We provide an opportunity for all computer users to gather at a monthly meeting, and for special workshops on topics of interest. Senior Center members can join the club by registering with an email to .  Training is provided by member volunteers in the computer lab. Contact Dawn by calling 974-1956 for an appointment. The lab is open to all Senior Center members, with both PCs and Macs available. Join us and open a new window to the world. And remember:

Communicate . . . 

Our club has formed a Yahoo group to facilitate communication among the members. You may make announcements, request computer help, tell of interesting developments in the digital world, or provide ideas for future meetings or workshops.  You will need to register with Yahoo, which is a useful website for many things.

Click to join SeniorCenterComputerGroup

Click to communicate with members after joining

Resources . . .

Meeting presenters often have resources that members may want to reference later. They are provided by clicking here. These resources have been organized for easy access.

Malware Detection . . .

There are many threats and any single detection program will miss many of them. Industry experts seem to think that currently about 70% of all new malware infections are from users visiting compromised or hostile websites. This contrasts with the situation a couple of years back where email was overwhelmingly the main vector for infection. Most scanners search for a virus signature definition. Each has it's own strengths and the "pro" paid version covers more bases. Read the editorial here to see the mostly free products compared.

Before you install a down-loaded program, you should scan it for malware. You can send the file to VirusTotal.com and they will scan it with 32 different scanners. To see the statistics on what they have detected recently, go this this web page, it is an eye-opener.

The Kaspersky anti-virus scanner is one of the most effective anti-virus scanners available. You can get the benefits of this power without buying and installing the product by using their free online scan. It's not totally online, because you have to download a small program and a 9MB signature file as well. It's worth the effort, though, just to make sure no nasties have sneaked past your security software. Note that you need Internet Explorer for this because it uses ActiveX controls.

This information comes from WindowsSecrets.com, a respected source of technical information. Click the link to see the entire anti-malware article.

Macintosh computers have fewer problems to deal with, although there is a Trojan Horse going around.  Click the SecureMac website to get the latest information.

Special Interest Groups . . .

Macintosh User Group - This group meets every Thursday from 1 to 4 p.m. in the computer lab, where we have several Mac G3s with OS X, two eMacs, and a new iMac. Teaching is done with a hands-on approach starting where the individual is in his or her learning curve. We welcome all the Mac people to come and join us. For more information, click here .

Computer Lab Operation - Club member volunteers provide instruction by appointment for both PCs and Macs during the sessions shown in the calendar below. Please contact the Computer Lab Coordinator, , 974-1956, for an appointment or if you can help by working with beginning computer users. is our Assistant Lab Coordinator. Contact her at 973-9242 if you cannot reach Dawn. The status of the Windows PCs in the lab will be maintained by our Lab PC Coordinator, Bruce Saunders.  He will {ideally}keep the equipment operating, the Windows XP operating system current, the virus definitions up-to-date, and insure that computers can connect to the Internet and printers.

Meetings . . .

Regular club monthly meetings are held on the second Monday of each month from 1:00 to 2:15 p.m. in Robey Room A. All Senior Center members are invited to attend. You "join" the club by giving us your email address at the meeting, or anytime. There is a planning meeting that all club members are welcome to attend. This is held at 11:00 a.m. on the Thursday after the main monthly meeting in Room 3. After some planning, we do some socializing at a local buffet. The special interest groups meet in the computer lab as shown in the lab calendar below.

Charlottesville Camera Club . . .

This group is now meeting at the Senior Center on the second Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m. in Room C. After announcements, there is an informal competition on an assigned topic. Visitors and potential members are welcome. The computer club and camera club recently sponsored a seven-session course on Photoshop Elements. Visit their website for information and to see some great photographs.

Free Software . . .

For a source of some good FREE Windows software (click here) and see what interests you. Another good source for both Windows and Mac free and shareware is Tucows (click here). Both of these sources have FREE OpenOffice, the Microsoft Office equivalent, and AVG AntiVirus software. Is this a great country, or what?

Computer Lab . . .  

The Lab is open for general use whenever the Senior Center is open. The key can be obtained at the front desk.  is our Computer Lab Coordinator. She will schedule tutoring sessions at times to suit the student. All tutoring is done by appointment onlyso call her at 974-1956. is our Assistant Lab Coordinator. Contact her at 973-9242 if you cannot reach Dawn. Our principal instructors are (left to right) Dawn Schultz, Dale Cook, Marian Turk and Susan Pfannenbecker.

Some instructors will be teaching on Macs as well as Windows PCs. We thank them all for their loyal support to the club members. We especially thank Bob Ernst who has taught for many years. If you would like to assist in the lab, look at the information under the Special Interest Groups above.

The lab has CD burning capability for both PCs and Macs. There is a flat bed scanner, as well as several printers. We thank all the donors for their contribution to the Senior Center computing capability -- especially the Merck Company for their recent doantion of PCs.

Computer Lab Usage

Wireless Hot Spot . . .

The Senior Center now has a hot spot. If you have a laptop that will receive a wireless signal, you can get on the Internet at the Senior Center. So bring your laptop to the many workshops that are held in the computer lab, or just bring it to connect to the high-speed Internet available. If you are looking for other Hot Spots around town, click here.  

Club Officers for 2008-2009 . . .

President:___________
Vice President:_______
Program Coordinator:__ Dale Floyd
Treasurer:___________ Bob Rutschow
Secretary:___________ Sally Clark
Founder & Ex Officio President:
                                  __ Gus Goldsmith

At the May 2004 club meeting it was voted to establish a new office to recognize the primary club founder and the person who has nurtured the club ever since, Gus Goldsmith. In March 2006, a new position of Program Coordinator was established, and the Vice President is now responsible for coordinating workshops. Officers are elected once a year in March with terms starting April 1st. 

Club Contributors . . .

In addition to the officers, there are others who have contributed to the club and continue to do so. Mary Anna Rushia is active in the club planning and represents the Mac User Group. Linda Spitz works on planning and leads or assists at workshops. Bruce Saunders and Bruce MacCall are regularly updating the Senior Center website. Jenny Hoang was a big contributor. She left for Gresham, Oregon on June 25, 2005. Pictures from her farewell party can be seen here.