Maneuvering through websites and the BYU online lessons

The link to the BYU online course on family history has been provided at http://261.byu.edu

Some common difficulties of less experienced users of the computer and the internet is the challenge to maneuver or move around the massive chunks of words, pictures and webpages that are provided. Often times in the internet, clicking one link or one menu item leads to the opening of another webpage either in the same window of the previous page or in a new window that is created. All this causes a user to feel overwhelmed because of a feeling of lack of control on what's happening or a feeling of being lost from where you started or knowing how to finish.

So the exercise I want you to do in this post is merely to learn how to move around the BYU online lessons. I like everyone to just explore the BYU website by clicking items on the blue 'navigation bar' on the left. Try to understand the logic of how all the different pages are connected to each other. You do this by clicking an item which will lead you to another page. You will find that for the 'PAF' lesson, it will even lead you to another set of lessons in the FamilySearch website outside the BYU website. (See if you understand this when you try it by clicking the links found by the red 'STOP' sign) Find out how to get back to the previous page where you started. It involves either clicking the 'back' icon found in your browser or clicking an item in the blue 'navigation bar' on the left such as the 'main menu'. Getting back could also mean jumping from one window to another by clicking 'X' in the top right of your current window to close it so that you can view the other. Alternative is not to close any window at all but click at the bottom tab of your computer screen that allows you to switch from one opened window to another.

Begin to do this exercise by clicking the BYU online course link above, after you finish reading this post. Put your comments here only when you have gone through the menus and links of the online lessons enough that you feel you know how to move around the various sets of lessons with CONFIDENCE. Note that you are not required to follow line by line or read every line in each lesson but just to get in and out and go anywhere you like in the online course without getting lost and having the confidence to know how to return to the very beginning of the course. The idea is to get a birds eye view of the entire course and get familiar with going into and out of each webpage just like getting familiar with a reference book where you like to know where things can be found or how to find them.

Of course you can leave a comment here for help if you find yourself facing some difficulties and you will need to learn how to describe your problem so that I can attempt to guide you here. I will follow a discipline whereby I will not give you ready help on the phone too quickly unless you have attempted to communicate in writing your difficulties here online so that you can develop the important dialogue skills here. When you qualify for help on the phone, you need to have your computer ready infront of you when we talk so that you can follow me on your computer as I guide you. That will be almost as good as being there with you.

Practice always makes perfect just like anything else in life. For learning how to use the computer, it is even more crucial so don't let the natural fear that we all experience to hold you back. Just dialogue and dialogue here until you find its easier than you think it is!

Learn from the kids, they 'Play' with the computer! So relax and have fun!