Basic Desktop Management
Program Icons are placed on the Desktop to allow for easy starting of programs. You can (left) double click on one of the Icons to start the program. The start button is used to access your programs, control panel and other options. The Task Bar shows the applications that are currently running on your system. When you run programs, they may be in full screen mode, partial screen mode or minimized as shown in Figure 1-3. In this view there are 3 programs running in minimized form - from left to right, Windows Explorer, Microsoft Word, and Paper Port. A single left mouse click on any of these will return it to the size it was before it was minimized. The Quick Launch area is not normally shown when Windows XP is installed. For Windows 98, it is displayed. To turn Quick Launch on, see the Chapter on Configuring Windows XP. Programs in the Quick Launch area may be started with a single click. I find it very useful, as I often like to start several programs or multiple copies of the same program. If you want to add a program to this area, you may select an Icon on your desktop by depressing the left mouse button and holding it down while you drag the Icon to the Quick Launch area.
If you place your mouse cursor over the Blue drag area shown in Figure 1-5 and then depress and hold down the left mouse button, you can drag the window to another location on your desktop. At the top of the applications, just below the Blue drag area, there is a menu (Toolbar) of actions that you can perform. Each application is unique, but most applications have similar functions. For example, the most left of the action buttons will usually say File and provides options to open files, save files, etc. Almost all applications have a help menu. If you depress the F1 key the Help function will start. Using the Index tab of the Help function you can look up information. |
When your computer starts you are presented with a screen that is known as your desktop. See Figure 1-3. Usually there are pictures for the desktop background. I have used light blue so you can see the annotations. Figure 1-3 is a screen shot of my desktop. This is a Windows XP desktop. However, I have configured it to look similar to Windows 98. I will review the annotated item from the top to bottom of the screen.
Figure 1-4 shows a typical start area. To use this area, single click on the start button. This will open the start window area. If you move the mouse cursor over the All Programs area and hold it there for short time the program area will open (or for quicker action you may single left click it). You can then move the cursor over the program you want to start and double (left) click on it.
If you single right click on the program, a menu of options will pop up. One of the options is Send To as was shown in 
Figure 1-5, shows a program running in a partial screen mode. Note at the upper right corner of the program screen are three boxes. A blow up of these three boxes is placed just to the right of the figure label. The left most is the minimize box, if you left click on this box, the program will drop down to a small rectangle at the bottom of your screen - in the tool bar - as shown in Figure 1-3. The right most is the close box (with the X in it). Click on this box and the application will close. The box in the middle has two functions. When the application is not running full screen, as in this example, it is used to Maximize the program, i.e. have it run full screen. If the program is running in full screen it will change it to run in partial screen mode. It will then show two overlapping boxes.