You can do almost anything from the Windows XP Professional Start button. When you click the Start button, you see a menu with the following options:
All Programs
Search
Help and Support
Run
Log Off
Shut Down
Each of these options is covered in more detail in the following subsections.
When you point to the All Programs menu from within the Start menu, you see all the programs that have been installed on your computer.
Within the Programs menu, the top icons displayed are folder icons with an arrow to the right of each folder. An arrow indicates that you can access a cascading menu of options for each folder. The bottom icons without folders and arrows represent applications that can be opened directly by clicking the icons. This screen shows an example of the Programs menu.
The Start menu's Search option enables you to search files and folders based on name, location, or the time that the file was created or modified. You can also search for pictures, music, or video or computers or people. Advanced searches allow you to search for files based on file type, text within the file, and the size of the file.
Help and Support provides online help for Windows XP Professional. Help and Support is arranged so that you can read it like a book by using the Contents tab, or you can use the Index and Find tabs to search for information on a specific topic. Some of the other tasks that are accessed through Help and Support are:
Using the Remote Assistance feature
Using newsgroups as a mechanism for support
Accessing Windows Update to ensure you have the latest files
Finding the most updated drivers
Using the System Restore utility
If you are not familiar with Windows XP Professional, the tutorials within the Help and Support utility can be very useful. Follow these steps to access the tutorial:
Select Start → Help and Support.
Under Pick A Help Topic, select Windows Basics.
After the tour loads, just follow the instructions.
The Run option enables you to run command-line utilities or to launch applications. Within Run, you can browse for files by using the Browse button. Using Run can be a faster way of launching programs or a way to launch programs that are not defined as part of the Start menu.
The Log Off feature disconnects any network connections and closes all your programs so that another user can log on.
The Shut Down menu offers four choices, as defined in this table.
Shut Down Option | Purpose |
---|---|
Standby | If your computer hardware supports the Standby option, this enables you to suspend operation or put your computer in sleep mode, which conserves power. When you return your computer to a running state, you should be able to continue your work from where you left off. |
Shut Down The Computer | Saves any changes that you have made and prepares the computer to be turned off. |
Restart The Computer | Saves any changes that you have made and restarts your computer. Many changes to your computer require you to restart the computer for the changes to take effect. |
The main utility for managing your computer's settings is Control Panel. Windows XP Professional improves ease of use by grouping common tasks logically. Within each group, there are two options for configuration. At the top of the screen the most common tasks are listed, and you can start associated wizards. At the bottom of each screen you can manually access utilities to accomplish more complex tasks. The main categories found in Control Panel are defined in the following table. We will cover the common options for configuring your computer's appearance and themes are in greater detail later in this chapter.
Control Panel Option | Description |
---|---|
Appearance and Themes | Used to view or change the computers theme (calls up the Display Properties option), change the desktop background, choose the screensaver, change the screen resolution, manage the display, and manage Taskbar and Start menu folder options. |
Network and Internet Connections | Used to configure local network or Internet connections. |
Add or Remove Programs | Used to view currently installed applications or to add or remove programs. |
Sounds, Speech, and Audio Devices | Used to display and manage audio devices. |
Performance and Maintenance | Allows you to see basic information about your computer, adjust visual effects, free up space on your hard disk, back up data, and rearrange items on your hard disk to make programs run faster. |
Printers and Other Hardware | Used to manage printers and faxes, game controllers, mouse, keyboard, phone and modem options, scanners and cameras, and wireless links. |
User Accounts | Used to create and manage local users and group accounts. |
Date, Time, Language, and Regional Options | Used to configure the date and time and to setup support for multiple languages. |
Accessibility Options | Used to configure accessibility options for users with impaired vision, hearing, or mobility.zzz |
The main utility for configuring your computer's desktop is Appearance and Themes. Having the capability to customize your desktop means that you can personalize it to suit your needs and personality. This section shows you how to change the appearance of items on your desktop. You can:
Change the computer's theme
Change the desktop background
Choose whether to use a screensaver
Change the screen resolution
View and manage folder options
View and manage Taskbar and Start menu options
Under Pick A Task, you can click Change The Computer's Theme to specify the background, sounds, icons, and other elements that allow you to customize your computer. The Display Properties dialog box will open with the Themes tab displayed.
In Display Properties, click the Desktop tab to display the following options. The Background list box enables you to choose the wallpaper that your computer uses. A wallpaper is a predefined set of colors, patterns, and sometimes images that you apply to change the look of your Desktop. Windows XP Professional has many choices available. In addition, you can add your own pictures to serve as your background. Instead of choosing wallpaper, you can choose a pattern to give your desktop color some texture.
If you click the Customize Desktop button at the bottom of the Desktop tab, you can specify which of the default desktop icons will be displayed, such as My Computer and Recycle Bin. You can also change the icon that is associated with the default desktop items. In addition, you can specify whether you want to use Desktop Cleanup. This new feature moves unused desktop items to a folder; by default, the Desktop Cleanup Wizard is triggered to run every 60 days.
The Choose A Screen Saver option in Appearance and Themes opens the Screen Saver tab in Display Properties. This tab enables you to specify whether your computer will use a screensaver if there is no activity for a certain amount of time. The screensaver applies your choice of image or text to the screen in a continually changing, random order. (Beware, they can be addictive to watch!) Screensavers were created to prevent a chem ical inside the computer screen from etching a permanent outline into the glass. Through this option, you can configure the following:
Which screensaver to use
Whether you need a password to disable the screensaver
The amount of time without any activity before the screensaver starts
Click the Power button at the bottom of this tab to view power options, which are most commonly used with laptop computers. These options allow you to configure how the computer will react to periods of inactivity.
Click Change The Screen Resolution in Appearance and Themes to open the Settings tab in Display Properties. When you change the screen resolution, you can see what display driver is currently loaded as well as manage the screen resolution and color quality. You should not modify the settings without understanding what you are doing. You should also test any settings before applying them. If you configure settings incorrectly, you might not be able to see your display properly or at all.
Choose Folder Options in the Appearance and Themes window to open the dialog box shown here. You can specify how tasks are organized, how folders are displayed when they are opened, and whether you use single clicks or double clicks to complete specific tasks.
You can configure all of the Taskbar and Start menu options by choosing Taskbar And Start Menu in the Appearance and Themes screen. In the resulting dialog box, you use the Taskbar tab to configure options related to the Taskbar, such as whether the Taskbar is displayed and what icons are shown in the Notification area (the bottom right of the Taskbar).
Use the Start Menu tab to specify whether you want to use the Windows XP Professional Start Menu or the Classical Start Menu (which is associated with previous versions of Windows). You can also specify which programs are displayed on the Start menu.
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