WINDOWS

ESSENTIALS OF WINDOWS

OBJECTIVES:

  • To describe the objects on the Windows desktop
  • To explain the function of the minimize, maximize, restore, and close buttons
  • To explain the function of a dialog box
  • To format a floppy disk
  • To use My Computer to locate a specific file or folder

Windows is an operating system software that controls the operation of the computer and its peripherals. The name Windowsdescribes basically how the software functions. The Graphical User Interface (GUI)-based Windows series (Windows 9x) run one or more applications in windows – rectangular areas displayed on the screen. One of the most significant benefits of the Windows environment is the common user interface and consistent command structure that are imposed on every Windows application. Once you learn the basic concepts and techniques, you can apply that knowledge to every Windows application.

DESKTOP

Windows desktop is a graphical user interface that allows user to work by pointing at pictorial objects (icons) and clicking the mouse. Each icon represents a different application (Figure 1).

Figure 1. The Windows Desktop

The Start button is where you begin. When you click this a menu that provides access to any program on your computer appears. The start button also gives access to an online help facility that provides information about every aspects of Windows. In addition to the Start button, the desktop in Figure 1 contains many other objects, each of which has a special purpose. For example, My Computer enables you to browse the disk drives.(and optional CD-ROM drive) that are attached to your computer. The Recycle Bin lets you recover a file that was previously deleted. The Taskbar at the bottom of the desktop shows all of the programs that are currentl running (open in memory). It contains a button for each open program and lets you switch back and forth between these programs, by clicking the appropriate button.

Figure 2 displays a typical window and labels its essential elements. Every window has the same components as every other window, which include a title bar, a Minimize button, a Maximize or restore button, and a close button. Other elements, that may or may not be present, include a horizontal and /or vertical scroll bar, a menu bar, a status bar, and a tool bar. Every window also contains additional objects (icons) that pertain specifically to the program(s) or data associated with that window.

Figure 2. Parts of a Window

The title bar appears at the top of the window and displays the name of the window. The icon at far left corner of the title bar provides access to a control menu that lets you select operations relevant to the window. The Minimize button shrinks the window to a button on the task bar. The Maximize button enlarges the window so that it takes up the entire desktop. The Restore button (which is not shown in Figure 2) appears instead of the Maximize button after a window has been maximized, and restores the window to its previous size. The Close button closes the window and removes it from the desktop.

The menu bar appears below the title bar and provides access to to pull-down menus. A tool bar appears below the menu bar and lets you execute a command by clicking an icon. The status bar appears at the bottom of the window and displays information about the window as a whole or about a selected object within a window.

A vertical (horizontal) scroll bar apperas at the right (bottom) border of a window when its contents are not completely visible and provides access to the unseen areas.

PULL-DOWN MENUS

The menu bar provides access to pull-down menus that enable you to execute commands within an application (program). A pull-dowmn menu is accessed by clicking the menu name or by pressing the Alt key plus the underlined letter in the

menu name; for example, press Alt+V to pull-down the view menu. The File pull-down menu associated with My Computer is shown in Figure 3.


Figure 3. Pull-down Menu

The commands within a menu are executed by clicking the command once the menu bar has been pulled down, or by typing the underlined letter (for example, C to execute the Close command in the File menu). A dimmed command means the command is not currently executable. An ellipses (…) following a command indicates that additional is required to execute the command. A check next to a command indicates a toggle switch,showing the the command is either on or off. An arrowhead after a command indicates a submenu will follow the additional menu options.

DIALOG BOXES

A dialog box appears when additional information is needed to execute a command. The Format command for example,requires information about which drive to format and the type of formatting desired (see Figure 4).

Figure 4. Dialog box

Option buttons indicate mutually exclusive choices, one of which must be chosen Check boxes are used instead of option buttons if an option is not required. Multiple boxes can be checked. A text box is used to enter descriptive information. A list box displays some or all of the available choices. A tabbed dialog box provides multiple sets of options.

All dialog boxes have title bar, which contains a What’s This button (in the form of a question mark) and a Close button. The What’s This button provides help for any item in the dialog box. All dialog boxes also contain one or more command buttons, the function of which is generally apparent from the button’s name.

THE MOUSE

The mouse is indispensable to Windows applications. There are four basic operations with which you must become familiar:

  • To point to an object, move the mouse pointer onto the object.
  • To click an object, point to it, then press and release the left mouse button; to right click an object, point to the object, then press and release the right mouse button.
  • To double-click an object, point to it, then quicklyclick the left button twice in succession.
  • To drag an object, move the pointer to the object, then press and hold the left button while you move the mouse to a new position.

The Mouse Properties dialog box is shown in figure 5.

Figure 5. Mouse Properties dialog box

To turn the computer on :

The floppy drive should be empty prior to starting your machine.

  • Turn on the monitor.
  • Turn on the printer (if any).
  • Turn on the power switch of the system unit.

You may (or may not) see the Welcome message – a window opened on your screen. Click the Close button if you see the Welcome message.

  1. Click the Start button to display the Start menu.
  1. Click the Help command. Windows Help menu appears on the desktop.
  1. Click the book icon next to Introducing Windows98. This causes four more book icons to appear below the Introducing Windows98 book icon.
  1. Click the book icon next to How to Use Help to learn about the help facility.
  1. Follow the instructions provided by Windows until you complete the session on help. Click the Exit button at the upper right of the screen to return to the desktop.

To open My Computer:

  1. Point to the My Computer icon, click the right mouse button, then click the Open command from the shortcut menu. (Alternatively, you can double click the icon to open it directly). My Computer will open into a Window. My Computer Window is shown in figure 6.
  1. Pull down the View menu (point to the menuand click). You have to pull down the menu each time you choose a different command.
  • The toolbar command should be checked. The toolbar command functions as a toggle switch. (Click the command and the toolbar is displayed; click the command a second time and the toolbar disappears.)
  • The Status Bar command should be checked. The Status Bar command also functions as a toggle switch.
  • Large Icons should be selected.
  1. Pull down the View menu a final time. Click the Arrange Icons command and (if necessary) click the Auto Arrange command so that a check appears.
  1. Click outside the menu (or press Esc key) if the command is already checked.

Figure 6. My Computer

To Move and Size the Window:

The My Computer window should be opened prior to the following exercises. Press Esc to close open menus.

  1. Click the Restore button (which appears only if the window has been maximized) or else you will not be able to move and size the window.
  1. To change the width or height of the window, click and drag a border (the mouse pointer changes to a double arrow) in the direction you want to go; drag the border inward to shrink the window or outward to enlarge it.
  1. To change the width and height at the same time, click and drag a corner rather than a border.
  1. To change the position of the window, click and drag the title bar.
  1. Click the Maximize button so that the window expands to fill the entire screen. Click the Restore button to return the window to its previous size.
  1. Click the Minimize button to shrink the My Computer window to a button on the taskbar. My Computer is still open and remains active in memory.
  1. Click the My Computer button on the taskbar to reopen the window.

Scrolling:

  1. Pull down the View menu and click Details (or click the Details button on the toolbar). You are now in the Details view.
  1. Click and drag the bottom border of the window inward so that you see the vertical scroll bar. The scroll bar indicates that the contents of the window are not completely visible.
  1. Click the down arrow on the scroll bar. The top line disappears from the view, and a new line comes into view.
  1. Click the down arrow a second time, which brings another line into view at the bottom of the window.
  1. Click the Small Icons button on the toolbar. Size the window so that the scroll bar disappears when the contents of the window become completely become visible.
  1. Click the Details button on the toolbar. The scroll bar returns because you can no longer see the complete contents.

To Format a Floppy Disk:

The My Computer window should be opened prior to the following exercises. Press Esc to close open menus.

  1. Click the icon for drive A. Pull down the File menu and click Format. You will see a dialog box. Format Floppy Dialog box is shown in figure 7.
  1. Click the What’s This button (the mouse pointer changes to a question mark). Click the Full option button (under Format type) for an explanation. Click anywhere in the dialog box to close the popup window.
  1. Set the formatting parameter as follows:
  • Set the Capacity to match the floppy disk you purchased (1.44MB for example).
  • Click the Full option button to choose a full format.
  • Click the Label text box if it’s empty, or click and drag over the existing label if there is an entry. Enter a label such as Ahmet’s disk.
  1. Click the Start command button to begin the formatting operation. This will take about a minute, and you can see the progress of the formatting process at the bottom of the dialog box.
  1. After the formatting process is complete, you will see an informational dialog box with the results of the formatting operation. Read the information then click the Close command button to close informational dialog box.

Figure 7. Format Floppy Dialog Box

  1. Click the Close button to close the Format dialog box.

Disk Properties:

  1. Click the drive A icon in the My Computer window, click the right mouse button to display a shortcut menu, then click the Properties command. You will see the Properties dialog box. The pie chart displays the percentage of free and unused space.
  1. Click OK to close the Properties dialog box.
  1. Click the Close button to close the My Computer.

Disk properties window is shown in figure 8.

Figure 8. Disk Properties

FILES and FOLDERS

OBJECTIVE:

  • To understand file and folder concept
  • To write path of a file
  • To browse folders
  • To create a folder or a document
  • To copy file(s) and folder(s)
  • To move file(s) and folder(s)
  • To delete file(s) and folder(s)
  • To restore deleted file(s) and folder(s)
  • To browse folders by using Windows Explorer

The purpose of any computer system is to do useful work. To do this, we need various application software, such as Microsoft excel. Each document that you create by using an application software is stored in a file on a disk. So, it is important that you understand file management of windows 98 operating system.

A file is data that has been given a name and stored on disk. There are two types of file, program files and data files. A program file is executable application software. For example Microsoft word is a program file. A data file is not executable and can be open with a related specific program. A document that created by using Microsoft word program is a data file and can be open with Microsoft Word application.

A file, a program file or a data file, must have a name so it can be identified. A file name can contain up to 255 characters, including spaces. It cannot contain the following characters: \ / : * ? " < > |.

Files are stored in folders to better organise the hundreds of files on a hard disk.

FILE TYPE

Every data file has a specific file type that is determined by the application used to create it. You can recognise the file type by examining Type column in “detail” view as shown in figure 1. Another way of recognising file type, from any view, is examining the icon of a file. The third way of recognising file type is through a three-character extension of a file. Extension is separated from file name with a period. Each application has a unique extension that is automatically assigned to the file name when the file is created. For example .DOC is the extension for Microsoft word documents.

PATH

Files and folders are stored on disk in an organised way. To identify the location of a file or folder, we write the path of the file or folder. Path shows the location of a file or a folder on disk. For example, the path of “Readme.txt” file is stored in “windows” folder on hard disk (C:) can be written as follows: “C:\Windows\readme.txt”

MY COMPUTER

It is important that to able to reach or locate a folder and its documents so that you can retrieve a document. One way and easy way to reach folder and files is through My computer on desktop.

You can begin exploring folders and files by double clicking on My Computer icon. A window will be open and display devices on your system (see figure 9). Next you double click the icon for drive C. Then double click folder that you want to open and display the contents. When you double click an existing document to open, associated application starts and opens document. For example, if you double click an existing Microsoft word document, Microsoft Word program stars and opens your document.

Figure 9. My Computer

While exploring folders, you can use “Up one Level” button to go one level up folder. By using “Back” and “Forward” buttons you can reach last and next folder that you open.

TIPS

Single Click or Double Click

Click the Start button, click the Setting command then click “Folder options” to display the folder options dialog box. If necessary, click the “General” tab, then, click the “Web” or “Classic Style” option button, according to the style you want. Click “OK” to accept this setting and close Folder options dialog box.

If you select web style you can browse folders by using single click.

One Window or Many Windows

You can display the contents of a folder it’s own window or you can use only one windows while browsing folders.

Click the Start button, click the Setting command then click “Folder option” to display folder options dialog box. If necessary, click the “General” tab, then, click “Settings…” button to display custom setting dialog box. From “Browse folders as follows “ section click the option that you want.

HANDS-ON EXERCISE 1

  1. Display the contents of the folder which has the path “C:\Program Files\Common Files”
  2. Browse the folder as “C:\Windows”
  3. Close all windows, which are opened. Change the style as “Web style” in folder options.
  4. Repeat step 1 and 2. Notice that you must use single click to open a folder.
  5. Change the custom settings as each folder displayed in its own window.
  6. Repeat step 1 and 2. You observe that the contents of each window are displayed in a separate window.
  7. Close all windows, which are opened. Then open the document, which has the name “mouse” existing in “windows” folder on disk.

BASIC FILE OPERATIONS

CREATING A NEW FOLDER OR DOCUMENT

To create a new document or a folder, first you must define where you want to create a new object.

  1. By using my computer, open the folder that you want to create a new document or folder in.
  2. Open the “File” menu then point to “New” command to display New sub-menu
  3. Click the option appropriate with the object that you want to create.
  4. The new object will be created and windows wait for you to name object. Enter a name to new object. Then, click anywhere in folder window.

TIPS

Point to blank area anywhere within folder window. Then click the right mouse button to display the menu which contain the appropriate command. Next point to “New” command and select the appropriate option from new menu.