Handy Info Search Results

How To: Origami an icosahedron

This video explains how to make an Origami Icosahedron (designed by Heinz Strobl) using 50 strips of paper. You need 20 strips of a single color for the triangles and 30 of a contrasting color to connect the triangles.

How To: Origami a dragon

Learn how to fold an origami dragon with instruction by Ancella Simoes. Ancella Simoes is the author of the Origamiancy Blog and creator of all the Origamiancy origami tutorial videos on WonderHowTo. From Ancella's site:

How To: Start an IV on a live person in nursing

Studying to be a nurse? Then follow along with this nursing how-to video to learn how to start an IV on a live person. Starting an IV is an important and common part of a being a nurse. Follow along with this video to learn the proper technique and procedure for starting an IV line. Before starting, always make sure to double check your the doctors orders and have your materials handy.

How To: Make a rechargeable, solar-powered USB battery

An emergency battery charger for your mobile phone comes in handy, but it's not the ultimate solution; once it's dead it's useless (what a waste). If you want to really get off the metaphorical grid, you can follow the steps in this video to construct a more robust circuit that will not only bail you out of an inconvenient situation but also recharge in between uses. The simple addition of a low voltage solar panel and rechargeable batteries makes this possible. Enjoy!

How To: Increase and decrease application font size in OS X

Wouldn't it be handy if, while running Mac OS X, you could enlarge some of the fonts and applications like Mail or Safari? Some of those fonts can be relatively small. All you need to do to increase font size in an OS X application is to press the command, shift and plus keys. To make a font smaller, in turn, all you need do is press the command, shift and minus keys. For more on using these key commands to obviate the need for squinting, watch this Apple tutorial.

How To: Create PDFs in Mac OS X

A PDF file is a great way to share your documents with anyone. Both Macs and PCs can read them and it's very easy to create them in Mac OS X. From any application that you can print from, go to File–Print–which will open up the print dialogue box–and find the PDF button in the lower left corner. To learn more, and for a complete walkthrough of printing to PDF in Mac OS X (as well as information on using the handy Web Receipts) feature, watch this video tutorial.

How To: Play the blues scale on the guitar

This guitar lesson focuses on the blues scale and shows you a bunch of tricks to help you use it wisely. The blues scale is based on a minor penatonic scale, but includes the flat 5th note. Most popular rock songs have roots in the blues scale. Learning the forms of the blues scale will come in handy if you plan on playing guitar in a rock band. Check out this blues guitar how to video and you will be on your way to playing lead guitar.

How To: Compile a kernel in a Debian-based Linux distribution

In this four-part video tutorial series, you'll learn how to compile a Linux kernel on a Debian-based system (e.g., Ubuntu). You'll learn two separate methods for kernel compilation, both (1) how to make the kernel into a Debian package, which can be handy if you're using a package manager and (2) how to install the kernel manually with make and make install. Take a look!

How To: Assemble a handy book to organize ribbon

If you're an arts and crafts fanatic then you probably have more than your fair share of ribbons lying all around the house. You snip off one long piece from the roll and then you have to go and tape it to itself again to keep everything in place, and then eventually you give up and the remaining ribbon ends up in an odds-and-ends jar.

How To: Troubleshoot your washing machine

In this tutorial, we learn how to troubleshoot your washing machine. First, unplug your machine before you do any handy work. Then, check for leaking around the bottom. Look around the door sill to check for wear and tear. Then, pull the machine out and check for a lose connection. If you don't see anything, you will need to call a pro. If you aren't getting water, check to make sure your water lines are connected. If your washing machine is loud, make sure you haven't overloaded it and the d...

How To: Extract .RAR files

In this tutorial, we learn how to extract .RAR files. First, right click on the file, then click on "extract files". Once you are in a new window, you will be able to choose where you are opening the file from. Once you do this, the file will show up on your desktop in different icons. This is handy if you want to extract a file but don't have time to waste waiting forever. You can also open up the file by right clicking on it and opening it up in notes, where you will see the file waiting to...

How To: See how a website used to look with the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine

Wish you could see how your favorite website looked like a year or two ago? With the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine, it's easy! So easy, in fact, that this home computing how-to from the folks at Easily can present a complete (and somewhat talky) overview of the process in just over three minutes' time. For the specifics, and to get started setting up and using the Wayback Machine yourself, just watch this handy how-to.

How To: Enable the "Run" command in the start menu of Windows Vista

The "Run" command in Windows XP was a super handy tool for those above-average PC users, those who know all the shortcuts to navigating the system. But Windows Vista automatically removed the "Run" option from the start menu, and replace by "Search" instead. But don't worry, it's not gone forever. You can restore the "Run…" command with a little tweak to your Vista preferences. See how.

How To: Change the registered system owner name in Windows Vista

Mistakes can happen, and in Windows Vista, you can fix them without stress. What if you bought a PC with Windows Vista installed? The registered user name (owner/admin) would not be your name. So, how do you change it to reflect your name? This video will show you how to change the registered owner name in Vista, with just a few quick steps. This is also handy if your owner name is misspelled or just flat out wrong!

How To: Make cozy fleece pants for a Christmas present

We know how hard it is to buy a present for a woman during the holidays. 99% of the time she's not going to wear what you buy her, and giving her a practical gift like a blender or a new microwave - despite your best intentions - is just cause for a good talkin' to. So how do you indulge that special woman in your life this Christmas without getting slapped?

How To: Use the Magic Extractor tool to extract an image in Photoshop Elements

Have you ever tried to erase the background on an image so you can use the object image to layer with another document? You can do it in Adobe Photoshop, but if you don't know what you're doing, it could take hours… days to extract that image you want. But with Photoshop Elements, there's a handy tool called Magic Extractor that helps you get some of the dirty work out of the way, so you can concentrate on the finer details. Watch this video to see how it's done.

How To: Remove thumbnails from the Google new tab page

In this tutorial, we learn how to remove thumbnails from the Google new tab page. First, open a new tab and click the "edit thumbnails" link. Click the "x" icon to remove the thumbnail. Remember to click "done" to save your changes. This will come in handy when you have websites that are saved on your new tab page that you don't want to show up are you only visited once and don't plan on visiting again. After you do this, remember you can do this at any time that you want, to customize what w...

How To: Do useful survival knots

In this tutorial, we learn how to do useful survival knots. To make the sheet bend knot, you will join two different ropes together. First, make two loops, one on each end of the separate ropes. Next, take one of the ends and insert it into the other. After this, take the loose end and push it through the loops. After this, pull it tight and you have your sheet bend knot! The next knot is the bowline knot, which is a secure loop knot. First, make a loop in the rope, then take the smaller end ...