February 19 - 25, 2007
Optimize system performance by adjusting visual effects settings (Windows XP)
Your Windows XP system is automatically configured to handle system performance according to default settings, which you can alter depending on your working needs. Settings that deal with visual effects can enhance the XP interface, but can also slow down your processor speed. To improve the performance of your XP system, you can customize these settings.
Right-click on the My Computer icon and then choose Properties from the shortcut menu. In the System Properties dialog box, select the Advanced tab, and then in the Performance panel, click the Settings button to open the Performance Options dialog box. Select the Visual Effects tab, and then select the Custom option button. Then, from the list box, deselect those visual effects options that you don't want Windows XP to generate, in order to increase your processor speed. Once you've finished, click Apply and then OK, and your setting changes will take effect.
Specify exact column sizes for text in your Photoshop documents (Photoshop 6/7/CS)
Photoshop has become a lot more adept at handling text, so it's conceivable that you may actually set a few columns of text in Photoshop. So how do you create consistently sized columns? The answer is simple; just select the Horizontal Type tool (Type tool in version 6) and hold down the [option] key ([Alt] key in Windows) while dragging the mouse pointer to make a text box. Upon doing so, the Paragraph Text Size dialog box opens and you can enter the exact size you want the column to be.
Convert a document page into a master page (Adobe InDesign)
Let’s say you just created an awesome layout. It’s so great, in fact, that your boss says he wants every publication to follow the same layout. If only you had set it up as a master page! Not to worry, you still can.
To convert a document page into a master page:
- Choose Window > Pages to display the Pages palette.
- Select the page or spread in the Pages palette. (To select a spread, [shift]-click on one of the page icons.)
- Drag the page or spread to the Master Page section in the Pages palette. This creates what’s known as a parent/child relationship between master pages. The child master’s page icons are labeled with the parent master’s name. Now, any changes you make to the parent master (the A-Master by default) will apply to the child master and, subsequently, the attached document pages.
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