Perfectionism and parenting can be a recipe for exhaustion and a life filled with stress. Being a "slacker mom" is not a negative; it's a way of thinking smart and of being clued into what really matters over what can wait till another day. Slacker mom was a term coined by Muffi Mead-Ferro,[1] and it's also known as being a Beta mom, or slow parenting.[2][3] Slacker moms are moms who reject any over-parenting models that involve children being sent to every possible after-school improvement option, with mom staying up till dawn baking homemade cookies before rushing off to work or starting the day's tasks.

If you're ready to be a slacker mom, then it's no more sitting for hours on end in traffic and in your car at the soccer practice field; and it's no more helicopter parenting where overbearing goodwill takes away your child's self-sufficiency and capacity to learn by trial and error. Take the over-the-top expectations out of being a mom, and start really enjoying your slow parenting experience.

Steps

1. Form your own ideas about where the tendency to overdo parenting comes from. While your personal reasoning for overdoing your mom role will be very unique to you, it can be helpful to understand some of the theorizing behind why it is thought that hyper-parenting has arisen in recent years:
   • Some commentators say that many moms transfer the zeal they applied to a career to their parenting, treating motherhood as another form of profession and social competition.[4]
   • Sometimes it's a case of needing to define one's own worth by feeling better than the mom next door whose choices are different from yours, rather than accepting that each mom is an individual who is making good choices.[5]
   • For other moms, it's just about trying to keep up with the Alpha mom model developed by the marketing industry, where educated woman meets super mom in applying corporate-style organizational skills and technological agility to parenting.[6][7]
   • And for some moms, it boils down to being afraid of what might happen to their children and to their mothering role, in a society where fear is a constant via media messages.
   • Whatever the reasons behind super intense parenting, if it's not working for you and you spend a lot of your time feeling stressed, guilty, and unhappy about maintaining this level of socialized competition, then it might be time to call time out for mom and start looking at alternative, less stressful ways to parent.
2. Change your perspective. There are a number of ways that you can perceive motherhood and all the tasks accompanying it and that's really the key message - you make the choices on how to parent. If you're a mom who wants to step out of the fast lane and start parenting with the same amount of love but a lot less competitiveness, you can get off to a great start by:
   • No longer viewing motherhood and parenting as a form of competition. Your mothering is not subject to a performance review, and your children are not the end product of a project.
   • Allowing yourself to make mistakes.
   • Lowering your expectations. Today's generation of moms have been raised to believe that they can do and have it all. Unfortunately, such a broadsweeping expectation places a lot of pressure on moms who translate this into meaning that they must literally "do and be everything".[8]
   • Cutting down on digesting other people's mothering advice, especially the advice from people who have very little to do with your own lifestyle. From talk show gurus to self-appointed parenting experts in mommy blogs, you don't need it if it doesn't resonate with you. Getting a guilt trip just because someone else has a foolproof mommy plan is a waste of your life and an unfair burden to place on yourself. Remember the adage that parenting doesn't come with a manual – there's a good reason for that saying as it's based on the reality that we're all unique and we all have to discover our own parenting journey.
   • Allowing yourself to be more laid back and less "in control".
   • Avoiding judging other moms. If you're tempted to judge another mom according to your own standards, switch it to supporting her choices instead.
3. Stay away from Alpha moms. If your normal personality style is to take it easy, or you've simply worked out that all this crazed effort isn't producing the results it is supposed to, hanging around Alpha moms who spend a lot of time convincing one another of the need to hyper-parent and serving as a source of stoking the competitive fire is going to make you feel worse. The answer is very simple – keep away from them if they can't keep their competitiveness toned down around you. There is absolutely no reason on Earth why you should accede to their standards and even less for you to judge yourself according to them. Realize that much of what Alpha moms support is gleaned from popular media and is probably accepted by them without question.
   • If you do have to spend time around Alpha moms, try to view their expectations with compassion and be grateful that you're not stuck in the same mindset. This is a far healthier reaction than taking on board all the unrealistic expectations and beating yourself up for your own imperfections as a mom.
   • Find like-minded slacker moms and form your own haphazard meet-ups and chill-out sessions, with lots of unstructured play going on as you chat and relax together.
4. Stop being a helicopter mom. A term coined to described moms into hyper-mothering, helicopter moms hover around their kids all day long and well into the evening too. It's a phenomenon that is particularly noticeable among the professionally educated middle class.[9] Helicopter moms are so afraid that their child might harm themselves or come to harm from some other person, TV program, website, or activity, that they can't abide for the child to be out of their sight and spend a lot of time present with their child, directing and commenting on every moment of the day. For some moms, this goes so far as to necessitate homeschooling for their kids (as opposed to homeschooling parents who value this for ideological reasons). Helicopter moms are in denial of their child's right to grow through testing. It's your role to create sensible boundaries but not to be that boundary 24 hours a day.
   • Several studies have shown that children of helicopter moms at college age are more dependent, more neurotic, and less open than other college students.[10] Surely that's not something you're keen to impose on your children!
   • Helicopter mothering is time-consuming and emotionally draining on you as a mother. Interestingly, mothers have been investing more and more time in at home child-care activities since 1965 despite their increased labor force participation; this trend is especially prevalent among educated women, a sign of trying to "do it all".[11]
   • If you're juggling work, helicopter parenting, and a marriage, the marriage tends to suffer first. Having an intense relationship with children can serve as a form of blocking out other people in your life, including other relatives and your local community.[12] That isn't giving your children a healthy role model, including the essential one of involving them in volunteering.
   • Realize that sometimes being your child's best friend isn't a good idea - it's harder to set boundaries, it smothers the child, and you neglect your own friends and remaining family.
5. Let your kid get muddy, dirty, wet, and yes, pooey even. Kids need to touch, test, push and pull stuff around. If you're always there stopping them from touching what nature provides us, they'll grow to fear nature, dirt, and getting all gooey. They can also learn how to deal with hazards like dog poo and the immediate, common sense need to wash it off rather than feeling grossed out all the time. Don't scare them away from their backyard. Instead, do some reading about the good that being in nature can do for children, or better still, get out there and see the results on your children's faces.
   • Read Richard Louv's book Last Child in the Wood to learn about the benefits of nature and dirt for kids. There are more and more sites devoted to getting children "back into nature" if you don't have any ideas of how to go about this,[13] and you can also check out wikiHow's article on How to help children appreciate nature.
6. Ditch Baby Mozart. No child ever suffered from a lack of Mozart being played to them in the belly. Nobody is yet sure if the same can be said about playing it though! The belly comes perfectly equipped with its own lovely woosh woosh sounds, along with the added bonus of mom's voice. What more does a baby need? Not Mozart. Hang on to your money and put it in a college fund instead.
7. Cull the toy collection. Kids don't need the latest gizmos of this, that, and the other. To overload their lives with toys is to teach them early on that materialism matters. The only materialism they need to know that matters is a good roof over their head, healthy food in their stomachs regularly, and an ability to appreciate the hot and cold running water and internal temperature controls. Toys can be made from anything and indeed, most kids start off preferring the packaging anyway.
8. Restrain yourself from overloading the kids' after-school curriculum. Kids don't need all those extra activities to grow into fulfilled human beings. They need to know they can play freely and use their imagination. Kids need the freedom of doing nothing so that they teach themselves how to do something with nothing.
   • If their entire lives are filled with activities and the need to achieve, you might just be perpetuating office clones that a work-driven society too easily succumbs to facilitating.
   • Be kind to your kids and don't overdo the extra activities. Listen to their messages about what they're enjoying and not enjoying and keep the after-school activities balanced with time for play, rest, and genuine homework.
   • Stop doing your child's homework. They'll never learn self-responsibility while they have you to do it, and it's taking more time out of your day than you have to spare. They'll thank you later for the lesson in self-discipline.
9. Expect self-responsibility from your children and trust that they'll be OK. Doing everything for your children is not a healthy way to bring up children as you're setting them up to be adults with an expectation that there will be someone else to do it. Even when they realize that isn't the case, they can suffer a lifetime of resentment at being "made" to do anything, from housework to finding work.
   • Have children learn to be responsible for making their own lunch from an early age.
   • Allow unstructured play. Let the children get bored and learn how to get themselves out of that state, or at least cope with feeling that way.
   • Do a search online for "free-range" kids or parenting.[14] You will find a lot of resources and forums for moms who want to raise their kids on a looser leash, and who are letting go of the fear messages and trusting their instincts instead. Free-range parents trust their children to develop a sense of responsibility early in life, making everyone's life a little less fettered and raising more self-reliant kids. Read the stories of other mothers tired of the fear and worry messages about parenting and find some relief!
10. Expect your husband or partner to pick up some of the slack. If you're trying to do it all yourself, hand some of the responsibilities over. Dad has a role in raising your kids too and in keeping the house in some form of tidiness. Dads can feel sidelined if you insist on doing it all – don't allow yourself to get into that bind in the first place. It's also good for your kids to see both parents handling household responsibilities equally.
11. Chill and stop feeling guilty. Your kids don't need the latest designer gear, they don't need the best 101 kid's TV channels, they don't need all those amazing electronic gadgets. They need your love, they need your company in small doses and they need the company of a lot of other people too, like their dad, their brothers and sisters, their cousins, their neighbors' kids, their granny and pops. You don't need to feel that you're not giving enough if you at least accept that what you're doing is raising a child, not a robot, and that you give love, praise, and set boundaries all with a good heart.

Video Tips

• As with all advice, take this with a pinch of salt too. Always cherry-pick to fit your own personal situation. Do what feels right, and what is right by your children.

Things You'll Need

• Relaxing activities
• A place of your own to go to for unwinding

Related wikiHows

• How to Be a Good Mother
• How to Be Happy
• How to Have a Great Marriage
• How to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read
• How to Praise a Child

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College (or university) is a time in your life when you are learning many things. Outside your academic studies, college may be when you learn to live on your own, to keep up your own home, and so on. A big part of that is learning to cook for yourself, and it is easiest to cook regularly if you keep some ingredients on hand. That's where your pantry comes in. Steps

1. Set aside some space in or near your kitchen to store food. If you kitchen does not have any obvious pantry space built in or is short on overall storage, see if a bookcase nearby (perhaps in a coat closet) or other movable storage could work.
   • Try to find a space that is clean, dry, cool, and dark for your pantry. The cabinet just over your stove may not be the best choice.
2. Buy items as you need and use them. This means that you will acquire the items in your pantry gradually (thus avoiding any major, up-front expenses) and it also means that you will buy only those things you are prepared to use.
   • Consider bringing some things from home to get you off to a "free" and easier start. Get your parents' permission first, though.
3. Start simple. Start with the basics. Spaghetti sauce in jars and boxed pasta are easy staples to start with. Even when you move on to slightly more sophisticated meals, they'll be handy things to keep around for that day when things get especially busy.
4. Include other sources of starch. Rice, flour, oatmeal, and potatoes are all starches that will keep for a good long while in the pantry. While you most likely will not eat these foods alone, they are all good for extending other meals.
   • Store flour, rice, oatmeal, and the like in airtight (and bug-tight) canisters or jars. If you don't have dedicated canisters yet, you can save large jars from items you buy.
5. Have dry storage for things like onions and potatoes. There's generally no need to refrigerate either, so long as the space is relatively cool and dry and has good air circulation. A basket or bin with holes in it will help.
   • Potatoes should be stored away from a light source, to discourage sprouting.
6. Canned tomatoes Include some canned goods. It's generally healthier and far cheaper to use fresh vegetables and make your own soups, but having a few cans on hand for the busy moments doesn't hurt. You can also stock cans of things like tomato sauce, beans, and mushrooms, if you like to use those in cooking.
7. Include some breads. You can buy regular bread, or you can buy food like pitas or tortillas. Some tortilla chips can also go well with food like tacos and chili.
8. Baking supplies. Decide whether you'll do any baking. If you intend to bake, you will need baking staples like flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt.
9. Freezer Use your freezer as part of your pantry. Frozen meats are very convenient, especially if you have a microwave in which to defrost them. (Otherwise, defrost in the fridge a day in advance.) Frozen vegetables may not be quite as good as fresh ones, but you may find that they are easier to keep on hand than fresh.
   • If you love smoothies, you might consider getting frozen fruit, too, or freezing your own fruit. You can also learn how to freeze cooked foods and ready-to-cook foods for yourself, for quick meals later.
10. Your spice rack is a key part of your pantry. Start to build a selection of seasonings, according to what you use. These are herbs and spices, as well as the ubiquitous salt and pepper, and include condiments like soy sauce, ketchup, and vinegar.
    • Seasonings add flavors to your cooking. Some can be fairly expensive, so start with one jar of spices at a time.
    • You don't need every spice; just the ones you use. Find out what your recipes call for and just buy that.
    • Look for a few seasoning mixes, or mix your own. Italian seasoning is generally just a mix of oregano, basil, rosemary and parsley. A jar of chili powder or taco seasoning can dress up some basic meat and veggies so they'll taste good in a tortilla. Do watch for added salt in seasoning mixes, though.
    • Some grocery and health food stores may provide samples of spice mixes for free. This is a good opportunity to get a sample package or two spice mixes.
    • Bulk foods and spicesLook around for a source of spices in bulk or in packets, rather than in little, glass jars. You may want to buy spices the first time in those glass jars, but refill them with spices in less expensive packaging.
11. Supplement your pantry with regular trips to the store to get perishable foods, such as eggs, dairy, and fresh fruits and veggies. If you plan a bit, you may be able to keep these trips to about once per week.
12. Learn which ingredients last longer than others. All foods will eventually spoil, but some things will last longer than others. Buy your quantities according to how quickly you use each item.
13. Shopping day. Use up and replace the items in your pantry. As you use something up, or get close, put it on your shopping list, as long as it is something you use regularly. Keep a shopping list pad near the pantry with a pencil, so that's it's really easy to update missing ingredients.
14. Keep the ingredients around for one or two pantry meals that you can do if you haven't had the time to go shopping. Spaghetti and tacos are two fairly easy choices.

Video Tips

• Make your own list. The suggestions here are examples, but you will discover your own cooking style, and it may differ from the list here.
• Having a pantry and cooking for yourself can both save tremendous amounts of money compared to buying prepared foods or going out to eat in a restaurant. You'll also know more about your food if you cook it yourself. However busy you are, it's likely in college that you'll still have more time than money, so invest some time in yourself and learn to cook.
• You may notice that this article does not suggest stocking up on TV dinners and prepared foods. You may want to keep a couple of cans of soup around for term paper nights or finals week, but you shouldn't rely on them all the time. They're costly and often high in salt and additives. They also have much more packaging than other foods. It is also a good idea to get into the habit of making your own meals, so that you're aware of how easy it is to cook. The best way to learn to cook is to practice often.
• Part of keeping a pantry is trial and error. You will have to find your own balance and your own cooking style to know what to keep in your pantry.
• Every now and then, look in the back of your pantry. See if there are things there that are spoiled. Just as importantly, see if there are things that are still good that you could use up before they spoil.
• Buy a little at a time, especially at first. Once you've learned how you cook and what you cook, you can keep appropriate quantities of the right ingredients on hand or simply buy a little extra each time you go grocery shopping.
• Prepared cereal is an easy thing to put in a pantry, but it's also one of the most costly and heavily packaged things you can eat regularly, especially considering what it is. Challenge yourself to come up with alternate breakfasts, at least a few times a week. Also, try your own additions to plain oatmeal (almost any fresh or dried fruit is good), or learn to make muesli or granola yourself.
• Don't rule out dried beans. They may take longer to cook, but most of it is not your time, and they are healthy and inexpensive.

Warnings

• Throw away spoiled foods. You may make a point to catch things while they're still good next time, but a little bit of money spent is far less costly in the long run than food poisoning.
• Learn about and practice safe food handling, especially as regards meats and eggs.
• Don't get too much. You'll likely have to move out at the end of the year, so the giant jar of peanuts you see mid-April may have to be tossed out in May/June.

Things You'll Need

• Pantry space set aside
• Ingredients as outlined above
• Shopping list and pencil
• Carrying bags

Related wikiHows

• How to Stock a Kitchen Pantry
• How to Stock a Vegetarian Pantry
• How to Organize a Pantry
• How to Organize a Kitchen
• How to Learn Cooking by Yourself

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A search for "UFO" on YouTube brings over 500,000 returns.[1] And, after you've managed to sort through that lot to find your favorite, if you're worried that it's too good to be true, your suspicions may be well founded. Not only do you need to believe in the possibility of UFOs (or, at least, be open-minded enough), but you also have to trust the person filming it (possibly more far-fetched in the age of video tricks). Here are some methods to assist you in spotting a potentially fake UFO video on YouTube, or any other video site. Steps

1. Discard the obvious fakes before proceeding. These are the UFO videos that are clearly made in elementary school, use Lego men, or state in bold letters (or shout at you), "This is a joke!". Assuming you've already put your powers of critical assessment to work at this stage, it's time to proceed to the next signs that a UFO video might not be for real.
2. Look at the UFO closely. There are a number of obvious elements that can help you spot the fake UFO video. Here are some things to pay extra careful attention to:
   • Can you see any form of attachments to the object that is being claimed as a UFO? For example, strings, wires, stands, etc.
   • Be aware that invisible thread does wonders and can be very hard to spot unless you are looking for it. Look for glints of light off the invisible thread as the video camera rolls away at different angles, etc.
   • Is the UFO moving awkwardly, or with a jitter? Wobbliness tends to be a sign of strings and nerves rather than futuristic flying technology. Imagine trying to keep down a cup of alien brew in a wobbly craft? It's probably fair enough to say that if a plane couldn't fly wobbling or teetering in the way that the UFO has been presented as flying, then it's very unlikely the UFO could either - after all, our atmosphere remains the same for the UFO, let alone the comfort needs of the crew.[2]
   • Does the UFO suddenly "disappear" without further ado? Do planes, helicopters or hot air balloons just "disappear"? Not usually. Theoretically, a stealth bomber cloak, 3D cloaking, or meta-material might surround the UFO but if so, why bother to reveal at all and then suddenly disappear? Did it get a whiff of the videographer whose importance was probably considerably less than that of paying attention to either landing properly or keeping the flightpath straight? The greater likelihood is that the filming got awkward at that point and just stopped, or the painting tool was put to grand use.
3. Listen. If there is sound of a UFO in the video, it pays to listen closely as the UFO goes by. How realistic does it sound to you? Or does it remind you of your best friend's attempt at making an alien tune on Garageband late one night?
   • If the UFO in the video makes noise, it's probably a fake. It is difficult to know but it would be assumed that a UFO in real life would be very careful to keep its noise to a minimum. But more than that supposition, use your hearing senses carefully - a lot of sounds can be synthesized but one person's idea of what a UFO should sound like can easily be very corny (copied from a sci-fi film or show), or just really odd.
   • If a soundtrack is included, the video has a higher chance of being fake because it's aimed at creating the atmosphere and emotion, making it much more likely that it is staged. If someone really has filmed a UFO, the excitement of it would probably have them uploading it on well before they'd thought to add some spooky soundtrack and turn it into a "perfect" video!
4. Look at the details surrounding the UFO. As the familiar adage says, the devil is always in the details.
   • If the UFO is zooming by some trees, look to see if they blow because of the wind. If they don't, it's fake.
   • Look for shadows. Are there any shadows of the person taking the video, or other nearby objects? This will indicate to you that the video is shot close by on an object near to the person filming, rather than up in the sky. Moreover, shadows at night are less likely unless a direct source of light is shining on the UFO and it's near enough something to throw a shadow.
   • Look for reflections. What sort of reflections do you see? Remember the famous nude photos in kettles of eBay sellers - can you see the camera person in the reflection? If so, they're way too close to their miniature model! Other reflections can also be dead giveaways - anything that's meant to be on the ground, such as a car, will indicate a fake if reflecting in the object.
   • Look for duplicates in the background. For example, look at the trees or power poles as the filmed UFO zooms by. If the trees or power poles present an exact repeating pattern (looping the film), the video is a fake.
   • Does it appear that the object is tracked by a video camera that just seems to know without a doubt the UFO's next move? Or, does the video operator get tired of this and turn off the camera after only filming a few seconds even though the UFO is still in beautiful view?[3]
5. Consider whether the object reminds you of something. If it does, it is a possibly a big giveaway of the "object" used to fake the UFO for the filming. Some common objects to be wary of include:
   • The cloud. A conveniently shaped cloud in suitable weather might fit the bill for a clever videographer.
   • Kid's toys. Some can be convincing, others definitely less so.
   • Lights. These really are just too seductive for the amateur fake UFO videographer. From LEDs to bulbs, anything can go, and does.
   • The saucer. Literally. One kid throws it in the air, while the other one starts filming it.
   • Beer (or other) bottles. If it reminds you of a bottle flying through the air, trust your instincts. Throwing a beer bottle at a party can give people ideas if there's a video camera handy.
   • Software clones. Does the object or surrounding objects look just like stuff you've already seen on photo/movie/gaming software?
6. Check online for information. Using the claims made in the video, do some online research to verify the claims. Things to look for include:
   • Dates - do the dates match up with other people's recollections of the siting?
   • Are there news stories covering the alleged appearance of the UFO?
   • Is there an article or website debunking your particular video as a clear hoax? For example, there are well-known hoax UFO videos and it's a good idea to discard these from the start before you even get excited about the possibility that your video is real![4]
7. Use reverse logic. A really good way to know how to spot a fake is to know how a fake is made in the first place. Do some research online to find out how a fake UFO video is made.[5] Armed with this knowledge, it becomes a lot easier to spot the tomfoolery on a video featuring an alleged UFO! Some of the more common elements of making a fake UFO video include:
   • Resorting to the overly familiar saucer shape. While it's commonplace as a UFO representation, did you know that this shape has only been "popular" since 1947 and the Roswell incident?[6] If you're a Doctor Who or Star Trek fan, or a devotee of NASA, you'll be more than aware that aliens could potentially enjoy any number of other spacecraft shapes...
   • Throwing up lights in the background and quickly filming then. This is a very common trick.[7]
8. Be cynical, suspicious, or at least wary, if:
   • There are no witnesses, or only the dog or spouse witnessed the event. Be even more concerned if the dog is put forward as a credible witness.
   • If the video shows a huge object hanging over a very crowded area, such as New York City, but not very many people noticed (remember your research step above here). Other than the "terrified" actor in the video, of course. Indeed, the math of anyone looking at a large building in New York City has already been done and it was found that at least 50 people out of the 8 million people in NYC would be staring at a large building every second of the day.[8]
   • Anyone appearing in the video is acting suspiciously, weirdly, or over-the-top.
   • If the sound is canned or unnatural.[9]
   • It is filmed too well. This could be the indication of a UFO geek who has spent hours poring over the video shoot, getting the colors, shades, and reflections matching perfectly, all because she has seen Fox Mulder point out the illogicality of a UFO photo on an X-Files repeat. The reality is that special effects are affordable to many people to tinker with these days,[10] and if you really did chance on seeing a UFO "just like that", it's unlikely that your excited, rushing night-time video would be "perfect".
   • Even the person uploading the video tells you it's a fake project started to help the kids when they got bored one day but it went viral and got distorted into "being real" because some UFO enthusiasts (read, people who really, really, really want to see a UFO) happened to be convinced that it "must" be real![11]

Video Tips

• Looking at the comments sometimes may help, especially if other people have spotted particular anomalies, or have brought in sources that clearly show the video is a fake... or less likely, genuine. Be aware, however, that most comments will be of the negative or jocular kind because it's always fun to poke fun at a UFO video. Equally, what are the comments from the video uploader able to tell you?
• Do you know your UFO movies well? Don't be fooled by someone ripping a bit out of a movie!
• Old war movies of bombs landing are often redigitalized to appear like a UFO.
• Generally anything on YouTube will be a fake.

Things You'll Need

• YouTube
• Magnifying capacity (optional)

Related wikiHows

• How to Report a UFO Sighting
• How to Observe a UFO
• How to Create a UFO for April Fools Day
• How to Capture a UFO Image on Camera
• How to Make a Fake UFO Picture

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Are you tired of that Facebook friend who annoys you with their posts and app updates? Or do you and a friend just not have much to talk about anymore, but your Facebook connection keeps the friendship from dissolving into oblivion, like it would in real life? If deleting that person from your friends list is too cyber-confrontational for you, here's how to enjoy the benefits of unfriending them without actually unfriending them. Steps

1. If their updates are annoying or decidedly uninteresting, you can avoid their updates simply by hiding this person from your feed. Next time you see an update from this person, hover your mouse over it and a little gray "x" will show up on the upper right. Click on it and then click the "Hide..." button.
   
   
2. If this person makes inappropriate comments on your updates, photos, or wall, you can become invisible (or partially invisible) to them. Perhaps they mean well, but they just don't understand that their comments cause discomfort or drama. It's possible to adjust your privacy settings so they no longer see parts of your profile that you don't want them to comment on.
   
   
   • Click on "Customize Settings" from your privacy page and then for each aspect of your profile, select "Customize" from the dropdown menu.
     
     
   • Type the friend's name into "Hide this from".
     
     

Warnings

• Your friend will not be notified that you've hidden them on your feed, or locked them out of certain parts of your profile. If you have mutual friends and they're observant, though, they might still find out. For example, a mutual friend could comment on your photo, and that shows up in your other friend's feed, and when your other friend clicks through to the photo, they are told they can't see it and might wonder why your mutual friend can see it, and they can't.
• Somtimes it's better to unfriend them, especially if they are being hurtful.

Related wikiHows

• How to Delete Friends on Facebook
• How to Manage Facebook Privacy Options
• How to Deal With Your Family on Facebook

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Invented by Van Alen in 1965, and introduced to the US Open in 1970, the tie-breaker has helped to reduce what had sometimes resulted in monumental and lengthy tennis game struggles between top players that could take days to finish.[1]

A tennis tie-breaker is an intense, and often used, game in a set. It is used when the players are tied at 6-6 in a set, to determine the winner of the set. Whether you're learning to play tennis, or you're a spectator, it is important to understand the rules behind this exciting part of the game.

Steps

1. Understand when a tie-break game will take place. A "set" is a series of games in tennis and a player must win six games to win the set.
   • A tie-breaker is played when each player has reached six games each. It is used to determine the winner of that set. If both players have 5 games all, two consecutive games are needed to win the set. Where it is six games all, a tie-breaker is needed to decide the set.
   • A tie-breaker might need to be used in all sets throughout the entire match if the players are in peak form. In this instance, it is likely that the match is very exciting for spectators and can be both tiring and mentally trying for the players. A lot of double faults will occur as the mind games accompany the real play!
2. Learn the scoring for a tie-break game.
   • The points in a tie-breaker as scored: zero, one, two, three, etc. This is a change from the usual scoring of 15, 30, 40, etc.
   • The first player to win seven points, provided that there is a margin of two points over their opponent, wins the game and set.
3. Play a tie-break game. The player whose turn it is to serve (who was receiving the serve in the prior game) will serve the first point of the tie-breaker from the deuce (right) court side. The first point is only a single serve. The next player and all following players (if doubles) will serve from the ad (left) court on the first serve and the deuce court on the second serve.
   • If playing doubles, continue the ordinary service rotation as in a regular doubles game.
   • Once the initial serve has been served, the opponent serves the next two points, and all remaining serves are rotated, two points each time, until the end of the game.
   • Players change ends after every six game points (e.g. 4-2), or any multiple of six points. If the set score is 7–6 (e.g., seven games to six games), players change ends because the tie-break counts as one game. Unlike after other changes of end during the match, a change of end during a tie-breaker does not allow for any break – play must be continuous unless there is an injury.
   • The first player to reach seven points wins the tie-breaker, provided the win is made by 2 points. For example, a 7–6 does not win the game, whereas an 8–6 does. Regardless of how many points are needed, however, the winner of the tie-breaker will be recorded as having won 7–6.
4. Win the tie-breaker. Whether you're playing or observing, this is the crucial part! If you're observing, try to see if you can spot what each player is thinking or reacting to in advance of each shot played, based on the advice for players following. If you're playing, there are some key things to keep in mind to help your game:
   • Aim to grab an early lead by getting your first serve in and following through on each serve successfully. Double faulting can really turn the tables for you mentally; do your best to avoid this common error brought about by losing your concentration.
   • Be confident and consistent. Having a consistent serve is a key to winning a tie-breaker; that, and having a very focused mental attitude aimed at confidently winning the game because the tie-breaker is a real match for your mind too. It is recommended that you rely on your most successful playing strategies and keep with them at this stage in the game.[2]
   • If you do have a "secret" strategy in mind, be sure you're extremely skilled and know one hundred percent what you're doing!
   • It can help you to try and figure out how your opponent will react to the tie-breaker situation. Is there a past record to draw on? Does your opponent appear calm or flustered? If you're a good player and a good reader of the situation, you might be able to force pressure into the play that wears down your opponent.
   • Check out wikiHow's article on How to practice Zen tennis for some further tips on improving the mental attitude side of tennis.

Tips

• A match is normally the best of three sets, meaning that the player to succeed in two sets, wins the match. However, in some events, such as the men's singles in Grand Slams, the match consists of five sets, with the winner being the one to gain three sets first.
• Only the US Open employs a final set tie-breaker out of all the Grand Slam tournaments (Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open being the Grand Slam tournaments).[3]
• Some games play the final set as an "advantage set" rather than as a tie-breaker. This means that the player must win six games in all, as well as have a margin of two games over his or her opponent. This can mean that play will continue until one player has this two game advantage, for example, eight games to six.

Things You'll Need

• Tennis game

Related wikiHows

• How to Serve a Tennis Ball
• How to Change the Grip of a Tennis Racquet
• How to Grip the Eastern Forehand
• How to Play Extreme Tennis
• How to Hit a Slice Serve in Tennis
• How to Practice Zen Tennis

Sources and Citations

• Sue Rich, The Tennis Handbook: A complete guide to the modern game, (2007), ISBN 978-1-84543-134-1 – research source
• Rolf Fleichtbeil, Go Tennis, (2006), ISBN 1-4053-1504-0 – research source

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I know this one department that kept losing talented people, one after another. It was no mystery really. The manager was a complete jerk. ~ A.A.[1]

Sometimes newly appointed managers come into a company, hospital, or other organization thinking that they are the chosen ones. Then, there are managers who have been annoying for as long as you can remember. Annoying managers tend to throw their authority around the workplace recklessly. Consumed by power, they lose sight of reality, turning the lives of co workers into a living hell. If you allow or accommodate this type of influence in the workplace, your life at work will become miserable, sooner or later.

Here are some suggested ways to overcome the overwhelming effect of having overly ambitious and annoying managers in your work life.

Steps

1. Try to pinpoint why you find your boss or manager annoying. There are any number of reasons possible, but don't fall into the trap of finding your boss annoying just because he or she asks you to do your job to an expected standard when you can't be bothered! The real elements of an annoying boss include feelings on your side that the workplace has become unbearable, disrupted, unenjoyable, and perhaps even frightening, because of the actions of your boss, coupled with the reality that your boss has certain undesirable traits or responses when interacting with staff. Signs of a manager who is really annoying might include:[2]
   • A manager who is not supportive of staff and works to undermine staff, or who even steals the glory for work completed well by others.
   • A manager who is deceitful and either lies about performance of workers, or fails to praise or point out when work is done well.
   • A manager who threatens excessive or inappropriate outcomes for work not completed on time, or in a certain manner.
   • A manager who doesn't take responsibility for errors but uses workers as scapegoats and blames staff when things go wrong.[3]
   • A manager who practices favoritism in the work place, setting some workers above others for no apparent reason.
   • A manager who publicly humiliates, condescends, demeans, verbally attacks, or name calls staff.
   • A manager who hasn't got the slightest interest in your personal life, and goes so far as to not support you when you have family crises or other personal issues that need attending to during work time.
   • A manager who acts superior all the time, believing their own abilities far above anyone else's, and expects everyone to snap to attention, or else.
2. Recognize the actions of an annoying manager. As well as determining how the manager behaves towards staff generally, and knowing how this leaves you feeling, it can be helpful to identify certain unacceptable actions that annoying bosses commit on a regular basis. They can include such actions as:[4]
   • Insulting staff members in a very personal manner, often publicly
   • Invading your personal space without asking
   • Threatening you verbally or non-verbally
   • Sending email flames
   • Interrupting you rudely during meetings
   • Giving you dirty looks
   • Acting as if you are invisible when it suits them
   • Withholding praise even though you clearly deserve some
   • Second-guessing all the time or demands perfection
   • Making sarcastic jokes or teasing you as a means to deliver a nasty message
   • Reminding you in front of everyone where you stand in the hierarchy
   • Touching you when it's clear that you don't want this
   • Making two-faced attacks – you understand one thing from your boss, only to learn later that your boss said something completely opposite to somebody else
   • Stealing clients or accounts from other workers
   • Bad mouthing the firm's culture
   • Refusing to help or explain anything when asked (but will deny this if pressed by anyone else, and insist it was you who didn't ask for help), etc.!
3. Keep the attacks on you separate from your self-esteem. Understand that even though it may feel otherwise, this behavior is, on the whole, not a personal attack against you as a worker or as a person. Most often these managers are trying to prove a point to higher level management by being "seen" to be doing the right thing, by directing their energies upwards and not really caring for staff.[5] Such a boss may come around the office, department, etc., looking for errors to disqualify, or to discredit someone else whom they consider a potential threat. It is vital that you don't take this personally but see it for what it really is – your boss's inferiority complex trying to masquerade as fake confidence by using staff as a tool to cover up his or her own inadequacies. When you try to see it this way, you are doing what is known as "reframing", to reduce the damage the situation does to you.
   • Robert Sutton explains that the trick is not to expect your annoying boss to change (that's very unlikely to occur) but to expect the worst from your boss while expecting that you will remain fine once the ordeal is over.[6] Lower your expectations of your boss and focus on what is good about your job.
4. Be a model employee. Familiarize yourself with work protocols and understand the principles behind what you do. In other words, be prepared to offer a plausible explanation if questioned by your manager. This will also provide a suitable excuse to keep him or her away from rattling you further.
   • Be one hundred percent across your job description and be able to respond as to how whatever you are doing fits within those parameters. It may sound silly but there are plenty of employees who don't understand fully what their role is, and can become a target of a bullying manager as a result. If you do extend yourself beyond your job description, be prepared with really sound reasons for why you did this, how it has not interfered with your usual duties, and how it benefits your boss.
   • Earn respect by showing confidence in your work. Be organized and manage your time efficiently.
   • Do not create any opportunities for your annoying manager to call you out for breaking company policy or rules. Adhere strictly to break and lunch times, avoid leaving before your hours are up, and be on duty a few minutes earlier rather than being a few minutes late. Meet your deadlines, or keep people properly informed where deadlines are blowing out. Do not give an annoying boss any reason to find fault with your work or with you as a worker.
5. Demonstrate your expertise without arrogance. In a subtle way, outdo an annoying boss with your obvious knowledge. Aim to highlight your expertise and deter an annoying boss from prodding you any further. If your expertise is crystal clear and highly respected, an annoying manager will usually back off, knowing that pursuing a petty issue with you can make them appear stupid if they're unable to keep up with your points. Do not be arrogant, but display professional etiquette and confidence when making your points.
   • Seek small wins instead of looking for the knock-out punch. While the larger problem of your annoying boss isn't going to go away, a series of small wins can boost your confidence, build up a more solid workplace positioning for you, and encourage others to do the same as you, which could ultimately undermine your boss's approach and wrest back more control for you and your colleagues.[7]
6. Maintain a professional distance and limit your contact with your annoying manager. Becoming too familiar with managers who display poor leadership qualities is a perfect recipe for disaster that can even taint you down the track.
   • Keep a relatively safe working distance by avoiding personal conversations, keeping away, or revealing any information that could be used against you in the future.
   • Avoid meetings with your annoying boss where possible, or keep them short (look for a room without chairs).[8]
   • A fair amount of mystery is great for keeping you under the radar, and makes for interesting contemplation on the part of your manager.
   • Don't give in to becoming one of the boss' "favorites". Not only can this so-called favored position change at a mere whim, but not being in this position also means that when top management gets wind of how poorly this manager is doing, you won't be tarred with having been compliant with this manager's behavior or favoritism.
7. Keep any unavoidable confrontation constructive. Stick to the facts, stick to what you do know, and don't lash out and criticize the boss.
   • Learn to think on your feet. Many annoying managers have poor interpersonal skills, which is why we find them annoying. These types are bound to throw questions at you, at the most inappropriate of moments, catching you off-guard or when they know you will falter and stutter. This reflects a power play, a person who is insecure. Always remember this at the back of your mind, as this will help you to cope effectively, knowing the true reason behind the aggressive behavior.
   • Excuse yourself politely when any confrontation becomes unbearable. If you are losing control during a confronting interaction or you experience difficulties explaining yourself and being understood, make an excuse and walk away. Go to the bathroom, have a cigarette, throw M&Ms around in the carpark, etc., but do not stay in the situation and get yourself dragged in further.
8. Take a moment to center yourself before or after boss confrontationsLearn to relax in the presence of your annoying manager. Being nervous or intimidated will only make you an easier target at work and most often you will end up becoming their mental punching bag. Staying calm is a form of control of the situation in itself, and a very effective one provided that you can maintain it.
   • Don't perceive yourself as a victim. Don't respond in kind; instead, see yourself as remaining calm, detach yourself emotionally from the annoying manager, and don't try to control what is out of your control. Focus instead on what you can control and on helping others who matter to cope too.[9]
   • Realize that staying calm can infuriate a person unable to control their own angry emotions. Don't let their lack of self-control unnerve you – just observe it for what it is.
   • Find allies. Find those you can trust and share strategies for coping.
   • Try daily affirmations or meditation to help you to remain calm.
   • Take deep breaths and count to 10 before replying to a jibe or other annoying attack from your manager. Think of the chefs on Hell's Kitchen who respond "Yes Chef!" and nothing more! (You find out later what they're really feeling and thinking!)
9. Do not fall prey to workplace gossip and bickering about anyone. Sometimes an annoying manager will try to extort negative reports on you from others. While disappointing, if people know you are gossiping about them, they will give a negative report about you when a boss goes behind your back. This results in filtered information, that becomes more distorted as it transfers from person to person and this creates the wrong impression, potentially damaging your professional reputation in the process. Avoid falling victim to this type of destructive behavior by not undermining your colleagues.
10. The staff bolt holeFind buffer zones. Have rooms where you (and your colleagues) can go and have time out after being around your annoying manager. Let off steam and support one another.
    • Just be careful that this is a safety zone, and that there isn't a possibility of your annoying manager walking in. If so, look further afield, such as a cafe, a neighboring park, etc. For example, nurses can hide away in nurse's lounge away from doctors, or techies in a common room where bosses are never known to go.
    • Balance the advice on not gossiping with constructive discussions about your boss' poor behavior. It is possible to talk about the facts rather than belittling a person with rumors. Get the mixture accurate and you'll be supported by your coworkers.
11. Find other suitable employment if the work environment becomes unbearable. Another suitable alternative would be to look for other positions in the same workplace, if there are any available, such as a lateral move into another department. When you do move, however, be circumspect about your boss and your feelings for this person; people aren't impressed by a potential new employee mouthing off against a former boss.

Video Tips

• Under no circumstances should you verbalize your annoyance in nasty or untrue ways. This will make matters worse, if your manager gets to know about it.
• Believe in your own capabilities. Do not doubt your own confidence.
• Meet deadlines and prove your capabilities as a valued member of the working staff.
• Communicate openly to clear the air. Avoid secrecy as this will only create suspicion and more doubt.
• Be transparent. Others will also know that you have no hidden agendas.
• Act like you know what is going on, even if you don't. This will give you time to catch up on material that you need to master or familiarize yourself with.
• When trying to determine WHY you find the manager annoying, be open to the possibility that they may simply remind you of someone that you dislike.
• Seek help if you need it. There are various possible options from human resources, to work counseling, to unions. Go and ask for advice from whomever you feel most comfortable talking with.[10]

Warnings

• If you team up with others as unhappy as you about your unappealing boss, be really careful you don't all fall into the victimization trap of simply bitching about your boss and doing nothing. This can leave you feeling even more powerless and helpless as now you're a group of people feeling as if there is nothing that can be done!

Things You'll Need

• Supportive colleague network
• Job description
• Staff retreats

Related wikiHows

• How to Handle a Bullying Boss
• How to Disagree with Your Boss
• How to Defend Yourself Against a Bad Boss
• How to Be a Good Boss
• How to Be a Good Manager
• How to Accept That the Good Guy's Gone Bad

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A wise juggler once said that nobody ever teaches someone how to juggle; they simply show someone how to teach themselves. The role of the teacher then is more to encourage than to instruct. Still, by breaking things down into the simplest process, you can set someone up for success.

The method will change based on who you are teaching (young or old, athletic or otherwise) and how many people you are teaching (one on one, a small group or a whole class), but the basics will stay the same.

Steps

1. A crocheted footbag (Also known as a hacky sack) makes an excellent beginner's juggling ballChoose the right object. Using the right juggling ball makes all the difference when you're getting started. Using a solid ball will frustrate the student because it will roll away when they drop. Similarly, a ball that bounces can be mayhem for the beginner. For this reason, choose a beanbag or beanball that will stay put when it is dropped.
   • Choose the weight carefully. Anything over 8 ounces (226 g) will become really heavy after prolonged juggling. Something that is too light will also be difficult to juggle.
   • It will help if the objects are brightly colored and contrast with themselves and the surroundings.
   • If you need lots of props for a larger class, see how to make balloon juggling bags, how to make juggling balls from tennis balls, and how to make your own juggling clubs.
2. Start with one object. Your student might be disappointed by this since there's no fun in simply throwing an object from one hand to the other, but it will help to remind him or her that when juggling three balls, you are actually only throwing one ball at a time, while holding the other two.
3. Grasp the ball loosely, palms up. Curl the fingers around the ball a bit, but don't grab it. Focus on proper technique.
   • The ball should pop off your student's hand rather than rolling off their fingertips. Watch the ball as it flies from one hand to the other. If it is spinning, your student is throwing incorrectly.
   • When juggling balls, they don't simply travel back and forth in the same arc. They travel in a figure-8 pattern, with the hand carrying them from outside to inside. If they traveled in the same arc, they would hit each other.
4. Focus on consistency. Still only using one ball, encourage your student to toss back and forth and to keep the ball on a plane in front of him or her. Your student should not have to reach out or in to make a catch.
5. Focus on form. The hands should remain level, slightly above the beltline. The elbows should be bent 90 degrees. The throw should come from the forearm and not the wrist, so encourage your student to keep their wrists locked.
6. Add the second ball. This is the most important step, as you will now be teaching the exchange. This is the nearly simultaneous catch and throw that is at the foundation of juggling. Have your student start with one ball in each hand. Throw from the weak hand (left if right handed, right if left handed) and as the throw begins to come down toward the opposing hand, toss the second ball.
   • If done correctly, the hand motion for the throw should leave the palm in perfect position to catch the first ball. The second throw should sweep under the first.
   • Most people already know how to catch. Now is the time to work on getting the throw under control. If someone is particularly timid about their ability to catch, especially as they begin to learn the exchange, encourage them to practice the throws while letting the balls drop to the ground.
   • Both balls should remain in the same plane. The second ball should pass underneath the first.
7. Practice. At this point your student will be eager to move on and get to the three ball juggle, but you should encourage them to work on the two ball exchange until every throw is going to about the same height.
8. Switch hands. Juggling is an ambidextrous skill, so as soon as your student gets the exchange down with their strong hand, have them switch to the other hand. Your student will still be using only two balls, but will make the first throw with their strong hand and the exchange with the weak hand.
9. Only one or two objects at a time are actually in the air.Add the third ball. Once the student is exchanging the ball well with both hands, they are ready to take the next step. Pat your student on the back and tell them that they've already learned to juggle. They might doubt that since they still haven't added the third ball yet, but the hardest part is over.
   • Have your student start with one ball in their weak hand and two in their strong hand.
   • Begin with a single throw from the strong hand and then make one exchange after the other.
10. Practice some more. There is no substitute for repetition. This is where the skill of the teacher is really tested. Most students will give up before they master this basic pattern, but with plenty of encouragement and corrective advice, you can make all the difference.

Tips

• When teaching younger kids, it is often best to start with scarves rather than balls. Scarves move much slower and give the student more time to adjust to a bad throw or catch.
• The biggest problem new jugglers have is what is known as the "Jogging Juggler" syndrome. Each throw goes forward a little bit so they find themselves chasing after an increasingly chaotic pattern. Tell your student to practice in front of a wall with about a foot between their knuckles and the plaster and this will solve the problem quickly.
• Remind your student early and often that dropping is all a part of learning.
• Practice juggling over a bed. It discourages traveling forward and there's less distance to reach to pick up the drops.

Things You'll Need

• Juggling balls, scarves, etc.

Related wikiHows

• How to Juggle
• How to Juggle Five Balls
• How to Juggle Three Balls
• How to Juggle Four Balls
• How to Juggle Two Balls

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Hooray for tight jeans!

What do Britney Spears, Jennifer Lopez, Paris Hilton, and Madonna have in common? They have all worn their jeans tight at one time or another!

Making your jeans tighter might be for reasons of fashion, personal preference, because the pair you just purchased doesn't sit or fit right and you'd like to make them look and feel better, or you've lost weight. Over time, some jeans can also lose their original tightness, so you might like to try one of the methods following to giving them a bit of a "leg-lift".

Steps Sewing method

1. Turn them inside-out first Try on your jeans inside-out. Standing in front of a mirror, note the areas where you would like the jeans to fit more snugly.
   • Pinch the fabric together at the crotch and down the inseam. Secure it with sewing pins to inform your sewing direction for the tighter fit. Use plenty of pins.
   • Just remember that when you turn your jeans inside-out, your left leg inside-out is your right leg right-side-out.
   • Mark any other places where you think there is room for improvement using a sewing marker, or pins, if possible.
   • Take off the pants when you are satisfied. If the pins are a problem in removing the jeans, resort to the sewing marker to show you where to sew. Having a friend to help you get this part accurate can be a big help.
2. Set up the sewing machine. Turn it on, fill with denim-appropriate thread and a needle suited for denim-sewing, and clear your workspace.
   • If you haven't used a sewing machine before, sew a couple of lines in some practice fabric (preferably denim). You want to know how fast your machine goes and make sure things go smoothly when you get to your real project.
3. Start at the crotch. Press the reverse sewing lever for just a moment when you start to secure your stitch.
   • Keep the jeans as flat as possible and completely together.
   • Stitch in a smooth curve along the line of pins or markings that you added. In essence, you are creating a new seam.
4. Try to keep your line straight, and work your way down. Aim to make the excess denim bigger as you get towards the bottom if you are making the flare smaller.
5. When you get to the very bottom, press the reverse sewing lever for just a moment to secure your stitch.
6. Repeat on the other leg.
7. Try on the jeans. If they feel right, turn the pants inside out and cut off the excess denim to the thread. This is not difficult, but make sure you have sharp scissors.
   • If they appear lopsided, you have some unpicking and sewing ahead! No amount of wearing can improve the bad shaping caused by sewing inaccurately.
8. A pair of jeans post-stitching Check the pants out for looks and comfort. You have jeans that actually fit now!
   • If you notice bunching around the crotch, don't worry too much, as this will settle down when worn and will not be noticeable for most jeans. Ask a friend to do an honest assessment while you're wearing them if you're really worried!

Non-sewing method

For those who are not keen to get out the sewing gear, there are some non-sewing methods that you can resort to using.

1. Wash your jeans in hot water. For this method, make sure that your jeans are not preshrunk. If they are, there will be a barely noticeable difference at the end of all your efforts! In addition, this method will work better on jeans that are 100 percent cotton than blends of cotton with human-made fibers.[1]
   • Place the jeans through a hot water wash. Do not use fabric softener or conditioner. Avoid sharing the wash with any other clothes. A front loader might have more impact than a top loader, as it is actually the tumbling action that shrinks the fibers.[2]
   • Dry them in the hottest setting of the dryer. Make it as long a drying time as possible.
   • Try on the washed and dried jeans. They should have shrunk a little from the washing and drying processes. Be aware that this method doesn't last. With wear, the jeans will slip back to their original "comfy" shape.[3] And with each wash and hot dry, the strength and appearance of your jeans diminishes as the fibers are damaged by the heat, so avoid over-using this method unless you're prepared to turn your jeans into a denim purse and buy a new pair![4]
   • Instead of washing in hot water, or in addition to, you might also try boiling your jeans. If so, be sure to have a pot that is clean and large enough, and keep the fabric well away from naked heat sources. Keep an eye on it at all times, adding more water if needed. Burned jeans are good for nothing! If you are boiling the jeans as well as washing, add them to the washing machine (hot wash) after boiling,[5] or just place straight into the dryer.
   • Another approach is to soak jeans in very hot water (fill the laundry tub, dunk in and use a wooden spoon to push all of the jeans under). Then, wring dry once the water has cooled and toss into the dryer on its hottest setting as above.
2. Try adding a thick layer underneath the jeans. This method only works during winter or you'll end up in a sweat bath, and it's a method that won't necessarily work on all types of jeans. Wear thick tights or a pair of leggings underneath the jeans. Check how it appears in the mirror - if it makes enough of a difference, it might be enough of a fix for that pair of jeans.
   • A large drawback of this method is comfort and mobility. You will probably feel hot unless it's very cold, and it's likely that you'll find it harder to move your legs. It can feel constricting.
   • Leggings are preferable as the pressure of your feet in tights can pull on your waist as you move, and the waist can cause the feet end of the tights to pull up.
3. See the tailor to have the alterations done for you. While this is clearly not quite the same as knowing how to do it yourself, knowing when you're not up to the task can sometimes be just as important, especially when you've purchased an expensive and good quality pair of jeans. Take it to a tailor, ask the tailor to take your measurements and have your jeans taken in. The benefit of using a tailor is that their sewing experience will ensure that there is no bunching up or unprofessional finishes, and their industrial sewing machine will handle the job beautifully.
   • Consider having a tailor make you some skinny jeans from scratch. This way you can select your favorite denim and have the measurements "just so", ensuring that your skinny jeans fit perfectly!
   • The dry cleaner can sometimes help. Starching and stretching several times might help to reduce the waist size.[6]

Waist only

If your jeans are fine in the legs but slack around the waist, try focusing only on the waistband.

1. Sew two darts in the back of the waistband to draw in the jeans. You'll need to be familiar with sewing darts in.
2. Alternatively, sew a button inside each side of the waistband and add an elastic piece with button holes inserted into it. The placement distance between the button and elastic will need to be enough to cause the jeans' waist to pull in when the elastic is stretched over the button on each side.
3. Try a hot wash, as above, but focus only on the waistband. Pour boiling water into a laundry tub, sink, or bucket.
   • Dunk the waistband into the hot water and leave to sit for 10 to 15 minutes.
   • Remove from the hot water either by pulling up from the legs or using a utensil such as a wooden spoon or tongs. If you're worried about burning your hands, wear rubber gloves.
   • Wring the jeans' waist in a towel, then throw into the dryer. Use high heat and dry. The waist should shrink temporarily.

Shape protection Keeping your new tight jeans in great shape is better than cure. Here are some quick ways for keeping your jeans tight:

1. Buy good quality jeans. Check the label for the manufacturer's instructions for keeping the shape, along with any estimations for the lifespan of the jeans or shape.
2. Try the jeans on before you buy. Don't assume that the same brand or even style will still fit you. Each batch differs and the only true test is placing on your body shape.
3. Avoid using the hot water washing method unless your jeans are already out of shape. A gentle, slower, cooler wash is ideal for keeping jeans in shape.

Video Tips

• A great way to make your new seam look worn (for a less "I-sewed-my-own-jeans" look): Using a paintbrush or a sponge, lightly bleach the area around the new seam - use a very diluted bleach solution so that the difference between the bleached part and the rest of the denim is subtle.
• Remember, you can always sew them tighter and cut off more denim, but you can't put it back.
• When washing jeans, try to wash them inside out - it causes less wear on both the jeans and the machine from buttons, etc., catching on the machine surface.
• In the 1970s, it was common for people to squeeze into their jeans in the bathtub. This method isn't very effective and definitely leaves you feeling really uncomfortable.
• Buy them tight - the "guys only" method. This is a little trick that you'll probably not let on to any of your mates. Check out the girl's section of the jean's department. The jeans will tend to be tighter for the size that fits you. The disadvantage to this method is that if anyone realizes, you're in for some teasing.
• Buy skinny jeans, because they are already tight jeans.
• Check out Buy Comfortable Skinny Jeans for more tips on buying tight jeans to start with.
• Jeggings or treggings a super comfortable pants made to look like super tight jeans without the discomfort. You might like to check them out.[7]

Warnings

• Sharp scissors can cut skin. Be careful!
• Sewing your finger is painful, watch what you are doing.
• For the sake or yourself or others, try not to go so tight that anything hangs out. You'll most likely be embarrassed if someone makes fun or you or tells you to pull your pants up.
• Wearing jeans too tightly can cause health problems, such as cutting off circulation, cutting into your thigh nerves, and causing tingling (tingling thigh syndrome or meralgia paresthetica), numbness and pain.[8] Avoid wearing jeans so tight that you're in pain.
• If the label says don't tumble dry, then do it at your own risk!

Things You'll Need

• Loose jeans
• Sewing machine
• Sharp scissors
• Sewing pins, safety pins, or a sewing marker
• Washing machine, or tub/bucket/container
• Tailor

Related wikiHows

• How to Bleach Jeans
• How to Rip Your Own Jeans
• How to Do Something New With Your Jeans
• How to Make Distressed Jeans
• How to Cut Jeans to Make Wider Leg

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The US Open Grand Slam Tennis tournament can be watched via live video streaming on the comfort of your home via the internet, bringing live coverage for each match during the tournament. In this article, you'll get a brief overview on using live streaming and locating a site to watch the tournament. Steps

1. Prepare your computer. For the best experience of live streaming, it is important to read the instructions and help answers accompanying the site that you are using. This will identify the specific needs for an optimum live streaming experience, including:
   • Computer and operating system requirements
   • Sound requirements
   • Any adjustments that might need to be made to your screen for the best viewing.
2. Find a live streaming site that works for you. A good live streaming site is one that provides the best experience for you with the least of disruptions. Things to look for include:
   • Good streaming all the time with no, or few, interruptions
   • Good quality presentation on your screen
   • Ability to increase the screen size
   • Low level of distractions, such as ads, blur, etc.
   • If you're experiencing difficulties, see wikiHow's article on improving video streaming on your computer.
3. Check out the following places for live streaming of the US Open, to see which fit your needs best:
   • Official US Open site: http://www.usopen.org/en_US/interactive/video/live.html?promo=rightnav - note that this can be viewed freely within the United States. It may be subject to restrictions or costs in other countries.
   • ESPN3 - http://ESPN3.com - for US residents only.
   • Watchlivetennis.org - http://www.watchlivetennis.org/ - note that this is a paid subscriber only site.

Tips

• Obviously live streaming means that the live stream page is not operational unless a match is happening. Simply bookmark the page to return to it easily according the the game schedules that interest you.
• Consider following the official US Open site on Twitter at http://twitter.com/usopen. This will give you regular updates as to schedules, live streaming, etc.

Warnings

• Poor internet access or limited bandwidth will cause video streaming to falter or not operate properly. Ensure that you have updated all software needed and that your computer is up to speed.
• If you experience problems with live streaming, check your settings first, then check forum questions on the relevant sites before contacting the site managers. It is likely they'll be too busy to respond to you quickly.

Things You'll Need

• A computer
• Internet access - broadband, high speed
• Quality monitor, large screen if possible
• Good sound capacity on computer or other web-enabled device

Related wikiHows

• How to Analyze a Tennis Match
• How to Be a Better Tennis Player
• How to Practice Zen Tennis
• How to Choose a Tennis Racquet
• How to Download Online Streaming Videos Using RealPlayer
• How to Download Streaming Videos in Linux

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Nothing but ramen noodles and a few loose ingredients in your cupboard? Try this recipe and turn your college student-style dinner into a home-cooked meal. Ingredients

• 2 packages of original flavor ramen noodles
• 4 cups water
• 1 can (10 3/4 oz) cream of chicken soup
• 1 lb (16 oz) chicken breasts, cubed
• Mixed vegetables of your choice
• 1 slice of bread
• 1 tablespoon oil

Steps

1. Prepare the ramen according to the package directions, leaving the seasoning on the side. Drain the noodles and place into a medium sized bowl.
2. Cook the chicken over medium heat until cooked thoroughly.
3. Add the chicken and cream of chicken soup to the bowl.
4. Add the vegetables to the bowl. This could be anything from carrots, corn, peas, mushrooms, etc.
5. Stir mixture (optionally adding seasoning packet(s)) and add it to the pre-greased casserole dish.
6. Break up the bread slice into pieces and layer it onto the mixture.
7. Bake at 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) for 25 minutes or until the bread is browned.
8. Let cool for 5 minutes and serve. This dish goes well with a salad, steamed vegetables, or as a meal by itself.

Tips

• Avoid using the seasoning packets if you're worried about sodium and MSG.
• Ramen seasoning is high in sodium and MSG. If you wish to reduce these seasonings, you can substitute sliced onion and herbs.
• A beaten egg can also be a good addition to this casserole.
• Try substituting any or all of the ingredients in this recipe. You can use real pasta or rice rather than ramen. You can use any "cream of" soup that sounds tasty (mushrooms, broccoli, celery, etc.) You can use tuna or any bit of leftover meat you have on hand. You'll find you can mix and match quite a bit, according to what's in your pantry.
  • If you want to use rice, you can add a bit of extra liquid (one empty soup can should do it) and cook the rice right in the baking pan. Bake for about 40 minutes, until the rice is tender.
  • If you want to use pasta, cook it first, but undercook it a little, since it will soak up some liquids from the sauce. In a pinch, you can also cook pasta during the baking, using liquids in the casserole, but the consistency will be a bit off.

Things You'll Need

• Saucepan or pot
• Colander or strainer for draining
• Mixing spoon
• Casserole dish
• Serving plates or bowls

Related wikiHows

• How to Make "See Now You Can Smell" Ramen Soup
• How to Make Ramen Noodles in the Microwave
• How to Eat Top Ramen Raw
• How to Make Milk and Cheese Ramen
• How to Get Creative with Ramen Noodles

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Being verbose is usually a poor method of communication, since it implies the usage of words or phrases that are beyond the scope of your audience's knowledge, or you're just not getting to the point. While this is hardly a desirable trait, a bit of verbosity can come in handy from time to time. If you were invited to an academic conference or were trying to impress a potential employer, a bit of pleonasm couldn't hurt. If nothing else, having a few recondite words at your disposal can be a great defense against the pedantry of others.

Steps

1. New words are easy to find if you know where to look!Acquire logolepsy (learn to love words). The first step toward verbosity is improving your vocabulary. Look for obscure word lists, sign up for word-a-day emails and never hesitate to look up a definition if you encounter an unfamiliar word.
   • If you look for them, you will find words that are easy to love. Take "Hippopotomonstrosesquipedalian" as an example. This word, which means "a word coined so as to be long" is actually longer than its definition.
2. Apply unconventional conjugations and parasynthesis (use odd tenses and variations). Sometimes a common word can be verbose if an unusual tense is applied. Using words like 'datum' and 'subfocal' can make even the most mundane words sound erudite.
   • If you know enough suffixes and prefixes, you can make up your own behemoth words. The Shakespearean gem "Honorificabilitudinitatibus" started with the simple root word of Honor.
3. When in doubt, add extra adjectivesBe lexiphantic (use really long words). Never use one syllable where three will do, or perhaps this is better said 'eschew monosyllabic iterations wherever feasible'. Take the word 'hyperpolysyllabic' as your example. It means essentially the same thing if you leave the 'hyper' off, but why waste a perfectly good 17 letter word?
   • If your lexicon is archaic enough, you can add words by using synonymous adjectives. For example, you could describe someone as "Tautologically loquacious". This only works with obscure terms, however, as describing the same person as "Redundantly repetitive" will not earn the same logophilic respect.
4. If you're going to say something obscure, why not use an obscure language?Quidquid Latine dictum sit altum videtur (Whatever is said in Latin sounds profound). Memorize a few good Latin phrases and insert them whenever you can. Mix in some French or Italian (paying careful attention to pronunciation) and you'll be facetious in four languages.
   • Rather than saying, "He makes a habit of using arcane references", try "His modus operandi seems to be obscurum per obscurius" to give your volubility a bit of international flavor.
5. Learn Antecedentially (study the roots). By learning the roots of words, you will be able to discern the meanings of unfamiliar words. You will also be able to create neologisms, or new words based on existing definitions.
   • A great example of a neologism is "antecedentially", which relies on real words and has applicable meaning, but was coined for the purposes of this wikihow article.
6. Ensure accordant locution (use words correctly). The goal in verbosity is to appear intelligent, not pretentious. Using an obscure word incorrectly can be deleterious to your illusion of perspicacity. Be sure to check the usage of a new word in several sources before applying it in the real world.
   • All the astute logorrhea in the world won't help you if you're caught saying "Don't condensate me."
7. Specificity is the antithesis of verbosityWhen in doubt, confusticate (confuse people). You should know the exact definition of a word before you use it, but that doesn't mean you always will. If people start asking for definitions, give them freely, but don't be luculent about it. When somebody asks "What does redifragous mean?" you can answer "It's like an extreme form of perfidiousness," thus increasing your prolixity exponentially.

Tips

• Know your audience. If you're dealing with a group of English professors it's probably best to avoid pretension altogether. If you're dealing with a group of simpletons you can pretty much make up words as you go along.
• Check the pronunciation. It is better to use a simple word correctly that to misuse a complex one.
• Be creative. Even common words can be verbose if applied correctly.
• Playing word games like Scrabble and Crosswords are fast and fun ways to improve your vocabulary.

Warnings

• The over verbose may be tagged as a fake and a know-it-all.

Things You'll Need

• Dictionary
• Thesaurus

Related wikiHows

• How to Sound Intelligent
• How to Smooth Talk Your Way out of Trouble
• How to Find Things to Talk About
• How to Enrich Your English Language Vocabulary
• How to Build Your Vocabulary

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Hair that stays plastered to your head can come off as dull or unattractive. In this article, you can learn how to make your hair rise up in beautiful, outgoing curls! Steps

1. Heat up the curling iron.
   • Place the heat setting to high, if it has a setting mode.
2. Gather your hair into a top-of-the-head ponytail.
   • Secure this with a suitable elastic.
   • This will be more challenging with shorter hair, but gather whatever hair you can. Obviously, for very short hair, it isn't possible to create big bouncy curls!
3. Divide the ponytail into sections. The purpose of this is to keep hair out of the way so that only small sections are curled at a time, to create the most effective curls. Take a one inch (2.5 cm) section of hair.
   • Pin the rest of the hair to one side, out of the way.
   • Curl the small section you have separated from the other hair.
4. Continue curling in the same manner. Make new sections of the same width until you have curled all of the hair in the ponytail.
5. Remove the ponytail. Do this with care, so as not to crush the curls you've just made.
   • Let the curled hair fall loose.
6. Add volume to your curls. Bend forward at your waist and let your curled hair dangle forward over your head.
   • Spritz the underside of your curls using hairspray. If preferred, use scrunching gel. Be very careful if using gel, the curls can easily unravel.
7. Stand up. Flip your head back, and you're good to go. Your hair will have added volume and the curls will be beautiful, big, and bouncy.

Video Tips

• The best time to curl your hair is right after it is washed and dried, but before the hair is "set". This occurs in the first hour after drying.
• Remember when you have dried your hair and immediately laid down for a nap? You woke up with "wrinkled hair" didn't you? But... if you wait an hour or two, your hair won't be so affected.
• Style it just after drying, but never, never iron curl your hair wet. First off, it is wasted energy - wet hair won't curl. But more than that, the water in the hair transfers heat very well, too well, adding unnecessary stress and damage to the hair shaft.

Warnings

• Always keep your eyes closed when spraying hairspray.
• This won't work on all hair types. Hair that is not able to hold shape well is unlikely to respond as easily as hair that has natural curl. For people with very straight hair that is either very thick or very fine, this method may not be as effective. It is a case of trial and error, to determine whether or not your hair type can sustain curling.

Things You'll Need

• Hairspray
• Curling iron
• Ponytail holder
• Hairpins

Related wikiHows

• How to Turn Frizzy Curls Into Beautiful Twirls
• How to Get Spiral Curls
• How to Keep Curls in Your Hair
• How to Tighten Curls
• How to Get Curls Fast Even With Straight Hair

Sources and Citations

• How to Get Big Bouncy Curls video on Howcast - Original source, shared with permission.

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Completed chocolate chip cake with toppingA chocolate chip cake is a wonderful thing already but how wonderful it becomes when you add a topping to it; it is food for the gods! Ingredients Topping

• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 cup walnuts, chopped
• 1/2 cup mini semisweet-chocolate pieces

Cake

• 3 cups cake flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup butter, either melted or at least softened
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup of mini semisweet-chocolate pieces

Steps

1. Topping ingredientsPrepare the topping. In a small bowl, mix the brown sugar, walnuts, and half a cup of semisweet-chocolate mini pieces. Set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 350ºF/180ºC. Grease and flour a 13" x 9" baking pan.
3. Don't forget the eggs like this 'chef' didInto a large bowl, measure the flour and remaining ingredients, except for the remaining mini pieces.
4. With the mixer at low speed, beat until mixed. Constantly scrape the bowl.
5. Batter before chocolate chipsIncrease the speed to high. Beat 2 minutes, occasionally scraping bowl.
6. Folding in the mini chocolate chipsStir in the reserved mini chocolate chip pieces.
7. Pour into the baking pan. Spread the topping over the batter.
8. Place in the oven. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
9. Cool the cake in the pan on a rack.

Video Tips

• When this cake was made, the eggs were forgotten. Surprisingly, the result was still scrumptious. So if you are trying to cut down on your egg intake, this recipe does not need the eggs.
• Use gluten free cake flour and this recipe can be gluten free! The photos that you see are of a gluten free Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake.
• For a different taste, perhaps less sweet, try:
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup ground almonds
  • 1 cup walnuts (you can also try changing this up)
  • 1/2 cup mini semisweet-chocolate pieces.

Things You'll Need

• Baking pan, 13" x 9"
• Toothpicks
• Mixer
• Cooling rack

Related wikiHows

• How to Bake a Chocolate Chip Cake
• How to Make Chocolate Chip Cookies
• How to Make a Chocolate Chip Cookie Birthday Cake
• How to Make Chocolate Chip Pancakes
• How to Make Chocolate Chip Cookies with Store Bought Dough
• How to Bake Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies

Sources and Citations

• This recipe and many others can be found at Foodista.Com, another Creative Commons site.

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Pacing is the practice of calculating the distance you have traveled based on the number of steps you have taken. This can be a very handy piece of knowledge, especially if you're out hiking or walking and you need to determine where you are on a trail or map.[1]

There are generally two types of pacing, namely single and double pacing. Single pacing is counting every single step you take, while double pacing counts only on right or left foot steps.

Steps Track method

1. Find a measuring resource. To find out what your pacing is, you will need some way to measure the distance you are going to cover. Some parks and cycling tracks have distances marked on the ground. A running track could also serve the purpose. Locate such a measuring resource so that you can work out your pacing using the following steps.
2. Figure out whether you want to calculate your pacing in single or double steps. Double steps has the advantage of being half the number of steps to count!
3. Go to the starting marker on the track. Choose a suitable length to check yourself against – 200 meters or 200 yards is a good distance to calculate your pacing fairly accurately.
4. Walk the distance you have chosen and count your pacing as you move forward. When you reach the end, take note of the number and divide it by 2. You will then get the number of steps you take to cover 100 meters or 109 yards.
   • Somewhere between 55 to 70 double pacing steps is normal for most people. If you are using yards, 60 to 76 double paces is the normal range.
5. Confirm your pacing by walking back the exact same distance you have covered. Calculate your pacing for 100 meters or 109 yards and check to see if it is the same. If it is not the same, average the number to find your usual level of pacing. If needed, you could pace another distance to confirm your pacing.
6. Apply your knowledge of your pacing to distance measurement to simple activities to test out your accuracy.
   • Calculate the distance of a short walk, say from your home to a local store.
   • Calculate a walk around a park.
   • Calculate as you walk to work in the morning.

Wet feet method

1. Find a clear sidewalk or pathway. Fetch a tape measure.
2. Fill a bucket with water. Pour this water down the sidewalk or pathway where you are going to walk. Make sure there is enough water to pool.
3. Start walking through the water at your usual pace. Continue to walk beyond the water for another 10 strides.
   • Walking through wet sand might also work for this method, provided you have a tape measure handy.
4. Measure the distance from the heel of your left footprint of each of the wet left footprints.
5. Average the distance measured to gauge your distance covered.[2]

Tips

• A person's pacing is never consistent. Some factors that will affect the accuracy of pacing include:
  • Fatigue level - You walk more slowly when you are tired.
  • Weather - You walk more slowly in hot weather.
  • Terrain - Upward slopes cause lower pacing and downward slopes increase pacing.
  • Group walking - You may walk faster or slower depending on the group speed.
  • Carrying weight - The more weight on you, the slower you will walk.
  • Growth - If you are a teenager, your pacing should increase as you grow taller.
• A pedometer or a GPS set to walking mode would help you to calculate the distance covered.
• Be sure to assume a comfortable pace, this method will be useless if you are taking bigger or smaller than comfortable strides, as you will always gravitate back to that "comfortable" size pace.

Warnings

• Watch out for traffic, cyclists, and other people!

Things You'll Need

• A track with distance measurements painted on the ground; or
• A bucket of water and a measuring tape

Related wikiHows

• How to Pace Yourself when Running
• How to Pace Yourself While Biking
• How to Run Faster
• How to Train for the 800 Meter Race in Track and Field
• How to Win a Running Race

Sources and Citations

• http://www.nalno.com - Original source, shared with permission.

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Laptops are everyday items for business, home, and study use. If you haven't ventured into purchasing one for yourself yet, do you feel confident enough to work out what type will best suit your needs? After all, they come in many different sizes, colors, and types, making it a challenging choice to find the "right one". This article is aimed at walking you through the key considerations prior to purchasing a laptop, to ensure that you end up with one that will serve your needs well. Steps

1. Consider whether a laptop has the advantages you're looking for. If you haven't had a laptop before, it can be a good idea to consider the possible benefits of owning one. When compared with a desktop, laptops have the following advantages (and disadvantages):
   • You can take a laptop with you wherever you go, even abroad provided that you take a power adapter as well.
   • Laptops are now more affordable and competitive in their pricing.
   • Many laptops can do what we expect most desktops to do.
   • Laptops save on space and are easy to move out of the way.
   • There are a few negatives: Laptops are easy to steal if you forget to take care when traveling with them. Their battery life isn't extraordinarily long and can be frustrating if you want to work without electricity for a long period of time, such as on a plane or sitting at the shore near your vacation cottage. The average lifetime of laptops is also significantly lower than for desktop computers. If you plan on using your laptop exclusively, you will probably have to upgrade after two years. Due to the proprietary nature of laptop hardware, even something as silly as a broken mouse button or gummed up keyboard can't be fixed without mailing the laptop back to the manufacturer, usually at cost to you.
2. Set your budget. It's important to know how much your budget is before you start looking or you might be swayed by long-term interest-free sweeteners to purchase something beyond your means. There is a large range of laptops available and setting a limit will ensure that you enjoy the laptop you can afford, without being prevented from upgrading later on because you're still paying off the old one! Decide what aspects are important to you and fit these within your budget:
   • If you're only after a laptop that can cope with sending emails and browsing the internet, then you will be fine getting a netbook or laptop that doesn't cost a lot. A refurbished laptop with a good warranty is great for this purpose.
   • If you're into playing games online, you'll need to spend more to get a faster graphics card. If online gaming is a hobby, you've probably already factored in this extra expense.
3. Consider what Operating System(OS) you prefer: Linux, Mac OS or Windows. It is really up to your personal preference, but these are some important considerations:
   • Go with what you know? If you're used to one OS it'll be 'easier' to continue with a familiar interface than give something new/fresh a chance. But don't let your first OS decide every subsequent OS and computer buy.
   • Why stay with an OS that doesn't fit you? Some programs you may need/want are only available for your old OS but can be made to work through an emulator. Others can't. Your Mileage May Vary.
   • If you are inexperienced with computers and will need help, buy the type of computer that helpful family members or friends know and will help you with. Otherwise you'll have to rely on call-center 'tech support'.
   • Try out all three types in the store or friends computers. See what feels most innate and natural to your way of using a computer. Even within the same make, keyboards, track pads, etc., can feel very different under your personal touch.
   • Give Linux a try. Some laptops can be purchased with Linux pre-installed. To try before making the purchase download a free live distro (distributed demo). It allows you to run your computer using a Linux operating system out without making any changes to the computer. Most Linux operating systems are free of charge as are thousands of programs and apps. A program named WINE lets you run many Windows software on Linux systems. You can install and run these applications just like you would in Windows. Wine is still under active development. Not every program works yet. However there are several million people using WINE to run their Windows software on Linux operating systems. Linux has virtually no threats from viruses. Linux is the perfect choice for children because the operating system is free, the programs are free, and there is virtually no threats of viruses. If the the kids mess the operating system up just reinstall the operating system and start over fresh. Linux Mint looks and works the most like Windows. Ubuntu Linux is the most popular.
   • Macs cost more for relatively the same hardware/features. This is a big drawback if you're on a budget. On the plus side, they match well with iPhone, iPods, iPad, etc., they are also considered fairly easy to use for the less technically inclined, and have good support in Apple Stores. Read up the pros and cons of Mac ownership on relevant internet forums. Macs are also generally less prone to viruses, though they are not immune. Another thing about Macs is that if you still have Windows applications that you need, you can buy Windows emulation software and install it on your Mac, which will allow you to run Windows on your Mac. All recent Macs come with software like this, called BootCamp, but using it requires a restart to boot into Windows mode.
   • Windows netbooks/laptops can be quite affordable, and there are many options from a number of manufacturers to fit virtually every need or want. Windows 7 includes the ability to connect to an in-built GPS device and has good power. However a lot depends on the manufacturer, so it's important to look at what each manufacturer offers in terms of price, features and support, and then to read reviews and other sources for information on how reliable the manufacturers products are.
4. Think about the size of laptop that will suit you best. There are three different size/weight ranges for a laptop: a netbook, a laptop, or desktop replacement. Although all of these fall into the broader concept of a "laptop", their end usability differs and can impact your choice. Here is a brief rundown of each:
   • Netbook (also known as a mini notebook or an ultraportable) - with a portable small screen of 7"-13"/17.79cm-33.3cm. This has a compact size, is light in weight, and is usually suitable for emailing and browsing or light internet usage as their memory is small. Since netbooks tend not to have as much RAM as laptops, their ability to run sophisticated applications is limited. However, changes are occurring all the time, so always ask the retailer's advice.
   • Laptop - with a screen of 13"-15"/33.3cm-38.1cm. This is of medium weight, is still thin and light, and is able to hold a lot of memory. The decisions to make about a laptop's capacity really come down to your own preference as to screen size, and the amount of RAM you think you'll need.
   • Desktop replacement - screen of 17"-18"/43.8cm-45cm. This is larger and heavier, has full features, and tends to be bound for the desk rather than being lugged around in your backpack. While not as portable as the other two, however, it's still very mobile when needed and the added weight when carrying it isn't really a big issue for many people. If you're not sure about this size, weigh up your desk and portable needs, noting that it is possible that the desktop replacement will eventually do away with desktop computers altogether.[1]
5. Consider your durability needs. Decide on whether you'd prefer a metal or plastic exterior. Nowadays the choice of casing is mostly an issue of personal preference, as the weight of each outer-casing is fairly similar, with well-made metallic laptops being no heavier than plastic ones. In terms of durability, metallic casing is probably best for a laptop liable to get knocked around a bit but it's still best to ask your retailer for advice.
   • If you are doing fieldwork or a lot of "rough travel" with a laptop, you might need customized extras to protect it. Ask for a stronger screen, shock mounting of internal components and "ruggedizing" of the whole laptop against water, spills, and drops.[2].
   • If you are a professional in the field and you really need it to last then there is a class of laptops called Toughbooks, which tend to be quite expensive, but you can run them over with a truck or bake them in the oven without damaging them.
   • Most consumer model laptops in retail showrooms are not built for durability. Look for a corporate model laptop built from metal or composite materials if durability matters.
6. Look for features to match your needs:
   • Check the CPU or central processing unit. Higher end, faster processing laptops will have a multi-core CPU such as Intel, AMD, and now ARM. This won't usually be found in netbooks or lower-end laptops. The difference impacts the speed of your laptop's performance.
   • The size of the Hard Disk Drive (HDD) is virtually unimportant, as long as it can hold your OS and programs, which even the smallest drives today probably can. To store your media (e.g. pictures, music) no amount is enough and since you can't put an extra HDD in a laptop, external/network storage becomes almost a must. What does matter for performance is the speed of the HDD. Of course, more speed = less battery life.
   • Alternatively, Solid State Drives (SSDs) offer much higher performance, no noise and extended battery life, but have much smaller capacities (usually 30GB to 256GB at the time of writing) and cost more. If you are looking for the best possible performance, an SSD is a must, but you'll probably need to purchase an external hard drive for things like music, photo and video libraries.
   • Consider how much RAM you actually will need in your new unit. While it may be tempting to get a whole ton of RAM when you purchase the laptop, often retailers will put massive amounts of RAM in a unit to disguise the fact that the rest of the components are sub-par (slower processor, etc). Since it is quite easy to upgrade RAM (even in a laptop), this should not be a huge consideration for a specific laptop. The amount of RAM memory can be an important spec to consider. Often the amount of memory can limit the applications that you can run. Large applications will require more memory to run. In general, the more memory you have, the faster the laptop will run. The typical memory numbers come in amounts like 1 GB, 2 GB, 3 GB, and 4 GB, where GB means gigabytes. Try to get at least 3 GB. Laptops with 4 GB are ideal but make sure that your operating system is 64 bit for anything 4GB and over, as a 32 bit operating system cannot recognize more than 4GB. Most manufacturers will not sell you a laptop with a 32 bit operating system if you choose 4 or more gigabytes of RAM, though.
   • If you are playing games, check the graphics memory. You must have a graphics card with discrete video memory for 3D games, though this is not necessary for most casual games. A discrete graphics card will consume more battery power as well.
   • How many USB ports are in place for adding your peripherals (memory sticks, iPod, Firewire, etc.).
   • Check the laptop's optical drives. If you want to be able to burn CDs and install software from discs, you will need a DVD drive. If your laptop does not have one, you can always purchase an external DVD drive to plug in when needed. Blu-Ray drives are also options now in many laptops. If you want to be able to play blu-ray movies, make sure you choose a blu-ray drive (sometimes called "bd-rom") instead of a dvd drive.
   • Look for the right screen resolution. While not impossible, it's difficult and expensive to change the screen that comes with your laptop once purchased, so get the right amount of pixels from the start. More pixels increases the cost but if the resolution is important for your activities, it is worth getting this part right.[3] Ask how the laptop screen performs under sunlight; cheaper screens will often be "invisible" in outdoor light, making their "portability" a little less useful for you.
   • Check the wi-fi connectability. Your laptop should be wi-fi enabled.
   • Test the keyboard. It should feel right to your way of typing or tapping. Same for the track pad.
7. Find a suitable retailer for purchasing a laptop. The main thing is that you find knowledgeable people or adequate information to satisfy your questions about the laptop you'd like to own. There are a number of options for a retailer:
   • Specialized stores that sell only computers and/or computer parts.
   • Brand stores that sell only sell that brand.
   • Generalized electronics stores that sell everything from fridges to computers rarely have staff with specialized computer knowledge
   • Department stores with specialist computer sections.
   • Online electronic or specialist retailer stores - and you can even check out the laptop in a real store and then order it online if preferred - be prepared to pay shipping charges, of course.
   • Online auction sites - be sure you know the reputation and trustworthiness of the vendor by checking their ratings.
   • Refurbished laptop dealers - make sure they have been in business for a while and give a one year warranty. Beware of short warranties. A physical presence means you can go and have a look at the laptops.
8. Know what to avoid. There are some laptop products you should avoid buying:
   • Know the risks before you buy used, re-certified, or refurbished laptops. It is very important that the laptop comes with a good warranty and from a reputable dealer. Durable, corporate grade laptops can be a bargain when refurbished. The risk is that the laptop has been mistreated and is in poor condition. If the price is right, and especially if their is a one year warranty, then the risk may be negligible.
   • Don't buy discounted floor stock laptops unless they come with a good warranty from a reputable dealer.[4] These can be several generations older than current models on full sale, and it's likely that they have been powered up all day every day, as well as being exposed to store dust, grimy fingers, and endless pressing and banging from bored kids or confused customers.
9. Once you have your laptop, take good care of it. While it depends on the brand and type of laptop, a laptop that is cared for well should last a good few years before you need to invest in another laptop.

Video Tips

• Go to someplace like Consumer Reports to find out how the computer compares in different categories.
• Do a websearch for sites where you can get reliable consumer opinions. Learn from someone else's mistakes and lessons.
• Great deals are mostly online, but can appear in stores that sell large quantities of laptops.
• Most of the more well known brands of laptop come with multiple software applications preinstalled, known as bloatware. This software is often general purpose software. Much of it is far less than state-of-the-art. The laptop manufacturer put it there to make money. They license it from the copyright holder in order to add it to their machines, which will add a level of competition. HP, Sony, Lenovo, Acer, and others pay Microsoft their royalties and license fees when they add Microsoft Office trial software or MS Works to their pre-loaded package. Too much bloatware can greatly affect your system's performance, so each installed program should be examined to see if it is essential. If not it should be removed at the earliest opportunity.
  • Purchasing all the software that you want preloaded would be a good idea, even if it means getting a lot that you don't want, because buying in a bundle may be less expensive. It is advisable to purchase all your add-ons at the time of purchasing the laptop, as these can either run out of supply, or even stop being manufactured as time moves on. You can copy your chosen software to another drive, format your hard drive, then load what you want. It will keep your system from slowing down from too much clutter.

Warnings

• Most of the time the better deals are online.
• If you do buy online, you may have to pay shipping charges.
• If you are buying used from an online auction site like eBay, read everything. See what is wrong with it. Review the person's feedback. If it isn't brand new, only buy it for a very good price, and make sure you do a clean install. You do not know what the previous owner may have on there and you are taking a risk buying a used laptop sight unseen. Make sure you can return it if something happens.
• Factory refurbished laptops direct from the manufacturers' websites are also generally inexpensive and come with warranties, but again your mileage may vary.
• Make sure you are comfortable with a laptop before you buy it. In most shops, if you bought a laptop and already used it, you won't get a refund or an exchange.

Things You'll Need

• Internet or retailer catalogs for comparison
• Computer retailer visits for demonstrations and to ask questions

Related wikiHows

• How to Clean a Laptop Screen with Household Products
• How to Find and Purchase a Very Inexpensive Laptop
• How to Make a Laptop Bag Look More Feminine
• How to Take Good Care of Your Laptop Computer
• How to Watch a DVD on TV With a Laptop (Windows)

Sources and Citations

• Bud E Smith, Laptops for the Older and Wiser, (2010), ISBN 978-0-470-6896-9 - research source
• NetGuide, Shop like a geek: The expert's guide to gadgets, p. 27, (June 2010), ISSN 1176-1318 - research source

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This article demonstrates a method of stretching your front thigh and hip flexor muscles in a new way. This method does not stress your knee like other standing front thigh stretches. Steps

1. Understand why the integrity of your knees is important. Your knees are the most vital joints to exercise properly because you move with them. The knee was not designed to rotate (twist, spin, turn) like the back or neck, so avoid rotating your knees!
2. This method is difficult to do properly.Examine the pros and cons of the commonly used standing thigh stretch. While the method shown in this image is fairly easy to do, and it does a good job of stretching the target muscles, the problem with this method is that is rotates your lower leg outwards. You simply grab your ankle or foot and stretch: if you are stretching your left side you grab ankle or foot with your left hand.
3. Grasping your leg with your opposing hand is much better for your knees.Examine the pros and cons of the modified standing thigh stretch. While this method also stretches the target muscles well, it is difficult to do and it rotates the lower leg inwards.
   • This method is awkward to do because you have a longer distance to cover when you reach behind and grasp the foot of your opposite leg.
   • Additionally, this stretch is difficult to do because your arm will get tired, if you can barely reach your opposite foot behind your back. Whatever the negatives of this stretch, this stretch is better for your knees than the first, commonly used method described before.
4. Use martial arts belt or a long length of cloth (in this article a lawa lawa, waist wrap used by south seas islanders, was used).Use a modified stretch method for best results. To do the modified, standing thigh stretch, use a long, narrow cloth (or a martial arts belt) to loop around your ankle. Grasping a cloth or belt, attached to your ankle, solves the reach problem and does not rotate the knee inwards.
5. Loop the length of cloth around your ankle. If you are going to stretch your left leg, use your left hand to loop the cloth around your ankle loosely.
6. Keeping the loop at your ankle, pull your leg rearwards a bit, and with your opposite hand, grasp the fabric. Balance is a bit precarious here, so keep centered and relax.
7. Keep stretching your left leg. Now holding the cloth in both hands, pull with your left hand and let your right hand slide down until it is as close to your ankle as possible. Next, grasp the cloth firmly with your right hand and release your left hand's grip on the cloth.
8. Slide your hand down and grasp the cloth as close to the ankle as possible.Perform the stretch as you would normally do the modified standing thigh stretch.
9. Repeat for your right leg.

Video Warnings

• Always stretch after a workout or warm-up. Never do "cold" stretches.
• Consult with your internist before trying this somewhat difficult stretching method. If at any time, you lose your balance, just release your grip on the cloth or belt.

Things You'll Need

• A suitable cloth for stretching, e.g., a wawa, a martial arts belt, fabric piece, etc.

Related wikiHows

• How to Stretch for the Splits
• How to Stretch
• How to Do a Heel Stretch
• How to Get Rid of a Thigh Cramp
• How to Get Strong Thighs

Sources and Citations

• Ben Arnold was the model for these photos.

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Wish your life could run more smoothly? Like a roller coaster, life has its ups and downs. And while life may never be hassle free, it can be simplified. This article provides a range of ways that you might find applicable to your own situation, and that might help you to simplify your life. And given this is such a subjective notion, and not something where one-size-fits-all, use your own judgment and needs to choose which steps work best for you; it's doubtful that all steps will apply or benefit one individual, so simply skip that which isn't applicable to you.

Steps Starting out

1. Try the simplified approach to simplifying. This is about identifying what’s most important to you and eliminating everything else. While the remainder of this article provides specific examples of how you can simplify your life, don't sweat the simplification process, or you might be tempted to put it aside too, overwhelmed by changing all the things you're finding too complex in your life. It is important to realize from the outset that:
   • Simplifying your life is a journey, not a destination. What might work for you this decade might not fit the next.
   • You will find some dead ends that don't work for you. That's perfectly fine; just keep learning and unlearning as you go. Don't judge yourself harshly in the process.
   • Sometimes others around you will feel threatened by your need to simplify. Be gentle with them because they are probably feeling mired in complexity deep down and wish they could simplify too. When you're ready, you can help them simplify too.
2. Create a simplicity statement. What do you want your simple life to look like? Write it out.

Home and family life

1. Simplify your daily chores. Think about all the stuff you do at home. Sometimes our home task list is just as long as our work list. And we’ll never get that done either. So focus on the most important, and try to find ways to eliminate the other tasks (automate, eliminate, delegate, or hire help).
2. Simplify your wardrobe. Owning fewer clothes of better quality means you'll always look good and feel good and you'll spend less time deciding what to wear.
   • Have a versatile, but basic wardrobe.
   • Choose a few basic essentials and styles.
   • Mix and match two or three colors.
   • Add different tops to black pants or blue jeans.
3. Downsize your life.
   • Have a small, but comfortable home. Less clutter, more space to move, breathe, and do the things you really care about doing.
   • Learn to live with less. Buy less, savor quality more, and put the spare money in the savings account for a rainy day or a reward vacation.
   • Rent rather than buy a home or items you need to use. Then the repairs, rates, and dry rot are someone else's problem, not yours.
   • Trade your car for a smaller one. Find something that works for your family but is smaller than an SUV.
   • Own fewer items but make sure that what you do own has greater versatility. Objects able to do double, triple, etc., duty are the most desirable to have around. Remember that working to pay for objects is not an ideal approach to living happily; review your priorities.
4. Prepare quick meals. Find recipes that are quick to prepare. Spend the spare time enjoying the meal and your family rather than over-complicating the cooking process.
   • Make use of the internet for fast recipe finds. Look in your pantry to see what ingredients you have. Decide the main ingredient that you feel like consuming for that meal and type it (and maybe some of the other ingredients) into a search engine with the word "recipe". Don't labor the search process - check up to 5 recipes and choose one for that meal. This can be a lot faster than browsing through cookbooks.
5. Simplify your parenting. Many modern day societal expectations have brought about a parenting revolution where parents are doing everything for their children, from their homework, to tying their shoelaces, to letting adult kids stay at home when they've long outgrown it. Stop doing it all for them and simplify your parenting, safe in the knowledge that in doing so, you're also raising a resourceful and resilient child rather than a child who expects everything to be done for them.
   • Teach by omission. Don't make lunch, don't clean the dirty clothes, don't put the toys away. Expect your child to start doing things for themselves at age-appropriate stages. It isn't easier to "just do it" for your child in the long run, as that teaches your child you'll always do it and that they don't have to. Do tell your children where they can find the things to do tasks for themselves, showing them how the first few times, but then let go.
   • Create a chore chart for all children to follow and complete weekly. Involve them in its creation and they'll be more ready to buy into using it.
   • Stop reading parenting manuals, books, and blogs. Other people's parenting advice can often be a source of distress and perfectionism that you can do without in your life. We have the innate ability to be good parents, and you're more likely to be a good parent if you're seeking out other people's advice than not. So trust yourself more and do what comes naturally. Your kids will appreciate not seeing "How to Tame Unruly Kids" open on the sofa!
   • Allow your kids to discover nature more often and push them outdoors. There is plenty to keep them enthralled in nature and it's free, interesting, and healthy. Many children deprived of time in nature are suffering from "nature deficit disorder", which impacts parents too because you're always on the treadmill of finding things to keep your children from getting bored or experiencing life's little bumps and scrapes.[1] Let go of your fears and find the benefits for both of you.
6. Expect everyone in the house to pull their own weight. After all, it's everyone's home and everyone is responsible for its maintenance. Avoid letting anyone off the hook. If you have been doing so, it's never too late to change. Sit down and hold a family meeting about how the whole family is now going to simplify home life and discuss together what each person's role will be.
   • Accept that people won't change. However, demonstrate to them that this isn't about changing. It is about doing chores and tasks that are everyone's responsibility and that nobody is more qualified than anyone else to do the cleaning, clearing away, and laundry, meaning that everyone is equally suited!
7. Prepare celebrations and gifts in advance. Avoid last minute anxiety and craziness by having these things already organized well in advance. Keep a gift cupboard to help you throughout the year, along with a list of favorite homemade gifts that can be produced quickly and easily.

Finances

1. Keep receipts safe!Simplify your financial life. Finances enable us to thrive by owning a home, running a car, putting our children through education, enabling us to take vacations in interesting places, and ensuring we can survive with all the basics. Instead of resorting to the temptation to stick your head in the sand and hope that your finances will simplify themselves, here are some great ways to simplify them:
   • Create a minimalist budget. Learn to manage your money regardless of your income. Save for the future.
   • Pay cash. If you don't have the money, you won't spend it.
   • Think before you buy. You may not really need it.
   • Save receipts for six months to a year and store them in a large envelope or shoe box. Keep important receipts with warranties. Making it easy to find everything will remove the panic if you need to return broken or unwanted items.

Work

1. Cut back on the amount of time spent working. If you are working longer hours than what you're being paid for, it's time to reassess why. Ask yourself what you're getting out of and be honest. If you keep telling yourself "just this once", how many times will it take before that excuse runs dry?
   • See if you can work less hours than now. Ask for a part-time role. Readjust your spending habits to cope with the decrease in pay, increase in time for yourself.
   • Leave your work at work. Quit taking it home every day. If it didn't get done at work, it's time to reassess your working habits. Ask yourself what value you and your workplace are getting from taking work home every day.
   • Stop working weekends. Even if you love your work, dragging work into your weekends starts unbalancing the proportion in your life. It might not feel it right now but eventually, this will lead to burn out and/or passion reduction. Block off every weekend for the next six months. Not a single one of those weekends can include work from here on.
2. Simplify work tasks. Our work day is made up of an endless list of work tasks. If you simply try to knock off all the tasks on your to-do list, you’ll never get everything done, and worse yet, you’ll never get the important stuff done. Focus on the essential tasks and eliminate the rest.
3. Try commuting less. See if you can perform some telecommuting for a change, even just a few days a month.
4. Take break times. Whatever your job, however much you love it, breaks are an essential part of rejuvenating your life. Life becomes much more complicated when you stop seeing things afresh. So, be sure to take all breaks, from morning tea and lunch, to vacation times. Your work won't feel half as complicated on your return.
5. Clear your desk. If you have a cluttered desk, it can be distracting and disorganized and stressful. Clean it off regularly, perhaps every Friday afternoon before leaving work.

Technology and Communications

1. Simplify your online life. Your online life can quickly dissolve into a mess. Bookmarks here and there, emails cluttering up the inbox (many unread), sites you've joined and have no memory about, etc. All of this has the potential to decrease the utility and enjoyment of time spent online and give you a sense of complexity that really shouldn't be there given the ability of technological solutions to clear the clutter. Avoid this by simplifying your online life as follows:
   • Declutter your digital packrattery. Do a massive purge of the things that are cluttering up your computer, start keeping things simple and maintain a regular purging regime.
   • Try to keep your email box empty. Answer, file, or delete emails upon reading.
2. Simplify your media diet. TV, the internet, radio, magazines, newspapers, podcasts - there is a lot of media available. The trick is to use media effectively without letting it dominate your life.
   • Take regular media fasts. Have weekends where you are completely unconnected to the internet, the TV, your electronic games.
   • Place timers on electronic things that suck your time without you noticing. If you can spend more hours than you'd like online, install a timer – and use it! You might be surprised at your level of intensity. Even if you simply add in enforced regular breaks, your use of the technology will instantly simplify.
3. Simplify your communications. Communicating with other people is a vital part of life but it can be too easy to let it take over in the form of IMs, emails, texting, etc. Limiting the times for communications can help you to keep this part of your life simple and effective.
   • Keep email replies to certain times of the day only. Stop checking them every few minutes. Turn off the ping noise to stop your reaction for checking.
   • Make all return phone calls at a set time of your day.
   • IM or text for a limited time each day.

Personal health and well being

1. Simplify your health. There are a number of ways to make your health care less complicated:
   • Choose a healthy diet and exercise daily.
   • Monitor your blood pressure and heart rate at home. Keep a record of comparison for your physician.
   • Avoid smoking, alcohol, drugs and risk-taking behavior, such as base jumping or speeding.
   • Have regular pampering treatments, such as massages.
   • Meditate. This has long-term benefits and helps to keep you focused on what really matters.
2. Save for an emergency. One credit card and $1,000 should be sufficient for an unexpected car or home repair.
3. Find a good physician. Be sure they listen carefully before treatment is prescribed.
   • Request copies of your doctor visits and tests for review.
   • Your accurate history enables a physician to make a better decision.

Time spent with others

1. Spend time with people you love. Re-evaluate time spent with people you cannot mingle with and choose to spend more time with people you can enjoy. Whether those people are a spouse, a partner, children, parents, other family, best friends, or whoever, find time to do things with them, talk to them, be intimate with them.
2. Spend time alone. Alone time is good for you, although some people aren’t comfortable with it. It could take practice getting used to the quiet, and making room for your inner voice. While it may sound new-age like, it is extremely calming. And this quiet is necessary for finding out what’s important to you.
3. Simplify your interactions. There are some absolute basics that can make your relationships far simpler, far less trying on your nerves and time:
   • Learn to say no. If you can't say no, you'll always be the person who is trying to fix everyone else's problems as well as your own. Learn to discern what is important enough to agree to and say no to the rest.
   • Don't keep giving to people who always take and fail to reciprocate. Don't try to please others by neglecting yourself.
   • Use your instincts. Don't be easily led. If you feel there is something wrong, there probably is.

Video Tips

• Limit worrying. It changes little but uses up an enormous reserve of energy and complicates things unnecessarily. Instead, be proactive about whatever it is that is gnawing at you. Draw up action lists and just get active dealing with it. Worrying and stress go hand in hand so stop worrying to avoid stress
• Everyone says "be yourself". There is a reason for this oft repeated cliche, it being principally that when you're denying your real self an outlet by pretending to be a personality style or type that you're not, it's all about constant effort to not let the facade slip. If you're more true to yourself, then it's likely that you will be much happier inside, and a lot less tied up in complications.
• Record your day if you're not sure where the hours are disappearing to. Keeping a calendar can also simplify your day because you don't have to rack your brains to remember everything continuously.
• Make sensible choices about pets. For example, dogs need more attention than cats because they must be exercised every day. On the plus side, however, this exercise can be a form of unwinding and reconnection with the outside world for you.

Related wikiHows

• How to Live Life to the Fullest
• How to Reorganize Your Life
• How to Have a Better Life
• How to Remove Clutter From Your Home
• Unwind During a Week Off Work

Sources and Citations

• Part of the text has been inspired and added from Leo Babauta, Simple Living Manifesto: 72 Ideas to Simplify Your Life, http://zenhabits.net/simple-living-manifesto-72-ideas-to-simplify-your-life/, copyright free source. Thanks to Leo Babauta.
• Simplifying work ideas based on inspiration from Elaine St James, Simplify Your Work Life, (2001), ISBN 0-7868-6683-7.

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As you may know, all software on your computer is stored on a hard drive. What you may not know is that your computer keeps track of that software in a directory and that you may navigate through that directory to find every file on your hard drive. Knowing how to navigate your directory can be very helpful when installing, uninstalling, troubleshooting software errors, or finding documents and pictures you have saved. Steps

1. Understand the directory structure. A directory starts with a letter that symbolizes the drive. Each drive contains several folders and files and each folder can contain several more folders and files. The location of a file is specified by a file path. A typical file path looks as follows:
   C:\Program Files\Notepad++\Notepad++.exe. The drive and each folder and file are separated by a backslash ("\"). In the previous example, Notepad++.exe is found in the Notepad++ folder, the Notepad++ folder is found in the Program Files folder, and the Program Files folder is found in the C: drive.
2. Open your directory by double clicking the "My Computer" icon. Alternatively you may find "My Computer" by clicking on the "Start" button, or you may right-click on the start bar and click "Explore". Be aware that in Windows Vista, the word "My" has been dropped from all folders that used to have it in Windows XP.
3. Choose a drive. In the "My Computer" folder, you will see a list of lettered drives. The C: is your hard drive, a floppy drive is usually drive A: (most modern computers no longer have a floppy drive), and the CD-ROM drive is usually drive D:, but not always. You can open the directory for each drive by double clicking on them. An exception might be the CD-ROM drive which may run an Autorun program when you double click on it. To view the directory of a CD-ROM drive, right click on it and click Explore.
4. Choose a folder. After you open a drive, you will see a list of folders contained within that drive. If you are following a file path, this is the next part of the file path after "C:\".
5. Continue choosing folders until you find the file you are looking for. If you are following a file path, just go in order from left to right. Each folder name you need is contained within the backslashes ("\"). The last part of the path is your file.

Video Tips

• Instead of manually navigating to the right folder, try copying and pasting (or typing) your file path in the address bar of the "My Computer" window, then hit "Enter" or click the "Go" button.

Warnings

• These directions are optimal for the Windows operating system. Though similar, other operating systems may differ.
• Some folder and file names can be confusing. They may contain a non-typical name with seemingly random letters and numbers. Just remember the full name is contained within the backslashes ("\").

Things You'll Need

• Windows Operating System
• A Personal Computer (PC)

Related wikiHows

• How to Choose a Computer
• How to Be a Computer Geek
• How to Organize Your Computer
• How to Activate High Contrast on Windows
• How to Install Active Directory on Windows 2000 Server from Scratch
• How to Access Data of a Password Protected User in Windows XP in Case the PC Fails to Boot

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It may be superficial, but you hate the way your partner dresses. Here are some ways to encourage the evolution of his or her wardrobe. Steps If They Don't Care About Their Clothes

1. Buy them clothes you think will look better on them. Don't bring them shopping with you (if they hate shopping). You don't have to break the bank, either...you can shop at thrift stores. Just keep the tags on and have them try the clothes on at home (but don't nag). If they don't like it, return it. Get a feel for what clothes you both like on them (or that at least you can tolerate).
2. Eliminate the source. People who don't care about how they dress tend to inherit clothes from other people, usually a relative. Ask that person, tactfully, if they could donate their clothes to a charitable organization instead. Explain that your partner has a lot of clothes now, and you don't want the clothes to go to waste unused.
3. Address your mate's insecurities. Many people dress to cover up parts of their bodies they're ashamed of, and in the process choose tacky and poorly fitting clothes. Remind your partner that you like them just the way they are, and if the issue is their weight, encourage them to get fit so that they take more pride in their appearance. If your partner is not obese and their weight is not a threat to their overall health, make sure it's clear to them that their body size/type is attractive to you. If it is not attractive to you, you might consider whether or not you are a good match for each other in the first place.
4. Compliment your partner when they're wearing nice clothes. A little extra affection won't hurt either.
5. Get rid of their old clothes, little by little. Other than a few garments they're really attached to, put the ugly clothes in a box and tuck that box away. If you've given them enough new clothes to wear, they won't even notice (if you do it gradually). Eventually, when you move or do some spring cleaning, they'll discover the box and wonder why they ever wore such hideous clothes. That's a good time to suggest giving the clothes to charity.

If They Love Their Clothes

1. Accept your mate's style. If they stubbornly cling to their clothing choices, can you find a way to respect that? After all, if this was how they dressed when you got together, it can't really be that bad.
2. Talk about fantasies. Maybe you can't get your partner to dress differently all the time, but there's nothing wrong with playing dress-up, especially if it's done in a fun and intimate way. Costumes aren't just for Halloween! Even if it's just in the bedroom, they might enjoy dabbling in another style so much that they retain some elements from it.
3. Bribe them. Offer to do something they've been wanting you to do if they wear a particular outfit for an entire day. As in the previous step, they might discover that dressing differently isn't so bad - and so might you, if they ask you to wear something you're not particularly fond of wearing!

Tips

• Be sensitive. You should be aware that your significant other may have a strong 'self image', and may only feel comfortable with certain styles of clothing. Do not try to force them to wear something that isn't comfortable, or that they don't like. If you can work within these boundaries to find something that you both like, do so.
• Compliment them when they wear something that you think they look good in. If they know you like a certain outfit, they might wear it more often, and start looking for stuff that's similar.

Warnings

• They're just clothes. Don't get too bent out of shape over this issue.
• See above, some significant others will see your theft of their old clothes as betrayal which may result in the termination of your relationship.
• Your significant other may interpret your behavior as controlling...and maybe it is! See How to Find out What Makes a Controlling Person.

Related wikiHows

• How to Recreate Your Wardrobe
• How to Buy an Office Wardrobe on a Budget
• How to Buy Clothes That Fit
• How to Purchase Designer Clothes Inexpensively

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Seeking to escape from the internet? While online notoriety thrills some people, for others, it can become a great burden or even a fear. Perhaps the internet has kept you enthralled and even "captured" for the past years to the point where the rest of your life is being left behind, or perhaps you're still not convinced this is a way to live, up front and obvious to the whole world.

Whatever your reason, while it might not be possible to erase yourself completely, you can do a very decent job removing yourself as much as possible from the internet. This article will discuss the most obvious ways in which you can delete yourself from the internet.

Steps

1. Have a good think about itThink this through very carefully before proceeding. Much of what is suggested below cannot be undone. This means that you will lose information, forfeit any marketable presence that you've developed online, and in some cases, you'll even lose the opportunity to restart your account using the same name or even the same email address. It might be drastic but if that's what's needed to set you on your new life's path or to escape being "known" online, the remaining steps will explain all.
   • Consider what is driving your wish to delete yourself completely. Is it a one-off scare from a cyberstalker? Is it a bad experience? Or is it an overall sense of being fed up with the pervasiveness of it in your life? Be sure to have fully worked through your concerns.
   • Are there other ways around your concerns, such as changing your online name, or using a different email account from your normal one for sending job applications, etc.?
   • Have patience and perseverance. This is not an easy task and there will still be echoes of your presence online that might not be worth the effort of chasing up. It all depends on why you want to delete yourself from the internet.
   • Realize that you might not even remember the extent of sites you've joined, created, participated in, etc.
   • Be polite. While you might be motivated by anger, fear, or irritation, don't let this come across in your tone and attitude when contacting website managers. They're human and will respond to reasonable requests couched in reasonable terms. If you're looking for a name removal because you're job searching, tell them - this at least lets them know you have a genuine reason. Avoid shouting, threatening legal action (unless you mean it, and only after they prove uncooperative), or generally being a bad sport.
2. Delete accounts. As already noted, it's possible that you've joined up to more sites than you'll ever remember. The more well-known the site, however, the better it is to remove yourself from it when trying to disappear from the internet. This won't necessarily resolve "deep web" memory of you but it's a good start. The following list is provided to help make it easier for you to know how to start ridding yourself of the principal sites:
   • How to delete yourself from Facebook
   • How to delete yourself from Twitter
   • How to delete yourself from YouTube
   • How to delete yourself from LinkedIn
   • How to delete yourself from Flickr
   • How to delete yourself from StumbleUpon
   • How to delete yourself from MySpace
   • How to delete yourself from PayPal
   • How to delete yourself from eBay - and delete yourself from any other online auction sites
   • Delete yourself from Craigslist and any other local advertising groups
   • Wiki accounts - on the whole, you can't delete wiki accounts. They tend to just get abandoned. If there is a real reason for removal (such as witness protection), contact the site's owner or engineers. At the very least, you should be able to get a name change to cover your real identity.
   • Alma maters (school, college, and university) - did you sign up for any old scholar websites? If so, you'll need to go through their deletion processes too.
   • Game sites - remove all your information from all game sites, contact details, and yes, that includes all the virtual items you've won and hoarded all those years. Give it away to people you know want the stuff, if the site permits this.
   • Check with your phone company that you're not listed online. If you are, ask them to remove your details completely. Ditto for any other customer databases that might cause your name and details to be online.
3. Close associated sites. Associated sites are third party applications that helped you to use your social networking accounts, such as Hootsuite, Tweetdeck, etc.
4. Close your personal sites. If you have created sites on the internet, you will need to remove them completely. Some of the sites you might have include:
   • Blogs
   • Personal wikis (it's unlikely you can remove a wiki others are actively sharing in even if you started it)
   • Groups (Ning, Gro.ups, Yahoo Groups, etc.; again, your ability to shut down might be dependent on participation of others)
   • Blogs within sites - many sites offer blogs as part of joining the site, don't forget these if you have started any
   • Forum posts (this is likely to be next to impossible for many sites)
   • Articles that you have added to article mill sites (ability to remove these will be dependent on the terms and conditions of those sites).
5. Delete search engine returns that feature you. Search engines cache old sites, pages, information, etc., including mentions of you. You will need to contact search engines direct for the trickier removals that return you when searched. Be aware that removing yourself from some search engines online is fairly detailed work, some involving paperwork in the real world, such as sending faxes, etc., to confirm your real identity. Major search engines and people search engines that will probably return your details include:
   • Google - read how to ungoogle yourself
   • Yahoo
   • Bing
   • Whitepages
   • USsearch
   • Intelius
   • Yahoo People Search
   • Acxiom
   • PeopleFinder
   • ZabaSearch
6. Consider using a professional company to remove your details from the internet. If contacting the myriad search engines one-by-one overwhelms you (and it is a very daunting prospect), you might be able to use a professional service to do the work for you. Of course, you will need to pay but it might be worth it if your reasons for removal are pressing. Look for a service that:
   • Is able to remove you from the "deep web" rather than just the obvious services.
   • If possible, has agreements in place with data source providers.
7. Cancel all mailing lists. This should be fairly straightforward as usually the method for unsubscribing is in the body of each email, often with a direct link. Follow the individual instructions given. If you can't find such instructions, contact the site administrators direct.
8. You'll be fairly worn out by now! Cancel your email account. If you're going to this extreme, the method for deletion will depend on whether you're using a paid-for service or a free-roaming service on the web.
   • If free (e.g., Gmail, Hotmail, etc.), cancel following the site's instructions.
   • If paid for, contact the relevant company for instructions. Even web-based paid mail should have live people to contact.
   • Some free email accounts self-delete with lack of use.
   • Always check that you're not throwing away any vital information that you want to keep before you delete your account. Transfer all materials you need to a memory stick or other storage facility.
9. Clean up your computer.
   • Remove all internet history, cookies, etc.
   • Remove the internet program if you're really adamant.
   • Remove your computer if you're going "cold technology".
10. You've done as much as you can - now move on!Shrug off what you can't remove. There may be some things that you can't do anything about. In that case, it is probably best to just accept that reality as you move on. If instances of your online come back to haunt you, you could always try denying it's you, especially if you have a common name! The following instances of your online presence will be very hard to erase:
    • Mentions of you in news items, blog posts, audio files, etc.
    • Your own interviews given to newspapers, radio stations, etc.
    • Comments you have left here, there, and everywhere.
    • Photos of your own used by other people on their websites and blogs; you would need to have copyright ownership in order to retrieve them and that could be a lengthy and wearying process.
    • Government sourced information that is considered appropriate to keep publicly available (except where a process is in place to remove such information).

Video Tips

• If feeling addicted is the underlying impetus for deleting yourself from the internet, you might prefer to try removing the addiction rather than the internet. Some articles to check out include:
  • Stop your internet addiction
  • Defeat your Facebook addiction
  • Defeat your Myspace addiction
  • Get over your online game addiction
• There are software programs that will help you to remove yourself from online sites. Do a search online.
• If there is a problem with false or defamatory information about you online, contact a legal practitioner for advice in your jurisdiction.
• If you're really in a mess about having your name and details spread across the internet and don't know what to do next, seek help from privacy watchdogs such as Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) (USA) for personal advice.
• Have you considered changing your name, either online or offline? It's probably easier!
• Consider using a fake name and fake information - create a web based email account with fake info.

Warnings

• Keep in mind the adage, "once online, there for all time". Always take care with what you share in the online environment: prevention is better (easier) than cure.
• Some sites use emotional blackmail techniques to encourage you to stay. Such comments as "all your friends will miss you" are targeted at making you think twice (after all, the site doesn't want to lose your patronage). If you're wavering, get photos of your real life friends, put them in front of you on the desk, press "delete" on the site, and phone up your real friends to go have a drink and chat together. You'll be over it just like that.
• Expect a tongue lashing from some webmasters who will insist on their "right" to keep public information public. Some of them just don't get the personal and privacy angle and see this as a personal affront against what they stand for. Just be persistent and if needed, get help from a privacy organization or a lawyer if your need for privacy is pressing or serious.

Things You'll Need

• Computer
• Standard request to webmasters - if you are sending a lot of these, craft a good, well-reasoned template request at the beginning
• Legal advice if the reason is serious (such as witness protection, etc.)

Related wikiHows

• How to Delete Friends on MySpace
• How to Delete your Usage History Tracks in Windows
• How to Recover Deleted Files from Your Computer
• How to Access Recently Deleted YouTube Videos
• How to Permanently Delete a Facebook Account

Sources and Citations

• Domain Tools, http://whois.domaintools.com/ - use this to help you look up ownership of a website so that you know who to contact if needed (especially helpful if no email provided on a site) - look for "admin email" and "server data" in the retrieved information.

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