Section 1.6. Point-and-Click Operations

1.6. Point-and-Click Operations

Windows Vista offers several settings that affect the way the interface responds to mouse clicks. The default setting (the way it works when you first install Windows Vista) will also be familiar to most users, as it is consistent with the way most operating systems work.

If you modify certain settings using the Folder Options dialog (Control Panel Appearance and Personalization Folder Options), however, Windows may respond differently.

If you are a new computer user who hasn't used a GUI before, here are some things you need to know:

• PCs usually come with a two- or three-button mouse, although there are a variety of alternatives, such as touchpads (common on laptops), trackballs, and styluses. Many mice also include a scroll wheel which, as its name implies, you use to scroll through pages and screens.

• To click an object means to move the pointer to the desired screen object and press and release the left mouse button.

• Double-click means to click twice in rapid succession with the button on the left. (Clicking twice slowly doesn't accomplish the same thing.)

• Right-click means to click with the button on the right.

• If your pointing device has three or more buttons, you should use just the primary buttons on the left and the right, and read the documentation that comes with your pointing device to find out what you can do with the others. (You can often configure the middle button to take over functions such as double-clicking, cut and paste, inserting inflammatory language into emails, and so on.)