Windows for Beginners

Windows XP

Microsoft Windows

Microsoft makes the Windows operating system used in many computers. The
operating system is a set of instructions that tells your computer how to run and how to
manage the different programs that you install. There are several versions of Windows
currently in use including Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows XP, and Windows Vista.
The newest version of the Windows operating system is called Windows 7.

When you install a newer version of your operating system, you “upgrade” to the more
recent version.

Sometimes Microsoft will discover errors in the operating system and users will need to
“download a patch” for the program from the Internet.

Five different versions of windows:

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

1
Desktop

The desktop is your work surface representing a physical workspace at home or work. It
is the screen you see once your computer has finished booting up and you are ready to
get started.

Icons - the small pictures are shortcuts to programs called icons. Double-click icons to
start a program. Clicking the Start button also shows a list of programs and other
options on the computer.

Taskbar - the blue bar across the bottom of the screen is called the Task Bar.

Wallpaper (Desktop Background) - the image on your desktop is called Wallpaper or

Desktop Background.

System Tray – the area where you can access programs that are running in the
background. The more programs you have in this area, the longer it takes for your
computer to boot up.

Icons

Wallpaper

System Tray
Start button

Taskbar

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

2
System Tray

The system tray of your desktop area has icons to indicate which
programs are running in the background. Single click on the left-
facing arrow button to open it and see what else is there. Place your mouse cursor over
top of the icons to see what they are. (Don’t click. A small explanation box will pop up.)

Antivirus Software - The Norton antivirus program looks like a

yellow shield. McAfee looks like this: If you have a different
antivirus program you will have to look through the icons to see which one it is. To see
options for using this program, either right click on the icon to see a menu or double
click on the icon to open the program window. (Remember to keep your antivirus
program up-to-date!)

Volume Controls – The speaker icon will open the volume

controls.

Single click on the icon to make a quick volume change. Click and drag
on the bar to raise or lower the overall volume, or click in the check box
to mute all sound.

Either double click on the sound icon OR right click on the sound icon
and left click on Open Volume Control to see all of the sound settings.
Click and drag the volume bars up or down to raise or lower the volume
in specific categories. Click and drag the
balance bars left and right to change the
balance settings. Click in the box at the
bottom of the categories to mute the
sound.

External Hardware – Another icon you may run across quite

often is your external hardware icon. This is only shown when
you have a piece of external hardware plugged in. Examples include things like flash
drives, digital cameras, external hard drives, etc. When it’s time to remove the device, it
is recommended that you tell the computer to stop the connection with the device. That
way your hardware isn’t damaged when you pull the device out.

To stop the device, left click one time on the

icon. Choose which device you would like to
remove, and left click on it one time. (Flash drives are
commonly called USB Mass Storage Devices.) You
will be informed when it’s safe to remove the device.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

3
Windows Updates – If you see a yellow shield with an
exclamation mark on it, that means your computer has
updates from Microsoft that need to be downloaded. Single click on the icon to see what
needs to be done. Your computer will walk you through the steps.

Power (Laptop only) – There are two symbols for

power. One is a battery. The other is a power cord
with a blue lightning bolt. The latter symbol means that the laptop is plugged in to the
wall outlet and is charging. The battery symbol means that the laptop is running purely
off of battery power. Placing your mouse cursor on top of the symbol will allow you to
see how much of the battery is charged.

Wireless (Laptop only) – Laptop computers are

capable of connecting to a wireless network to gain
access to the Internet. To connect to a
network, right click on the wireless icon
and choose View Available Wireless
Networks. In the window that appears,
choose the network from the list that you
desire to connect to and click on the
Connect button that will appear in the
lower right corner.

Add or Remove Desktop Icons

You can add or delete Icons or Desktop Shortcuts from the Desktop area.

To add an Icon:
• Click on the Start button.
• Put your mouse over All Programs. A menu
will appear with all of your programs.
• Go to the program that you want to create a
shortcut for and Right-click on it. A menu will
appear.
• Point to Send To
• Left click on Desktop (create shortcut).
• Left click on the desktop area to see your new
icon.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

4
To remove an icon:
• Left click on the icon.
• Hit the Delete button on your
keyboard.
• When your computer asks if you
are sure you would like to delete
this program, click on the Delete
Shortcut button. The window that
popped up is called a Dialog Box.

Dialog Box
A dialog box is window that appears when your computer has a question for you. In
order to continue using the computer, you must first answer its question. (We saw one
example of a dialog box when we told the computer to delete an icon from the desktop.)

Sometimes a dialog box appears merely to inform you of something. You must click on
the OK button to acknowledge that you have read the message before you can
continue. For example:

• Double click on the My Documents folder on the desktop.

• Locate the folder titled Travel Class, and right click on it.
• Left click on Rename.
• Type eBay and press the enter key on the keyboard.
• A dialog box will appear to inform you that you cannot
rename the folder to “eBay” because an item by that name
already exists.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

5
Create a Folder
Some people like to keep folders on their desktop to keep important files in. (You could
also use the My Documents folder for this purpose.)

To create a folder:
• Find an empty area on your desktop
with no icons or windows in the way.
• Right click on the empty space.
• Point to New. (You do not need to
click.)
• In the menu that pops out, left click on
Folder.
• Your new folder has been created and is waiting for a name. Don’t click! Just
start typing to give the folder a name.
• When finished, hit the enter key on the keyboard or click beside the
folder. Your new folder is ready to receive files.

Find Images Online

Now that you have a folder to place things in, let’s find something to put in it.
• Double click on the Internet Explorer icon on your desktop.
• In the Search box type what type of
picture you want to find (like sunsets)
and hit the enter key on your keyboard.
• When the Google page loads, click on the word
Images in the upper left corner.
• Click on an image that you like.
• When that new page loads, click on See Full Size
Image at the top of the page to see the picture by
itself.

• Right click anywhere on the image and left click on Save

Picture As… (Note: You can make this image your
desktop background immideately if you do not wish to
save it on your computer first. Just click on Set as
Background from the right click menu.)

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

6
 • In the window that
opens, left click on
Desktop on the left
side.
• Find the folder you
just created and
double click on it.
• Either change the
name of the file or
keep it as it is.
• Then click on the
Save button.
• Minimize the Internet
Explorer window to
see the desktop.

• Double click on your folder to see your saved image.

Wallpaper
The wallpaper, or image, that is on your desktop can be changed. To change your
wallpaper:

• Find an empty area on your desktop with no

icons or windows in the way.
• Right click on the empty space
• Left click on Properties
• Left click on the Desktop tab at the top of that
window

OR
• Click on the Start button
• Click on Control Panel
• Click on Appearance and Themes (or Display for older versions of Windows
and skip the next step)
• Click on Change the Desktop Background. The Display Properties Dialog box
will appear.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

7
 • Choose your wallpaper or background image
from the list in the center.
• Choose how you would like it positioned from
the drop-down list (centered, tiled, or stretched).
• Then click on Apply. The image that you have
chosen will appear on your desktop. If you don’t
like it, choose another one.

If you would prefer a solid color background:

• Click on the down arrow next to Color.
• Choose a color from the list.
• Click on Apply.

You can also create wallpaper from images currently saved on your PC. (Remember
the sunset image you saved?)

• Click on the Browse button.

• The Browse dialog box will appear.
Navigate to the correct folder (left click on
Desktop from the left and double click on
your new folder) and select your image by
clicking on it once.
• Click on the Open button and Apply on
the Display Properties dialog box. The
image will appear as your wallpaper.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

8
Drop-Down Lists & Scroll Bars
We have seen many drop-down lists and scroll
bars while searching for a desktop background
image. Look at our Display Properties window.

There are two drop-down lists on the right side

of the window. One is used to position your
image on the computer screen and the other is
to choose a solid color.

Notice how there is a downward-facing arrow or

triangle on the right side of each box? That
indicates that there are more options to see for
that category. In order to select a different
option, you must first click on the down arrow.

A scrollbar also indicates that there are more options to see for any given list. It is also
found on the right side of Internet and Word documents to see more of the page.

To navigate an area that has a scroll bar, either:

• Repeatedly left click on the up or down arrow to navigate up or down the area.
OR
• Click and hold down the left mouse button on the small bar between the up and
down arrows.
• Move your mouse up or down while holding the button down to navigate up or
down the area.

Appearance
Notice the tabs at the top of the Display Properties
window. The third one over says Appearance. Click
on it to see what options are there.

Notice we see three drop-down lists. Click on the down

arrows to change the Windows style, the color
scheme, or the font size. Click Apply when finished.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

9
Settings
The fifth tab over on our Display Properties
window says Settings. Click on that to see the
display settings. Right click on
the number 2,
Use the options here to activate a second and left click on
desktop area (for use when hooking up a Attached.
second monitor or connecting to a projector),
change the screen resolution (the larger the
number, the smaller everything will appear), or
set the color quality.
Click and drag the indicator
Click on Apply
bar to the left or right to
when finished.
change the resolution. Drag it
to the left (600 by 800) to
make icons and text larger.

Screen Saver and Power Schemes

The third tab over is called Screen Saver. This
area allows you to add a screen saver to your
computer, although LCD (Liquid Crystal Display)
monitors do not need to have a screen saver
activated. Choose a screen saver from the drop-
down list if desired and choose a length of time to
wait for it to begin.

More importantly, the power option button found

on the lower half of this window is very helpful.
(It can also be found by going to your Start
menu, Control Panel, Performance and
Maintenance,
and Power
Options.)

Pick a premade power scheme from the drop-down list

at the top, or decide how many minutes or hours you
would like your monitor and computer to wait before it
turns off or goes into standby mode by changing the
settings on the lower half of the window.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

10
Place Your Favorite Webpage as a Desktop Icon

You can create a shortcut of your favorite webpage directly on your Desktop.
• To create the shortcut, you must first open your Internet browser. (Double
click on the Internet Explorer icon.)
• Type in the web address of the page you want to view and
hit the enter key on your keyboard.
• Once the website is open, restore down the window so that
you can view the Desktop space partially behind the opened webpage.
• Either: Point your mouse at the icon to the left of the web address in
the address bar as shown below. Hold down your left mouse button and drag the
small icon onto empty area of your Desktop. Let go and a shortcut of your
webpage will be created on your Desktop. You can just double-click that icon to
view the webpage directly next time without needing to open an Internet browser.

OR
• Left click on the File menu.
• Move your mouse down to the word Send.
• When the submenu pops out, left click on
Shortcut to Desktop.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

11
Managing Multiple Windows

Your taskbar area shows which windows are open. If you open a lot of windows from
the same program, they will start to stack up. Let’s open a lot of windows and see what
happens.

• In Internet Explorer, click on the File menu and then on

New Window.
• In the address bar type Yahoo.com and hit the enter
key on the keyboard.
• Repeat the first two steps at least 5 times and go to different websites such as
Google.com, abc.com, nbc.com, msnbc.com, pbs.org, fox8.com, and
wews.com. Your taskbar will start to get full. Once you have seven windows
open, they will all group together under one item.

Normally, if your items aren’t grouped together,

you would be able to select one item from the
task bar to navigate to that window. When they are all stacked, you have to click on the
group and go from there.

• Left click on the group of

stacked Internet Explorer
windows in the taskbar to
open the list.
• Notice you can see which
website each one
represents. Click on the one
you would like to see.

(Note: If you have multiple windows open and want to see the desktop right away, look
for the Show Desktop icon next to the Start menu. Click on it to minimize all windows.)

To close: Instead of opening each window separately and clicking on the “X” in the
upper right corner, you can close them all at once. To do so:

• Right click on the group in the taskbar.

• Left click on Close Group.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

12
The Keyboard

A computer keyboard is very much like a typewriter keyboard, but it has some extra
keys.

The ESC key in the upper left corner will close any menus you
have opened but do not want to select an item from. (Try
opening the Start menu and then click on the Esc key.)

The Function keys along the top of the keyboard each have special uses, often in
conjunction with the ALT or CTRL keys, depending on the program you are using. F1
usually open the program’s Help options. It is different for every program.

In the bottom left corner are three keys unique to the keyboard – CTRL, Windows, and
ALT.

The CTRL key is used in conjunction with other keys to

perform various functions. (CTRL + P will open the print
window when in Microsoft Word.)

The Windows key works like pressing the Start button on the
screen.

The ALT key is another helper key used in conjunction with other keys.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

13
The Caps Lock key is used in typing. Pressing this key once
will make all letters you type CAPITALIZED. Press the Caps
Lock key again to turn off this feature.

The Shift key is used in typing to make one capital letter. To

capitalize a letter, press the Shift key and hold it down, then
press the letter you want capitalized. Release the Shift key
and continue to type.

The Arrow keys help you move the cursor around the screen
(when using a program like Microsoft Word) or across a line of
text when typing in a text box.

The Insert key is used when typing to type over words you
have already typed.

The Delete key is used to remove text you have typed that is
to the right of the cursor or to send selected items to the
Recycle Bin.

Pressing the Home key sends your cursor to the beginning of

a line of text. Pressing the End key sends the cursor to the
end of a line.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

14
Page Up and Page Down move the cursor through a
document page by page, either up or down.

To the right of the space bar you see another Alt key, Windows key, and Ctrl key.
Notice the new Application key. Pressing this key is the same as pressing the right
mouse button (right clicking).

The Backspace key is used to remove text you have typed that is to the
left of the cursor.

The Enter key gives a new line (like a carriage return) when you are
typing. At other times the Enter key works like a left mouse click.

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

15
Common Windows Commands

One feature of Windows is that there are usually many ways to perform an action. This
table shows the Windows Command, with the Menu, Keyboard and Toolbar ways to tell
the computer to perform that action.

Command Menu Keyboard Toolbar

Help Help F1

New document File>New CTRL + N

Open File>Open CTRL + O

Close File>Close ALT + F4

Save File>Save CRTL + S

Print Preview File>Print Preview CTRL + F2

Print File>Print CTRL + P

Select All Edit>Select All CTRL + A (none)

Copy Edit>Copy CTRL + C

Cut Edit>Cut CTRL + X

Paste Edit>Paste CTRL + V

Undo Edit>Undo CTRL + Z

Bold Format>Font CTRL + B

Italics Format>Font CTRL + I

Underline Format>Font CTRL + U

Find Edit>Find CTRL + F

Spell check Tools>Spelling F7

and Grammar

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

16
Bibliography

These resources are available at the Akron Summit County Public Library to help you
learn more about Windows.

Books

Ballew, Joli. (2004). Degunking Windows. Phoenix, AZ: Paraglyph Press.

Call number: 005.446 B191d

Hart-Davis, Guy. (2004). Windows XP and Office 2003: Keyboard Shortcuts. New York:
McGraw Hill/Osborne. Call number: 005.4469 H326w

Microsoft Windows XP Step-by-Step. (2005). Redmond, WA: Microsoft Press. Call

number: 005.446 M626wxp

Rathbone, Andy. (2004). Microsoft Windows for Dummies. New York: Wiley.
Call number: 005.4469 R234w

Web sites

Atomic Learning: Windows tutorials

http://www.atomiclearning.com/windows

Microsoft: How to use Windows

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/default.mspx

Copyright ©2006 ASCPL 1/4/2010 Windows for Beginners/JCC/JS/KJ

17