COMPUTER BASICS

Glossary
Active window The window that has the computer’s attention. Commands from the user (such as
typing) will only affect the active window. The active window can be identified by the
way it looks: it is always the window that is on “top;” its title in the title bar is bright
white; and its close button turns red when the cursor hovers over the close button. Only
one window can be active at a time.
Application Also referred to as an “app.” Applications are tools for accomplishing a task. For the
computer, it is a set of instructions on knowing how to perform this task. Applications
are dependent on an operating system to run. Applications are also called “programs.”
App List The center pane when the Start Menu is opened. Contains all the Programs a.k.a. Apps
on the computer.
Click The act of pressing and releasing a mouse-button. Unless otherwise specified, such as in
a “double-click” or a “right-click”, this term refers strictly to pressing the left mouse
button once (see: double-click, right-click)
Close To exit a program or file. There is a close button in the upper-right corner marked with
an X, so this action is sometimes referred to as “X-ing out.”
Context Menu A menu that appears when a component on the screen is right-clicked. The menu
contains options specific to that component. To get rid of the context menu, left-click in
a clear area away from the menu.
Copy and Paste The act of selecting a section of text and copying it to another location. “Copy” refers to
the copying of information into the computer’s memory. “Paste” refers to the actual
placement of the copied material.
Cursor The small arrow on the screen that moves as the mouse moves. Also called a “pointer”.
Data A general term referring to the information that is stored in a computer.
Delete To permanently erase something.
Desktop The screen that shows when you first start the computer or when no other programs are
“open”. It usually has icons on it for easy access to starting a program.
Dialog Box A window that appears when your computer has a question for you. In order to
continue using your computer, you must first answer its question.
Double-click The act of quickly pressing the left mouse button twice. This action is most frequently
used for opening programs and files represented by icons.
Drag Moving the mouse while the left mouse button is pressed in. Dragging is often done so
that an object will move along with the mouse. Also called “click-and-drag”.
Drag (window) Physically moving a window on the screen by dragging the title bar.
Drop-down list A list or selection box that is accessed by clicking on the list name to reveal a set of “drop
box down” options immediately below it.
Hardware All of the machinery and physical parts of a computer system, including things like the
CPU, monitor, printer, mouse and keyboard.

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Highlighting The act of selecting a section of the screen for the computer to focus on, in order to
issue a command to the computer related to that section, such as “copy”. Highlighting is
usually performed by dragging the cursor from one end of the selection to the other.
Also referred to as “selecting”.
Hover To position the mouse cursor over an object on the screen without clicking it.
Hyperlink A section of the screen, usually blue underlined words, that, when clicked on, will make
the computer display another screen or webpage. When pointed to, hyperlinks change
the shape of the mouse cursor to a hand.
I-Beam The name of the mouse cursor that appears when the mouse cursor hovers over text or
textboxes.
Icon A small picture that represents a program or app, a file, or a folder. These typically must
be double-clicked to activate.
Insertion Point Signified by a blinking vertical line, this is the position where the next character typed on
the keyboard will appear on the screen.
Link See Hyperlink.
Maximize To enlarge a window so it takes up the entire screen. This action is the opposite of
“Restore Down”, and the two commands use the same button on the title bar.

Menu bar The second bar from the top of the window which lists words that, when clicked on,
open drop-down menus. Not all programs have menu bars.
Expand button Button located in the top left corner of the Windows 10 Start Menu. When clicked,
shows the text labels for the icons in the left pane of the Start Menu.
Microsoft The company that created the “Windows” operating system, as well as programs such as
Word, Excel, and Internet Explorer. Microsoft is only a brand name—it is not the name
of a program.
Minimize Removing an open window from view without closing it. Accomplished by clicking the
minimize button on the title bar.
Monitor The display screen.
Mouse A device that controls the movement of the cursor.
Move
See Drag (window)
(window)
Multi-tasking Performing two or more tasks simultaneously.
Navigation The left column or pane in the File Explorer window. It provides links to commonly used
Pane drives and folders such as Quick Access and This PC.
Notification Located in the bottom right corner of the Taskbar next to the time and date. It contains
Area miniature icons for easy access to system functions that are always running in the
background, such as antivirus settings, printer status, network connection, sound
volume and battery status. Sometimes referred to as Notification Tray or System Tray.
Open To begin using a program or to access a previously saved file.

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 COMPUTER BASICS | GLOSSARY

Operating The program responsible for managing all of the computer’s memory and controlling the
system way the user interacts with the other programs on the computer. Some examples of
operating systems are: Windows (the most popular), macOS, iOS, Android, and Linux.
Pinned Shortcuts to programs can be attached to the Taskbar or Start Menu, a process called
pinning. This is handy in case you have regular programs that you want to open without
having to search for them or scroll through the Apps List.
Pointer See Cursor
Preview An image of a program window that is displayed when the user points to the program
Window icon in the Taskbar. The program must be running to get a preview window.
Program A series of instructions a computer follows to accomplish a specific task (see: software).
Quick Access A small toolbar used in the Microsoft Office programs which sits in the title bar and gives
Toolbar you access to commands that you frequently use. By default, save, undo and redo
appear on every Quick Access toolbar. The Quick Access toolbar is customizable.
Option Button An icon in the shape of a round circle that allows the user to choose only one of a
predefined set of mutually exclusive options. Typically used when only one option
should be selected.
Resize Changing the shape of a window by dragging one of the edges. The mouse cursor must
take the shape of a double-headed arrow before you can begin resizing.
Restore down To reduce a window’s size from the whole screen to just part of the screen. This is
accomplished by clicking the central of the three buttons in the upper-right corner of the
title bar.
Ribbon The area under the title bar in Microsoft Office programs and in File Explorer. The
ribbon contains tools that are used to interact with files, folders or drives.
Right-click Performing a click with the right mouse button rather than the left. This action typically
generates a menu related to what the mouse cursor is pointed at (see: context menu).
ScreenTip Information that can be viewed by holding the mouse cursor over an object, such as an
icon or a button. Also called a “tooltip”.
Scroll A process that displays a different part of the screen than is currently showing. Typically,
scrolling is needed in order to view the later sections of a document when the document
is too long to fit on the screen.
Scroll bar The section at the right or bottom edge of the screen that allows the user to look at
sections of the window that do not currently fit on the screen. A scroll bar will consist of
two arrows and a gray box between them with a box indicating which part of the viewing
area is currently being displayed.
Selecting See Highlighting
Snap Assist Feature to view two windows side-by-side. Accomplished by dragging one window to
the left side of the screen until it “snaps” to fill half the screen. Then click on the
preview window of the second program and it will snap to the other side.
Software An all-encompassing term for the programs and applications that run on a computer.

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 COMPUTER BASICS | GLOSSARY

Start button Icon located on the far left side of the Taskbar. Clicking this button opens a menu that
includes many options such as start programs and shutdown your computer.
Start menu Allows the user to open any program that the computer has available. The Start Menu
can be accessed by clicking the Start Button on the left side of the Taskbar. However, we
recommend accessing the Start menu by pressing the Windows key.
Stacked In older versions of Windows, every open program was represented by a separate
Taskbar button on the Taskbar. In newer versions, however, when more than one instance of
Buttons the same program is open, the taskbar buttons will display in a “stack” with each icon
slightly on top of the other.
Status bar The bottom-most section of a window (but above the taskbar), it shows some general
information about the status of your work.
Taskbar Lists all the open windows. Located at the very bottom of the monitor screen.
Tiles Square shaped graphical representations, much like desktop icons, of programs on the
computer. Tiles are found in the right pane on the Start Menu. A single click on a tile
will open the program.
Title bar The top-most strip of a window that shows the name of the program, and contains the
minimize, restore down and close buttons. Can be used to move the window around the
screen (see: drag).
Toolbar A grouping of commands optimized for efficient access. Unlike a menu, which contains a
comprehensive list of commands, a toolbar contains the most frequently used
commands. Toolbars contain buttons. The individual buttons can be identified using
ScreenTips. There can be more than one toolbar in a window.
Tooltip See ScreenTip
Window The rectangular area in which a program can be viewed. The window can be maximized
to take up the entire screen, or it might use only part of the screen so that multiple
windows can be seen at once. All open windows are listed on the taskbar.
Window
A group of three buttons common to all windows. Used to Minimize, Maximize/Restore
Control
Down, and Close the window. Located in the top right corner of the window.
Buttons
Windows The most common operating system for most computers (and in this lab). The latest
version is Windows 10. Created by a company called Microsoft.
Windows key An icon used to open the Start Menu. On most newer keyboards, the “Windows” key
looks just like the start button on the screen.

Windows Located just to the right of the Start Button on the Taskbar. Used to enter keywords to
Search Box search Apps/Programs, Files or Settings on the computer. (Searching for files or settings
is defeated in the Computer Lab.)
WordPad A program that comes for free with Windows. It is used for typing letters, resumes, and
other documents. WordPad, and programs like it, are called word processors.

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