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Working in the Microsoft Windows environment is a lot like working in a real-world office environment. You have a desktop where all your work tools are displayed, and you have folders in which to organize all your files. Windows incorporates all these elements into its user interface, which is the means by which you and your computer communicate with each other.
Windows XP presents its tools, commands, and structure through a graphical user interface. Each type of file is represented by a picture and description, and each command is represented by a button. Programs are arranged on a series of menus to make it easy to locate them.
In this chapter, you will explore some of the elements of the Windows user interface and the various ways in which you can look at the information on your computer. You will then see how to tailor some of these elements to suit the way you work.
See Also
Do you need only a quick refresher on the topics in this chapter? See the Quick Reference entries in Chapter 2 Working Efficiently in Windows XP.
Important
Before you can use the practice files in this chapter, you need to install them from the book’s companion CD to their default location. See "Using the Book’s CD-ROM" in Displayfor more information.
When you start Windows XP, your computer screen looks something like this:
The most basic element of the Windows user interface is a background screen called the desktop. All your other programs are opened over this background screen. The taskbar at the bottom of the screen displays information about what’s going on with your computer. You can also use it to easily open and close programs.
You might have one or more icons visible on your desktop, depending on how the programs that are installed on your computer are set up, and on your Windows XP settings. Icons are graphic representations of programs. When an icon appears on the desktop, you can double-click it to start the associated program.
Below the icon is the name of the element it represents. If the name is too long, it is truncated by an ellipsis (...) when it is not selected, and displayed in full when you click it. Positioning the mouse pointer over an icon usually displays a box, called a ScreenTip, containing a few words that tell you something about the program.
Some icons are placed on the Windows desktop when you install the programs they represent. If the icon has an arrow overlaid on its lower left corner, it is a shortcut. Shortcuts are links to items that are stored in another location. If you delete a shortcut, you aren’t actually deleting the file, folder, or program to which it points. Many programs create shortcuts when you install them. You can also create your own shortcuts to programs; to specific files, folders, or network locations; or to Web sites. Windows XP assigns graphics to each shortcut based on the type of element it represents, so you can easily locate the one you are looking for.
One of the icons on the desktop is the Recycle Bin, which is where Windows temporarily stores files you have deleted. It is also the place where you manage deleted files. You can recover deleted files from the Recycle Bin, or you can empty the Recycle Bin and permanently delete the files to free up space on your hard disk.
When you purchase a new computer, the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) might have installed programs and created icons and shortcuts for you. If you upgrade to Windows XP from a previous version of Windows, your existing icons and shortcuts will still be available.
In this exercise, you will open, resize, and close the Recycle Bin.
BE SURE TO log on to Windows before beginning this exercise.
Follow these steps:
On the Windows desktop, double-click the Recycle Bin icon.
The Recycle Bin opens in a window, something like this:
The program’s title appears on the title bar at the top of the window. If the content of the window is too large to fit in the window, a scroll bar is displayed down the right side and/or across the bottom of the window. A button representing the program is displayed on the taskbar to indicate that it is open.
Click the Minimize button near the right end of the title bar.
The window is minimized so that it is no longer visible on the desktop. The program is still running and is represented by a button on the taskbar.
Click the Recycle Bin’s taskbar button to redisplay the window.
Click the Maximize button.
The window expands to fill your entire screen.
Click the Restore Down button.
The window returns to its original size. The Restore Down button is available only when the window is maximized.
Tip
You can manually resize a window by positioning the mouse pointer over the window’s frame and, when the pointer changes to a double-headed arrow, dragging the frame to make the window smaller or larger. You cannot manually resize maximized windows; you must first restore the window to its non-maximized state.
Click the Close button.
Closing the window closes the program and removes the corresponding button from the taskbar.
The Start menu is a list of options that is your central link to all the programs installed on your computer, as well as to all the tasks you can carry out with Windows XP. The first time you start Windows XP, the Start menu is displayed until you click something else. Thereafter, you open the Start menu by clicking the Start button at the left end of the taskbar.
The Start menu has been significantly redesigned in Windows XP so you can more easily access your programs. When it first opens, it looks something like this:
Tip
If you are accustomed to the previous menu style, which is now called the Classic menu, you might find that the change takes a little getting used to. If you are unable to adjust, you have the option of changing back to the Classic version. However, the new menu is designed to increase efficiency, so we recommend that you at least give it a try!
You can pin links to your favorite programs to a special area at the upper left side of the Start menu to make the programs easy to find and start. You can rearrange the pinned programs by dragging them into whatever order you want. By default, Microsoft Internet Explorer and Microsoft Outlook Express are pinned to the Start menu. If you change your default Web browser or e-mail program, the pinned programs area is updated to reflect that change.
Tip
If your computer came pre-installed with Windows XP SP1 or Windows XP SP2, the OEM might have stipulated alternate default programs.
See Also
For more information about Windows XP service packs, refer to "What’s New in Microsoft Windows XP" at the beginning of this book, and "Changing Your Default Middleware Applications" in Chapter 4.
Below the first horizontal line on the left side of the Start menu is a list of links to your most frequently used programs, which by default includes the last six programs you started. (You can adjust that number if you want.) The first time you start Windows XP, the list displays some of the new programs that are available, such as MSN Explorer, Windows Media Player, Windows Movie Maker, File and Settings Transfer Wizard, and Tour Windows XP. (The tour is somewhat long and sales-oriented, but it does introduce you to new features of Windows XP that you will work with in this book.)
On the right side of the Start menu are links to the locations where you are most likely to store the files you create, a link to a directory of other computers on your network, and links to various tools that you will use while running your computer. If you are running Windows XP SP1 or Windows XP SP2, you also see a Set Program Access and Defaults shortcut, which connects you to that page of the Add or Remove Programs window. The commands you will use to log off of or shut down your computer are located at the bottom of the Start menu.
In this exercise, you will first clear the list of most frequently used programs links from the Start menu. Then you will pin links to two programs to the top of the menu, rearrange them, and remove them from the pinned programs area.
BE SURE TO log on to Windows before beginning this exercise.
Follow these steps:
Close any open windows so that no buttons appear on the taskbar.
Click the Start button to open the Start menu, and note which programs currently appear in the most frequently used programs list.
Right-click the blue stripe at the bottom of the Start menu, and click Properties on the shortcut menu.
The Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box appears, like this:
This is where you have the option to change to the Classic Start menu.
Make sure that the Start menu option is selected, and then click Customize.
The Customize Start Menu dialog box appears. The default settings are shown here:
Click the Clear List button to clear the list of most frequently used programs.
Click the Advanced tab to display the advanced Start menu options:
Scroll through the list of options to see what is available, but don’t change any of the default settings at this time.
Click Cancel to close the Customize Start Menu dialog box without making any changes, and then click OK to close the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box.
Click the Start button to open the Start menu.
The most frequently used programs list has been cleared.
Point to All Programs.
The All Programs menu expands with your currently installed programs listed, something like this:
As with other types of menus in Windows XP, the right-pointing arrows indicate that clicking the menu entry, or simply hovering the mouse pointer over it for a few seconds, will open a secondary menu.
On the All Programs menu, point to Accessories.
The secondary Accessories menu expands. All the programs on this menu come with Windows XP:
On the Accessories menu, click Calculator.
The menus close, Calculator opens, and a Calculator button appears on the taskbar.
Click the Start button to open the Start menu.
Calculator now appears in the most frequently used programs list, like this:
Now you’ll pin a program to the Start menu. Point to All Programs, and then point to Games.
See Also
For more information about playing games on your Windows XP computer, refer to Chapter 9.
Tip
You can pin programs to the Start menu from the All Programs menu or from the most frequently used programs list.
The secondary Games menu expands:
All the games on this menu come with Windows XP.
On the Games menu, right-click FreeCell, and click Pin to Start menu on the shortcut menu. Then click a blank area of the Start menu to close the Games and All Programs menus.
FreeCell is added to the pinned programs area of the Start menu:
On the Start menu, right-click Calculator, and click Pin to Start menu on the shortcut menu.
Calculator is moved from the most frequently used programs area to the pinned programs area.
Drag the Calculator link to the top of the pinned programs list.
While you are dragging the link, a thick black line indicates where it will appear if you release the mouse button.
Drag the FreeCell link above the Calculator link.
Right-click the Calculator link, and click Unpin from Start menu on the shortcut menu.
The Calculator link is moved from the pinned programs area back to the most frequently used programs area. You could have clicked Remove from This List to remove it entirely.
Right-click the FreeCell link, and click Unpin from Start menu on the shortcut menu.
The FreeCell link disappears from the pinned programs area and (because it was never on the most frequently used programs list) from the Start menu.
Click away from the Start menu to close it.
On Calculator’s title bar, click the Close button.
Calculator closes, and its button disappears from the taskbar.
The taskbar is your link to current information about what is happening on your Windows XP computer. In addition to the Start button, the taskbar displays a button for each open program. You click a taskbar button to activate the window of the program it represents. The taskbar buttons are resized depending on the number of programs that are currently open, and they disappear when you close the programs they represent.
If you start the same program more than once so that several instances of the program are open at the same time (for example, three instances of Internet Explorer, or two Microsoft Office Word documents), and the taskbar is becoming crowded, similar windows are grouped onto one button that is labeled with the name of the program. A number following the program icon on the button indicates the number of open windows represented by the button. You can click the button to display a pop-up list of the open windows and then click the one you want to activate. This new feature makes it easier to work with your open windows.
Tip
When multiple windows are grouped on a taskbar button, you can close all the windows in the group by right-clicking the button and clicking Close Group on the shortcut menu.
By default, the taskbar displays one row of buttons and is docked at the bottom of the desktop, but you can control its size and position:
You can dock the taskbar at the top, bottom, or on either side of the desktop.
When the taskbar is docked at the top or bottom, you can expand the taskbar to be up to half the height of your screen by dragging its border up or down.
When the taskbar is docked on the left or right, you can adjust its width from nothing (only the border is visible) to up to half the width of your screen.
You can stipulate that the taskbar should be hidden when you’re not using it, or that it should always stay on top of other windows so that it is not accidentally hidden.
You can lock the taskbar to prevent it from being changed.
Troubleshooting
You cannot move or change the taskbar while it is locked. To lock or unlock the taskbar, right-click an empty area of the taskbar, and click Lock the Taskbar on the shortcut menu. A check mark indicates when this option is selected.
Windows XP taskbar buttons change size so that they fit on the taskbar as programs are opened and closed. The maximum number of buttons that can fit on the taskbar varies based on your monitor and display settings. When you exceed the maximum, Windows either tiles the buttons or displays a scroll bar, depending on the current taskbar configuration.
The notification area is located at the right end of the horizontal taskbar or at the bottom of the vertical taskbar. By default, the notification area displays the current time. Icons appear temporarily in the notification area when activities such as the following take place:
The printer icon appears when you send a document to the printer.
A message icon appears when you receive new e-mail messages.
The Windows Automatic Update icon appears to remind you to look online for updates to the operating system.
Information icons appear to give you information about various program features.
Network connections and Microsoft Windows Messenger icons appear when those features are in use. (Inactive connections are indicated by the presence of a red X on the icon.)
In addition to the items that are visible by default, the taskbar can also display its own set of toolbars. The most frequently used of these is the Quick Launch toolbar, which displays single-click links to programs and commands. (This toolbar is hidden by default.)
Windows XP installs links to Internet Explorer, Microsoft Windows Media Player, and the Show Desktop command on the Quick Launch toolbar. You can add more program shortcuts to the Quick Launch toolbar at any time by dragging a program or shortcut icon onto it.
In this exercise, you will open several windows and use the taskbar to move among them.
BE SURE TO log on to Windows before beginning this exercise.
Follow these steps:
Close any open windows so that no taskbar buttons appear on the taskbar.
Click the Start button to open the Start menu.
On the Start menu, click My Documents.
The My Documents folder opens, and a button appears on the taskbar. The button label is preceded by a folder icon to indicate that the button represents a folder.
Click the Minimize button to hide the folder’s window under its taskbar button.
On the Start menu, click My Pictures.
The My Pictures folder opens in a new window, and another button appears on the taskbar. The button label is preceded by a folder icon to indicate the type of window it represents.
On the Start menu, click My Music.
The My Music folder opens in a new window, and a button appears on the taskbar. The button label is again preceded by a folder icon.
You now have three open folder windows, each represented by a taskbar button. The taskbar looks something like this:
On the Start menu, click Calculator.
Calculator opens, and the Calculator button appears on the taskbar.
On the taskbar, click the My Pictures button to make the window for the My Pictures folder active.
The My Pictures window comes to the top of the stack of open windows. On the taskbar, the My Pictures button is active instead of the Calculator button.
If the Quick Launch toolbar is not currently visible, right-click an empty area of the taskbar, point to Toolbars on the shortcut menu, and then click Quick Launch.
On the Quick Launch toolbar, click the Show Desktop button.
All open windows are minimized.
On the desktop, double-click the Recycle Bin icon.
The Recycle Bin folder opens in a new window. There is not enough room to add the Recycle Bin button to the taskbar, so the four folder windows are grouped onto one button. The taskbar now looks like this:
Click the Windows Explorer button to display a pop-up list of the windows represented by the button:
Click My Music in the window list.
The My Music window appears, and the list closes.
Right-click the Windows Explorer button, and then click Close Group on the shortcut menu.
All four folder windows close, and the Windows Explorer button disappears. Calculator is now the only open program.
Click the Calculator button to display Calculator, and then click its Close button.
Calculator closes, and the last taskbar button disappears.
Shortcuts are icons on your desktop or the Quick Launch toolbar that are linked to files, folders, and programs in other locations. Many programs give you the option of creating one or more shortcuts during installation, or in some cases, they create the shortcuts without asking. You can also create your own shortcuts, and you can delete any shortcut.
In this exercise, you will create a desktop shortcut for an existing program, a desktop shortcut for a Web site, and a Quick Launch shortcut.
BE SURE TO log on to Windows before beginning this exercise.
USE the Sunset image in the My DocumentsMicrosoft PressMicrosoft Windows XP SBSWorkingShortcuts folder.
Follow these steps:
On the Quick Launch toolbar at the left end of the taskbar, click the Show Desktop button to minimize any open windows.
Right-click an open area of the desktop.
On the shortcut menu, point to New, and then click Shortcut.
The first page of the Create Shortcut Wizard appears:
Tip
Wizards are series of pages, similar to dialog boxes, that walk you through the steps necessary to accomplish a particular task. In this case, the wizard will prompt you for the information Windows needs to create a shortcut.
Click Browse to open the Browse For Folder dialog box:
You use this dialog box to tell the wizard which file or folder you want the shortcut to link to (its target), and where the file or folder is located.
Click My Documents, then Microsoft Press, then Microsoft Windows XP SBS, then Working, and finally Shortcuts. Then click the Sunset file, and click OK to close the dialog box and return to the wizard.
The location, called the path, of the selected file is entered in the Type the location of the item box.
Click Next to move to the Select a Title for the Program page:
Using information saved with the selected file, the wizard has suggested a name for the shortcut.
With the current name selected, type
My Shortcut.Click Finish to create the shortcut and close the wizard.
A shortcut is created on the desktop in approximately the place you originally right-clicked. The shortcut is named My Shortcut. It is represented by a graphic icon with an arrow in the lower-left corner.
Double-click My Shortcut to open the Sunset photo that the shortcut links to.
The photo opens in the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer, a photo viewer that comes with Windows XP.
Click the photo window’s Close button to close the window.
Right-click My Shortcut, and click Properties on the shortcut menu.
The My Shortcut Properties dialog box appears.
Click the General tab, and look at the information and available options.
Return to the Shortcut tab, and click the Change Icon button.
This Change Icon dialog box appears:
Scroll through the list to see all the available icons.
Click your favorite icon and then click OK to change the icon and close the Change Icon dialog box, or click Cancel to keep the current icon.
Click OK to close the My Shortcut Properties dialog box and apply your change.
The shortcut’s icon changes if you selected a new one.
Now you’ll create a shortcut for a Web site. Right-click an open area of the desktop, point to New on the shortcut menu, and then click Shortcut.
The Create Shortcut Wizard appears.
In the Type the location of the item box, type
http://www.msn.com.Click Next to move to the Select a Title for the Program page.
The suggested shortcut name is New Internet Shortcut.
With the current name selected, type
MSN Web Site.Click Finish to close the dialog box and create another shortcut.
If you are connected to the Internet, double-click the new MSN Web Site shortcut to open the MSN Web site in your default Web browser.
Click the Web site window’s Close button to close the window.
Right-click My Shortcut, and drag it to the left of the Quick Launch toolbar.
A thick black line behind the shortcut indicates where it will appear when you release the mouse button.
Release the right mouse button when the shortcut is in position on the Quick Launch toolbar, and then click Copy Here on the shortcut menu.
A copy of the shortcut appears on the Quick Launch toolbar. Double chevrons appear at the right end of the toolbar to indicate that more shortcuts are available than can fit on the toolbar.
Position the mouse pointer over the new toolbar shortcut.
A ScreenTip displays the shortcut’s name.
Click the chevrons to view the other available Quick Launch shortcuts.
Right-click the taskbar. If Lock the Taskbar is checked on the shortcut menu, click it to unlock the taskbar. If Lock the Taskbar is not checked, click away from the shortcut menu to close it.
When the taskbar is unlocked, the Quick Launch toolbar is bordered by movable left and right borders, represented by double dotted lines:
Position the mouse pointer over the double dotted lines to the right of the Quick Launch toolbar so that the pointer turns into a double-headed arrow.
Drag the double-headed arrow to the right until all the Quick Launch toolbar shortcuts are visible.
On the Quick Launch toolbar, right-click your new shortcut, and click Delete on the shortcut menu.
The Confirm File Delete dialog box appears:
The shortcut is deleted from the Quick Launch toolbar.
Right-click the taskbar, and then click Lock the Taskbar on the shortcut menu.
The two shortcuts you created are still on your desktop. They are used in the next two exercises.
After you have installed several programs and created shortcuts to put the programs, folders, and files you use most often at your fingertips, your desktop might start to get pretty messy. To cope with the clutter, some people like to line up their icons and shortcuts in regimented rows, some like to arrange them as a sort of frame around the perimeter of their screen, and others like to group them by type in various discrete locations. You can organize your icons and shortcuts manually, or if you are happy with simple arrangements, you can have Windows XP arrange them for you.
In this exercise, you will rearrange the items on your desktop.
BE SURE TO log on to Windows and minimize any open windows before beginning this exercise.
USE the desktop shortcuts you created in the previous exercise, or copy the files from the My DocumentsMicrosoft PressMicrosoft Windows XP SBSWorkingArranging folder.
Follow these steps:
Drag your desktop shortcuts to random positions on the desktop.
Right-click an open area of the desktop, point to Arrange Icons By on the shortcut menu, and then click Auto Arrange.
Windows XP neatly arranges your shortcuts and icons on the left side of the desktop.
Now try to drag a shortcut to a different position on the desktop.
You can move the shortcuts up and down, but not away from the left edge of the screen.
If you don’t like the Auto Arrange feature, right-click an open area of the desktop, point to Arrange Icons By on the shortcut menu, and then click Auto Arrange to turn it off.
The Desktop Cleanup Wizard helps you clean up your desktop by moving rarely used shortcuts to a desktop folder called Unused Desktop Shortcuts. The Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder is a temporary holding area for the shortcuts you are not using. You can restore shortcuts from this folder to your desktop, or you can delete the entire folder.
In this exercise, you will use the Desktop Cleanup Wizard to clean up your desktop, and you will then delete some desktop shortcuts.
BE SURE TO log on to Windows and minimize any open windows before beginning this exercise.
USE the desktop shortcuts you created in the previous exercise, or copy the files from the My DocumentsMicrosoft PressMicrosoft Windows XP SBSWorkingCleaning folder.
Follow these steps:
Right-click any open area of the desktop, point to Arrange Icons By on the shortcut menu, and then click Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard.
The first page of the Desktop Cleanup Wizard appears.
Click Next to open a Shortcuts page like this one:
If you created the desktop shortcuts in the earlier exercise, select the MSN Web Site and My Shortcut check boxes. If you copied the shortcuts from the Cleaning folder, select the MSN Web Site and FreeCell check boxes. Clear all other check boxes, and then click Next.
The selected shortcuts are displayed on the Completing the Desktop Cleanup Wizard page.
Click Finish.
Windows XP creates a new folder on the desktop called Unused Desktop Shortcuts and moves the selected shortcuts into the folder. Notice that the folder icon on the desktop does not have a bent arrow in its bottom left corner, indicating that the icon represents the actual folder rather than a shortcut to the folder.
On the desktop, double-click the Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder to open it:
Click the MSN Web Site shortcut.
On the File and Folder Tasks menu, click Move this file.
The Move Items dialog box appears:
If necessary, use the scroll bar to move to the top of the list.
Click Desktop, and then click the Move button.
The MSN Web Site shortcut is moved from the Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder to your desktop.
In the Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder, click the remaining shortcut.
On the File and Folder Tasks menu, click Delete this file.
In the Confirm File Delete dialog box, click Yes to delete the shortcut.
Click the Close button to close the Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder and return to the desktop.
The MSN Web Site shortcut has been restored to your desktop.
On the desktop, right-click the MSN Web Site shortcut, and then click Delete on the shortcut menu.
In the Confirm File Delete box, click Yes to delete the shortcut.
Right-click the Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder, and then click Delete on the shortcut menu.
This Confirm Folder Delete dialog box appears:
Click Yes to delete the folder.
