Back to Square 1

Just when I thought that preschool is the beginning of a parent's quest to provide his child with education, Caleb as a 1st grader feels as if we are back to the drawing board.

The pressures of providing Caleb with everything he needs for his grade 1 journey seems a lot bigger than when he was in preschool. But as I was watching Caleb entering the gates of his new school, I realized that it must be a lot harder for him to handle the pressure of being in a new environment, having new teacher(s) and meeting new classmates. I was holding my breath until he went home after his fist day of school and proudly told me how he was given candy by his teacher for reciting in class not just once but 3 times!

I didn't realize what old folks mean by the cliche that "this world has been turned upside down" until I saw how my son breezed through his first day as a 1st grader like it was nothing. There must be something in the milk they make nowadays that kids of this generation seems a lot smarter and more independent than the previous generations. Then again, maybe, it's with the genes I passed on to my son! Okay, I submit! It's probably nothing else but a "like mother, like son" phenomenon.

Caleb is Now Level 6!

We were not really planning to throw a party for Caleb's 6th b-day since his Lolo Max and Lola Nelly are gearing for a big bash when they come back home for Caleb's 7th b-day in 2009. However, his actuations hinted that he wanted his loved ones to be with him on his b-day. So we decided to throw a simple videoke party.



Invited were exclusively Caleb's grandparents, uncles cousins, and close pals. Gaylord, a family friend also graced the occasion. Caleb had a blast playing with his cousins and friends the whole afternoon. As for Jen and I (especially Jen), we had a grand time singing our favorite songs with her family.

Not to be oudone, Dad and Mom also threw a celebration of sorts in Washington. Caleb's Lola Nelly cooked some of her Filipino specialties. Caleb's birthday of course wouldn't be complete without a little chat with his Lolo, Lola and Tita Mariel via Yahoo.



We would have wanted to invite more relatives and friends (especially from my side) but time and resources did not favor the idea. Anyway, for sure, Caleb will have a bigger, better, happier bash on his 7th b-day in 2009. Why not, his beloved Lolo Max, Lola Nelly and maybe even his Tita Mariel and Tito Chuck will be some of his special guests!

First Time Schooler

Being parents of a first time schooler was just as hard as being the pupil himself. Jen and I wanted to make Caleb's first taste of schooling perfect; for after all, this would be the first and last time Caleb will ever be a first time schooler.

By any standard, our family is not what you can consider rich. But we wanted Caleb to have the best school stuff "our money" can buy. So off to Divisoria we went to hunt for the best bargains. We wanted Caleb to personally experience the back-to-school shopping rush so we tagged him along. Despite the crowd and the long arduous walk along the stalls, Caleb didn't complain. All it took was a new plastic sword to make the Divisoria experience worthwhile for him. Jen and I were also satisfied and fulfilled with what we have accomplished. We pretty much gotten all the stuff Caleb needs for his preschool.

It was a tiring but productive day indeed. We rewarded ourselves with fried chicken, burgers, fries and sundaes in the well cooled Mc Donald's branch in Divisoria.

Bob's Tech Tips & Tricks

Here is where you can get helpful computing tips that will make the convoluted world of technology a lot simpler and less problematic. I will try to give new tips as often as my enthusiasm leads me. Here's my first ever Tech Tips & Tricks.


Want to watch the latest movies online?

Out of boredom (and lack of movie money), I get my dose of not only video clips but also full movie entertainment on YT. However, since YT is a bit cautious with copyright infringement laws, you can only watch a handful of movies (if you are lucky and cleaver enough to find them). This made me wonder if there can possibly be a site where I can watch the latest full movies on the net. With YT's help (yet again), I stumbled on a video that lead me to this site where you can feast your senses with both new releases and classic movies of all genres.


http://www.watch-movies.net

Right at the upper part of the page is that ever-reliable search box where you can type-in the title of the movie you're looking for. You can also click the tabs that will pop open a page where you can see the list of available movies according to genre, etc.

Once you have found your movie on a separate page, you will see a couple or more server options. Choose the one with the highest ratings as it may very well be the best link to your movie (in terms of watchability).

Now, although the site's disclaimer suggests that they are not responsible for any infringement violations as they are not hosting these movie files and merely providing links to hosts where the movies are made available, I honestly think that this site, the host, and you as a viewer have some sort of participation in the prevalence of music and movie piracy. To minimize your guilt somewhat, I suggest that if you really liked the movie, go and watch it still on the big screen. After all, nothing beats the satisfaction of watching a pretty cool movie in a giant theater screen while enjoying a huge bag popcorn and some cups of cold soda with your loved ones. It's a crime to go spend thrifty on small but special pleasures such as these.

Windows is Asking Me to Change My Password. What Will I Do?

A client phoned me about her Windows XP system asking her to change her log-in password. She was scared to do anything since she got used to getting access to her desktop without having to type in any username or password. She likewise don't remember ever setting up a username and password for her user account.

There is really no need to panic given this situation. As long as you have never made a password for your account to log in, all you have to do is to just go ahead and click "OK" on the log-in prompt and Windows will give you access to your desktop like the usual. You may see 2 boxes asking for your old password and the new password you'd like to use on the log-in prompt, but you don't need to type in anything there. This tells Windows that the password you chose is a blank password so the next time you boot up your computer, Windows will no longer ask for your password as it already knows that you don't need to type in anything to gain access.

Font Always In Uppercase, Help!

Just this morning I received a computer S.O.S. call from our subdivision's homeowners association president, Mr. Boy Marigza (the moral and legal one). He asked me why even if he pressed the Caps Lock key, his font in MS Word remained in uppercase (BIG LETTERS). At first I suspected that his capslock key must have gotten stuck, thus he couldn't change the case of his characters. But when he told me that it only happened with this particular Word document he opened after a long while as he wanted to make some revisions, it occured to me that it definitely had something to do with MS Word's font default settings being altered.

So I YM'd him and gave him this simple but "why-didn't-I-think-of-that" kind of solution:

1. Open the document (MS-Word)

2. Click the "Format" tab just under the window title bar
3. Click "Font" (the first item in the menu)
4. Under the "Effects" section, Remove the tickler (uncheck) the box beside "All caps". Click "OK."

5. Make sure the "Caps Lock" key is not pressed on your keyboard (the second light at the top of the numeric keypad should not be lit).

How many of us have been victimized by this simple yet mind-boggling computer mishap? Either we blame Bill Gates for making a very complicated word processing program or ourselves by not taking time out to study even 50% of MS-Word's features. Half filled or half empty?

Puzzled with PCs? Let me try to help you with your computer-related questions. Simply post your questions under the "comments" posting link just below this message.