Not everyone is clued up when it comes to surfing the internet. Some older parents will be confused if you ask them about IE or Internet Explorer. "Oh, you mean the Big Blue E you click on the desktop...is that what it's called?"

With that in mind and the geeks among us waiting as Internet Explorer 8 goes through beta testing, here are a few tips to improve your Big Blue E / Internet Explorer 7 experience right now. Apologies in advance if you feel we're pointing out really obvious stuff here but this article is a direct response to some of the emails we get.

We will now show you what you need to find things more quickly, eliminate printing mishaps, save time with better RSS feed support, and avoid being "phishing" bait. Both students and family members should read on...

This Time, It's Personal.

Social networking has changed the way people interact with the internet. From the interactive movie wallpaper on your PC desktop to the photo slideshow on your Facebook profile, everyone likes to personalise their own things. Likewise, you can tailor your web browser (the program you use to surf the net with) to make your life easier!

Internet Explorer 7 looks sharp, it's straightforward to use and is constantly updated online with security updates via Microsoft Update. It's a definite improvement over IE6 (around 22% of traffic to Software4Students.co.uk still use IE6) and IE7 is available as a Free Download from Microsoft so you really should get hold of it. Let's take a look at some of the best features...

Tabbed Browsing

When you've buried something in a file cabinet, tabbed files are a life saver. A quick glance at each tab lets you know what lies beneath it so you don't have to open every file. When I'm doing research online, I'm sort of insane with how many Web windows I'll have open. Nothing is more irritating that having a half dozen windows open and not knowing which one has the information I need. I waste a lot of time opening and closing windows.

IE7 eliminates this problem with a feature called Tabbed Browsing. It allows people like me to manage multiple Web sites from within one browsing window. Just like opening a paper file drawer to see a row of titled files, now I just glance at the tabs across the top of my IE7 window to see which window I need and I select it.

Two sub-features in tabbed browsing are worth mentioning. The first is Quick Tabs, which gives you a thumbnail view of up to 20 open tabs at a single glance. If your comprehension is better with visuals, this is the tab feature you'll like best.

The second is Tab Groups, which lets you organize multiple tabs into a single group and then save that group as a Favourite. This is basically an updated twist to the standard Favourites menu. Let's say you have saved all of your vendor Web sites into a vendor Tab Group in your Favourites menu. In the new Favourites Centre (an addition to the old Favourites menu), a single click will open all the sites in the Tab group.

Advanced Printing Features

Remember the last time you tried to print a Web site page? Remember how annoying it was to see that half the information was cut off on the right or left margin?

That problem is gone with IE7. A default will shrink a Web page's text just enough to ensure the entire page prints properly. Plus, from within Print Preview, you can now adjust Web page margins, change the page layout, remove headers and footers, and increase or decrease the print space as desired.

Sure, this one saves me time. But it saves me money, too: no more wasted paper!

Search the Web directly from the IE7 toolbar

In IE7, if you look for the little Windows flag icon in the upper-right corner that sometimes waves endlessly as IE6 works away, you will never find it. That's because it's been removed to make room for the Instant Search Box. This handy new feature will save time, trust me. It allows you to choose a search provider from a drop-down list (MSN is the default search engine) and lets you add new providers to the list.

No more opening new windows or sites when one search engine doesn't return a satisfactory search. Instead, you just select another provider from the menu and IE7 remembers the search term and transfers it to the new search engine you've chosen.

Save time with improved RSS Feed support

If you like to surf the Web for news or other changing information, this next IE7 enhancement will also save you a lot of time. Chances are that you've seen the little buttons such as, "Get your RSS feed now!" on your favourite news or sports Web site. If you don't use one of these feeds yet, you probably will at some point because it's becoming popular.

RSS feeds allow you to have personalized news, sports or shopping links, headlines, and summaries delivered directly to your desktop. You can subscribe to as many feeds as you wish, and then read them at your leisure all in one place without visiting individual Web sites.

Earlier versions of Internet Explorer didn't make it easy to use RSS feeds, but IE7 improvements let even mere mortals like me read the RSS feed directly in the browser. Instead of surfing individual Web sites for information, just scan the feed for stories that interest you.

When you're on a site in IE7, if the RSS Feed icon is illuminated, it means the site offers a feed. Click on the icon, and you can subscribe to the RSS feed by clicking the Add/Subscribe button.

Come back to the page later by opening your Favourites Centre. Now you can read news when it arrives and click headline links to get the complete Web page.

Personally, I can see using RSS feeds now a lot more as I get used to them—and as more Web sites offer them. It's going to be a good way for those sites to push their information out to the masses, so don't say I didn't warn you that these feeds will become more and more prevalent. And hey, if it saves me time, I'm all for it.

Stop being bait with the new Phishing Filter

One of the latest buzzwords on the Internet is "phishing." Anyone who has e-mail and uses the Internet is a potential victim, so listen up. Phishing occurs when an e-mail is sent falsely claiming to be an established, legitimate enterprise. You've probably gotten one of those e-mail messages already: It directs you to visit a Web site, often has an official logo, and asks you to update credit and other personal information.

The motive behind it? To trick you into visiting a bogus Web site that you think is authentic and scam you into releasing personal information that will be stolen and used for illegitimate purposes. The sender is sending bait to thousands, hoping a few fish take it. Hence, the term "phishing," a variation on the leisure sport.

In IE7, a new Phishing Filter consolidates the latest industry information about fraudulent Web sites several times an hour and warns you when you attempt to visit a potentially untrustworthy site. A security status bar at the top of the IE window pops up in yellow for potential problems, and in red if the Web site is a confirmed phishing destination. If the threat level is red, you will be automatically navigated away from that site.

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Software4Students.co.uk - Official Microsoft Partner

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