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North County Regional

Computer Classes

Windows Basics:
What you will learn

• What the desktop is and the important elements of the desktop

• How to open a program or window

• The parts of a window

• How to move a window

• How to switch between multiple windows

• How to use menus and toolbars

• What a file is, how to save a file

• How to use the recycle bin

• What alert boxes and dialog boxes are

In accordance with the provisions of the ADA, this document may be requested in an alternate format.
What the Desktop Is
Desktop is the term used to describe the main screen where icons, folders, and documents appear.
Icons are graphical symbols that represent programs, documents, or parts of the computer, such as a
hard drive or floppy drive. The task bar, at the bottom of the screen, keeps track of all the windows
that are open, displaying a button for every open window. The task bar also contains the Start button.

Icons

Task Bar Start Button

How to Open a Program


Programs can be opened either by using the Start menu on the Task bar, or by using icons that
represent the programs.

To open a program from the Start menu:


• Click the Start button on the Task bar to open the Start Menu.
• Move the mouse cursor to the Programs line.
• Move the mouse cursor into the programs sub-menu, and click on the name of the program you
wish to start.

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To open a program or document using its icon:
• Double-click the icon representing the program or document you wish to open.
or
• Click the icon once and then press the Enter key on the keyboard.

sample icons

The Parts of a Window


A window is an enclosed rectangular area on the screen which displays graphical information. Every
window has common physical parts:
• The title bar shows the name of the document and/or program being displayed, and has the
minimize, maximize/restore, and close buttons in the upper right corner.
• The minimize button shrinks the window so that it exists as only a button on the task bar.
• The maximize button expands the window to fill the desktop. When a window is maximized,
this button becomes the restore button, which returns the window to its original size.
• The close button closes the window and/or whatever program is being displayed in the window.
• The menu bar is located just below the title bar. It has drop-down menus and submenus that
give you access to all the commands in a program.
• Toolbars provide buttons that give you quick access to the most frequently used commands
available in the menus. They are usually located just beneath the menu bar.
• Scroll bars allow you to move the content of a window up and down, or left and right.

Maximize
Minimize Close
Title Bar

Menu Bar

Toolbar

Scroll
Bars

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How to Move a Window
A window can be moved around on the desktop by clicking and dragging the title bar at the top of the
window. To drag the title bar, place the tip of your mouse cursor anywhere in the blue title bar, hold
down the left mouse button, and move the mouse. Either the whole window, or a gray outline of the
window, will be dragged with your cursor. Let go of the mouse button when you reach the spot where
you want the window to be located. (Note: windows cannot be moved while they are maximized.)

How to Switch Between Multiple Windows


Every window that is open on the
desktop will be represented by an  Three
individual button on the taskbar.  windows
open on
These windows will usually overlap
or will be stacked one on top of  a desktop

another, like a stack of papers on a


desk. To bring a particular window
to the top of the stack so that you can
see the window and interact with it,
you simply click the button on the
taskbar that represents that particular
window.

How to Use Menus and Toolbars


The menu bar is located at the top of a window just below the Title Bar. It has drop-down menus and
submenus that give you access to all the commands in a program. Toolbars, usually located just
beneath the menu bar, provide buttons that give you quick access to the most frequently-used
commands available in the menus.
Menu Bar

Toolbars
• To use a menu, click on the name of the menu, and when the drop-down menu opens, click on
the command you want to use.
• To use a toolbar button, simply click on the button representing the command you want to use.
• Hold the mouse cursor over a button without clicking to see which command the button
represents.

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What a File Is, How to Save a File
A file is a collection of data that is stored as a unit with a specific name. You can think of it as a
document. It contains specific information, and is stored in a specific location. Files are often
organized and stored inside of folders, much like documents in a filing cabinet.

In programs which allow you to


save your work, you can access
the Save command in the File
menu on the menu bar. If the
document has been saved before,
the old version will be replaced
by the new version. If it has not
been saved before, you will
prompted by a dialog box to
provide a file name and choose a
location to save the document.

Make sure you look at the dialog


box and pay attention to where
the document is going to be
saved (the ‘Save in:’ box at the
top) and what name it will have
(the ‘File name:’ box at the
bottom). You can also access this
dialog box by choosing the ‘Save
As…’ command from the file
menu.

After you have given the


document a name and noted
where it will be saved, click the
Save button

A new icon will be added to whatever folder or location you specified as the place to save the
document. That icon will have the name you supplied for the file. You will use that icon when you
want to access the file in the future.

How to Use the Recycle Bin


The recycle bin is represented by an icon that sits on your desktop. The recycle bin is used
to store files you wish to delete from your computer. The files remain on your hard drive
until you empty the bin, and until then you can retrieve the files.

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To put a file in the recycle bin:
• drag the icon representing the file to be deleted to the recycle bin and drop it into the bin

To empty the recycle bin:


• double-click the recycle bin icon to open the recycle bin
• click the ‘Empty Recycle Bin’ button on the left of the recycle bin window
or
• click ‘File’ on the menu bar and click the ‘Empty Recycle Bin’ command

To retrieve a file from the recycle bin:


• open the recycle bin (double-click its icon) and drag the icon representing the file you want to
keep onto the desktop or into whatever folder you want to store it in

What Alert Boxes and Dialog Boxes Are


An alert box is a box that pops up on your screen when the computer needs to alert you to important
information or to confirm some information. When an alert box appears, you must read the message
and respond by clicking a button on the box. When an alert box is on the screen, the computer will not
let you do anything else until you respond to the alert box.

Some alert boxes offer


multiple buttons when there
are multiple ways to respond.

Some alert boxes offer only a


single button when there is
just one way to respond.

A dialog box is used by the


computer to get specific
information from you before
it carries out a command.
For example, when you save
a document, you can tell the
computer where to save the
document and what name to
give it. Or when you print a
document, you might
specify how many copies
you want.

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This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 License. To view a
copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/ or send a letter to Creative
Commons, 543 Howard Street, 5th Floor, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA.

Additional training/classes available locally

7
NAME/BUSINESS CONTACT # ONE ON CLASSES LEVEL/OFFERINGS
ONE

Adelglass Computer 389-9052 X Basic to Advanced, Windows, MS Office,


Training and Consulting Internet

Affordable Computer 694-6946 X PC and Macintosh Basic level, some


Training and Consulting advanced Word, Excel, Internet, Email

AIS Computers 881-8050 X PC and Macintosh Basic to Advanced,


computer setup and troubleshooting

Clemmons & Co. 863-3609 X X MS Office, Bookkeeping applications,


basic troubleshooting

Computer and Internet 965-9869 X X PC and Macintosh Beginning to advanced


Services/Sharon Richer applications, setup and troubleshooting

Computer TIPS / Marie 744-8081 X PC and Macintosh Basic to advanced,


Murphy setup and troubleshooting

Julie Fine 630-0088 X Beginning MS Word and Excel

McIsaac Computer 596-8151 X Beginning to advanced level applications


Solutions

North County Senior 627-6470 X Computer basics, MS Works, Word


Center Processing, Spreadsheets, Photo Processing

Palm Beach Community 625-2535 X Computer basics to advanced level


College applications, Internet

School District of Palm 434-8712 X PC and Macintosh Computer basics to


Beach County advanced level applications, Internet

Robert Pearce 776-8810 X Beginning to intermediate, MS Word,


Internet, Quicken

Gregory Wright 255-6183 X Basic Computers to Intermediate


applications, basic troubleshooting

Murray Winship 624-6125 X Training and Installations

Additional reading available at the Library

8
How Computers Work, by Ron White, 1999 004.16 Whi

Computers Simplified, by Ruth Maran, 2000. 004.1603 Mar

Reader's Digest 1,001 computer hints & tips, 2001. 004.16 REA

The Everything Computer Book, by John Waters, 2000. 004.16 Wat

The Little PC Book, by Lawrence Magid, 2002. 004.16 Mag

Easy PCs : see it done, do it yourself, by Nat Gertler, 2002. 004.16 Ger

The First Week with My New PC, by Pamela R. Lessing, 2000. 004.16 Les

I'm turning on my PC, now what?! by Matthew James, 2001. 004.16 Jam

Sams Teach Yourself Windows XP in 21 Days, by John Mueller, 2002. 005.4469 Mue

For Grandmas Who Do Windows, by Amy C. Lowenstein, 2000. 004.16 Low

Young@heart : Computing for Seniors, by Mary S. Furlong, 1996 004.0846 Fur

Windows Me Millennium edition simplified, by Ruth Maran, 2000. 005.4469 Ma

Windows XP Simplified, by Ruth Maran, 2001. 005.4469 Ma

Easy Microsoft Windows Millennium edition, by Shelley O'Hara, 2000. 005.4469 Oha

Easy Microsoft Windows XP : see it done, do it yourself, by Shelley O'Hara, 2002


005.4469 Oha

How to do Everything with Windows XP, by Curt Simmons, 2001. 005.4469

Windows XP Professional: A Beginner’s Guide, by Martin Matthews, 2003. 005.4469 Mat

Microsoft XP Plain and Simple, by Jerry Joyce, 2001. 005.4469 Joy

Videos available
Beginning Computers for Seniors and Kids of All Ages,
by Walter Duke 004.16 Beg -- VIDEO

Computers made easy: Microsoft Windows 98 : video tutorial,


by Graham Patrick 652.5 COM

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