NAVIGATING WINDOWS. What is WINDOWS? DESKTOP ICON PROGRAM

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1 NAVIGATING WINDOWS What is WINDOWS? It is simply a computer program, like WORD, EXCEL, with one VIP difference (the boss), it is the program that manages all the other programs and documents [aka files]. These documents/files can be stored on your computer, or on a mobile storage device such as: jump/flash drive, disk, CD-ROM. DESKTOP Folder and files [documents] Icons Programs ~ WORD & Internet Explorer Taskbar Start menu DESKTOP Main screen in Windows. Icons act as shortcuts to programs/software ICON Left Double-click icon to open/launch program PROGRAM Program/software - allows you to work or play on the computer. 1

2 FILE Collection of information that a computer uses. Always in a particular FORMAT referred to as the filename and extension (format) E.g.: resume.doc TASKBAR At the bottom of the window/desktop view. Quickly switch between open windows by clicking on these icons in the taskbar. KEYBOARD & KEYS: Shift ~ Makes capital letters ; highlights letters/words when use together with the arrow keys Alt ~ used in combination with other keys to perform shortcuts/tasks Windows Flag ~ opens the start menu at the lower left of your screen CTRL ~ Used in combination with other keys to perform shortcuts/tasks e.g. CTRL + s = save CTRL + p = print CTRL + D bookmarks a web page as a favorite Delete ~ erases the character directly to the RIGHT of you cursor Backspace ~ erases the character directly to the LEFT of your cursor Enter ~ Do NOT press enter after every line you type; windows knows when to go to the next line as you reach the end of a line; DO press enter if you want to start on a new line. Pressing enter answers a question like OK or YES when windows or another program asks you a question Tab ~ will insert an indentation and allow you to jump from box to box when entering a form online Insert ~ toggles between insert and overwrite modes Num lock ~ numeric keypad on right side of keyboard; when turned on (light glows) you will be able to use the numeric keys on the keypad to the far right of the keyboard Home/End/Pg Up/Pg down (not used a lot) Home is used to move your cursor quickly to the beginning of a line or the first cell in a worksheet (EXCEL) Pg up and pg down move your cursor up or down one screen length Print screen ~ Copies a picture of what is on your screen usually used to paste into a document (CTRL+V) If you want to print the screen use CTRL + P or select Print from File in the menu 2

3 LEFT VS. RIGHT-CLICKING Right-click on anything to see the options. This will not take any action. Left-click to perform some action, select something, or to click on a button. Double-click (left) to open something. CHANGING FILENAMES Right-click on the file you would like to change. Select "Rename". Type the new name. (Be sure to keep the file extension, e.g. ".doc") Click outside the name area, or press "Enter". VIEWING ~ great for photos you have stored on your computer From the main menu click on view Select Thumbnails KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS Sample: Press and hold CTRL as you press X Microsoft-Flag+E Ctrl+X Ctrl+C Ctrl+V Ctrl+Z Ctrl+A Ctrl+S Ctrl+Esc Alt+Esc Alt+Tab Backspace Print Screen Alt+Print Screen Opens "Windows Explorer" Cuts selected text or object (& copies to the clipboard) Copies selected text or object Pastes text or object (from the clipboard) Undoes the last action Selects all Saves file Opens the Start menu. Also makes a "missing" taskbar visible. Switches to another open window. Switches to another open window. Provides a window displaying icons representing all open windows. Hold "Alt" and press "Tab" to move from one to another. Moves up one folder level in "Windows Explorer" or "My Computer". Saves a copy of the entire screen to the clipboard. Saves a copy of the active window to the Clipboard. NAVIGATION BETWEEN PROGRAMS When you open multiple programs, you can go from one to another by clicking on the program button in the taskbar at the bottom of the desktop. You may easily copy & paste from one program to another this way. 3

4 ORGANIZE FILES: MOVE/COPY APPROPRIATE FILES INTO ANOTHER FOLDER Find a file you would like to move. Left-click & drag the file to the new folder Note: You can select multiple files to move by holding down the the CTRL key while you select each file. Then release the CTRL key before you drag the files. If the files are in continuous order, select the top file, then hold down the SHIFT key as you select the bottom file. (This will select all files in between.) To copy (i.e. leave the original file where it is) right-click file, select copy, open (double left-click) the destination folder you want to place the copy into and right-click mouse, select paste from menu Click n drag TO DELETE A FILE right click on the file, select delete from menu TO RENAME A FILE right click on the file, select rename from menu You can also click on the file and Select EDIT from the menu Select DELETE OR RENAME 4

5 DIALOG BOXES What is a dialog box? A movable pop-up window that is displayed on screen in response to the user selecting a menu option. It provides the current status and available options for a particular feature in the program. Dialog boxes are typically small, but depending on the amount of information that must be conveyed, they can sometimes be large. A typical dialog box is the file box. This box opens when you choose the Open or Save As command on the File menu of most Windows programs. Up one level File View Buttons button Allows easy access to Click to go to folders or functions. Folder tree the folder one Buttons vary Click the arrow to level higher than depending on which browse folders and the current one. dialog box is open. select one. DIALOG BOX Document type field Shows the file format in which the document will be saved (Save as dialog box) or of the documents displayed (Open dialog box). File name field Use this field to select or type a name of a file you are saving (Save as dialog box) or want to open (Open dialog box). To move a dialog box [to see what is behind it on your desktop] Left-Click n hold, on the blue title bar of the dialog box, and drag it to the new desired position. 5

6 THINGS TO TRY AT HOME (Security settings won t allow at the library.) WINDOWS Explorer ~ The Boss! (Manages all the other programs) Open Windows Explorer. 3 choices: ~ From the "Start-Programs" menu, or "Quick Launch" shortcut, or keyboard shortcut: "Microsoft flag symbol " Select Programs then Accessories then WINDOWS Explorer (NOT Internet Explorer) The following screen will display Left side: Shows all available drives & folders. Click on a plus sign to display subfolders. Right side: Shows the contents of the selected drive or folder. You can also select a different View. Within "Explorer" select any drive or folder in the left frame to view its contents in the right frame. This is the main tool for "File Management" on a PC. (E.G..DOC,.JPG,.HTML...) ~ FORMAT! Open "Windows Explorer" (or "My Computer"). Select "Folder Options" from the View menu. o If you are using Windows 2000 or XP, Choose Folder Options from the Tools menu. Click on the "View" tab. Deselect "Hide file extensions for known file types", then "OK". MAKING FILE EXTENSIONS VISIBLE FINDING A LOST FILE From the Start button, select Find - - Files or Folder. o If you are using Windows 2000 or XP, Choose Search - - for Files or Folders. Select which drive to search, e.g. Floppy A: Type in part of the name, or some of the text you remember. Click on Find Now. The results will appear in a window. Double-click on an item to open it directly. Note: Under the tab Date, you can search by date modified or date created during a specific time range of your choice. 6

7 COPYING FILES FROM ONE DRIVE TO ANOTHER USING WINDOWS EXPLORER Open Windows Explorer. Find the file you would like to copy or move. Make sure the destination drive / directory is visible. Left-click & drag the file to the destination. (You may drag the file to a specific subfolder.) CREATING A NEW FOLDER Open Windows Explorer, navigate to the place you would like to create a new folder (in this example My Documents From the File menu, select New -- Folder. A new untitled folder will appear in the right frame. Give it a name. (Don t click anywhere simply begin typing.) After typing, just click anywhere outside the new folder or hit enter. Left-click n drag mail merge to move it to the training guides folder new folder will appear here! Main Council Tree Harmony A joint-use facility of Front Range Community College and Poudre River Public Library District Reasonable accommodations will be made for access to programs for people with disabilities. Please call for assistance. 7