Friday, June 26, 2009

SchoolCounselor.com eNewsletter #108

SchoolCounselor.com eNewsletter #108
June 26, 2009

You Could Win! Click here to learn more.

BRAND NEW ... Back Issues of the SchoolCounselor.com
e-Newsletter Issues 71-95

This e-book is a compilation of Issues 71-95 as they were published on the SchoolCounselor.com website. I’ve made sure that all links on these pages are active so that you may conveniently click on any resource (usually blue and underlined) and go right to that webpage – no need to type website addresses. This one has over 630 links throughout 200 pages!

After purchasing, you will be sent directly to a web page with the download link. As well, you will receive an email with the same link. The download is a PDF file which requires the free Adobe Acrobat Reader (although I recommend
Foxit which is also free).

Only $8 (that’s it, no other fees)


Bonus .. If you want to go way back and receive issues 20-95 (3 files with over 500 pages), that’s only $15 for a limited time.

Go to
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/store/ to order now.

SchoolCounselor.com eNewsletter #108

June 26, 2009

Welcome to SchoolCounselor.com, an electronic newsletter designed to advance counselors' level of technological literacy, application, and integration. You will find practical solutions and answers to technology related problems, especially as they apply to your job as counselor. If you would like to share a tip or trick, or if you would like to ask a question, e-mail Russ Sabella at
newsletter@schoolcounselor.com.

Visit Our Sponsor

Beautiful ... Inspiring .. Motivational ... Touching
Counseling Posters for your Office and Home


AllPosters.com


What’s on your Summer Reading List?
Join the discussion on the American School Counselor Association’s Scene (
http://bit.ly/OVFC7; free membership required). Here is mine: Amazon.com: RUSSELL A SABELLA: Summer Reading List http://bit.ly/Mx0GF

____________________________________________


Highlights from SchoolCounselor.com

Using PowerPoint and PhotoStory3 to create a Narrated Presentation
Bring your accountability reports (and other presentations) to life with a free program called Microsoft Photo Story 3. This method is very similar to doing narrated PowerPoints although probably a bit easier and with a higher "cool" effect. In this method, you will export your PPT slides as graphics and then use those graphics to narrate within Photo Story 3. Your product is a video. Realize, though, that when you use this technique, the animation within PowerPoint does not transfer. Instead, you will get a panning effect which is also very nice. This video is one of the many you will find on the Data Boot Camp for School Counselors and Administrators - CD available from www.schoolcounselor.com.
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/photostory3/photostory3.html OR
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qX3S9etDF64

SchoolCounselor.com Poll
Would you support a ban on cell phones in K-12 schools? Cast your vote …
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/poll/

Latest Tweeter Updates
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/

Top 5 Training Topics for School Counselors
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/training/
Also see
http://files.getdropbox.com/u/508472/Top%206%20MAIN.pdf

Must See Videos
Lots of new videos added since the last issue!
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/videos/
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TIPS AND TRICKS

Copy Website Tables into Excel 2007 Spreadsheets
If you find interesting or important data in a table on a website it might be helpful to import it into Excel. Today we will look at how to import data from a table on a website into Excel which will allow you to organize and add to reports.

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Create a Quick Organizational Chart in PowerPoint
When you need an easy way to illustrate a simple hierarchy, consider building an org chart directly on a PowerPoint slide. Here’s a look at how to use some basic diagraming tools so you can pull this together in a hurry.
http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/msoffice/?p=1344

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Book Review: Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats: Responding to the Challenge of Online Social Aggression, Threats, and Distress by Nancy E. Willard
Reviewed by Russell A. Sabella, Ph.D.
http://www.tpronline.org/download-book-review.cfm?id=459

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Microsoft Word: Keyboard shortcuts for three common symbols

Ctrl+Alt+C=© (The Copyright Symbol)
Alternatively, type an open parenthesis – type a c and close the parenthesis. MS Word automatically creates the symbol.

Ctrl+Alt+T=TM (The Trademark Symbol)
Alternatively, type an open parenthesis – type tm and close the parenthesis. MS Word automatically creates the symbol.

Ctrl+Alt+R=® (The Registered Symbol)
Alternatively, type an open parenthesis – type r and close the parenthesis. MS Word automatically creates the symbol.

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How to start PowerPoint Presentation from Current Slide? – Keyboard Shortcut
Source:
Lyte Byte by Mr.Byte
Many a times when we give presentations using PowerPoint, we may break in between, show some other stuff from different source say Excel or Word and then we resume our presentation from where we left off. Using a keyboard shortcut for this would an easy way to achieve this. If you give PowerPoint presentations frequently then you should definitely read the 10 must know keyboard shortcuts to make a PowerPoint Presentation like a Pro.

Here is a quick tip on to use a keyboard shortcut to start or resume PowerPoint presentation from current slide.

To start presentation from first slide – F5

To start presentation from current slide – Shift + F5

If you are not the Keyboard Shortcut person, then you can go to Slide Show tab and then click From Current Slide

Also, see
10 Must know Keyboard Shortcuts to make a PowerPoint Presentation like a Pro

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PrintFriendly -It is a new web application with a browser bookmarklet which lets you create print friendly version of any webpage, and save on paper and ink. The application removes all clutter and arranges content in the easy to read format. When the webpage is ready for print you can download it as PDF or print it out directly.
http://www.printfriendly.com/

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Save Time With Excel's Double-Click Tricks
If you have to deal with boring spreadsheets on a daily basis, every tiny little trick that saves you time is worth it—and the Pointy Haired Dilbert blog runs down a whole list of useful tricks. The article runs down a list of double-click actions you can use to save time in Excel—for instance, if you want to resize a number of columns at once you can simply select them and double-click on the separator to make Excel automatically resize those columns to the width of the content. Want to fill in a series of numbers or a formula all the way down a column? You can select the first few and double-click on the bottom right-hand corner of the selection to make it auto-fill all the way down as long as there is data in the next column.
http://lifehacker.com/5288578/save-time-with-excels-double+click-tricks

Also see:

11 very useful excel keyboard shortcuts you may not know
http://chandoo.org/wp/2008/07/29/excel-keyboard-shortcuts/

Free Excel Templates - Download
http://chandoo.org/wp/free-excel-templates-download/

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Free Sound Recorder does exactly as it sounds -- it is an easy-to-use FREE software program that lets you record any sounds from your sound card and save the recording directly into MP3, WMA or WAV files. Free Sound Recorder is a perfect audio recorder to record your own voice, music or any other sound by working directly with your sound card. It supports the record input/source from a microphone, streaming audio from the Internet, external input devices (e.g. CDs, LP, music cassettes, phone line etc.) as well as other applications like Winamp, Media Player, etc. With built-in advanced audio record engine, the recorder produces high quality recordings.
http://www.sound-recorder.biz/freesoundrecorder.html

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Wordnik can help anyone interested in building a better vocabulary. It's also a great way to boost Scrabble scores! Get started by looking up a word. You'll find definitions of the word from several different sources. You'll also find examples of how to use a word and related words. Then, you can dig a little deeper. See how popular the word was in a given time period. Learn the etymology of the word. One of Wordnik's best features is the pronunciation guide. Hear an audio example of how the word is pronounced. What good is a big vocabulary if you can't pronounce the words?
Source:
www.Komando.com
http://www.wordnik.com/

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WORTHY WEBSITES AND SOFTWARE

Windows SteadyState is a free of charge download for Windows XP and Windows Vista that can help protect your family from inappropriate Web content and contact on the Web. Windows SteadyState also protects your computer settings from unwelcome changes by your children. Windows SteadyState can return your family computer and hard disk to the condition it was before your children changed it. You just restart your computer.
http://www.microsoft.com/protect/products/family/steadystate.mspx

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MyFax - This site lets you send fax to 41 countries worldwide. The free account allows someone to send up to 2 free faxes per day with up to 9 pages limit on each fax (including the cover page).
http://www.myfax.com/free/sendfax.aspx

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Karen's Replicator

Automatically backup files, directories, even entire drives! Karen's Replicator copies selected files from one drive/folder to another. Source and Destination folders can reside anywhere on your network.
http://www.karenware.com/powertools/ptreplicator.asp

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doomi
Doomi was designed from the ground up to stay out of your way and out of your browser. It has all the features you use, and none of the ones you don’t. Create, edit, set reminders, and keep archives of your old tasks.
http://doominow.com/

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New Google Web Elements for Spreadsheets and Presentations
At Google I/O, the concept of "copy/paste development" was introduced in the form of Google Web Elements. For Google spreadsheets and presentations, these web elements offer a quick way to get a snippet of code that allows you to embed your document anywhere on the web.
http://googledocs.blogspot.com/2009/06/new-google-web-elements-for.html

Also ...

Spreadsheet gadgets allow you to display spreadsheet data in new and interesting ways. Using our spreadsheet gadgets API and the spreadsheet Data APIs, outside developers and other Google teams have been able to add new features into spreadsheets and publish these gadgets to iGoogle, blogs and other platforms. Some older, but popular examples include a Gantt Chart by Viewpath and the Analytics for Google Docs spreadsheets by Panorama.
http://googledocs.blogspot.com/2009/05/spotlight-on-developers-educational.html

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Learning Essentials for Microsoft Office is a desktop application that runs on top of Microsoft Office to give students and teachers a custom Office environment
http://www.microsoft.com/learningessentials/download.mspx

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Learn CPR is a free public service supported by the University of Washington School of Medicine. Learn the basics of CPR - cardiopulmonary resuscitation.
http://depts.washington.edu/learncpr/

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TalkShoe is a service that enables anyone to easily create, join, or listen to Live Interactive Discussions, Conversations, Podcasts and Audioblogs. These hosted Community Calls can be discussions, conversations, talk shows and podcasts. Recorded Community Calls can be listened to, downloaded, or subscribed to. And if your Community Call becomes popular, you can make money too.
http://www.talkshoe.com/

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Google Translator Toolkit
Google Translator Toolkit is part of our effort to make information universally accessible through translation. Google Translator Toolkit helps translators translate better and more quickly through one shared, innovative translation technology. Google Translate provides ‘automatic translations’ produced purely by technology, without intervention from human translators. In contrast, Google Translator Toolkit allows human translators to work faster and more accurately, aided by technologies like Google Translate.
http://translate.google.com/support/toolkit/

Watch a video about GTT
here.

This tool may be a HUGE help in translating newsletters, documents, etc. to different languages.

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Outlook Essentials is a simple and easy to use Outlook 2007 Add-in that will bring in some essential features which are not available in Outlook 2007. This add-in allows you to print your emails and check for missing attachments and blank subject line. Many time we forget to add attachments to the email even though we specify that mails have attachments. This add-in can be useful in such instances.
http://www.oe2007.ifastnet.com/

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Car Accident Checklist
Having a checklist on hand and knowing what information you need to collect will definitely help you get through the moments after an accident. What got you through an accident? What did you find to be invaluable in the moments after a car accident? Share your experiences in the comments below.
http://www.seriousaccidents.com/Car_Accident_Guide.pdf

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PostSecret
PostSecret is an ongoing community art project where people mail-in their secrets anonymously on one side of a homemade postcard.
http://postsecret.blogspot.com/

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Cyberbullying Flash cards
Some of the most common used terms to identify cyberbullying.
http://www.proprofs.com/flashcards/story.php?title=cyberbullying

Data Boot Camp for School Counselors
and Administrators - CD

Russell A. Sabella, Ph.D.

My newest CD is designed to help you become more proficient in using Microsoft Excel™ to make data an important part of your comprehensive school counseling program. From data-driven decision making, to monitoring progress, to reporting the positive impact you're having on kids -- this CD will demystify how it's done.

With the Data Boot Camp for School Counselors and Administrators, what you see and hear on the videos is what you do. At your fingertips, you'll have access to 30 videos and lots of graphics, tips, tricks, and resourceful links. This straightforward step-by-step approach makes learning how to use Microsoft Excel™ (and a bit of PowerPoint™) as easy and convenient as watching television. Data Boot Camp will help school counseling students, practitioners, administrators, and counselor educators to more easily unlock the power of data so you can more effectively support student achievement.

The content on the CD is equivalent to a full-day workshop in the computer lab!

Visit and learn more about the contents of the CD and view a couple of sample videos (Remember, these samples may take a few moments to load because you are online. However, on the CD, this is not an issue because the videos are all located on the CD itself!).
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/store/data-bootcamp.htm

$18.95 (FREE shipping)
Please allow 5-7 working days to arrive


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JUST FOR FUN

Musopen is an online music library of copyright free (public domain) music. We want to give the world access to music without the legal hassles so common today. There is a great deal of music that has expired copyrights, but almost no recordings of this music is in the public domain. We aim to record or obtain recordings that have no copyrights so that our visitors may listen, re-use, or in any way enjoy music. Put simply, our mission is to set music free.
http://www.musopen.com/

To stream the music, go to:
http://www.musopensource.com/radio/index.html

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How to Look Busy at Work Without Really Working
If you're getting paid to do something, you should do it, and do it well. But is it always that simple? What if you have a vague job description, a haphazard workload, and a very bad boss who is only content when you look busy, but not if you're super efficient? Sad to say, but sometimes working at your maximum potential is punished. This happens a lot in larger organizations and retail.
http://www.wikihow.com/Look-Busy-at-Work-Without-Really-Working

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Playing Excit!
Excit is a free flash action-puzzle game. The goal is to lead the cross to the green exit button. The cross is only able to move horizontally or vertically. Once it is set in motion, it continues moving until it hits an obstacle. The challenge is to reach the exit without leaving the screen. The goal of Excit! is to navigate the cross around the spreadsheets obstacles and reach the exit without leaving the screen.
http://www.pixer.org/excit/

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Hulu Releases Desktop Application
Source: Life Rocks! 2.0 by Nirmal
Hulu is one of the most popular websites for TV, movies and videos. Hulu has released a new desktop application for watching your favorite videos. This application is available both for Windows as well as Mac. So from now on, you do not have to keep the website open, you can watch all the videos from the desktop application. It features a sleek new look that’s optimized for use with standard Windows Media Center remote controls allowing you to navigate Hulu’s entire library with just six buttons.
http://www.hulu.com/labs/hulu-desktop

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The Top 5 Sites to Find Song Lyrics Online
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Makeuseof/~3/p0KYRlPzXHo/

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Hunch helps you make decisions and gets smarter the more you use it.
http://www.hunch.com/

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SpeedSudoku - This is a new site dedicated to Sudoku fans where they can play sudoku against others online. Users could also interact with various sudoku players around the world, participate in the forums and shop for cool sudoku goodies.
http://www.speedsudoku.com/

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Rendeznew - Here you can find a find midpoint between four addresses. You can further narrow down suggested meeting points by type of food joints, bars, coffee shops, lodging, art galleries etc.
http://rendeznew.com/

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Fake 3D crater designed to slow down London cyclists
http://www.gadling.com/2009/06/18/fake-3d-crater-designed-to-slow-down-london-cyclists/
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SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION

SchoolCounselor.com does not knowingly send unsolicited e-mail. This Newsletter is for subscribers only. If you received it and did not subscribe, please let us know using the link on our home page. We will remove your name immediately.

TO SUBSCRIBE to this newsletter, simply go to the signup page at
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TO UNSUBSCRIBE from this newsletter, simply visit go to the signup page at
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TO CHANGE YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS: If your old address will become inactive, PLEASE
UNSUBSCRIBE with your old address and SUBSCRIBE with your new one.

IF ALL ELSE FAILS send a note. Please allow a week or two for changes to take effect.

____________________________________________

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http://www.schoolcounselor.com/privacy.htm
____________________________________________

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http://www.schoolcounselor.com/advertising.htm
____________________________________________

The SchoolCounselor.com newsletter may contain links to sites on the Internet owned and operated by third parties. SchoolCounselor.com is not responsible for the availability of, or the content located on or through, any such third-party site. Information in this document is provided "as is," without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including but not limited to the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and freedom from infringement. The user assumes the entire risk as to the accuracy and the use of this document. SchoolCounselor.com will not be liable for any damages of any kind arising from the use of this information, including, but not limited to direct, indirect, incidental, punitive, and consequential damages.

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Friday, June 12, 2009

What are the most dangerous search terms on the Internet?

What are the most dangerous search terms on the Internet?

 

HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- If you like to search for "music lyrics" or "free" things, you are engaging in risky cyber behavior. And "free music downloads" puts 20 percent of Web surfers in harm's way of malicious software, known as "malware."

 

A new research report by U.S.-based antivirus software company McAfee has identified the most dangerous Internet search words that place users on pages with a higher likelihood of cyber attacks.

 

The study examined 2,600 popular keywords on five major search engines -- Google, Yahoo, Live, AOL and Ask -- and analyzed 413,000 Web pages.

 

"Just in the past year, we've seen a pretty dramatic shift in what we call malware," David DeWalt, president and CEO of McAfee, told Richard Quest for CNN International's "Quest Means Business." VideoWatch Quest interview with McAfee boss »

 

"It went from a hacker in a basement, to organized cybercrime to now, literally, terrorism and other forms of organized geopolitical attacks," he said.

 

Categories that had the highest risk of run-ins with malware: screen savers, free games, work from home, Olympics, videos, celebrities, music and news.

 

Riskiest terms: word unscrambler, lyrics, myspace, free music downloads, phelps, game cheats, printable fill-in puzzles, free ringtones and solitaire.

 

The study shows how cyber criminals are increasing in sophistication.

 

"We can have massive outages with a hacker in the basement. We saw that recently with the 'Twitter worm,' a 17-year-old in his basement basically perpetrated tens of millions of (computer) outages. Or, we can see an organized attack bringing down infrastructure," DeWalt said.

 

Antivirus software companies lag behind the latest developments by cyber criminals, he said.

 

"We've been way behind, that's true for the entire world, the global infrastructure of the Internet has grown dramatically -- 50 percent of the world's PCs are unprotected," DeWalt said.

 

Despite the increased risk, DeWalt doesn't believe there will be a "cyber Armageddon" causing widespread destruction of computers and Internet infrastructure.

 

"Last week, you saw President Obama in the United States talk about a major cyber-security initiative sponsored by the government, other governments are sponsoring this as well," DeWalt said. "I think we're learning this can happen, and if we get ahead of it, we can prevent it."

 

http://images.clickability.com/pti/spacer.gif

 

 

 

Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/BUSINESS/06/10/Internet.search.terms/index.html

 

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Windows SteadyState

Windows SteadyState is a free of charge download for Windows XP and
Windows Vista that can help protect your family from inappropriate Web
content and contact on the Web. Windows SteadyState also protects your
computer settings from unwelcome changes by your children. Windows
SteadyState can return your family computer and hard disk to the
condition it was before your children changed it. You just restart your
computer.
http://www.microsoft.com/protect/products/family/steadystate.mspx

Thursday, June 4, 2009

SchoolCounselor.com eNewsletter #107


BRAND NEW ... Back Issues of the SchoolCounselor.com
e-Newsletter Issues 71-95

This e-book is a compilation of Issues 71-95 as they were published on the SchoolCounselor.com website. I’ve made sure that all links on these pages are active so that you may conveniently click on any resource (usually blue and underlined) and go right to that webpage – no need to type website addresses. This one has over 630 links throughout 200 pages!

After purchasing, you will be sent directly to a web page with the download link. As well, you will receive an email with the same link. The download is a PDF file which requires the free Adobe Acrobat Reader (although I recommend
Foxit which is also free).

Only $8 (that’s it, no other fees)


Bonus .. If you want to go way back and receive issues 20-95 (3 files with over 500 pages), that’s only $15 for a limited time.

Go to
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/store/ to order now.

SchoolCounselor.com eNewsletter #107

Welcome to SchoolCounselor.com, an electronic newsletter designed to advance counselors' level of technological literacy, application, and integration. You will find practical solutions and answers to technology related problems, especially as they apply to your job as counselor. If you would like to share a tip or trick, or if you would like to ask a question, e-mail Russ Sabella at newsletter@schoolcounselor.com.

You Could Win!

I am in the process of moving my subscription list over to a new service which will make getting this publication to the over 17,500 current subscribers more efficiently. A random drawing from active subscribers of the new list will take place twice a month for the next several months. You could win one of a whole bunch of prizes, here's what's in the give-away basket:

1 of 5 copies of Data Boot Camp CD for School Counselors and Administrators - CD by Russ Sabella, Ph.D. (see http://www.schoolcounselor.com/store/data-bootcamp.htm; $21.95 each)

1 textbook from Educational Media Corporation entitled Managing Your School Counseling Program (3rd edition) by Joe Wittmer, Ph.D. and Mary Ann Clark, Ph.D. (see http://tinyurl.com/3e2thw; $49.95)

1 of 5 copies of SCAATAP (School Counselor Accountability and Task Analysis Program; see http://www.scaatap.com/ $125 each)

1 of 10 copies of the new SchoolCounselor.com e-Newsletter Back Issues #71-95
(http://www.schoolcounselor.com/store/newsletters.htm $8)

Register now at
http://www.schoolcounselor.com/NEWSLETTER


New Must See Videos on SchoolCounselor.com

Weight Bias at Home and School
Teen Bullying Prevention - A Cyber Bullying Suicide Story-6
A Common Sense Approach to Internet Safety
Google Squared is Coming!
Solution-Focused Coaching - Pathways to Progress
Mad TV Bob Newhart Skit - Mo Collins - Stop it
Beat Bullying
What you resist, persist. What you fight you get more off, Carl Jung, 1875-1961
The Power of One - School Video Sample
Sabella interview about Cyberbullying
Spiritual Prodigy

Also, check out some of my videos on my own Youtube Channel
here.
____________________________________________

GuardingKids.com Blog
Sign up to receive updates via email.
http://guardingkids.blogspot.com/

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Feature Article

What’s in Your Web Browser?

I switched from Microsoft Internet Explorer to Mozilla Firefox several years ago and really had not thought about it very much since. When out in the field doing presentations or while collaborating with colleagues, people who notice me using Firefox as my default browser continue to ask me about it and so I thought that it was finally time to address the use of web browsers as an important technological tool.

Indeed, your web browser is one of the critical technological applications that we use today because we spend so much time communicating, getting information, collaborating, delivering lessons, and more on the web. As counselors and as people in general, we need a web browser that is secure, efficient, customizable, easy to use, and works well with other programs.

The biggest factor for me that inspired me to start using a browser other than Internet Explorer (IE) was the constant bugs and security fixes that were plaguing IE and the need to find something faster. As you can imagine, I spend a great deal of time on the Web because of my professional interests in counseling technology as well as my day to day use (communicating, teaching researching, and learning online, for example). Speed is definitely a factor. Seconds add up to minutes and even hours over the course of a day and especially over weeks or months. So, I first turned to Firefox for increased security and speed and Firefox did not disappoint. As I adapted to this new browser, I also began to see other advantageous features that I did not anticipate which further reinforced me for using Firefox. For instance, these included:

Find As You Type. Rather than using the "find" bar to search for a word on page, just click anywhere on that page and start typing the word you want. Your cursor will immediately jump to the first instance of that term. You can use it for links, too. For example, instead of moving your mouse across the page to a "learn more" link, just start typing the word and when the cursor finds it, press enter.

Relatively Small Learning Curve. Firefox uses many of the same keyboard shortcuts as Internet Explorer(e.g., hitting Ctrl-Home in the address bar to automatically fill in the ".com" after a word you type) which made migrating easier than I expected.

Tabbed Browsing. When having multiple web pages open, it is easier to manage (especially identify and open) the window you want when they are presented in the form of tabs instead of windows. The analogy may be searching for a file in your filing cabinet by thumbing through the file tabs instead of opening each and every file.

Multiple Home Pages. When I start my browser, there are usually several pages that I want to quickly look at. Firefox allows you to open multiple pages upon launching (click
here to see how).

Accelerated Development. Because Firefox was developed as part of an Open Source project, thousands of independent programmers have been working on its development, finding security holes before they are exploited, developing new applications, and overall increasing its utility.

Smart Keywords. Smart Keywords are an easy way to search websites right from the Address or Location bar. Lets say you want to get to ASCA’s Ethical Standards document. Instead of navigating .. Click, click, click. Just type in “school counselor ethics” without the quotes in the address bar and it should come up in a set of search results.

Keyword Shortcuts (a.k.a. Custom Keywords). One of my absolute favorite time savers is Keywords which allows me to type in a single letter or word in the address bar and automatically be directed to a web page. So, for instance, I can type in the letter “f” and be directed to one of my favorite professional forums. Typing in the letter “g” brings me to a page at my work that I have to visit quite frequently throughout the day. (By the way, if you are on the webpage and quickly need to get to the address bar, hit F6 or CTRL-L on your keyboard which is faster thank clicking on it with your mouse). Click
here for a nice tutorial.

About:Config. For those school counselor who are a bit more tech savvy, you can easily get under the hood of Firefox and change its advanced settings. about:config is a feature of Mozilla applications which lists application settings (known as preferences) that are read from the profile files prefs.js and user.js, and from application defaults. Many of these preferences are not present in the Options or Preferences dialog. Using about:config is one of several methods of modifying preferences and adding other "hidden" ones. Simply type “about:config” without the quotes in the address bar to access them (see
http://kb.mozillazine.org/About:config).

Add-Ons

Although firefox has many useful features, if you are like me, you want more. Fortunately, Firefox has incorporated the ability to install add-ons. Add-ons extend Firefox, letting you personalize your browsing experience. There is an amazing selection of add-ons, some better than others, available online at
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/.

Here are the add-ons I use which I have found to help me become significantly more effective and efficient in my work:

1. AutoCopy. Select text on a web page and it's automatically copied to the clipboard. That’s right. After I highlight something on a website with my mouse, I don’ have to hit CTRL-C or go to the Edit, Copy menu to copy it into memory, it’s done automatically. I can skip that step and go right to pasting what I copied into the application that I want. Also, this add-on has another neat feature called append URL. I can copy something on a website, right click on it, choose append URL and the website address automatically gets appended to the content that is copied into memory.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/add-on/383

2. DownThemAll!. DownThemAll is a download manager which features an advanced accelerator that increases speed up to 400% and it allows you to pause and resume downloads at any time. Also, DownThemAll is fast, reliable and easy-to-use. It lets you download all the links or images contained in a webpage and much more: you can refine your downloads by fully customizable criteria to get only what you really want! This means I can tell it to download all files or only certain files (e.g. PDF, MP3, PPT, DOCS) from a web page. So, when I’m on a web page with links to multiple documents, PowerPoints, or other resources, I can quickly download them all at once with just a couple of clicks. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/201

3. Download Statusbar. With this one, I can view and manage downloads from a tidy statusbar - without the download window getting in the way of your web browsing. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/26

4. IE Tab. One of my very favorites, with this add-on, I can easily see how a web page is displayed in Internet Explorer (even when I’m still using Firefox) with just one click and then switch back to Firefox. Also, this allows me to continue using Firefox even when the site requires Internet Explorer. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1419

5. New Tab King. This extension adds a useful dashboard with recently used bookmarks and links to the Firefox blank tab page, so you can quickly access frequently used web sites. Using the extension is simple enough—just use the Ctrl+T shortcut key, and the new tab page will show up with shortcuts to launch applications, the most used web sites and recently closed tabs You can also get a quick glance on the sites you use the most, by period of the day and an easy search box. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/10828

6. Open Download.Allows you to open any file from the internet into the OS assigned program. This is similar to IE's 'Open' or 'Run' file download functionality. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/207

7. Send Link Button. Ever found yourself on an interesting Web site that you wanted to send over to a friend? Now instead of having to cut and paste the URL into your E-mail client of choice, now you have a one button solution. Send Link Button adds a new button to the toolbar that sends the link for the current web page you are on to your email software so that you can send share it with others over email more quickly. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1770

8. Marks (formerly Foxmarks). Xmarks is an excellent bookmarking add-on. Install it on all your computers to keep your bookmarks and (optionally) passwords backed up and synchronized. Xmarks also helps you uncover the best of the web based on what millions of people are bookmarking. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/add-on/2410

9. Amazon Hot Stuff. Amazon Hot! Stuff allows you to easily navigate Amazon, and access to lists such as Bestsellers, Hot New Releases, Most Wished For, Movers And Shakers all at your finger tips. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/11542

10. Google Toolbar. Direct access to Google services from a toolbar within your browser. No need to go to Google.com to do a search. Also, this powerful toolbar has other features including AutoFill which can automatically complete online forms for you with your basic information (name, address, phone, email), great for online sweepstakes. http://www.google.com/tools/firefox/toolbar/FT5/intl/en/index.html

An important note: You should choose and use your add-ons carefully and sparingly. The more add-ons you install, the slower Firefox will run and the greater the chance that an add-on will cause a glitch. I have installed wonderful add-ons in the past that I found helpful although made Firefox on my computer cause terrible hang-ups. Once I uninstalled it, Firefox came back to normal. Ten to 15 add-ons is probably enough.

Disadvantages

There are a couple of disadvantages to using Firefox, although not enough to make me quit using it and go to something else. One disadvantage is that some websites count on Microsoft Internet Explorer to work correctly and do not work quite right in Firefox. For instance I have trouble listening to Sirius Satellite Radio and calling up a “Watch Now” Netflix movie using Firefox. When accessing my Outlook mail at work from the web, I find too that it works best in Internet Explorer. But, that’s what the add-on IE Tab is for (see above). Using the IE Tab add-on, I can just add these sites to the list of sites to open in Firefox using the IE engine, problem solved. The only other disadvantage that I’ve run into, and its not a big one, is that Firefox takes just a bit little longer to start up because it is not built in to the Operating System like Internet Explorer and Safari.

Other Options

Still want to check out some other options in web browsers, the competition is definitely steep:

– For Windows users who just want fast, simple browsing, you might check out the minimalist Google Chrome. Google Chrome is a browser that combines a minimal design with sophisticated technology to make the web faster, safer, and easier.
http://www.google.com/chrome/

– An up and coming browser which I have not used yet although is recommended by reviewers is Flock for people who "live on the Web" because it has all the speed, security and options of Firefox 3 but builds in a blog editor, photo-uploader and big sidebar to keep current with social networking friends and RSS feeds. A horizontal photo bar shows thumbnails from photo-sharing sites. You can try this one at
http://www.flock.com/

Opera. Opera Software’s browser is a really good piece of work. Billing itself as “The fastest browser on Earth!”, it is a free browser with excellent standards support. (
http://www.opera.com/)

Safari. Safari is Apple’s own web browser, and for its first few years was only available to lucky Mac owners, coming pre-installed on all new Macs since 2003. A Windows version was released in June 2007. Safari is a clean, fast browser based on the WebKit rendering engine that also powers the Linux browser Konqueror. (
http://www.apple.com/safari/)

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TIPS AND TRICKS

To Enable or Disable Notifications of Completed Print Jobs

1. Click Start, and then click Printers and Faxes.
2. On the File menu, click Server Properties.
3. On the Advanced click the options you want to apply:

– Show informational notifications for local printers. This option notifies users when a job is printed on a printer that is attached to this computer.

– Show informational notifications for network printers. This option notifies users of this computer when a job is printed on a remote computer.

4. For client computers that are running versions of Windows earlier than Microsoft Windows 2000 that access the printers on this computer, there are additional configuration options to choose from:

– Notify when remote documents are printed. This option sends a message to the user who sent a job to a printer that is attached this computer.

– Notify computer, not user, when remote documents are printed. This option sends a message to the computer from which the print job was sent, regardless of which computer on which the sending user is currently logged on.

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4 Signs Your Children May Be Involved With Cyberbullying
The simple fact is, no matter how much we love our little angels, sometimes they engage in behaviors of which we cannot approve. Like cyberbullying. Then it is up to us as trusted adults to step in and work with our children to correct their behavior. But unlike physical bullying which may leave tangible signs (scratches, torn clothes, bruises), cyberbullying may be undetectable. So, how do you know if your children are engaging in cyberbullying behaviors? We turn once again to expert guest blogger Alison Trachtman Hill.
http://uyn.blogspot.com/2009/05/4-signs-your-children-may-be-involved.html

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GOOG411: Free Directory Assistance
Looking up telephone numbers online is easy. But you don't always have a computer handy. That doesn't mean you need to pay for directory assistance. You can find numbers for free from any telephone. Google's service (GOOG-411) relies on voice recognition to find results. Tip: Say “text me” after you get results and Google will text you with the details of your lookup.

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Twitter for Educators
There are many ways you can use Twitter to engage students, improve communication, collaboration, and community in the classroom, and promote writing. I’ve listed 10 ways you can use Twitter in your class, from a simple Twitter group you create that students follow and the group follows.
http://itcboisestate.wordpress.com/2009/04/16/twitter-for-educators/

Follow me on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/rsabella

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TechCheatSheets.com
Tech Cheat Sheets is a collection of the best cheat sheets and quick reference guides on the web. Arranged by tags, you can subscribe to a feed for only the tags you want to monitor. Visitors can also give the listings 1-5 star ratings.
http://techcheatsheets.com/

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9 FREE Screensavers That Actually Do Something Useful
http://www.friedbeef.com/9-free-screensavers-that-actually-do-something-useful/

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WORTHY WEBSITES AND SOFTWARE

Use Evernote to Organize Your Troubleshooting Efforts
Evernote allows you to easily capture information in any environment using whatever device or platform you find most convenient, and makes this information accessible and searchable at any time, from anywhere. Did we mention that it's free?
http://www.evernote.com

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FotoFlexer is the world's most advanced online digital photo editor. It performs advanced effects previously only available to professionals using expensive software. FotoFlexer was founded by Arbor Labs, a team of graduate students and alumni from the Center for Entrepreneurship and Technology, University of California at Berkeley (and just one MIT/Stanford alum too).
http://fotoflexer.com/

Also see
http://www.picnik.com/

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Wolfram|Alpha
Today's Wolfram|Alpha is the first step in an ambitious, long-term project to make all systematic knowledge immediately computable by anyone. You enter your question or calculation, and Wolfram|Alpha uses its built-in algorithms and growing collection of data to compute the answer.
http://www.wolframalpha.com/

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Smart Defrag 1.11
Source:
The Scout Report, Vol. 15, No. 20
Disk fragmentation can cause computers to run at greatly reduced speeds, so it's nice to learn about the existence about Smart Defrag 1.11. This application will defrag users' hard drive and also help optimize disk performance. Visitors can also schedule defrag operations for certain times as well. This version is designed for Windows Vista, XP, 2000, and Windows 7.
http://www.iobit.com/iobitsmartdefrag.html

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Quintura
This kid-friendly search engine lets you type in a query and/or click your way through a word cloud and get G-rated results in return.
http://www.quinturakids.com/

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KOL
Cross AOL's longstanding free e-mail service with a child-oriented Web portal, and what do you get? KOL, which offers not only games, music, movies, and other stuff aimed at teens and tweens, but also free e-mail accounts with robust parental controls.
http://kids.aol.com/

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Windows Live Family Safety
With Family Safety, you decide how your kids experience the Internet. You can limit searches, block or allow websites, decide who your kids can communicate with when they’re using Windows Live Messenger, Hotmail, or Spaces and monitor what websites they're visiting.
http://download.live.com/familysafety

Relevant Professional Development

Up-to-date professional development for school counselors, administrators, and other educators from Dr. Russell Sabella.
http://dl.getdropbox.com/u/508472/Top%206%20MAIN.pdf


Google Cheat Sheet
This two page Google Cheat Sheet lists all Google services and tools as well as background information. The Cheat Sheet offers a great reference to grasp of basic to advance Google query building concepts and ideas
http://www.adelaider.com/google-cheat-sheet/

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Who are You Looking For?
http://www.cvgadget.com/

Also see
http://pipl.com/

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Google: New Search Options on search results
We recently announced Search Options, a new feature in Google Web Search. You can now slice and dice your search results using a variety of filters, which generate different views of your results page to more easily and quickly find what you need. To try it out, click the "Show options..." link on top of your search results to display the Search Options panel. Watch this short video to learn more.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtirDMfcOKE

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Download Free Office 2007 Software from Microsoft
http://bhandler.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!70F64BC910C9F7F3!1822.entry

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Sabella’s Solution Focused Brief Counseling and Consultation book recommendations.
http://bit.ly/174dj5

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JUST FOR FUN

The Rasterbator creates huge, rasterized images from any picture. Upload an image, print the resulting multi-page PDF file and assemble the pages into extremely cool looking poster up to 20 meters in size. Rasterbator is arguably the world's cheapest way to cover a wall with cool-looking art.
http://homokaasu.org/rasterbator/

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FUN WITH PHOTOS

Morphthing combines two faces into one!
http://www.morphthing.com/

LoonaPix
http://www.loonapix.com/

photovisi
Collages from your photos as wallpapers and more.
http://www.photovisi.com/

Tiltshift
Tilt-shift miniature style photos are pictures of real-life scenes that are manipulated to look like model photographs.
http://tiltshiftmaker.com/

Big Huge Labs
Dozens of tools here, must see.
http://bighugelabs.com/flickr/

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101 Things To Do This Summer
As much as your kids will tell you they can’t wait for summer, the words “I’m bored,” inevitably cross their lips – sometimes sooner than you think! While children do enjoy the freedom that comes with the summer months, they still like to have a little structure to their fun.
http://www.homeschool.com/articles/101ThingsToDoThisSummer/default.asp

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On this Day
The Commission’s Memorial Day anthem, “On This Day” was composed by Charles Strouse, award-winning composer of Annie and Bye Bye Birdie. It is an inspiring song that honors America’s fallen and the families they left behind. The song helps promote and inspire the tone of this annual observance: to connect us all as Americans and to sustain the American spirit. By remembering those who died for our country, we become more aware of our identity as Americans. The song has been created not to show a financial profit, but to inspire patriotism and pride.
http://www.remember.gov/MomentofRemembrance/OnThisDaySong/tabid/55/Default.aspx

School Counseling Related Books from Amazon.com
http://astore.amazon.com/schoolcounselorc?_encoding=UTF8&node=12

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TrueCar
TrueCar is the fresh voice in new car pricing. We bring truth and transparency to the sales process by aggregating data from many different sources to show car buyers and dealers how much people actually paid for a particular car in their geographic area. We are a data-driven company, processing thousands of real transactions nationwide on a daily basis to generate objective and irrefutable Price Reports. TrueCar is offered online, on the phone, all free of charge.
http://truecar.com/

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Perceptual Experiment: Can You Count the Correct Number of Ball Passes?
This is a short, but fascinating two-part test of your perceptual abilities. For the first part, you will be shown a 30-second video of six college students divided into two teams. Three students are wearing white T-shirts, while the other three are wearing black. Each team has a basketball which they are passing to members of their team. Your task is to count the number of passes made by the team wearing white T-shirts. Click the first link below to watch the video and then return here for part two. Note: One gender has proven to be more perceptive. Which do you think it is?
http://www.transformationteam.net/video/perceptual_experiment_tc

The link to the answer is also on this page.

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GuardingKids.com: A Practical Guide to Keeping Kids Out of High-Tech Trouble

Russell A. Sabella, Ph.D.

From podcasts to porn, cyberbullying to cell phones, Dr. Russell Sabella helps readers understand the risks that emerge when high-tech tools, uninformed parents, and exuberant youth collide. Because kids are growing up with modern technologies, many are more expert than their parents. As a result, a parent's ability to make effective decisions for how technology is used may be compromised.

GuardingKids.com empowers parents, educators, and other care takers to better understand the electronic terrain. Readers will be better able to help children safely and securely navigate a minefield of inappropriate and risky situations.

http://www.guardingkids.com/

Blog Archive

Produced by Sabella & Associates, LLC

Copyright, 2009. All Rights Reserved. Contact Dr. Russell Sabella at news@schoolcounselor.com.