AFTER PREP SCHOOL BASICS CC101

Summer 2010

scanned logo

Contents

Hardware	Page 1
Desktop	4
Mouse	4
Definitions	5
Start Menu Basic, Left Side	7
Shut Down	8
Starting Programs	9
The Keyboard	10
Applications Software	12
Task Bar	13
Menu Bar	14
Tool Bar and Format Bar	18
Keeping Track of Documents	19
Additional Terms	20
Start Menu Right Side	21
Control Panel	24
Internet Explorer	28
Email	29
Web Surfing	33
Using a Flash Drive – Appendix A	35
Control Key – Appendix B	36
Binary and Bytes – Appendix C	38
QWERTY Keyboard- Appendix D	39
Good Emailing Practices – Appendix E	41
URL Defined – Appendix F	42
Web Sites – Appendix G	43
Formatting Exercise – Appendix H	45

AFTER PREP SCHOOL BASICS - VISTA

Computer College – Summer 2010

Indicates a Class Exercise

Home Project

Getting Acquainted with the Computer

HARDWARE

The monitor, Console or CPU (Central Processing Unit), the keyboard, the mouse, the speakers, the printer, the scanner, the modem, the optical drives.

The console may be in the shape of a tower, desktop, laptop, notebook, or netbook.

Input devices

Keyboard, mouse, touch pad (laptops), touch screens, scanner, CD/ROM and DVD drives, camera.

Processing device

Contained inside the Console, called the microprocessor. The microprocessor largely determines the speed that a computer can process data. The more expensive microprocessors can easily process 4 million operations in a second (FLOPS). Intel and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) are the two most frequently used currently.

Output devices

Monitor, printer, speakers, and CD Burner

Storage devices (Computer Binary System and Computer Storage Capacity Appendix B)

Hard Drive From about 40 GB to 1500 GB (1.5 TB) currently.

A permanent storage device inside your computer for holding software programs like Windows and your application programs, also for saving files you create. It is usually identified as the “C” drive. NOTE: It is important to distinguish between storage and memory. Storage is permanent and memory is temporary. Memory works only when the computer is turned on. It is empty when the computer is off. Memory is referred to as RAM. (RAM is referred to as the “workshop” of the computer.)

2. Floppy Disks (1.4 MB – Now historical)

New computers no longer have this drive.

3. CD/ROM (640 MB – OK for permanent storage)

The drive for holding a CD/ROM disk (Compact Disk/Read Only Memory) is commonly called the “D” drive. A CD-RW drive will allow you to record over old information.

4. DVD (4.7GB – storage for larger amount of data)

The DVD drive is for holding a DVD disk. A DVD disk can hold text, music and video data. If your computer has a DVD drive you can play DVD movies on your computer monitor. This may be a combination drive with the CD drive.

Flash Drives (256 MB to 32 GB)

Flash drives can be readily plugged in to a USB port (see below) and can store up to

32 GB. Unlike CDs, the data on Flash drives can be readily revised. Flash drives are particularly useful for backing up important information on your computer.

(Instructions for use of a Flash Drive are found in Appendix A.)

Memory (This is the computer “workshop”)

Random Access Memory (RAM) is temporary workspace. It is active only when the computer power is turned on. It is where Windows software and applications software (like your word processor) are working when you are using your computer. It is also where your text goes when you type it in on the keyboard, or where your pictures go when you download them before you save them.

Ports

Computers have many ports for connecting external equipment like printer, scanners, speakers, modems and network cables. The USB ports (called plug and play) are of particular importance because you can plug in equipment and the systems software immediately recognizes them.

Hubs

It may be necessary to add a USB Hub device to expand the number of USB ports on your computer and to make it more convenient to access the USB ports. Most Hubs provide 4 additional ports so that additional equipment can be added to your computer console, and can be added by plugging into one of the USB ports. Active hubs (have their own power supply) are most desirable because they will provide power to the devices that are plugged into the hub. (Power from the computer is limited to 500ma@5volts. Devices like printers require more power.)

External Hardware

There are many devices that can be plugged into a USB port such as digital cameras, external disc burners, cable networking devices, wireless networking devices, DSL modems, cable modems, etc. (For laptops, an additional standard keyboard and mouse can also be plugged into a USB port.) Printers also use the USB port.

DESKTOP

After booting up the computer, the desktop is similar to the one in Fig. 1. The desktop icons are displayed along the left side. The sidebar on the right may be configured with a number of different “gadgets”. Across the bottom is the familiar Task Bar. See Fig. 2.

Desktop

Fig. 1

Switch

Task Bar

Start Quick Task Buttons (one for each running program) System tray

Button Launch

Internet Explorer Fig. 2

The Task Bar consists of a row of buttons and icons at the bottom of the desktop display. The Task Bar has 4 parts: Start Button, the Quick Launch buttons, the task buttons (one for each running application), and the notification area or System tray (with small icons for items that need your attention) located on the right of the task bar. Clicking on the Start button opens the Start Menu where you can select almost any software program that is on your hard drive. (This will be covered in a future section.) You may also use the “Flag” key on your keyboard for the same purpose.

Some of the items in the System tray are specific to a laptop. For example the battery level indicator and Connect (to a network) will not be found on a desktop computer. When using the laptop computers in MCL, they usually will be automatically connected to the internet with the MCL router. If not, click on Connect to a Network and follow the prompts.

THE MOUSE AS AN INPUT DEVICE

The mouse has two buttons on the top. When the instructions say click it means click with the left button. Right clicking with the mouse (with the right button) brings up a new menu so you can make a selection. The selection is then made by clicking with the left button. In addition to the left and right buttons, the mouse usually has a center scroll wheel.

MOUSE FUNCTIONS

Pointing

Placing the mouse pointer on the screen on an icon, button or other object is called pointing. The mouse pointer has different appearances on the Desktop screen. If it is in the text area it appears as an I-beam and is the “insertion point”. Outside the text area it appears as an arrow and is the “cursor”. On Internet browser software the mouse pointer may appear as a little hand. (See exercise below)

Clicking

After you have pointed at an icon, button, or other object, clicking is done with either the left or right mouse button. Clicking is two operations: quickly pressing the mouse button down and quickly releasing it without moving the mouse.

LEFT CLICKING THE MOUSE (Action)

Left clicking is done to select as follows: First point the mouse arrow at an icon or menu and then click. That is called selecting. Selecting is done when you want to:

* Select an applications program (To open a program from the Desktop you must Double Click or Select>Enter. See below.)

* To select a menu on the menu bar

* To activate an electronic button on a dialog box screen

* To select a link on an Internet site

Left clicking is also done in text to position the I-beam where you want the insertion point for your next keyboard stroke.

DOUBLE CLICKING

Place the tip of the mouse arrow over the desired icon or button, then apply two quick pecks on the left mouse button. This is usually done to open application software. This takes some skill since the mouse must not be moved. An alternative method to double clicking is to select the icon or program with a single click and then press Enter.

Select and open the Shell Point Web page by Double Clicking on the desktop icon (www.shellpoint on the Internet Explorer icon, lower case e). Move the pointer around the page to observe the different appearances. Close the page by clicking on the X in the box in the far upper right hand corner of the page. (Note: any page can be closed in this way.)

CLICK AND DRAG

Pointing the mouse at an icon or a scroll bar then holding the left button down and while still holding it down, move the mouse.

On the Shell Point page note the vertical bar on the far right. Place the pointer on the upper part of the bar and drag down. Notice the whole page moves so you can see all of it or additional pages. You may also place the pointer on the small arrow at the bottom of the bar. By holding down on the left part of the mouse, you will do the same thing. A page may also be moved by using the scroll wheel on the mouse.

Dragging and Dropping

Pointing the mouse at an icon or a scroll bar then holding the left button down and while still holding it down, move the mouse. When you get to the appropriate place, you let up on the left button. That is called dragging and dropping.

On the Desktop, place the pointer on the Word Icon and drag it to another position. If you release the left button, this will drop the dragged icon and it will locate at that point.

RIGHT CLICKING THE MOUSE (Advice)

Right clicking always gives you a menu, (NOTE: again, right clicking is quickly pressing the right button down and then releasing it).

On the Desktop, place the pointer any place on an unoccupied part of the screen and Right click. On the new menu box, click on View. (See Fig. 3) Then in the Sub-menu, you can see how the desktop icons are controlled. Note that “Medium Icons” is the default size. They can be changed by clicking on your preference. In addition to View, other options can be accessed. If you click on Personalize, a new menu shows the many ways you can change displays.

Fig. 3

DEFINITIONS

Document

The process of creating text on a word processor results in a document. When a document is saved to a computer storage device it then becomes a File.

New

When you open (start) a word processing program it comes to us in the “New” mode ready for you to start typing your text. This then becomes a Document.

File

Files are saved documents, and are usually created by humans typing text, using an applications program, which is shown on the computer screen. A picture can also be a file.

Running

After you Start (or Open) any applications program and see the results on your monitor, we say the program is “Running” in the computer. As an example when you start Microsoft Word you see the word icon on the desktop/task bar and Microsoft Word is running in your computer.

Internet Explorer (IE)

This Icon represents your Internet browser software. It looks like a big lower case e. (All of the Shell Point computer Internet Explorer Icons have been converted to shortcuts to specific Web sites, e.g. Google, Yahoo, Hotmail, Shell Point, etc. and are located on the Desk Top. See Fig. 1) The small arrow on the icon indicates this is a shortcut. Every desktop will have different icons. Double clicking on e will bring up the Internet Home Page you have selected. The I.E. icon is also located on the Task Bar (Fig. 2) and clicking on it will again open the Home Page. Internet Explorer will be covered in detail in a later section.

START MENU

The start menu is essential for accessing most everything on the computer and also for proper shutting down of the computer.

Start Menu All Programs

Pinned programs

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Frequently Used

Fig. 4 Fig. 5

Press the Flag key on the keyboard or the Start button on the Task bar, and the Start Menu which will be displayed on the desktop is shown above in Fig. 4. From the Start Menu, you can do a number of tasks. One of the most important is the correct method to Shut Down the computer. At the bottom of the Start Menu note the

Fig. 6

small u just to the right of the “padlock”. When you click on the u a new menu shows the options, one of which is to Shut Down the computer. (Fig. 6) Clicking on that will shut down the computer properly. Don’t Shut Down the computer until the end of the class session.

All the programs “pinned” to the Start Menu are listed in the upper left, just below Internet Explorer. (Fig. 4) “How to” pin programs will be covered in the next section.

On the lower left of the Start Menu, (Fig. 4) click on All Programs to display all the programs on the computer. (Fig. 5) You can click on any program to open it. If there is a Folder icon next to a listed item, this indicates there are individual programs in that folder.

Click on the Accessories folder (Fig. 5) and you will see the programs that are contained in the folder. See Fig. 7. Any program can be opened by clicking on the name.

Fig. 7 Fig. 8

Right clicking on the program, in this example WordPad, opens a new menu which may be used for a variety of tasks. The program may be opened simply by clicking on Open. A number of other options are listed. Two very useful are Pin to Start Menu and Send To, shown in Fig. 8. When you click on Send To one of the options in the sub-menu is Desktop. This will create a shortcut to that program and the Icon will appear on the desktop. Programs may also be added to the Quick Launch part of the Task Bar.

For this exercise, right click on Microsoft Works Task Launcher (see Fig, 5) and on the new menu click on Pin to Start Menu. Again right click on Works and next place the pointer on Send To and on the new menu click on Desktop (create shortcut). The results of these two operations can be observed on the desktop and start menu. Now open the Start Menu and open Works with a single click on the name in the Pinned programs. (You may also open Works by double clicking on the desktop icon).

(The right hand side of the Start Menu will be covered in another section)

Home Project: Practice configuring the Desktop by changing icon size. Create a Works icon on the Desktop and Pin it to the Start Menu. Pin Excel and Word to the Start Menu from the Desktop icons. Practice Drag and Drop.

STARTING PROGRAMS

Using the Mouse and Enter Key to Start (Open) Programs (from Desktop)

Move the mouse arrow (called pointing) over the icon of the program you want to start. Then left click on the icon and peck the Enter key. (This is equivalent to double clicking.)

Using the Mouse to Right Click to Start (Open) Programs (from Desktop)

Move the mouse arrow (called pointing) over the icon of the program you want to start. Then right click on the icon and this will show a new menu. Then left click on Open, which is usually the top-most option. Works will be used to study the features of the Keyboard.

Note: Programs will open from the Start Menu with a single click.

Open a Works document. (Start Menu >All Programs >Works>Programs>Works Word) This opens the window seen in Fig. 9 with a blank word document.

Fig. 9

When a Works document opens, the insertion point (blinking vertical bar) will be at the top left, ready for you to start typing. You can place the insertion point any place in the text by placing the point there and clicking. (Placing the pointer will not place the insertion point until you click!!) Now anything you type or copy, will be inserted where you have the insertion point. Note: the insertion point cannot be placed beyond the last word or line unless you move it further with either space or enter keys.

Type a sample of 2 short paragraphs similar to those in Fig. 9. This is now called a “document”. You will be using the Keyboard functions below to prepare the document. Study and use each special key described on the next section as you type the document.

THE KEYBOARD

KEYS OF SPECIAL IMPORTANCE

Keys on a computer keyboard are used to make the computer do something for you. These are in addition to those keys that type in letters or numbers. A laptop which may not have a number pad.

Enter Key (Same as “Return” on a typewriter)

The Enter key is on the right side of the main keyboard and also on the right side of the number pad. It is used frequently to make the computer go to the next operation. When doing word processing, pressing the Enter key will start a new paragraph. NOTE: THE ENTER KEY SHOULD NOT BE USED TO START A NEW LINE. WORD PROCESSING SOFTWARE AUTOMATICALLY STARTS A NEW LINE WHEN IT GETS TO THE END OF A LINE AND CAN’T FIT THE NEXT WORD COMPLETELY ON THE LINE. THAT IS CALLED “AUTOMATIC LINE FOLDING”.

Backspace Key

The Backspace key is in the upper right corner of the main keyboard. It is used to move the insertion point to the left. A character to the left of the insertion point will be erased when you use the backspace. It can also be used to move a line up (and anything below it). Place the insertion point in front of the line and press Backspace.

Delete Key

The Delete key is located between the main keyboard and the number pad. It will delete the character to the right of the insertion point. It will also delete anything you have “selected”. (In fact, pressing any key or space bar will delete the selected text.)

Arrow Keys (For navigation)

There are four arrow keys located on the lower right side of the keyboard. These are used to move the insertion point around inside the text area. (Placement of the insertion point was also covered in Mouse Functions.)

Ctrl Key (Control Key)

Two Ctrl keys are located on the lower left and right of the main keyboard. This is used in combination with other keys for special functions. Some are listed in Appendix B.

Esc Key (Escape Key)

This key is in the upper left corner of the keyboard and is used to exit from an activity such as a Slide Show.

Shift Key

The Shift key is used to capitalize letters and to get the upper function on keys that have two functions. Just above the Shift key is the Caps Lock key. This will make all the letters in the capital format. However, you must still use the Shift key to get the upper function.

Tab Key

The Tab key is used to jump 5 spaces in your work processing document, or jump to the next field when filling out a form. Backspace will reverse this in a document but not form. (To go back to a previous box in a form, use Shift plus Tab or the mouse).

Space Bar

This is the long bar at the bottom of the keyboard and it used to put a space between words in your document.

Insert Key

Pecking the Insert Key will put you in “overtype” mode. When in overtype mode, what you type will wipe out any existing text that gets in the way! Pecking the Inset Key again will return you to the Insert mode. Now what you type will be inserted at the location of the insertion point and existing text will move over to make room for the new text. Normally you will want the Insert mode.

Open a new Works page and type a line. Then peck the Insert Key and place the cursor in front of a word. Now start typing and note that the previous text disappears.

Additional Keys Not Normally Used in Document Preparation

Microsoft Flag Key

There are two Microsoft flag keys, to the right and left of the Space bar. The Microsoft Flag key is a convenient way to open the Start Menu.

Alt Key

Used in combination with another key to perform some operations.

Function Keys

These keys are in a row at the top of the keyboard and are used mostly to initiate powerful commands. Not used frequently but are very convenient when you learn their use. ( See Appendix D. On laptops, there is an additional Function Key [fn] in blue. When this is depressed, any blue function on a key on the keyboard will be active. (Note: this is not an option on the added keyboard.)

Touch Pad (Found only on Laptops)

On laptop (notebook) computers there is a square surface below the keyboard called a touch pad. This is used in the place of the mouse. It has a surface where you can put your index finger and move it around and the arrow on the screen will move in response to your finger movements. Right and left click (see Mouse Activities for function) pads are to the right and left of the touch pad. Some laptops have a scroll wheel built into the touch pad.

SOFTWARE

Software is the programmed instruction that drives the computer. There are two basic kinds of software identified as 1) systems, and 2) applications software. Systems software such as Windows XP,Vista or 7 controls the computer and resides on the hard disk. Applications software do a specific job on a computer such as word processing and call up RAM to do a task. Microsoft Word and Works are examples of word processing software.

APPLICATIONS SOFTWARE

Word Processing software is probably the most used of the applications software. With it you can produce documents (files) that at one time were produced on a typewriter. The BIG advantage of a word processor is that changes/corrections can readily be made. Different fonts and type size may be used.

Examples of Applications Software

WordPad or Notepad

These are the simplest text editor (simple word processor) software packages included in Windows.

Works (Microsoft Works-Pencil pointing to documents Icon)

More advanced word processor software usually found on current computers. Works is a suite that includes a word processing program, a database program, a spread sheet program, and a number of other programs.

Word (Microsoft Word - Blue W Icon)

Microsoft Word is a powerful word processing application software. This program is not usually found on new computers and must be either ordered at the time a new computer is purchased or added later. Word is generally bundled with Excel and PowerPoint and called Office Suite.

Excel (Microsoft Excel-Green X Icon)

Excel is an application software that is a powerful spreadsheet. A Spreadsheet is an inventory matrix where both the rows and columns can be manipulated with numbers and algebraic equations. Text can also be entered in rows and columns making Excel very useful for tasks such as name, address and phone number data. This program is not usually found on new computers and must be either ordered at the time a new computer is purchased or added later.

Open Works and click on Programs> Works Word Processor. Now click on Blank Word Processor document. This brings up the screen shown in Fig. 10.

Parts of an Application Program

Title Bar

Menu Bar

Tool Bar

Formatting

Ruler

Fig. 10

Learn the parts of the Works sample in Figures 10 and 11 (Note: wps suffix).

Bars

Title Bar

The Title Bar is located at the very top of the main screen and contains the title of the software and name of the document.

Menu Bar

The Menu bar is located at the top of the main screen. Clicking on any item will provide you with a new menu box which shows a series of commands that can be started with a click.

Standard Tool Bar

The Tool Bar(s) consists of a series of icons located below the menu bar. The icons can be clicked to start commands.

Formatting Tool Bar

Special commands useful in formatting document are found on this tool bar.

Task Bar

The Task Bar is located at the bottom of the main screen. (See Fig. 11 below. Note: A program pinned to the Start Menu or on the Task Bar will open with a Single Click)

Start Button Quick Launch Task Buttons System Tray

Fig. 11

COMMANDS

Commands are operations the computer will perform for you. Examples are Save As, Save, Open, and Print. With Windows you can select a command by clicking on the Windows button or File at the top left on the Menu Bar or an icon on the Tool Bar with the mouse pointer.

Menu Bar (See Fig. 10)

The Menu bar is located at the top of the main screen. In Works there are 8 items listed and when you click on them each will provide a new menu box (Fig. 10). Many of the items listed in the menu boxes can also be accessed on the Tool Bar by clicking on the icon. [Any item below listed in a Menu box that is followed by TB indicates that an icon is also found on Tool Bar. A third way to execute the command is from the Keyboard with Control(Ctrl) and Letter, simultaneously.] A list of Control commands is given in Appendix B.

Open a new Works document from the Start Menu. Then click on File. (Start Menu >All Programs >Microsoft Works Task Launcher>Programs>File) After clicking on File, move the pointer over the other items on the Menu Bar. Review all the options (See Below) that are available in File on the Menu Bar.

Fig. 12

1. File (See Fig. 12) Menu Bar has New, Open, Close, Save, Save As, Page Setup, Print Review, Print, Send and Exit. (In Vista, Windows 7 and Word 2007 click the Windows button in the same top left hand corner to access these commands).

a. Save (TB) (Ctrl + S)

This is the process of transferring the contents of a document from RAM (temporary storage) to a storage unit like the hard drive or a disk.

Type a short message and SAVE. Where does it go? Note the new menu (See Fig.13.) which offers a number of options. This will be covered in detail in a future section.On the drop down menu you can name the File and determine the type of program.

Fig. 13

b. Save As (This option is not available from the Tool Bar or Keyboard)

This command is used when saving a document for the first time. Save As is also used when changing the name of an existing file or document. (The document can also be renamed by right clicking of the name of the document in your file, and left clicking on rename.) Finally, Save As is used when saving a document from one type of storage to another, like from a flash drive to your computer or vice versa.

c. Print (TB) (Ctrl + P)

The process of making a paper copy of your document (file).

Click on Print (Fig. 12). How is this different from clicking on the Tool Bar Printer icon?

d. Open (TB) (Ctrl + O)

The process of reading (making available) a file already saved on your disk or hard drive or to your desktop, so you can work on it. Open also means to start a program. Open and start are sometimes used interchangeably.

e. Close (Ctrl +W)

The process of closing a document on the computer screen. (Close will close the document but not exit from Word.)

f. Exit (Alt +F4)

The process of exiting or removing software from RAM. (This will close the document as well but also exit from the program. This may also be done by clicking on the X in the red box on the upper right. If you have not saved your document, a dialog box will pop up to remind you!)

Selecting

Before you can move, format, delete, or otherwise change text or a graphic you must select the item. You can select using the mouse or keyboard. Selected text or graphics are highlighted. To cancel the selection, click outside the selection, or use the arrow keys to move the insertion point.

To select text or graphics using the mouse, do one of the following:

To Select Do This

Any item or amount of text Drag over the text you want to select.

A word Double-click on the word.

A graphic Click on the graphic

A line of text Click in the selection bar to the left of the line

Multiple lines of text Drag in the selection bar to the left of the lines.

A sentence Hold down CTRL and click anywhere in the sentence.

A paragraph (Only Word) Double-click in the selection bar next to the paragraph.

Multiple paragraphs Drag in the selection bar.

An entire document Hold down CTRL and peck A.

2. Edit (See Fig. 14) Menu Box has Undo, Cut, Copy, Paste, Paste Special, Clear, Clear All, Select All, Find and Replace.

Click on Edit. Using the Works Sample from above, Try all the options that are available in Edit on the Menu Bar (See Fig. 14) by using both the name and Control(Ctrl)+.

a. Undo (TB) Looks like a curved arrow (Ctrl +Z)

Clicking on this will undo your last action.

(For these below be sure to select the section first)

b. Cut (TB) (Ctrl + X)

The process of removing a part of your text from a document or file, and

putting it in a special place in RAM called the “Clipboard”.

Fig. 14

c. Copy (TB) (Ctrl +C)

The process of copying a part of your text from a document or file, and putting it in a special place in RAM called the “Clipboard”. The copy process does not remove the text from the document.

d. Paste (TB) (Ctrl +V)

The process of pasting a part of a document (or file) from the Clipboard that you have either cut or copied from a document to another part of the same document or to another document.

e. Select All (Ctrl + A) will allow you to select the whole document

Click on View and practice the options available listed below.

3. View (See Fig. 15)

a. Toolbars. Clicking on Toolbars will show a sub-menu with Standard and Formatting, and also Large Icons. These all will show when there is a

√ Check in front of the name. Clicking again will remove the feature.

b. Ruler By clicking on Ruler it will be checked and ruler (in inches) will show on the top and side of the screen. (In WordPad there will be a ruler at only the top of the screen seen in Fig. 9.)

c. Zoom will bring up a new menu which allows enlarging

or shrinking the document. Note: this does not affect printing size. You may also use CTRL and the scroll wheel.

d. View is a moving target as Microsoft has improved its software. Click View to explore current options to see and use your document.

4. Insert (See Fig. 16) has a menu with a number of items that can be inserted.

a. Break Clicking on this will provide a menu box from which you can select breaks in the document.

b. Page Numbers Number will be placed at the insertion point location and continue on each page.

c. Date and Time will bring up a new menu to provide format choices for placement at the insertion point.

d. Database is used for mail merge.

e. Special Character brings up a new menu with options.

f. Header and Footer will open menu for same.

g. Pictures allows insertion from various sources.

h. Watermark can be placed on your document.

i. Text Box can be placed in the document.

j. Spreadsheet/chart

k. Object Clicking on this will provide a menu.

Fig. 16

Click on Insert in Works and observe/practice the options.

5. Format (See Fig. 17) will provide a menu from which you may make a number of formatting changes.

a. Font Clicking on Font will open a new menu with options.

b. Paragraph will bring up a new menu to format paragraphs.

c. Bullets and Numbering provides a number of options.

d. Borders and Shading allows you to place borders.

e. Format Gallery shows a new menu to change formats.

f. Tabs menu gives option to change tabs.

g. Columns menu provides means to change number of columns.

h. Order shows menu to bring objects forward or to the back.

Again, click and explore the options.

6. Tools (See Fig. 18) The menu shows a number of important formatting tools.

a. Spelling and Grammar Works will underline misspelled words in red. If you right click on the word, a popup will show the options. Click on the word you want and the correct word will appear in the text.

b. Thesaurus Select the word of interest and click on thesaurus to see options in a new menu.

c. AutoCorrect is a convenient feature if you tend to make typing mistakes consistently. On the new menu click on your “mistake” and then OK.

d. Dictionary Lookup. Must select the word.

e. Mailing The next 4 are useful for mailing.

7. Tables is used to insert and manipulate tables.

Note: Options in 1 through 7 above will vary somewhat as you encounter the evolution of Microsoft software programs but the general concepts remain the same.

8. Help when you wish to have additional guidance.

Toolbar & Format Bar

(Fig. 19)

The Toolbar (top arrow) consists of a series of icons for a number of different commands. Many of these are also found on the Menu Bar. (See Figs. 12 - 18) Thus, the Toolbar provides a convenient method to access these useful commands with a single click.

The Format Bar (lower arrow) has icons for most of your formatting commands. They are also found in Format on the Menu Bar (Fig. 17)

Place the pointer (don’t click) on each of the icons on the Tool Bar and note the name below. Then do the same with the icons on the Format Bar. Most of these are obvious from the icon.

Formatting a Document

Optional Home Project: Format a document.

Remember: to make any change to existing text you must select it! However, if you press any key or the space bar, the selected text will be deleted.) Use Appendix H – format to be as page 2. No deadline – do as a work in progress during the course. Ask questions in next class when problems arise in working at home.

KEEPING TRACK OF YOUR DOCUMENTS

Documents Folder

When Windows software was installed on your computer it created one permanent folder called “Documents”. The Documents folder is the default folder. When you do a “Save As” command for the first time it will always try to save the document into the Documents folder. (See Fig. 20) In the “Save As” dialog screen, you will see the Documents folder in the “Save In” box. The purpose is to keep you from losing your

Fig. 20 documents. If you have previously created new folders in Documents, these will show up in the Save In box. (See Fig. 20).

Saving a Document

If you wish to save your new document to an existing folder, double-click on that folder and its name will appear in the “Save As” dialog box. The “File Name” dialog box appears at the bottom the screen. The computer calls this “Document” until you give it a name. Since the word document is highlighted, you can just type in the name you wish to give it. (Keep it short but distinctive.)

Now save the a document/file to Documents. To do so, open the Save As dialog box by clicking on File and then Save As. Near the bottom of the box, type in a name for the document, then click on Save. (File>Save As>My Documents>Name>Save>Close) Now Open Documents and find your document.

Creating a New Folder

If you wish to create a new folder, open “Documents” from either your desktop or Start Menu. Here you will see all the existing folders. At the left side there is a column called “File and Folder Tasks”. At the top of this column is “Make a New Folder”. When you click on this the screen to the right will show a new folder icon called “New Folder”. Since it is highlighted you simply type the name you wish to call it. (Again, keep it to 2-3 words) Now close the Documents folder. If at any time you wish to rename a folder, click on it and

you will note that first option at the top of the blue column on the left is now “Rename the

folder”. When you click on Rename, the name you gave to the folder is now highlighted and you can type a new name.

Open Documents and click on “Make a New Folder” which appears under File and Folder Tasks on the left side. Name the new folder by typing a name in the highlighted area that says “New Folder”. Now highlight the folder. Under File and Folder Tasks, click on Rename. The name next to the folder will be highlighted so type in a new name in the highlighted area. Or you may Right Click on the new folder and click on Rename. Then drag the Works document to your new folder.

Saving a Works Document

Click on File > Save As brings up the Save As dialog box. The File Name box is in blue so you simply type the file name and click on Save. Note: the default site is Documents. If you wish to put the new document in a specific file, click on the u just to the right of “Documents” and additional options are shown. Click on the desired one and click Save. If you want a new folder, click on the New Folder button, and name the new folder. Or you may add a new folder at any time by clicking Organize q New Folder in Documents.

From the Start menu, open Documents, Create a new Folder, Name, and save

the document in that folder.

Fig. 21

Pictures

Pictures are “documents” as well but in Windows they have their own folder. Pictures saved to Pictures may be placed in individually named sub folders for easy filing in a manner similar to other documents. (This will help you avoid the “shoebox syndrome”.)

Additional Terms

Backup

This is the process of making a copy of your documents on the hard drive to a backup disk, flash drive, or external hard drive so if something happens to your computer hard drive you will not have lost all the files that are saved.

File

A file is the contents, of what you have typed or inserted into a computer applications program, that you can see on the screen of the monitor, save, and move to various places.

Writing

Writing is the process of saving a document (or file) to the hard drive, disk or flash drive.

Reading

The process of copying a file from a storage device into an applications program so you can work on it on the computer screen.

Text Area

This is the area where you type the document.

Vertical Scroll Bar

Makes the document on the screen go up or down when there is more than a full screen.

Horizontal Scroll Bar

Makes the document on the screen go back and forth if the text is wider than the screen.

Both scroll bars can be activated by placing the pointer over the up or down arrows of the bar and holding down the left mouse button. You may also click and drag the blue area of the scroll bar.

START MENU – PART II (Fig. 22)

(The Right Side)

Categories

Open the Start Menu with the Keyboard Flag Key

Documents is the second item of this column. Clicking on this will display all the Folders/Files in your documents. Double clicking on a Folder will open it and display all the Files contained in the folder. (See Fig. 23) The File icon will indicate the type document, eg. “W” for Word file and “X” for Excel.

Fig. 22 Fig. 23→

One of the features of Vista and Windows 7 is the advanced graphics, in this case called the Aero window. On the Task Bar, between the Desktop icon and Internet Explorer, is the Switch Between Windows button. (See Fig. 2) This is a toggle button that switches between the list view in Fig. 22 and Aero view in Fig. 24. A thumb wheel on a more advance mouse will also make the switch with a click of the wheel. As in the conventional list view, any file can be opened by clicking on the picture of the file.

Fig. 24

Open and leave open four small files. (Their Names will appear as Task Buttons on the Task Bar) Now click on Switch Between Windows (see Fig. 2) to see the display similar to Fig. 24. Switch back and forth several times. (In the absence of an icon, this can be done with Ctrl+Win+Tab)

Right click in the lower left hand aspect of the screen/task bar, just left of the time, and try the different options for stacking and sizing multiple windows.

Pictures is the next item on the Start Menu.

Pictures can be accessed from the Right Side of the Start Menu. Clicking on Pictures brings up the page showing the folders. (See Fig. 25) Note there is a Folder of Sample Pictures.

Fig. 25

When you double click on the picture folder, this will open the folder and display the pictures. (See Fig. 26)

Open the Sample Pictures Folder and note the pictures that are default on the computer. At the bottom center of the big picture, navigate with the arrows (right or left). Click on Slide Show and enjoy. If you move the pointer, the Navigation bar shows at the bottom. Click on Exit. Escape will also close the show.

Fig. 26

Music files can be accessed by clicking on this item.

Games is the next item. Clicking on Games will show the games that are installed on the computer. (See Fig. 27) Clicking on any Game icon will open the game.

Click on Games. Then click on the Solitaire.

Fig. 27

Search is an advanced way to find your documents.

Click on Search in the Start Menu and then type. The search is not case sensitive.

Recent Items give you a list of recent documents you have had open. Clicking on any item on the list will open the document.

Home Project: Move documents between your flash drive and your computer and/ a lab computer. (See Using Your Flash Drive, Appendix A). Practice the exercises in Start Menu . Play some games.

Computer is next on the list. Clicking on Computer will show the storage in each of the spaces on the hard drive as well as other drives/disks. See Fig. 28.

Click on Computer and note the amount of Free space on the C: drive. Click on the View qfor various view options. Tiles are default, seen below. Click on Details. This will show in numbers the space in each storage unit. Note how much space is used on the hard drive for essential programs.

When you are using it, you can also see how much space has been used on the flash drive by right clicking on Removable Disk and then left click on Properties.

Fig. 28

Control Panel

Control Panel is the next item on the Start Menu. Similar operations are grouped into sections. You may click on the title which will open a new menu of more specific tasks. See Fig. 29

Fig. 29

Subjects in the Control Panel

Explore as many of these as time permits, then explore all on your compter at home and repeat periodically to improve your awareness of computer operation and potential.

Fig. 30

Network and Internet provides a number of options. See Fig. 31. As with other areas, you can click on either the title subject or any specific item. Under Internet Options is “Change your home page”. In an earlier section we used “Connect to the Internet” from the Wireless Icon on the Task Bar. This is an alternate way of getting connected to the Internet.

Under Internet Options, Click on Change your Homepage. In the new menu, the current home page is in blue. (On your home computer simply type in the web page you want.) If you are connected, the first option, Connect to the Internet, will not appear.

Fig. 31

Hardware and Sound is the next Icon on the Control Panel Menu. Hardware and Sound allows you to make a number of adjustments. Each one of these is listed for a given item or area. In some cases the same subject is covered in several sections. For example, Power Options is also covered in the next section, Mobile PC. By clicking on Mouse, a new menu offers many ways to change the mouse settings.

Under the Mouse heading, click on Change Pointer Appearance. The new menu has 6 tabs. Under the Pointer Tab, click on box under Scheme. This will show the options. Click on several different options and see the appearance in the preview pane. Explore the options for Buttons and Wheel.

Mobile PC is a very important subject when you are working on a laptop. Under Windows Mobility Center note that you can adjust screen brightness. These laptops are set to conserve the battery. Changes can also be made in Power Settings.

Click on Windows Mobility Center (in the Start Menu) shown in Fig. 32.

Fig. 32

Click on Adjust commonly used mobility settings. This brings up a new menu seen in

Fig. 33. Click and drag the up indicator on the Brightness slide bar. As you move it to the right the screen will become brighter, but the battery will discharge faster. The default setting is 59. Leave at 59, just right of center.

Fig. 33

Appearance and Personalization

This feature offers a number of options to configure the computer to your needs and tastes. As in other sections, clicking on a title will bring up a new menu with many more options. Note the last item has a link to Add gadgets to Sidebar. Clicking on this will show the sidebar in Fig. 1. Additional items can be added from the new menu shown in Fig. 34.

Fig. 34

Under Windows Sidebar Properties in Fig. 41 V, click on Add gadgets to Sidebar. Any item shown in Fig. 35 can be added to the Sidebar by double clicking. The computer must be online for Headlines, Stocks or Weather to be active.

Fig. 35

Clock, Language, and Regions

Since these computers are used around the world, the time zone, time and language can be changed to meet local needs. The time is automatically set when

you go online.

Fig. 36

Ease of Access

This feature allows the user to make changes to meet special needs. For persons with vision or motor problems a number of options are available. A magnifier can be available when you click on Optimize visual display.

Fig.37

INTERNET EXPLORER

Clicking on the Internet Explorer opens the Home Page. This is either the page that came with your computer or one that you have selected. It is possible to create a number of Short Cuts to different pages and these will show up on the Desk Top with an Arrow on the Internet Icon. (Note the lab computers have a number of Internet Short Cuts to different Web pages.) A convenient alternative is to put the Web pages you use most, as Favorites on your Home Page. Since you are a resident of Shell Point, you may want to have it as your Home Page. See Fig. 38. (To change the home page, see section at the bottom of the page.)

Open the Shell Point page from the Internet Explorer on the Desktop. See Fig. 38.

Fig. 38

There are two important features in the cut-off view of ShellPoint.Net. In the column, second from the left side, is a list of Favorites. These will appear or be hidden by clicking on the Favorites, near the top of the page. The second feature is the Links box in the upper right-hand corner. Clicking on any item under Links will open that site.

Adding to List of Favorites

Right Click anywhere on an open web site page and then click on Add to Favorites. See Fig. 38. As your favorites list grows it can be organized into subject or category folder to facilitate your visual scanning when you are ready to open a site by clicking on its name in the list.

Home Page

As was mentioned above, clicking on the Internet Explorer opens the Home Page. Changing your Home Page can be accomplished as follows in XP. (Follow the directions on Page 30 for Vista and Windows 7. Open the Control Panel and click on Internet Options. On the new menu in the box that says Home Page, type in the name of the desired page, (E.g. www.yahoo.com) then Apply and OK. Now click on the I.E. icon on the Quick Launch to see the new page.

E-Mail

There are a number of different E-mail services used by Shell Point residents. You will need your email address and password in class – be sure to bring them. Guidance is available in opening a new email account if needed. Unless informed otherwise skip forward now to the middle of the next page: Reply and Forward

Alternatively we may limit this class to gmail.com. Other services will have small differences. Each class member will be assigned a “student account” for use in class.

To use your gmail.com account you must login with your “student name” and password. This can be done by opening the Google page (double click on the Desk Top icon for Google) and click on Gmail. This will open the Login menu. (This is a good time to add the Login menu to your Favorites by clicking on ADD and OK. Then you can access this menu at any time with a single click!) Alternatively, you may type in www.gmail.google.com in the site address at the top of any page. (If you are using a computer in the lab, just double click on the Gmail Icon.) After you have entered the required information on the Login page, click on “Login” or just press Enter. (Note: this is a time you can use tab to go from Name to Password.)

Double click on the Google Shortcut Icon on the desktop to open the Google home page. Click on Gmail at the top. This brings up Welcome to Gmail page. Add this page to the list of Favorites. On this login page, note that the cursor is already placed in the first box. Type in your Student account address. Then move the cursor to “Password” by pressing Tab and typing in your Password. Open your student account by clicking on “Login” or peck Enter. This will open the new e-mail page. See Fig. 39 below.

Fig. 39

Using Your Email

The e-mail page is programmed to open to the Inbox so all of the e-mails that you have received will be listed. To read the contents of an e-mail, click on the name of the e-mail. This will open the current e-mail and also indicate any previous e-mails in the “thread”. See Fig. 40.

Open each of the items in the Inbox by clicking on them. After each, click on Back to Inbox.

Similarly, you may see all the e-mails you sent by clicking on “Sent Mail”.

Fig. 40

See special instruction at top of previous page.

Reply and Forward

You may reply to an open e-mail by clicking on “Reply”. This will open a new preaddressed page with the insertion point right at the top. The e-mail you are answering will appear below it. Type your email and click on Send. You may forward an e-mail in a similar way. When you click on Forward the e-mail you wish to forward will be in a new page. In this case you must type in the address. It is good e-mail practice to select and delete all the “garbage” that appears both in the subject and body. In some cases there are many previous forwards and addresses. (This will be covered in more detail in the Good Practices section.)

Open the e-mail. Then click on Reply in either the upper right or lower left of the open email. On the new preaddressed page, type a short message and click on Send. A message will appear indicating the e-mail has been sent. Click on the Inbox and once again. Open another message. Now click on Forward in the lower left (right next to reply). In the new page note the insertion point is to the “To” box. Type email address and click on Send. Note: the subject is the same.

Compose Mail

There are several ways to address a new e-mail. After clicking on Compose Mail to bring up a new blank e-mail, you may type in the address of the intended receiver. If that person is in your Contacts list, as soon as you type several letters of their name, a number of suggestions will appear. If the intended name is among them, click on it and the name will appear in the “To” box. Then type in a very short descriptive subject in the Subject box. When you have completed the text, it is a good idea to click on “Check Spelling”. Any misspelled word will be highlighted in yellow. Click on the word and possible options will appear. Click on the word you want. When you have finished checking all the words, click on Done and then Send.

Open your email account. Click on Compose Mail. Note the insertion point is in the “To” box. Now start to type the name. If it is in the list of Contacts, the full name and e-mail address appears in a blue box immediately below. Click on the name in the blue box and it will appear in the “To” box. (If you have a number of same first names in your contacts, they will all appear in the blue box so click on the one you want.) Next type a 1-3 word subject in that box. Then move the insertion point to the body and type a short message. Deliberately misspell several words. Click on Check Spelling. Note the highlighted words. Click on the misspelled words and then click on the word of choice from the list in the blue box. When they are all corrected, click on Done and Send.

A second method to address and compose an e-mail is to click on Contacts, then the All Contacts Tab. Check the person(s) to whom you wish to address the e-mail. Then click on Compose (just above and to the left of All Contacts) and a new preaddressed page will show the name(s) in the To box. See Fig. 41. This will show every person in the address box all the other names.

Fig. 41

Click on Contacts>All Contacts. Then click in small box by each name and then Compose. Note the names now appear on the “To” box of a new e-mail page. See Fig. 42.

With several (or many) names a better practice is to transfer the names to the Bcc box. In this way, the recipient will see only their own name.

To open the Bcc box, click on Bcc (just below the To box) Now select all the names in the To box, (CTRL + A) and then cut (CTRL + X). Put the cursor in the Bcc box and paste (CTRL + V). See Fig. 42. Alternatively, names can be pasted directly into either CC or Bcc.

Fig. 42

Attaching a File

To attach a file to your e-mail, click on Attach a File (just below the Subject box). In the Choose File menu, scroll down in the Look in box to the Folder or File (text, picture) you want, and click on it and then Open (or double click on the name of the document) and it will be attached to your e-mail. Additional documents may be attached by clicking on Attach another file and following the procedure above. See Fig. 42.

Inserting a Picture

To insert a picture in the body of an email, position the insertion point at the desired point in the text, click Insert, browse to the file containing the picture and click Open.

Using the exercise sample above, click on Attach a File. In the Look In box, My Documents will show. Open My Documents, then open a file. Then open (double click or select and open). This will attach the document to the email. The name will show in blue. Since this is only for practice, now click on Discard and this will take you back to the In Box.

Good E-mail Practices

How many times have you been disgusted with the junk that you get in the form of an e-mail? This is largely the result of poor practices on the part of the sender. To help you avoid being one of them, Appendix E should be studied.

Good Housekeeping should always be practiced. Even though Gmail now offers more than

7 GB of storage, unwanted e-mails should be deleted. Other techniques to file e-mails will be covered in other Computer College courses.

Home Project: Study “Good Email Practices” Appendix E.

Practice using Cc and Bcc with your email.

Surfing the Net

Surfing the Net is one of the most fulfilling and fun things to do with your computer. Think of your computer as an information appliance. The Internet makes available the vast accumulated knowledge without going to a major library. Sophisticated search engines have been developed that will help you find out just about anything. Defining the search must be done to limit the number of “hits”. A poorly worded search can result in millions of hits. Google is the most often used service. However, a number of others are available.

Web Pages

To access any Web page, you must use the Internet Explorer. Double clicking on the Desktop e icon or a single click on the Taskbar e icon will open your Home Page. If you have created Short cuts to specific pages, double clicking on that Desktop icon will open that page. From any Web Page, you can access any other page by Highlighting the address in the Address box at the top, and typing the page you wish to bring up. It must start with www. and end with . followed by one of the following: net, com, org, edu or gov. In countries other than the United States, there will be an additional two letter code. Note that the first part of the address, http:// is supplied by the computer.

Open the Home page by double clicking the e icon on the desktop. Note the home page in the lab and class is www.shellpoint.net Clicking on the space to the right of the address will highlight it. Then type in a new address such as www.florida.com and clicking on Go or Enter. (You should use lower case letters for all addresses.) After seeing the new page, click on Back in the upper left hand corner of the page. This will return you to the previous page, in this case your home page. (Leave this page open for the next exercise)

Favorites

It is convenient to use “Favorites” on your Home Page to store the names of pages you may wish to open frequently. (Favorites will show on all pages) After adding a Web page to your Favorites, it may be opened by a single click on the name. Any number of Favorites may be added. A list of Web sites will be provided for class. You may also use a “search engine” such as Google to locate Web sites of interest.

Links

There are usually many Links on a Web Page. If you place the pointer any place on the page and it becomes a “hand” and the item or caption turns red, clicking on it will take you to that page, which will be a “new” page. To go back to the original page click on Back at the top left of the screen. (Some “new” pages will carry a list of links so you may not need to return to the original page to navigate to other pages.) If a link opens an entirely new page in front of your open page, you must close the new page to return to your original page. A picture may also be a link and can be opened by clicking on it.

Open the Mapquest page

Type in an address of interest in the box, then click on Search. This will open to a street map with a Red Star at the location. The Bar along the left side of the map indicates the detail of the map. To zoom in, click on the + at the top. To zoom out, click on the – at the bottom. Now click on Aerial Image on the upper right tab. Again you can zoom in or out. Reposition the view by clicking and dragging on the map.

Web Search

Information can be readily accessed using a search engine. There are a number but Google is used the most. You can probably find information on any subject. Relevant pages will show as links in the Google search.

Open Google from the Desktop and type smith and click on search. (This is why you have to define and limit your search!) The better you define the subject, the more relevant the information. Enclosing the words in quotes further restricts the search to those exact words.

CONCLUSION

This course should have provided you with the basic information to explore new and interesting things on your computer. Be sure to register for a computer course next term. After Absolute Basics taught by Russ Kraay is one course that will build directly on what you have started in this course.

E Registration

Registering online for your next Computer College class is easy and convenient. Go to registration.spccsc.net

Evaluation of this Course

The Computer College Steering Committee considers your evaluation of this course in planning and improving future courses. Please go to Course Evaluation Form

Thank You

The work over many recent years, and the current support, of Russell Kraay and Richard Nelson have been invaluable in preparing this material for use in this class.

Our assistants are appreciated: Al Knapp, Babs Schnoes, and Lois Sheehan.

untitled

John Eberhard

ejespcc@gmail.com

Appendix A

USING A FLASH DRIVE

GENERAL

A Flash Drive is a very convenient device to use to backup the data on your computer or to transfer it to another computer. A number of different brands of flash drives are available. Basically, they work the same but due to the fact that some have additional programs preinstalled, different procedures may have to be used. The most common of these is the “U3” program which is designed to assist you navigating the flash drive. It will generally load before the menu shows which allows you to open the flash drive. When loaded, U3 places an icon on the Task Bar and clicking on that will open the U3 menu with a number of options.

STEP BY STEP

With the computer on, insert the flash drive into one of the USB ports on the computer. The top half of the port will have plastic so the flash drive must be oriented so the plastic of the flash drive is down. (You can’t do it wrong.) A popup on the desktop will indicate that the computer recognizes new hardware. After a short time, a new menu appears with options. Click on the option to open the files on the flash drive. In the event that the option menu does not appear, go to Start>My Computer and double click on Mass Storage Device. This will show the files on the flash drive.

After you open the flash drive and you want to transfer a Folder (or file) to your computer, select the Folder (or file) with a single click. Then click on the q to the right of Organize and on the new menu click on Copy. Open Documents from the Start Menu and click on the q to the right of Organize. On the new menu click on Paste.

If you want to transfer data from your computer to the flash drive, simply reverse the procedure. Select a Folder (or file) in Documents on the computer and click on the q to the right of Organize and on the new menu click on Copy. Then open Documents on the Flash Drive and click on the q to the right of Organize. On the new menu click on Paste.

Pictures can be transferred in the same way by clicking on Pictures rather than Documents.

Alternative method (Drag and Drop)

After you open the flash drive, resize the Window to fit on the left side of the screen. Then open Documents from the Start Menu and resize the Window to fit on the right side of the screen. With both Windows open, you can simply drag and drop any Folder (or file) to Documents in the other Window. This can also be done with Pictures to Pictures. Close both Windows.

Before you attempt to remove the flash drive, be sure to close all the documents. Then in the Notification area (the right side of the Task Bar), click on the Safe to Remove Icon with the green arrow. On the new popup click on Safe to Remove. Another new popup says that it is now safe to remove the Mass Storage Device and the light will go out on the flash drive. If your flash drive has the U3 program, click on the U3 Icon (on the Task Bar) and then on the menu, click Eject. The new popup will say safe to remove the device and the light will go out. (Not all flash drives will show a light.) It is very important to follow the removal procedure to avoid corrupting or loosing data. In the unlikely event that the removal procedure does not work, the flash drive can be safely removed after shutting down the computer.

Appendix B

Control Key

Ctrl

Depressing the Ctrl key while clicking allows multiple selections. Holding the Ctrl key down and pressing other key combinations will initiate quite a few actions. Some of the more common ones are listed below.

Ctrl + A

Select All items

Ctrl + B

Add or remove Bold formatting

Ctrl + C

Copy, places the selected/highlighted copy on the clipboard.

Ctrl + F

Opens the Find what: dialog box. Great for finding references on a web page while using your favorite web browser.

Ctrl + H

Replace, brings up the Find and Replace dialog box. Great for global find and replace routines while working in normal and html views in your favorite WYSIWYG editors like FrontPage. You can also use this to find and replace content within your Word Documents, Excel Spreadsheets, etc...

Ctrl + I

Add or remove Italic formatting.

Ctrl + N

Window, In Internet Explorer, opens a New Window. In Outlook, opens a New Mail Message. In most publishing programs like Word, opens a New Document.

Ctrl + O

Open, brings up a browse dialog and allows you to select a file to open.

Ctrl + P

Print

Ctrl + S

Save

Ctrl + U

Add or remove Underline formatting.

Ctrl + V

Paste, inserts the copy on the clipboard into the area where your flashing cursoris positioned or the area you have selected/highlighted.

Ctrl + W

Close, will close the document currently open.

Ctrl + X

Cut, removes the selected/highlighted copy and places it on the clipboard.

Ctrl + Y

Redo last command. Many software programs offer multiple Redo's by pressing Ctrl + Y + Y + Y...

Ctrl + Z

Undo last command. Many software programs offer multiple Undo's by pressing Ctrl + Z + Z + Z...

Ctrl + Esc

Open the Start menu (or use the Windows Key if you have one).

Ctrl

While dragging a file to copy the file.

Ctrl + Shift

While dragging a file to create a shortcut.

Ctrl + Tab

Allows movement (toggle) from one open window to the next in an application with more than one open window.

Ctrl + F4

Close a window in an application without closing the application.

Ctrl + F5 Refresh ( reload) a web page in IE

Appendix C

Binary System

Binary is a number system that has just two unique digits. For most purposes, we use the decimal number system, which has ten unique digits, 0 through 9. All other numbers are then formed by combining these ten digits. Computers are based on the binary numbering system, which consists of just two unique numbers, 0 and 1. All operations that are possible in the decimal system (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division) are equally possible in the binary system by using the American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ACSII), which provides a series of eight zeros or ones called a byte, for all letters, numbers and symbols on the keyboard.

Byte

Byte is an abbreviation for binary term, a unit of storage capable of holding a single character. On almost all modern computers, a byte is equal to 8 bits. Large amounts of memory are indicated in terms of kilobytes (1,024 bytes), megabytes (1,048,576 bytes), and gigabytes (1,073,741,824 bytes).

Computer Storage Capacity

Kilobyte (KB) 2¹⁰10³

Megabyte (MB) 2²⁰10⁶

Gigabyte (GB) 2³⁰10⁹

Terabyte (TB) 2⁴⁰10¹²

Petabyte (PB) 2⁵⁰10¹⁵

In decimal systems, kilo stands for 1,000 but in binary systems, a kilo is 1,024 (2 to the 10^th power). Technically, therefore, a kilobyte is 1,024 bytes, but it is often used loosely as a synonym for 1,000 bytes. For example, a computer that has 256 K main memory can store approximately 256,000 bytes (or characters) in memory at one time. A megabyte is 2 to the 20^th power (approximately 1 million) and a gigabyte is 2 to the 30^th power (approximately 1 billion).

Appendix D

Explanation of the Keys on a Windows QWERTY Keyboard

The name QWERTY for our computer keyboard comes from the first six letters in the top alphabet row (the one just below the numbers). It is also referred to as the “Universal” keyboard. It was the work of inventor C. L. Sholes, who put together the prototypes of the first commercial typewriter in a Milwaukee machine shop in the 1860’s.

Esc Equivalent to clicking the Cancel button. In PowerPoint the Esc key will stop a running slide show. On a web page with animations, the Esc key will stop the animations. On a web page that is loading, the Esc key will stop the page from loading. The keyboard combination Ctrl+Esc will open the Start Menu.

F1 While working in an application, depressing this key will bring up the application help menu. If there is no open application F1 will open Windows Help.

F2 Choose this key to rename a selected item or object.

F3 Depressing this key will display the Find: All Files dialog box.

F4 Selects the Go to A Different Folder box and moves down the entries in the box. (if the toolbar is active in Windows Explorer).

F5 Refreshes the current window. In Internet Explorer, F5 will Refresh the web page.

F6 Moves among panes in Window Explorer.

F10 Activates menu bar options. Use the right and left arrows to select menus and down arrows to display pull down menus.

F11 In Internet Explorer this key will allow you to toggle between full screen viewing mode and normal viewing mode.

Print Screen Located at upper right hand corner of keyboard next to Scroll Lock and Pause/Break keys. In DOS pressing sends displayed images to printer. Windows and graphics programs use Print Screen to obtain Screen Captures.

Tab This key is used to move forward through options in a dialog box. It also moves the insertion point to the right in a text document. You are less likely to use: Ctrl+Shift+Tab can be used to move backward through the option. Ctrl+Tab allows movement from one open window to the next in an application with more than one open window. Alt+Tab displays a list of open application windows. Keeping Alt depressed and selecting Tab cycles through the list. Releasing selects the highlighted application window.

Caps Lock Locks the keyboard in “Capitals” or Caps mode (only applies to letter [alpha] keys). The Caps Lock key should be used with caution. Using ALL CAPS is a usability no-no as there may be difficulty scanning text that is all caps. Sending email in ALL CAPS is considered SHOUTING at someone.

Shift Used to select capital letter in typing text and to select characters above non alpha keys. Depressing Shift key while inserting a CD will bypass auto play. Shift+Delete permanently deletes a selected item, bypassing the Recycle Bin.

Appendix E

Good E-Mailing Practices

To forward an email that you have received click FORWARD. Then you can edit the message, including the text, and add comments or questions. A most important step in preparing the email to go forward is the deletion (select and click DELETE) of all the addresses on the email. Do not disseminate other people’s email addresses, long lists of addresses, or expose people’s address to potential misuse.

For similar privacy reasons do not forward or send emails to multiple addresses using TO or CC. If you use BCC (blind carbon copy) to insert addresses then each recipient will see only his or her address.

Remove FWD in the subject line. Otherwise improve the subject line as appropriate.

Click FORWARD on the actual email you wish to send to avoid sending a whole string of emails unintentionally.

Avoid the cluttering of cyberspace with forwarded chain letters, petitions, “must forward or send”, good luck will follow, etc. Authenticate content before forwarding, avoid hoaxes. There are several web sites to aid authentication including www.snopes.com.

Do your part to reduce junk mail and viruses with these good email practices.

Appendix F

URL Defined

URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator, which means it is a uniform (same throughout the world) way to locate a resource (file or document) on the Internet. The URL specifies the address of a file and every file on the Internet has a unique address. Web software, such as your browser, uses the URL to retrieve a file from the computer on which it resides.

The actual URL is a set of four numbers separated by periods. An example of this would be 202.147.23.8, but as these are difficult for humans to use, addresses are represented in alphanumeric form that is more descriptive and easy to remember. Thus, the URL of the above numbered site can also be written in letters eg. www.abcxyz.com. The Internet Domain Name System translates the alphanumerical address to numeric.

Format of a URL: Protocol://siteaddress/path/filename

For example a typical page at the URL above could be http://www.abcxyz.com/portfolio/4.html

consisting of:

protocol: http

host computer name: www

domain name: abcxyz

domain type: com

path:/portfolio

file name: 4.html

Site Address

The site address consists of the host computer name, the domain name and the domain type. The domain name should be descriptive for easy comprehension and is usually the name of the organization or company. Commonly used domain types are:

com: specifies commercial entity

net: highlights networks or network provider

org: organization (usually nonprofit)

edu: colleges and universities (education providers)

gov: government agency

mil: Military entity of the United States

In countries other than the USA the URL domain type may be longer than the three letters above.

Format of International URL is:

Machine name.domain name.domain type.country code

in: India

de: Germany

ca: Canada

jp: Japan

uk: United Kingdom

APPENDIX G

WEB SITES FOR AFTER PREP SCHOOL BASICS

1. www.google.com/webhp?hl=en

2. http://www.accuweather.com/us/fl/fort-myers/33908/city-weather-forecast.asp

3. www.msn.com/

4. www.shellpoint.net/

5. www.gmail.google.com

6. www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/frontpage

7. http://www.winknews.com/

8. http://www.nbc-2.com/Global/category.asp?C=97703

9. www.abc-7.com/

10. nist.time.gov/timezone.cgi?Eastern/d/-5/java

11. http://www.teach12.com/teach12.aspx

12. http://www.carbonite.com/

14. www.flylcpa.com/webfids/RSW/html/display/fids_aa.php

15. www.flytecomm.com/cgi-bin/trackflight

18. www.mapquest.com/

19. www.itsecurity.com/features/25-common-email-security-mistakes-022807/

20. www.auditmypc.com/internet-speed-test.asp

21. http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f1040.pdf

22. http://www.cnet.com/

23. https://www.donotcall.gov/Register/Reg.aspx

24. http://www.barnesandnoble.com/

25. http://www.noaa.gov

26. http://www.merriam-webster.com/

27. registration.spccsc.net http://jeff-h.com/cc/reg/reg.php

28. Evaluations of Computer College Courses http://jeff-h.com/cc/labels/labels.php

Appendix H: Formatting Exercise. Delete this paragraph and format remainder of page to same as page 2 of this tutorial.

AFTER PREP SCHOOL BASICS CC101

Computer College – Summer 2010