I'm new...can anyone help?

Hi! I just got the Canon SD600 yesterday as a replacement for my previous digital camera. I want to use this camera to take quick pics of my family, etc. so I would prefer to use it in Automatic mode most of the time. But, in automatic mode, I can't get the camera to focus in the center. It focuses on several other areas rather than the center. It looks like I can use the focus lock in manual mode, but not in automatic mode. Can anyone give me suggestions on how to tell the camera to focus on the center in automatic mode?

In full automatic, the camera will make all the decisions for you, including which AF point to use. If I'm reading the manual right, though, the SD600's Manual mode isn't really full manual. It's still auto-exposure but allows you to select some other options like type of focussing to use, exposure compensation and the like. It won't, like true "Manual" would, make you select shutter speed and aperture to use.