Q: When I click on an e-mail address on a website, I get the message "could not perform this operation because the default mail client is not properly installed." But if I copy the e-mail address into my AOL software, it works. What's a "default mail client," and how can I fix this?

Pascal Grimaud, Arroyo Grande, Calif.

A: When you click on an e-mail address online, your PC looks for e-mail software installed on your computer (a default mail client) that it can use to send a message. Because you're using AOL's free webmail service, which is entirely online, your PC can't find any e-mail software to use, and you get an error message. The workaround, as you've discovered, is to copy the e-mail address you want to use into the address window of an AOL e-mail in your Web browser.

Here's a better alternative. AOL also offers free e-mail service via downloadable software (see tinyurl.com/7p7dxzo) that acts as the default mail client for your PC. To set the software as the default mail client, see tinyurl.com/mx5mzqd. Once the settings are complete, you'll be taken directly to AOL e-mail whenever you click an e-mail address on a website.

Q: I have an old Samsung phone, model SGH-A237, and have been trying unsuccessfully to transfer photos from it to my computer. The photos are on the phone itself, not a removable memory card. What can I do?

Sandi Beamsderfer, Miami

A: Because your phone is now six years old, there is little information available about it. But I think the transfer doesn't work because the Samsung phone didn't ship with the required USB software driver, which is no longer available.

I suggest you follow the directions in the original user manual (see tinyurl.com/jvsujhq and go to page 60), which says you can send your photos to another phone via multimedia messaging. To do that, go to your photos, press "options," highlight "send" and press "select."

Q: In my work as a paralegal, I use Outlook every day to calculate dates for legal hearings. For example, the calculator determines what date falls 45 days after Sept. 9. Outlook then takes me to the calculated date. But the iCalendar program for the iPhone and iPad doesn't have a similar feature. Is there a way to make these calculations through a downloadable app?

Colleen Boyd, Tucson, Ariz.

A: Outlook-compatible apps for iPhones and iPads provide only simple calendar functions, such as creating new events for a specific date and time.

But legal service firms, such as LawToolBox.com (see tinyurl.com/ln4vm5w for a video tutorial), offer online date calculators that automatically update your Outlook software via e-mail.

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