Open Elective

Journey into Fundamentals of Computers and C Programming Concepts

Chapter - 3
Introduction to Windows Operating System

Every computer needs an Operating System to function. Microsoft Windows is one of the most popular
Graphical User Interface (GUI). Multiple applications can execute simultaneously in Windows, and
this is known as “Multitasking”.

Windows Operating System uses both Keyboard and mouse as input devices. Mouse is used to interact
with Windows by clicking its icons. Keyboard is used to enter alphabets, numerals and special
characters.
Some of the functions of Windows Operating System are:

1. Access applications (programs) on the computer (word processing, games, spread sheets,
calculators and so on).
2. Load any new program on the computer .
3. Manage hardware such as printers, scanners, mouse, digital cameras etc.,
4. File management activities (For example creating, modifying, saving, deleting files
and folders).
5. Change computer settings such as colour scheme, screen savers of your monitor, etc.

Versions of Windows Operating System :

 Windows 11, released in 2021
 Windows 10, released in 2015
 Windows 8.1, released in 2013
 Windows 8, released in 2012
 Windows 7, released in 2009
 Windows Vista, released in 2007
 Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, released in 2005
 Windows XP, released in 2001
 Windows ME, released in 2000
 Windows 2000, released in 2000
 Windows 98, released in 1998
 Windows NT 4.0, released in 1996
 Windows 95, released in 1995
 Windows NT 3.51, released in 1995
 Windows NT 3.5, released in 1994
 Windows 3.2, released in 1993
 Windows NT 3.1, released in 1993
 Windows 3.1, released in 1992
 Windows 3.0, released in 1990
 Windows 2.1x, released in 1988
 Windows 2.0, released in 1987
 Windows 1.0, released in 1985

Windows Desktop
The desktop is a basic element of a personal computer that represents different types of objects,
including project folders, reference sources, drawing tools, documents, writing tools, phone books,
telephones. It is the primary user interface of a computer that might be found on top of a physical desk.
The desktop display is that the default display and displayed once the startup process is complete at the
time of booting the system.
The icons of files and folders that you store to the desktop are displayed on the desktop, as well as the
desktop wallpaper. In Windows operating system, it includes a taskbar located at the base of the
display screen.
The opening screen of Windows is called “Desktop”.
Desktop shows the Start button, Taskbar, Notification Area and date and time.
1. The Icons
Icon is a graphic symbol representing the window elements like files, folders, shortcuts etc., Icons play
a vital role in GUI based applications.
1.1.Standard Icons
The icons which are available on desktop by default while installing Windows OS are called standard
icons. The standard icons available in all Windows OS are My Computer, Documents and Recycle
Bin.

1.2. Shortcut Icons:

Shortcut icons can be created for any application or file or folder. By double clicking the icon, the
related application or file or folder will open. This represents the shortcut to open a particular
application. (Figure5.5)

Windows Explorer
1. Start Menu
In the lower left-hand corner of the windows screen is the Start button. When you click on the button,
the Start menu will appear. Using the start menu, you can start any application.
Taskbar
At the bottom of the screen is a horizontal bar called the taskbar. This bar contains (from left to right)
the Start button, shortcuts to various programs, minimized programs and in the extreme right corner
you can see the system tray which consist of volume control, network, date and time etc. Next to the
Start button is the quick Launch Toolbar which contains task for frequently used applications.

2. Computer Icon
By clicking this icon, the user can see the disk drivers mounted in the system. In windows XP, Vista,
this icon is called "My computer" in Windows 8 and 10, it is called "This PC".

3. Starting and Closing Applications

Most of the applications installed on your computer are available through the start menu. Depending
on the system setup, the applications in the Start menu varies. To start an application:

1. Click the Start button and then point to All Programs. The Program menu appears.
2. Point to the group that contains the application you want to start, and then click the application
name.
3. You can also open an application by clicking Run on the Start menu, and the name of the
application
4. To quit a application, click the Close button in the upper right corner of the application window.
5. You can also quit an application by clicking on File → Exit and File → Close option in Windows 7.
Recycle Bin
Recycle Bin is a place where deleted items are temporarily stored in Windows unless they are
permanently deleted. It provides users the option to recover deleted files in Windows operating
systems since Windows 95. Until the files are not permanently deleted by the user, these are not
permanently removed from the hard drive; all these deleted files or folders are stored in the Recycle
Bin. Also, Recycle Bin allows you to recover all stored files in it to their original storage location.

You cannot use the file directly in the Recycle Bin; you have to recover files first to use them. Since
Windows 95, it is presented in all versions of Windows. However, in newer editions of the Windows
operating system, its icon may not appear. In this case, you can show this icon from Windows by going
in the settings. If the Recycle Bin does not have any, it appears as an empty recycle bin.

The Recycle Bin is most useful if the data has been deleted mistakenly. If you delete a file from a
system, actually, it is not removed from the system; it is stored in the recycle bin folder. If you delete
the file from Recycle Bin, it will not be moved to the recycle bin that means, it will be deleted
permanently; hence, it cannot be restored. Additionally, if you want to prevent to go files in the recycle
bin, you can use a shortcut key Shift + delete the key from the keyboard.

WHAT IS A WINDOW?

A window is a basic unit of display for Windows , and all its applications. A window can
represent a folder on the desktop, a running programme, or a document or a dialog box in a
programme.

Components/Structure of a Window

Parts of a standard window and their functions are as follows:

 Title Bar
 Frame
 Control Menu
 Menu Bar
 Work Space
 Minimize & Maximize Buttons
 Restore Button
 Close Button
 Help Button
 Scroll Bars

The Format of a Window TITLE BAR

The title bar displays the title associated with the window and indicates by its colour when the
window has the focus. It is also the means for moving the window when you point the mouse
cursor to the title bar and drag the mouse, you more the window.

FRAME

The frame surrounds the window. You can resize the window by pointing the mouse to one of the
frame edges or corners.

CONTROL MENU

Each window has a control menu, which contains commands for

manipulating the window. You open a window’s control menu by clicking the icon in the upper-
left corner of the window.
MENU BAR

Most applications windows have a menu bar, which contains the title of pull down menus.
For example, most applications have File, Edit and Help menus.

WORK SPACE

The work space is that portion of a window that is inside the frame and under the tide bar and
menu bar. This space is also called the client area. The window displays retentions of its data
and documents in the work space.

MINIMIZE AND MAXIMIZE BUTTONS

A window can be in one of three configurations with respect to its size and placement –
maximized, minimized or restored using Maximize or Minimize buttons. The window can be
maximized, which means that it fills the desktop or parent window’s work space completely.
The window can be minimized, which means that it is represented by a short title bar at the
bottom of the parent window’s work space or as a button on the Taskbar. It can be restored
which means that it occupies a section of the desktop or its parent window’s work space.

RESTORE BUTTON

When a window is maximized, its Maximize button is replaced by a Restore button. When
the window is minimized, its Minimize button is replaced by a Restore button.

CLOSE BUTTON

Clicking the Close button closes the window. This button is alternative to using Close
command on the control menu.

HELP BUTTON

Some windows have a Help button in the button group in the window’s
upper-right corner. A help button has a question mark icon.

SCROLL BARS

Often, the display of data in the window’s work space extends beyond the area covered by
the window. Graphic pictures and many text files can be wider than the space displayed by
the window. To view the hidden data, you must be able to scroll the window horizontally and
vertically. The horizontal and vertical scroll bar allow you to do this using the mouse.

Managing Files and Folders

You can organize your documents and programs in the form of files and folders. You can move,
copy, rename, delete and search the files and folders.

File:
A file is the common storage unit in a computer, and all programs and data are "written" into a file
and "read" from a file.
File Extensions
Files are identified by a short "extension" following a period at the end of their name. For
example, ABC.JPG is a JPEG image, ABC.DOC is a Microsoft Word document file, and
ABC.EXE is an executable application in Windows.
Folder:
A folder holds one or more files, and a folder can be empty until it is filled. A folder can also
contain other folders, and there can be many levels of folders within folders.

Creating files and Folders

Creating Folders

You can store your files in many locations – on the hard disk or in other devices. To better
organise your files, you can store them in folders.
There are two ways in which you can create a new folder:

Method I:

Step 1: Open Computer Icon.

Step 2: Open any drive where you want to create a new folder. (For example select D:)

Step 3: Click on File -> New -> Folder.

Step 4: A new folder is created with the default name “New folder”. (Figure 5.19)

Step 5: Type in the folder name and press Enter key. (Figure 5.20 shows the newly created Folder
named “Test Folder ").
Method II:

In order to create a folder in the desktop :

Step 1: In the Desktop, right click → New Folder. (Figure 5.21 Shown the procedure)

Step 2: A Folder appears with the default name “New folder” and it will be highlighted as shown
in the Figure 5.22.

Step 3: Type the name you want and press Enter Key.

Step 4: The name of the folder will change.

Creating Files (Wordpad)

Wordpad is an in-built word processor application in Windows OS to create and manipulate text
documents.

In order to create files in wordpad you need to follow the steps given below.

1. Click Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Wordpad or Run -> type Wordpad, click OK.
Wordpad window will be opened
2. Type the contents in the workspace and save the file using File Save or Ctrl + S.
3. Save As dialog box will be opened.
 4. In the dialog box, select the location where you want to save the file by using look in drop
down list box.
5. Type the name of the file in the file name text box.
6. Click save button.

2. Finding Files and Folders

You can use the search box on the Start menu to quickly search a particular folder or file in the
computer or in a specific drive.
To find a file or folder:

1. Click the Start button, the search box appears at the bottom of the start menu.
2. Type the name of the file or the folder you want to search. Even if you give the part of the file
or folder name, it will display the list of files or folders starting with the specified name.
3. The files or the folders with the specified names will appear, if you click that file, it will
directly open that file or the folder.
4. There is another option called “See more results” which appears above the search box.
5. If you click it, it will lead you to a Search Results dialog box where you can click and open
that file or the folder.

Searching Files or folders using Computer icon

1. Click Computer Icon from desktop or from Start menu.

2. The Computer disk drive screen will appear and at the top right corner of that screen, there
is a search box option. (Figure 5.25)
3. Type the name of the file or the folder you want to search. Even if you give the part of the
file or folder name, it will display the list of files or folders starting with the specified
name.
4. Just click and open that file or the folder.

Opening existing Files or Folders

The most common way of opening a file or a Folder is to double click on it.

Renaming Files or Folders

There are number of ways to rename files or folders. You can rename using the File menu, left
mouse button or right mouse button.

Method 1 Using the FILE Menu

1. Select the File or Folder you wish to Rename.

2. Click File -> Rename.
3. Type in the new name.
4. To finalise the renaming operation, press Enter

Method 2 Using the Right Mouse Button

1. Select the file or folder you wish to rename.
2. Click the right mouse button over the file or folder.
3. Select Rename from the pop-up menu.
4. Type in the new name.
5. To finalise the renaming operation, press Enter.
6. Shows that the folder "New Folder" is renamed as C++.

Method 3 Using the Left Mouse Button

1. Select the file or folder you wish to rename.

2. Press F2 or click over the file or folder. A surrounding rectangle will appear around the name.
3. Type in the new name.
4. To finalise the renaming operation, press Enter.

Moving/Copying Files and Folders

You can move your files or folders to other areas using variety of methods.
Moving Files and Folders
Method I-CUT and PASTE

To move a file or folder, first select the file or folder and then choose one of the following:
• Click on the Edit ‚-> Cut or Ctrl + X Or right click ‚ -> cut from the pop-up menu.
• To move the file(s) or folder(s) in the new location, navigate to the new location and paste it
using Click Edit -> Paste from edit menu or Ctrl + V using keyboard.
• Or Right click -> Paste from the pop-up menu. The file will be pasted in the new location.

Method II – Drag and Drop

In the disk drive window, we have two panes called left and right panes. In the left pane, the files
or folders are displayed like a tree structure. In the right pane, the files inside the specific folders
in the left pane are displayed with various options.
• In the right pane of the Disk drive window, select the file or folder you want to move.
• Click and drag the selected file or folder from the right pane, to the folder list on the left
pane.
• Release the mouse button when the target folder is highlighted (active).

Your file or folder will now appear in the new area.

Copying Files and Folders

There are variety of ways to copy files and folders:
Method I - COPY and PASTE
To copy a file or folder, first select the file or folder and then choose one of the following:
• Click Edit -> Copy or Ctrl + C or right click -> Copy from the pop-up menu.
• To paste the file(s) or folder(s) in the new location, navigate to the target location then do one
of the following:
• Click Edit -> Paste or Ctrl + V.
Or Right click -> Paste from the pop-up menu.
Method II – Drag and Drop

• In the RIGHT pane, select the file or folder you want to copy.
• Click and drag the selected file and/or folder to the folder list on the left, and drop it where
you want to copy the file and/or folder.

Your file(s) and folder(s) will now appear in the new area.

Copying Files and Folders to removable disk

There are several methods of transferring files to or from a removable disk .

• Copy and Paste
• Send To
METHOD I - Copy and Paste

• Plug the USB flash drive directly into an available USB port.
• If the USB flash drive or external drive folder does NOT open automatically, follow these
steps:
• Click Start ->Computer.
• Double-click on the Removable Disk associated with the USB flash drive.
• Navigate to the folders in your computer containing files you want to transfer.
Right-click on the file you want to copy, then select Copy.
• Return to the Removable Disk window, right-click within the window, then select Paste.

METHOD II - Send To

• Plug the USB flash drive directly into an available USB port.
• Navigate to the folders in your computer containing files you want to transfer.
• Right-click on the file you want to transfer to your removable disk.
• Click Send To and select the Removable Disk associated with the USB flash drive.

Deleting Files and Folders

When you delete a file or folder, it will move into the Recycle Bin.

To delete a file or folder:

Select the file or folder you wish to delete.

1. Right- click the file or folder, select Delete option from the po-pup menu or Click File -
> Delete or press Delete key from the keyboard.
2. The file will be deleted and moved to the Recycle bin.

Recycle Bin
Recycle bin is a special folder to keep the files or folders deleted by the user, which means you
still have an opportunity to recover them. The user cannot access the files or folders available in
the Recycle bin without restoring it. To restore file or folder from the Recycle Bin

• Open Recycle bin.

• Right click on a file or folder to be restored and select Restore option from the pop-up menu.
• To restore multiple files or folders, select Restore all items.
To delete all files in the Recycle bin, select Empty the Recycle Bin.

Control Panel

The Control Panel in Microsoft Windows enables a user to change various computer hardware
and software features. Settings for the mouse, display, sound, network, and keyboard represent a
few examples of what may be modified in the Control Panel.

Sections of the Windows Control Panel

There are eight main areas on the Control Panel, containing different tools designed to optimize
your computer.

 System and Security - A section to check your computer's status, backup and restore, and
others.
 Network and Internet - View network status.
 Hardware and Sound - View which devices are on your computer and add devices.
 Programs - Uninstall programs.
 User Accounts - Change user accessibility.
 Appearance and Personalization - Change desktop options, like fonts and screen readers.
 Clock and Region - Change date and time.
 Ease of access - Optimize your display settings.

Add or Remove Programs

The Add or Remove Programs is a feature in Microsoft Windows that lets a user uninstall and
manage the software installed on their computer. This feature was introduced in Windows
98 as Add/Remove Programs, later renamed Programs and Features.

How to open Add or Remove Programs in Windows 10 and 11

1. Press the Windows key, type programs

2. Make sure Add or remove programs is highlighted and press Enter.
3. A window similar to the picture below should appear.
4. From this window, you'll be able to manage how Windows installs programs and also
uninstall any programs that were installed.
or

1. Open the Control Panel

2. Click Programs and Features, or under the Programs section, click Uninstall a
program.
3. From this window, you'll be able to manage how Windows installs programs and also
uninstall any programs that were installed.
Applications of Windows
A program that is written to run under the MS operating system is the Windows Application.
Examples of applications that run on Windows OS are Web browsers, Notepad, Calculator,
These applications provide great functionality for users to do their day-to-day activities. Every
application developed for them to launch on Windows should be compatible with the Windows
operating system.

1. Notepad

Notepad is a text editor that comes pre-installed with all versions of Microsoft Windows. It allows
users to create, open, and read plaintext files with a .txt file extension. If the file contains special
formatting or is not a plaintext file, it cannot be read in Notepad.

If you want to create a new note, you can open Notepad and start typing. Once you are done, you
can save the file by clicking on File and selecting Save. When saving the file, make sure the file is
saved with a .txt extension.

2. Calculator

The Windows Calculator is a software application that comes pre-installed with all versions of
Microsoft Windows. It is a simple yet powerful calculator that includes standard, scientific,
programmer, and graphing calculator functionality, as well as a set of converters between various
units of measurement and currencies
To access the calculator in Windows, you can follow these steps:

1. Click on the Start button.

2. In the programs list, find and click the Calculator program.

3. Microsoft Paint
Microsoft Paint is a simple yet powerful image editing software that comes pre-installed with all
versions of Microsoft Windows. It allows users to create, edit, and save images in various formats
such as JPEG, PNG, BMP, and GIF123.
To open Microsoft Paint, you can follow these steps:
1. Click on the Start button.
2. In the programs list, find and click the Paint program.