate Web pages involves many considerations If you have a lot of material all in one page it will take a long time to load that page using a modem If you break it up into many smaller pages you ll need to write something like a table of contents and your readers will need to be frequently clicking on links to load new small
141. udience Did the audience seem to enjoy the presentation What types of comments did you receive Did you enjoy planning and executing this presentation Why What was your favorite feature of the presentation program you used Have you had experience with other types of presentation programs Which ones Which program did you like best Why PURSUE IT Plan another presentation Try to include elements in this presentation that you did not include in your first presentation If you haven t tried it yet use a video or audio file as part of your presentation Investigate using HTML to create Web based presentations Visit with someone who creates Web pages as a part of their job Find out what types of multi media elements they use Video animation hypertext audio files etc For some help refer to the activity Webmaster on page 90 Illinois 4 H Computer Project 53 DATA BANK Not all topics work well for multi media presentations Because of that the first step you will need to take will be to consider what topic you would like to present For your first presentation select a topic that you already know a great deal about and one that has a pretty narrow focus For instance instead of selecting a topic like How to Garden consider a topic like Starting Seeds in a Garden This way your presentation will be more to the point Before you begin you may want to story board your presentation That means that
142. uild html Build Your Own PC http Awww dell com support sitemap index htm Dell Computer s Support site http Awww microsoft com mscorp museum home asp Microsoft s On Line Computer Museum http www intel com intel intelis museum Intel s On Line Computer Museum http Awww adita com two c htm Computers as a Second Language Inside a Computer s Cabinet Keyboard Mouse Port Modem Audio Video Printer Port Cabinet F System Bus J Processor and Floppy CD ROM Drive Memory on Drive Motherboard Illinois 4 H Computer Project 31 UNIT Operation and Maintenance DATE LEVEL Intermediate COMPLETED ACTIVITY Give a talk on computer maintenance PROJECT SKILL Computer maintenance HELPER S LIFE SKILL Marketable skills communication INITIALS KEEPING IT HEALTHY Your computer is a powerful machine and a big investment To protect and care for your investment there are several things you should know that could save you and your family time and money in the future Materials needed A computer and an audience DOIT Give a demonstration on keeping your computer healthy Your audience could be other members of your 4 H club who also have computers members of your class and your teacher if you have computers in your school or your family After all if you re the only one that cares for your family s machine it won t be protected from all the awful fates that could a
143. un out of disk space if they don t delete old files they no longer need If you ve completed the activity Playing with the Filing Cabinet or already know how to do basic file manipulation try designing a scheme to organize your family s files on your home computer Just as the sample page shows try to group files together that are associated with the same thing or person You ll need to know how to create folders as well as move files First sketch out your plan on paper and get the approval of your family members Next try to locate all the files they have created on the computer s hard disk Many programs which create your files assume that you ll want to save those files in a folder called My Documents That s good Other programs store their user files in a tree branch beneath the program s folder These are the files you ll want to locate Then move the files you ve found into your new family tree Finally enter the programs that your family uses and change the option or preference that controls where files are stored so when you save a file from that program it tries to save it to a branch of your family tree rather than elsewhere Train your family now so your organization is used to store each family member s files Alternative Activity If you don t have access to a computer or if your parents don t want you to reorganize their files draw an organization chart of how you would organize your files
144. ust a history of the price of the stock PURSUE IT For extremely large operations the process of making a flowchart is just too difficult To see how small flowcharts can be extended use the off page connectors and try diagramming problems with more steps in them Work with your Project Leader to find some good topics to diagram Here are some examples 1 Diagram a process from a business such as how a sale delivery posting to an account billing and eventually receipt of payment is handled 2 Diagram all the possible ways to finish out a tic tac toe naughts and crosses game given that your opponent moved first and took the top left corner Once you have this diagram use another color and go back and start eliminating the choices where you would wind up losing the game Does this eventually simplify down to a way you can always win Or must you always lose 82 Illinois 4 H Computer Project 3 Diagram the use of all the safety switches and interlocks related to a complex piece of equipment 4 Diagram how to identify a type of tree leaf or bird or native wildflower etc 5 Diagram the decision making process of a runner on second base 1 out bottom of the ninth score tied Do you run or hold up for the cases of bunt down the 3rd base line bunt down the 1st base line pop up to the infield fly ball to the outfield left center and right hit to the outfield left center and right etc If that s not hard enou
145. ver the Internet You can shop 24 hours a day everyday Peek inside this giant department store in cyberspace Materials needed This activity requires a computer with access to the Internet DO IT First check out a few WWW sites that sell sell sell Try these for starters http www amazon com http Awww wal mart com http www shopping com Find a book you would like to read and see how much it costs via Internet Compare the price to the price of the same book in your local bookstore Is it more or less Consider shipping charges if any Considering the time it takes to get it by mail Which would you buy Why OK follow some links and find other WWW sites that sell List them here Now for the hard If you could have a car right now what make and model would it be Now get real Pretend you have saved 6000 00 for your car What could you really buy Do an Internet search for the car of your dreams Check out these sites to get started http Awww Shopping com http www Edmunds com http www intellichoice com Make a comparison chart here Car model year features price What car will you buy Where would you purchase it Cost Why did you choose this car over others in your price range 76 Illinois 4 H Computer Project REVIEW IT How did you get started shopping for your car Was it difficult or easy and why What difference did you find between car prices at diff
146. wait it Look in the DATA BANK for information for your demonstration REVIEW Describe your demonstration and how you prepared it What kinds of questions did your audience ask How did you answer them How is demonstrating a good way to give information to a group PURSUE IT Think of and implement ways to make your computer s good health more automatic Set a backup procedure that is easy to do and create a reminder to the users to do it Schedule a weekly or monthly scan and defragmentation of your hard disk depending upon how much your computer is used Windows 95 comes with a tool to schedule these processes so they occur when you tell them to occur if your machine is idle DATA BANK What is it Take a moment right away to make a record of just what kind of computer you have Also make a record of anything you have in it If you need to call an 800 number for technical help the technician will ask for this information Keep all of this information in a safe place near the computer but do not keep it in the computer In case you have a crash you ll need to have the information handy Include in the record where and when you bought your computer the serial number and model number of anything inside your computer as well as the printer monitor and computer itself the amount of memory size of your hard disk etc Some of this information is probably on the sales slip that you received when you purchased
147. www flash net jpdel Windows NT vs Windows 95 http orac efs mq edu au csg reports NT95 index html Microsoft Windows 95 http Avww microsoft com windows95 default asp Mircosoft Windows 98 http Avww mifcorsoft com windows98 default asp Windows 95 Demonstration http Awww microsoft com windows software autodemo htm Illinois 4 H Computer Project 41 UNIT 3 USING SOFTWARE By itself the computer cannot do much for us It needs to be told what to do In the early days scientists wrote very long and complicated instructions every time they wanted a computer to do a certain job for them After personal computers became popular programmers began to write and sell special programs called software so that computers could do the kind of work regular people needed them to do When you buy a computer today it often comes with a bundle of software already installed The three most commonly used software programs or applications are word processors which let us type words paragraphs and documents spreadsheets which let us do all sorts of neat stuff with numbers and database managers which sort file and find information for us Of course there are many other types of software programs that we use today such as games drawing and graphics programs and programs that let us communicate with other computers By doing the activities in this unit you will learn To choose the right software for the job you need
148. you would sketch out what each screen should look like when you are done This will give you an idea of the direction that you need to go and what information and files that you will need to find Remember that even though you have many tools available to you when you use a multi media presentation program you may not want to use all of the options available to you with every screen Too much of a good thing can be just too much Use special effects such as audio and video files sparingly for a bigger impact Before unveiling your presentation to your club or class consider sharing it with one or two individuals to get their response to it Ask for their honest feedback on what you have done This will give you an Idea if you are on the right track or not Good sources of information include the documentation that came with the program you are using Additionally information can often be found in the computer section of your local bookstore If the presentation program you are using is Microsofts Power Point the Web site may be helpful to you http Avww microsoft com powerpoint If you are using a different program check the Web to see if there is information for your program Hints for Effective Computer Presentations Practice any presentation to stay within reasonable time limits Keep slides readable by making text at least 36 points in size Make sure the text and background have sharply contrasting colors Slides play only a sup
149. zdnet com pages september 96 Reviews 2613 html Corel WordPerfect Suite 7 Searching for Perfection http netbuyer zdnet com texis netbuyer doframe html rg r129 amp u www zdnet com netbuyer edit cshop per content 9609 cshp0023 html Microsoft Word http Avww microsoft com word default asp Computer Shopper http netbuyer zdnet com texis netbuyer doframe html rg r129 amp u www zdnet com netbuyer edit cshop per Netbuyer http Awww zdnet com netbuyer 46 Illinois 4 H Computer Project Illinois 4 H Computer Project 47 UNIT Using Software DATE LEVEL All COMPLETED ACTIVITY Play an educational game on the computer PROJECT SKILL Understand software capabilities HELPER S LIFE SKILL Learning to learn INITIALS THE TEACHER HAS A RECTANGULAR FACE Do you have a favorite learning style learn by doing relax in the shade and spend the afternoon with a good book pore over pictures and diagrams talk with the an expert Another style that is getting more and more popular is playing educational computer games Materials needed You will need access to a computer and educational games or edutainment software Some examples are the Carmen SanDeigo series Oregon Trail and the SimCity series DOIT Decide on the purpose of the educational game Ideas look at the titles of educational games and pick something that sounds interesting Work on a skill that you want to improve such as multipl

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