Workshops

Upcoming NCF Workshops

Thanks to funding from the City of Ottawa’s Community Economic Development Program, we are pleased to offer a bilingual handbook and series of free workshops that help people learn how to save money online while staying safe and protecting their privacy, respecting copyright, and understanding the trade-offs involved with many free services.

The workshops are being offered in partnership with Ottawa Public Library and we will confirm which library branches will offer which workshops soon. Go to www.ncf.ca/workshops for information as it is updated. They will also offer opportunities for people to get help one-on-one. At this time, the workshops are only being offered in English, apologies. Here’s an overview:

Monday, September 10^th at 6:30pm: How to shop for internet and computers

Wednesday, September 26^th at 6:30pm: Hands-on help to apply online for government subsidies: Ontario Electricity Support Program and the Canada Learning Bond

Thursday, October 11^th at 6:30pm: Internet Security Basics: using public wifi and other ways to feel safe online without spending a bundle

Wednesday, October 17^th at 6:30pm: Free anti-virus and anti-malware programs and how to use them effectively

Tuesday, October 23^rd at 6:30pm: Identifying spam, phishing emails and websites

Monday, November 5^th at 6:30pm: Saving money on long-distance calling

Wednesday, November 14^th at 6:30pm: Finding free entertainment online while respecting copyright

Wednesday, November 28^th at 6:30pm: Open Source options: free robust operating systems and free software that can work on your existing system

Monday, December 3^rd at 6:30pm: What free really means: understanding the privacy and personal data you're trading to save money

Wednesday, December 5^th at 6:30pm: Finding and using online coupons, flyers, and promo codes!

Past NCF Workshops

Windows 10 — the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly:

Windows 10 represents a considerable change from Windows 7 and an evolutionary refinement from Windows 8.1. Chris Taylor, President of the Ottawa PC Users™ Group, will talk about some of the important changes both visible and under the hood. If you find Windows 10 confusing, or just want to know more about what's hidden, this session is for you.

Computer Basics:

This workshop includes content on the basics of your computer, from connecting your mouse and keyboard, to types of memory, installing a new program, creating short-cuts, to how to turn on your wi-fi, use a USB port and more!

Office suites/word processing:

This workshop includes the basics on different office suites (MS Office vs. LibreOffice), how to start a document, save it, and retrieve it. As well as different file types, and how to change font size, page alignment, numbering, margins etc.

Basic internet/web browsing:

This workshop includes an overview of different browsers, bookmarking, how to optimize your search results, and some basics on safe web-surfing.

Basics of computer and internet security:

This workshop digs into malware, how to create strong passwords, how to set-up secure wi-fi, and anti-virus programs.

Email:

This workshop covers browser-based email vs using a mail client, IMAP vs POP, attaching documents and images, and a detailed exploration of spam/spoofing/phishing and how to avoid them.

Communications:

This workshop includes an overview of Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) telephone services, as well as Skype and similar programs.