INTRODUCTION TO WINDOWS

Tomusange and William

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Microsoft Windows
Logging On:
To begin using the machines in the lab, you need to logon to them with your account and password. The reason for doing this is to prevent other people (i.e. people not registered in computer science courses) from using the machines.

To logon to the Microsoft Windows network, you'll Press [Ctrl] + [Alt] + [Delete] to start
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The Desktop: When the Windows operating system starts up, you see the Desktop. The Desktop is your work area that allows you to keep yourself organized. It is where you begin everything from...just like a real desk in an office. Here is a screen snapshot of a Windows 98 desktop with some definitions:

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Screen Layout

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1. Start Menu - This is where you can launch programs from. That is, you start applications by clicking this button and selecting what you want from the menus that appear. 2. Window - This is where a running program or application appears. It can be dragged around.

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3. Taskbar - Shows you a list of all programs or applications that are currently running. 4. Tasks - You can select between different tasks by clicking on them. 5. Icons - Little pictures that you can doubleclick on to start up a program. They often have text associated with them as well. These are also termed Shortcuts, since they allow you to start up an application quickly without having to go through the start menu.
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6. My Computer - This special icon allows you to view and manipulate files on your disk. 7. Recycle Bin - This is where files go when deleted. Note that there are two ways to delete a file...pressing the DELETE key when a file is selected will move it to the recycle bin whereas pressing SHIFT+DELETE will erase the file for good (note that the actual file data may still be accessible to a qualified technician....so be aware that your data is not really Tomusange and William 3/18/2013 overwritten).

Menus When you begin to explore Word 2000, you will notice a significant change in the menu Structure if you are familiar with previous versions of Word. The menus in Word 2000 display only the commands you have recently used. To view all options in each menu, you must click the double arrows at the bottom of the menu. The images below show the Format menu collapsed (left) and expanded (right) after the double arrows at the bottom of the menu were clicked:

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Every Window has a Title bar which represents the name of the window (often indicates the application name or the file that is open). Windows can be moved around by dragging their title bar. Usually, a user clicks on the title bar to activate the window. Most windows have a Menu bar which appears under the title bar of the window. The menu bar has pull-down menus that appear when the user clicks on one of the words on the menu bar.
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There are other "standard" menus such as The Help Menu is a common menu that appears in most applications. It is meant to give users extra help in determining how the application is used.
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the File menu (dealing with file related commands such as opening, closing and saving files) and the Edit menu (dealing with cutting, copying, pasting of text or pictures).

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The frame of the window is the border of the window and by moving the mouse there, the user can stretch the window (this is called resizing the window) in various directions. The top right corner of the window has special buttons as follows: The left most is the minimize button. It causes the window to shrink and disappear. You can get it back by doubleclicking it on the taskbar. Note that the application is still running, it is just hiding.
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Window Definitions: Here is a typical window:

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The middle button is the maximize button. It causes the window to enlarge to fit the whole screen. Clicking it again, causes the window to revert back to its original size. The rightmost button is the close button. It causes the window (and file) to close. For applications, it is used to quit. The menus contain Commands or Settings that may be selected by the user via clicking.

A Toolbar is a strip across the top of many windows that has buttons on it (with pictures) that allow quick access to many of the commands that are in menus. Toolbar buttons usually represent commands or allow the setting of various program or editing options.

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A Progress bar is found in many applications. It gives an idea as to what percent of the loading or execution is done. A Status bar usually gives textual information as to what is happening in the program. A Scroll bar is always a horizontal or vertical strip that allows you to move around within a window. For instance, you can scroll up and down or side to side to view different parts of a document or picture. A Dialog box is a window that pops up on the screen and usually asks for some information. The information may be as simple as clicking a button, or may be complicated such as browsing around and selecting a file.
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Using the Mouse:

In order to communicate with the Windows environment, you'll use the mouse. The mouse is the main input device for Windows. It has buttons (2 or 3), a rolling ball and a cable. As you cause the roller ball to move by moving the mouse around on the table top, signals are sent to the computer through the cable causing the pointer on the screen to move as well. Pressing the buttons on the top of the mouse also sends signals to the computer. As you move the mouse around the screen, you'll see an Arrow move around. This is called the cursor (or pointer). You perform the following operations with the mouse... Tomusange and William 3/18/2013 19

Point - To point means to position the mouse

pointer over an item or area (icon, window, etc) on the computer screen by using the mouse to move the pointer that appears on the screen. Before you click on an item you will point to it. Click - To click or left-click means to point at an item or
area (icon, window, etc) on the computer screen and press the left mouse button and release it. For example, to select an item, you click on it. Try it by clicking on the My Computer icon in the upper left hand corner of the desktop (screen). The icon will become highlighted.
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Right-click - To right-click means to point at an item or area (icon, window, etc) on the computer screen and press the right mouse button and release it. Right-clicking is often used to pop up a menu of commands. Try it by rightclicking on the desktop or the My Computer icon. Double-click - To double-click means to point at an item or area (icon, window, etc) on the computer screen and press the left mouse button and release it twice in quick succession. Double-clicking is often used to open an icon (i.e. to start an application running or load a file). Try double-clicking on the My Computer icon. A window with My Computer in the title bar should appear. Doubleclicking won't work if the mouse is moved or the doubleclick is too slow. Tomusange and William
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Drag - To drag on item, point to it and press the left mouse button and hold it down. As you move the mouse with the button down, the item (or an outline of the item) will move with the mouse pointer. When you release the left mouse button, the item will be dropped at the location of the mouse pointer. Dragging is used to move icons and windows. Try it by dragging the My Computer icon or by dragging the title bar of the My Computer window. Right-drag - To right-drag on item, point to it and press the right mouse button and hold it down. As you move the mouse with the button down, the item (or an outline of the item) will move with the mouse pointer. You then release the mouse button to drop the item a the location of the mouse pointer. Right-dragging can be used to create shortcuts (more on those later). You can try it by rightdragging the My Computer icon.
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CTRL-click Holding down the CTRL key while

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clicking on an item will often add the item to the current selection. SHIFT-click - Holding down the SHIFT key while clicking on an item will often to add all icons between the previously selected icons and the SHIFT-clicked icon to the currently selected icons. CTRL-drag - Holding down the CTRL key while dragging an item may have a affect. For example, files can be copied by dragging them to a new location with the CTRL key pressed.
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Using Menus:
A menu is a list of related commands that you can use to accomplish certain tasks. Menus appear in many different places in Windows. I.Most windows have a menu bar which appears under the title bar of the window. II.Right-clicking on icons (or other items such as windows) will cause a popup menu to appear. III.The Windows desktop has a Start button in the taskbar which displays a menu when the button is clicked. Commands in a menu may have certain visible attributes. Here are some of the more common ones.
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The Control Panel:

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Date/Time

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Background

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Explorer

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My Computer:

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Screen saver.

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