Learn Job Skills on the Web

Searcher, Sep 2009 by McDermott, Irene E

The news tells us the sad story every day: U.S. unemployment figures are running at nearly 10%. Unemployment is a 'lagging indicator," so even as the economy improves, there won't be much hiring going on for a while. That means that the competition for the few open jobs will remain fierce for the foreseeable future. Successful candidates must possess basic workplace competencies such as good communication skills and the ability to use technology.

Our libraries are alive with patrons using our public internet access to look for work. We can point them to free web resources that can sharpen the skills that could help them land a new job.

Typing and Ten Key

It cracks me up that, even in the intensely visual realm of the virtual world Second Life [http://secondlife.com], the characters communicate by pausing, twisting, then playing "air keyboard" as their "meat world" counterparts type instant messages to each other. The web seems visual. Still, its primary mode of imparting information remains text- based. In the modern technological workplace, we've all got to know how to type. These sites can help.

TypingWeb

http://www.typingweb.com

Learning to type is never fun, but this program makes it as painless as possible. Register for free to track your progress in this professional-looking set of typing tutorials. Also available with a Spanish-language interface along with six other languages, including Chinese and Korean. iPhone users can download a TypingWeb application to improve texting skills.

Learn2Type

http: //www.learn 2type.com

Create a free personal account to track your touch-typing success on this venerable site. Learn the AZERTY European keyboard and the DVORAK format, too. Take typing and 10 -key tests to earn printable certificates.

Sense-Lang Online Free Touch Typing Program

http://www.sense-lang.org/typing

Learn the QWERTY Standard PC Keyboard or the DVORAK format. Also, take 10-key lessons and play typing games. You even type for fun?!! Now you are a shoo-in for the job.

Free Ten Key Number Pad Course

http://www.typeonline.co.uk/number_pad_lesson1.html

Britain's Dave Barile tt offers eight exercises to get you 10 -keying in no time!

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word is the word processing standard in the workplace. Even Open Source programs resemble it and work in a similar way. Our patrons can use these tutorials to help them gain word processing competency.

Microsoft Word 2007 Tutorial

http://www.baycongroup.com/wlessonO.htm

Denise Etheridge wrote this series of clear, methodical lessons about how to use Microsoft Word. She starts from the beginning, giving an overview of what the software is designed to do. She answers the questions that novice users often have, including "Understanding Non- Printing Characters." The company, Baycon Group, maintains other tutorials on this site, too, including ones for Windows Vista, PowerPoint, and even Adobe's Flash.

Basic Use of MS Word

http://www.internet4classrooms.com/on-line_word.htm

Susan Brooks and Bill Byles have written these tutorials to help teachers become proficient with technology. Lessons include "Inserting and editing images in MS Word," "Designing a Newsletter using Microsoft Word," and my favorite: "Part Of a Border Won't Print?"

Essential Microsoft Office 2007

http://www.educationworld.com/a_tech/columnists/poole/office_ tutorials/Lesson1_2007.pdf

In this chapter from his book Essential Microsoft Office 200 7: Tutorials for Teachers, Bernie Poole, associate professor of education and instructional technology at the University of Pittsburgh at lohnstown, Pa., offers instructions about how to use Word 2007. Download other chapters of his book here, too, including "Intro to Access" and the all -important "Mail Merge." Requires the free Adobe Acrobat Reader, available here: http: / /get. adobe, com/reader.

Microsoft Excel

The spreadsheet is useful for so many things. Knowing how to use one is an essential competency for many businesses. Help patrons get up -to -speed with these online tutorials.

Microsoft Excel Classes

http://www.stmalib.org/compvids.html

St. Mary's County Library in Maryland offers this series of six tutorials to help patrons learn how to use Microsoft's Excel 2007. Works with Windows Media Player. Download the handouts here, too!

MotionTraining Microsoft Excel Tutorials

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8L10Vkw2ZQ8&feature=channel

U.K. -based MotionTraining offers a whole channel of 17 excellent Microsoft Excel tutorials absolutely free. This is the first one. A very pleasant way to learn or hone a valuable skill!

Excel Basics #1 : What Is Excel?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmSp2-Fa4rg

Mike Gel Girvin, business instructor at Highline Community College in Des Moines, Wash., delves into the mathematical functions available from Excel in this series of Flash videos on YouTube. He links to accompanying instructional workbooks that you can download from his site: http://flightline.high line, edu/mgirvin/ excelisfun.htm.

Microsoft Outlook

Outlook is the ubiquitous email program used by business. Love it or hate it, we all must learn to use it. Here's help.