A Useful Bunch of Links

12-17-01 - Need help with print problems? Trouble with your zip disks? Wondering where to find tips to make your computing experience more pleasant? Well, so have I! I spent a little time digging around in the vast reaches of cyberspace and have put together a list of various articles and TechInfo documents that can help answer questions and help you troubleshoot problems you may experience while trying to finish up projects. These are loosely grouped according to subject.

Printing Problems

There are always printing problems that appear near the end of the semester, either due to file problems, or increased traffic on the network (especially the AirPort network), or increased fatigue experienced because you have 3 finals and a project due on the same day. Whatever the case, it is definitely not a pleasant experience to realize that the project you've been working on for days will not print, and it is due in an hour. Pushing aside the various "bad idea" aspects of waiting until the last minute to print, there are a few things you can try to resurrect a stubborn non-printing document.

DCB Article 003: Troubleshooting Print Problems - This was originally written for PageMaker, but the same principles apply to InDesign, or QuarkXPress.

DCB Article 021: What to do When You get a Bad Color Print from PageMaker - If your images do not print clearly on the color printer, you may want to read this.

DCB Article 010: Printing Problems from Photoshop 4 for Windows - This works for Photoshop 6 too!

DCB Article 015: Common Lab Problems #1 - Corrupted Fonts

From Adobe:

• PostScript Error When Duplexing and Booklet Printing from InDesign in MacOS

• Optimizing Printing from InDesign 1.x to PostScript Printers

• Printing from InDesign Using the AdobePS Printer Driver

• Troubleshooting PostScript Errors

Zip Drive Problems

DCB Article 007: Zip Problems/Solutions Revealed (sort-of)

DCB Article 011: Magically Disappearing Files - What I Can Do About It

DCB Article 019: Let's talk about Zips!

DCB Article 022: Iomega Zip Drives - Episode 2

DCB Article 027: Yes, More Zip™ Drive Problems

The best way to avoid zip disk problems is to use only Mac formatted zip disks on the Macs, always have a backup, and press down gently when inserting the disk (this will more reliably engage the drive head).

Coping with Finals Week!

DCB Article 004: Crunch Time in the Labs!!!

DCB Article 006: The Importance of Having a Back-up

DCB Article 023: Coping with the Last-Minute Lab Blues

DCB Article 020: Fun Things to do in the Lab on a Friday Afternoon - Okay, so it is not specifically related to this tips on how to avoid trouble at the last minute, but maybe you have some time between your last final and your ride home. Pop into the labs and use them for something fun for a change!

I hope these articles will be of some use to you in your quest to finish projects and finals in time for break. Before you leave, I have a thought to share that has helped me stare down many a file or computer related problem:

"Computers are not perfect. Hardware is not perfect - things break. Software is not perfect because the people who wrote it are not perfect. I am not perfect. Solving this problem will help me learn to solve others, and that is why I am here."

You will get done with your projects. You will have three weeks to unwind and get ready to do it all over again.

Have a good break!

-J

Jennifer Nieland is the lab coordinator for the College of the Design student computer labs. She would dearly love an all expenses paid trip to the MacWorld Expo in San Francisco January 7, 2002, to see the Steve Jobs opening Keynote Speech for Christmas. She will have to settle for a live satellite feed of Steve's traditional black mock-turtleneck and faded jeans. Or will we witness another appearance of Steve's Evil Twin?