ItsGeekToMe.co

Q: I, for one would pay real money to purchase the e-book version (html or pdf) of the over 1,000 articles that you’ve published to date. Is that something you could easily compile and offer?

– William R.
Fort Walton Beach, Florida

A:  Could I do it?  I’m sure I could.  Easily?  Now that’s a different story.  The question really is whether it’s worth all the time and hassle to do the work to sell an e-book to the handful of dedicated readers such as yourself who might be interested in such a product.  That assumes anyone other than you even has an interest in it.

Now, having said that, I’m reminded of all the people over the years who told me how every week they would cut my column out of the newspaper and put it in a binder so they could reread it whenever they like.  Makes me wonder whether you might actually be on to something.

However, what you’re asking for more-or-less currently exists in the form of the column archives on the column’s website.  Over at ItsGeekToMe.co (not .com!) you can access every single issue I ever wrote, all the way back to the column’s beginning in July 2007.  I’m afraid a good portion of the answers are outdated, as Windows has continued its relentless march forward. Specifically, bear in mind that when the column was founded, we were all struggling along on Windows Vista (*shudder*).  Since then, there have been 5 major releases of Windows, along with all the sub-versions, such as Starter, Home, Basic, Premium, Professional, Enterprise, Ultimate, etc., plus the countless different build releases along the way.  I’m afraid that a great deal of what you’re asking for would have little value outside of nostalgia, kitsch, and my quirky, creative writing style.

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Q: Dear Geek, Sometimes when I am going to a web site, I get a box with the message “Select an app to open this ‘mailto’ link”. It also has a list of stuff like Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, and Outlook.   I am not sure what to do.  Can you help?

– Spouse Peripheral
Bluewater Bay, Florida

A: Yes, readers, that’s my dear wife.  I don’t think anyone other than a wife would end every question with “Can you help?”  I mean, I’ve only been writing this column for almost 20 years.  If I can’t help by now…

There’s a simple answer here, contained right in the message you cited.  When you click on a typical link, you’re expecting it to take you to a web page.  The link in question is not a navigation link.  A “mailto” hyperlink is specifically designed to semi-automate the process of sending email to someone.  Normally, it opens your default email client and begins the process of creating a new email, including putting the addressee into the To: block.  You’re getting that dialog because you don’t have a default email program defined. When you click a mailto link, your browser doesn’t know what to do.  So, it asks, and presents some common options for handling email requests. 

You can usually see all the details of the request by hovering over the link, and examining the tooltip that pops up.  If you truly need to send an email, you can see the addressee, and sometimes even a subject, all embedded in the link.  Armed with that information, you can go to your email client and manually compose an email.  In your case, I suspect you simply clicked on the wrong link, and got a mailto link instead of a hyperlink that takes you to a destination page.

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The following announcement comes from the Shameless Plug Division of Geek Industries:  It’s that time of year again, when I dust off all my decorations and Christmas-related technology to bring you the Geek Lights on the Corner.  Plans and preparations have been underway for quite a while now, and Spouse Peripheral and I, along with my dedicated team of Elf volunteers have got some big changes coming your way this year.  If you are local to the Florida Panhandle and would like an inside look and want to become a part of this year’s show (Season 19!) head over to the show’s page at Facebook.com/GeekLightsOnTheCorner, and sign up to attend one or all of our Community Build Days coming up in November.  See you at the Corner!

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To view additional content, comment on articles, or submit a question of your own, visit my website at ItsGeekToMe.co (not .com!)