Windows Xp for Starters

by Pogue, David

• ISBN13: 9780596101558
• ISBN10: 0596101554
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-10-01
• Publisher: Oreilly & Associates Inc

Summary

With clear explanations, step-by-step instructions, lots of illustrations, and friendly advice, our smart new Missing Manual makes the time spent at the computer safer, easier, and more fun. And best of all, it includes coverage of Service Pack 2. Written in easy-to-follow, jargon-free language, "Windows XP for Rookies: The Missing Manual" is perfect for first-time PC fans. Like its siblings in the Missing Manual series, the book crackles with David Pogue's fine sense of humour and his refreshing objectivity about the subject. The book's appealing size fits easily in a backpack, laptop case, or right by the mousepad, where readers will refer to it time and time again.

Author Biography

David Pogue, Yale '85, is the personal-technology columnist for the New York Times. With nearly 3 million books in print, he is also one of the world's bestselling how-to authors, having written or co-written seven books in the "for Dummies" series (including Macs, Magic, Opera, and Classical Music), along with several computer-humor books and a technothriller, "Hard Drive" (a New York Times "notable book of the year").

Table of Contents

The Missing Credits	xiii
Introduction	1	(2)
About This Book	3	(3)
Basic Terms	6	(1)
About MissingManuals.com	7	(4)
PART ONE: THE WINDOWS XP DESKTOP
The Very Basics	11	(10)
What Is Windows, Anyway?	12	(2)
Working Windows Smarter	14	(7)
The Right Mouse Button Is King	14	(1)
Summon a Wizard	15	(1)
There's More Than One Way to Do Everything	15	(1)
You Can Use the Keyboard for Everything	16	(2)
You Could Spend a Lifetime Changing Properties	18	(2)
Every Piece of Hardware Requires Software	20	(1)
The Desktop and Start Menu	21	(28)
Logging In	23	(1)
Workgroups vs. Domains	23	(1)
The Elements of the XP Desktop	24	(1)
The Start Menu	24	(4)
Start → Log Off	28	(2)
Start → Shut Down (Turn Off Computer)	30	(2)
Start → All Programs	32	(4)
The Startup Folder	34	(2)
Start → Search	36	(8)
Finding Files and Folders	36	(5)
Managing the Found Files and Folders	41	(3)
Start → Help and Support	44	(1)
Start → Control Panel	45	(1)
Start → My Network Places	45	(1)
Start → My Computer	45	(1)
Start → My Music, My Pictures	45	(2)
Start → My Recent Documents	47	(1)
Start → My Documents	47	(2)
Windows, Folders, and the Taskbar	49	(28)
Windows in Windows	50	(8)
The Task Pane	52	(3)
Sizing, Moving, and Closing Windows	55	(2)
Working with Multiple Windows	57	(1)
The Desktop Window Overhaul	58	(6)
Icon and List Views	59	(5)
Standard Folder Views	64	(1)
Window Toolbars	64	(4)
The Standard Buttons Toolbar	65	(1)
The Address Bar	66	(1)
The Links Toolbar	67	(1)
The Taskbar	68	(6)
The Notification Area	69	(2)
Window Buttons	71	(3)
Taskbar Toolbars	74	(3)
Quick Launch Toolbar	74	(3)
Organizing Your Stuff	77	(32)
Creating a Folder	78	(1)
The Folders of Windows XP	78	(10)
What's in the Local Disk (C:) Window	80	(3)
Your Account Folder	83	(1)
Navigating My Computer	84	(1)
Navigating with Windows Explorer	84	(4)
Life with Icons	88	(3)
Renaming Your Icons	88	(2)
Icon Properties	90	(1)
Copying and Moving Folders and Files	91	(7)
Highlighting Icons	91	(2)
Copying by Dragging Icons	93	(2)
Copying by Using Copy and Paste	95	(3)
The Recycle Bin	98	(3)
Restoring Deleted Files and Folders	98	(2)
Emptying the Recycle Bin	100	(1)
Shortcut Icons	101	(1)
Creating and Deleting Shortcuts	102	(1)
Burning CDs from the Desktop	102	(7)
PART TWO: THE COMPONENTS OF WINDOWS XP
Programs and Documents	109	(30)
Launching Programs	110	(1)
Switching Programs	111	(3)
Exiting Programs	114	(1)
When Programs Die	114	(3)
Saving Documents	117	(6)
The Save File Dialog Box	117	(1)
Saving into My Documents	118	(1)
Navigating in the Save Dialog Box	119	(3)
Navigating the List by Keyboard	122	(1)
The File Format Drop-Down Menu	123	(1)
Closing Documents	123	(1)
The Open Dialog Box	124	(1)
Moving Data Between Documents	125	(5)
Cut, Copy, and Paste	125	(1)
Drag-and-Drop	126	(4)
Filename Extensions	130	(2)
Displaying Filename Extensions	130	(2)
Installing Software	132	(5)
The Pre-Installation Checklist	132	(1)
Installing Software from a CD	133	(2)
Installing Downloaded Software	135	(1)
Installing Preloaded Software	135	(1)
Installing Windows Components	136	(1)
Uninstalling Software	137	(2)
Pictures, Music, and Movies	139	(30)
Digital Photos in XP	140	(13)
Hooking Up Your Camera	140	(4)
Fun with Downloaded Pictures	144	(9)
Scanning	153	(1)
Windows Media Player	154	(15)
The Lay of the Land	154	(1)
Playing Music CDs	155	(1)
Copying CDs to Your Hard Drive	156	(4)
Organizing Your Music Library	160	(2)
Burning Your Own CDs	162	(2)
Playing DVD Movies	164	(5)
PART THREE: WINDOWS ONLINE
Getting on the Web	169	(32)
How to Get Online	170	(2)
Cable and DSL	170	(1)
Wireless Networks	171	(1)
Establishing a New Dial-Up Internet Account	172	(6)
The Connection Icon	176	(2)
Manually Plugging in Internet Settings	178	(2)
Via Dial-up Modem	178	(1)
Via Cable Modem, Network, or DSL	179	(1)
Dialing Up to the Internet	180	(5)
Manual Connections	180	(1)
The Notification Area Icon	181	(1)
Automatic Dialing	181	(2)
Disconnecting	183	(2)
Surfing the Web	185	(1)
Internet Explorer	186	(15)
Browsing Basics and Toolbars	186	(2)
Internet Explorer Toolbars	188	(4)
Status Bar	192	(1)
Explorer Bar	192	(1)
Ways to Find Something on the Web	193	(1)
Tips for Better Surfing	194	(6)
Ditching Pop-Ups and Pop-Unders	200	(1)
Outlook Express 6	201	(28)
Setting Up Outlook Express	202	(1)
Sending Email	202	(10)
Mail folders in Outlook Express	203	(2)
Composing and sending messages	205	(6)
The Address Book	211	(1)
Attaching Files to Messages	211	(1)
Reading Email	212	(17)
How to Process a Message	213	(6)
Opening Attachments	219	(3)
Message Rules	222	(7)
PART FOUR: BEYOND THE BASICS
Printers and Other Hardware	229	(28)
Installing a Printer	230	(6)
Existing Printers	230	(1)
USB Printers	231	(1)
Network Printers	231	(3)
The Printer Icon	234	(2)
Printing	236	(5)
Printing from Applications	236	(4)
Printing from the Desktop	240	(1)
Printing from the Internet	241	(1)
Controlling Printouts	241	(3)
Printer Troubleshooting	244	(1)
Hardware	245	(1)
Connecting New Gadgets	246	(4)
Using the Add Hardware Wizard	247	(3)
The Device Manager	250	(7)
Red X's and Yellow ?'s: Resolving Conflicts	252	(2)
Turning Components Off	254	(1)
Updating Drivers with the Device Manager	254	(3)
The Control Panel	257	(28)
Navigating the Panel	259	(3)
Accessibility Options	262	(1)
Add Hardware	263	(1)
Add or Remove Programs	264	(1)
Administrative Tools	264	(1)
Automatic Updates	264	(1)
Bluetooth Devices	264	(1)
Date and Time	264	(2)
Display	266	(3)
Folder Options	269	(1)
Fonts	269	(1)
Game Controllers	269	(1)
Internet Options	270	(1)
Keyboard	271	(1)
Mail	271	(1)
Mouse	272	(2)
Network Connections	274	(1)
Network Setup Wizard	274	(1)
Phone and Modem Options	274	(1)
Power Options	275	(2)
Printers and Faxes	277	(1)
Regional and Language Options	277	(1)
Scanners and Cameras	277	(1)
Scheduled Tasks	277	(1)
Security Center	277	(1)
Sounds and Audio Devices	278	(1)
Speech	278	(1)
System	279	(4)
General Tab	280	(1)
Computer Name	280	(1)
Hardware Tab	280	(3)
Advanced Tab	283	(1)
System Restore Tab	283	(1)
Automatic Updates Tab	283	(1)
Remote Tab	283	(1)
Taskbar and Start Menu	283	(1)
User Accounts	283	(1)
Windows Firewall	284	(1)
Wireless Network Setup Wizard	284	(1)
Help, Maintenance, and Backups	285	(34)
Navigating the Help System	286	(4)
Help Home Page	286	(2)
Search the Help Pages	288	(2)
Help Index	290	(1)
``What's This?'': Help for Dialog Boxes	290	(2)
Getting Help from Microsoft	292	(2)
PC Maintenance: Internet Security	294	(1)
Security Center	295	(6)
The Windows Firewall	296	(3)
Virus Software	299	(1)
Spyware Cleaners	300	(1)
Automatic Updates	301	(4)
Microsoft Backup	305	(14)
Backup Hardware	306	(1)
Creating a Backup Job	307	(5)
Restoring with Microsoft Backup	312	(7)
PART FIVE: LIFE ON THE NETWORK
User Accounts	319	(24)
Introducing User Accounts	321	(1)
Setting Up Accounts	322	(13)
Administrator Accounts	324	(1)
Limited Accounts	324	(1)
Adding an Account	325	(1)
Editing an Account	326	(5)
The Forgotten Password Disk	331	(3)
Deleting User Accounts	334	(1)
Setting Up the Logon Process	335	(8)
``Use the Welcome Screen''	335	(2)
``Use Fast User Switching''	337	(3)
Shared Folders	340	(3)
The Home Network	343	(24)
The Network Setup Wizard	344	(10)
``Before you continue''	345	(2)
``Select a connection method''	347	(1)
``Select your Internet connection''	348	(1)
``Give this computer a description and name''	348	(1)
``Name your network''	348	(1)
``Ready to apply network settings''	348	(1)
``You're almost done''	348	(3)
Testing the Network	351	(3)
Simple File Sharing	354	(1)
The Shared Documents Folder	355	(2)
Sharing Your Own Folders	357	(4)
Notes on Sharing	360	(1)
Hiding Folders	361	(1)
Accessing Other Computers	361	(3)
My Network Places	362	(2)
Working with Network Files	364	(3)
At the Desktop	365	(1)
Using Start → Search	365	(1)
Inside Applications	365	(2)
Index	367