Computing Support
Information Technology Services Tennessee Technological University January 2003
1. What’s new in XP
• New colorful interface.
• More stable than 9x/Me versions of Windows.
• Very similar in many respects to Windows 2000, but it should run somewhat faster.
• Includes extra features such as Remote Desktop Connection which allows Microsupport to view your screen from their computers with your permission.
Differences in the Home and Pro versions:
• Must contact Microsoft via product activation scheme at installation (may have been done by your computer’s manufacturer) This limits installation to one machine. May need to recontact Microsoft if you do extensive hardware upgrades.
• In the Home version all users have administator privledges.
2. Logging on
• In the PC Labs, log on in the usual way to your PC lab account.
• In your office, log on using your username and password.
• In Windows XP Pro you can set up multiple user accounts. Each user can be set up with certain privileges. In most campus offices, your user account has been set up as an administrator account. To change the password you use to log on to your system, press CTRL+ALT+DELETE Click Change Password.
3. Mousing
Default mousing is the same as in prior versions of Windows:
• Double-click left mouse button to open a program
• Single-click left mouse button to select an item
• Right-click on an item to activate a popup menu
• Click and hold left mouse button down to drag an item
• Click and drag with right mouse button to get menu of options (Copy/Move/Shortcut)
• In a list of items, click and hold down the Ctrl key to select nonsequential items
• In a list of items, click and hold down the Shift key to select sequential items
• Single click elsewhere to clear selections
• Ctrl-A or Edit Select All to get all items in a list
Introduction to
Windows XP
4. The Desktop
The desktop is actually just another folder, so that items you store on your desktop are stored in the desktop folder for that user account.
The desktop typically includes some common elements including:
My Documents folder - location to store your work.
Create folders to help keep it organized.
My Computer icon - Shows all drives both local and network to which you have access. Double-click to open and select View system information to determine your processor and RAM OR right-click and select Properties from the floating menu.
Recycle Bin - Location for deleted files. Double-click to open, then select File Empty Recycle Bin to actually remove the files.
Shortcuts to common applications - such as Internet Explorer or Outlook Express may be placed on the desktop
My Network Places - Right-click to get network properties in campus offices.
The Taskbar - Allows you to navigate among open programs. Right-click an item and select close. Right-click on the bar and select properties to set taskbar features.
System Tray - Located in the right hand
corner. Double-click on time to change or
reset it. Double-click on the printer status
icon which appears when printing to view
5. The Start Menu
Your most commonly used applications will be listed in the left hand pane.
Select All Programs to navigate to all your programs.
My Documents - link to your documents folder My Recent Documents - lists recently used items My Computer - Lists local and network drives Control Panel - Use to change a variety of settings.
Printers and Faxes - List of the ones to which you have access. Use to add printers.
Help and Support - Online help
Search - May search local hard drive for files or the internet for other information
Run - command line prompt
To log off one user account and log into another, use the Log Off button.
To shut down your machine use Shut Down Right-click on the Start button and select Properties to make changes to this item.
Tip: To get to the Start menu quickly at any time, press the Windows key (between Ctrl and Alt on most keyboards).
6. My Computer
Double-click to open the My Computer icon on the desktop.
From the menu, select View Details to see Total Size and Free Space for each drive.
7. My Documents
• Double-click to open the My Documents icon on the desktop.
• Click on the Folders icon in the menu bar to see your list of folders in the left pane.
• Click on the plus sign to expand the folder to see any subfolders.
• From the menu, select View Details or click on the views icon in the menu bar and select details to see the type of file and date modified.
• From the View menu, select Choose details to customize the details shown in the list.
As in previous versions of Windows, each window includes:
• The Minimize, Maximize, and Close icons in the upper right corner
• Program menus / toolbar, by default, menus are generally context specific and dynamic.
• Scroll bars
• System menu in the right-hand corner
• Each window can be resized by clicking on an edge or corner and dragging to the size you desire.
• Use the title bar at the top to drag and move the window around your screen.
• The ability to copy and paste or move files in several ways. From the edit menu, by right-clicking or by using keyboard shortcuts (Ctrl-C (copy) and Ctrl-V (paste))
• Create new folders from the file menu, New Folder
• Rename a file by right-clicking and selecting Rename from the floating menu or click once on the filename and then click again to edit (be careful not to change file extensions).
Filenames can be up to 260 characters. XP is case preserving, but case insensitive.
8. Folder Options
To set up an alternate mouse clicks, open a window and select:
Tools Folder options General tab Single-click to open an item
To customize your single folder views to be similar:
Tools Folder options View tab Apply to All Folders
(Note: Must repeat this process in Windows Explorer to have it apply there too.)
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