In Mac OS X Leopard the system dictionary is integrated tightly with the Spotlight search feature (i.e. the magnifying glass in the top right-hand corner of the screen, on the menu bar). By typing a word into Spotlight the dictionary will provide the first few words of a definition. Click this to open the dictionary and view the full definition. You can also use Spotlight for calculations. Type an equation into Spotlight (e.g. 2*2) and the result will appear. Click the result to open the Calculator application.

Recently I downloaded and installed Second Life. However, I have not been able to run Second Life since the initial install. When Second Life loads a message appears saying that the display mode has been changed to Windows Vista Basic because the program is not compatible with certain elements of Windows Vista. This is followed by a message advising that “Display driver atikmdag stopped responding and has successfully recovered”. Despite the so-called “successful recovery” Second Life does not respond and must be closed down. I have tried uninstalling Second Life and deleting all the cache files (as advised by the Second Life help) and then reinstalled the program but the problem remains. The computer is running Windows Vista. (more…)

When attempting to use my CanoScan D646U scanner a message appeared saying “Cannot communicate with scanner. Cable may be disconnected. Check status. Scanner driver maybe closed” which is followed by the message “Unable to open TWAIN source. Please check connection then restart Toolbox”. I have confirmed that the cables are connected to the scanner and all appears to be in working order. I have tried to reinstall the scanner software, but when attempting to uninstall the scanner a message appears saying “C:\Program Files\Canon\ScanGear Toolbox CS\SGTBox.exe is in use. Please close the application using this file and launch UninstallShield again”. How can I regain use of the scanner? The computer is running Windows XP Professional. (more…)