Using Your Computer

Using Your ComputerBasic Computer Skills

If you are using a desktop computer (it has a “tower” box), there is usually a power switch on the back of the big box

This switch is probably labeled with a “1” and “0”

Turning It On!

The Power Switch

This is the only switch that truly turns your computer off, but you don’t need to use it after the first time you set up your computer

Make sure the “1” side is pressed in

Turning It On!

On the front side of the tower box, or somewhere on a laptop, there is another power switch

Turning It On!

This is usually labeled with a symbol like this

The odd symbol makes sense to engineers, and no one else

Turning It On!

Normally, when you turn your computer on, you will use this switch

Turning It On!

For desktop computers, there is generally another switch for the monitor

This switch can be anywhere (including on the back!)

Turning It On!

To turn on your computer, press the “On” button briefly, and release it

You may hear some faint noises, and see some small lights flickering as the computer gets ready to work, then the screen lights up

Turning It On!

You don’t have to turn off the monitor when you turn off your computer, as it will “go to sleep” when the computer is off

For laptops, there is no separate switch for the screen

Turning It On!

Depending on how the computer was set up, you may see a “login screen”

Windows allows you to make the computer look the way you want it to, and other users to make it look the way they want it to

Logging In

For this to work, you have to tell the computer who you are

You do this by logging inTo log in, you move the mouse

pointer over your name, or the picture above it, and click (press and release the mouse button)

Logging In

The Login Screen

In some settings, to keep information private, logins also have passwords.

If the computer you are using has been set up this way, you will be asked to type your password

As you type, you won’t see the letters you type, just dots

Logging In

Entering a Password

After you’ve entered your password, the computer will wake up, and you’ll see the “desktop”

Turning It On

The Desktop

Mouse PracticeNow that we have turned the computer on, we can

practice using the mouse

The mouse is designed to gently support your hand

Holding the Mouse

Drape your hand over the body of the mouse, with your thumb on one side, and little finger on the other

Your index finger should fall “naturally” onto the left mouse-button

Holding the Mouse

Holding the Mouse

Wired Mice◦If you think of the cord of the mouse as

it’s tail, you’d want to hold it with the cord at your wrist, so the mouse could see◦In fact, you hold the mouse with the

wire at your fingertips

Holding the Mouse

Wireless Mice◦If your mouse is “wireless,” you hold it

with your fingers resting on the buttons, and around the wheel

Holding the Mouse

When you were young, you probably learned not to slide dishes on the table. You pick them up to pass them

Sliding the Mouse

The mouse must be slid across the table to work. You can use a protective pad (called a mouse pad) under the mouse, but it must be touching the table (or pad) to work

Sliding the Mouse

When you hold the mouse correctly, you should find the movement easy and natural

Sliding the mouse to the right or left should move the mouse pointer right or left

Sliding the Mouse

Pushing the mouse away from you moves the pointer up the screen

Pulling the mouse toward you moves the pointer down the screen

Sliding the Mouse

Because of the way the mouse works, you may find that you get to the edge of the mouse pad or table before the pointer gets to the place you are looking for

“Rowing” the mouse

When this happens, you can pick the mouse up a bit off of the table, and place it back onto the table◦When the mouse is in the air, it doesn’t

know it’s moving


When you put the mouse down again, you can continue moving the pointer to your target


You may have to repeat this several times for long moves.

This is called “rowing” the mouse, because it is like rowing a boat – many small movements equals one large one


The only part of the mouse pointer that is active is the very tip

Positioning the Mouse

When you want to point with the mouse, the tip must be over the thing being pointed to

Positioning the Mouse

With the tip of the arrow over the thing you want to point to, you “click” to tell the computer that this is the thing you want to work on

To click the mouse, you press and release the left mouse button, without moving the mouse

Clicking

Many elders find this difficult, as pressing can cause a small movement of the mouse◦If you have difficulty with clicks,

consider adding the “Elder Interface” adaptations to your computer

Clicking

Clicking the right (opposite of left) button is called “right clicking”

Each part of the computer and its software has a set of things that can be done to or with it

Right-Click

To see what can be done with an icon, you right click on it, to open a “contextual menu”

This is a small menu next to the thing clicked on

Right-Click

However, you can do the same thing with a special “menu” key on the keyboard, which is more consistent

It is almost never necessary to do a right-click, so we will always use the left mouse button

Right-Click

When you click on something, you are telling the computer that your next instruction should be done “to” this thing◦The builders like to say “Noun, then

verb”

Double-Click

Sometimes you want a thing (file or program) to do something (start, open in a program, etc.)

Most manuals and instructors tell you to do this with a double-click

A double-click is two clicks, very quickly, in the same spot

Double-Click

Many elders find double-clicking to be more than twice as difficult as a single-click◦Not only is it two clicks, they must be

done very quickly, and without moving the mouse

Double-Click

Fortunately, you don’t need to double-click

You can do the same thing by clicking once, then pressing the Enter key on the keyboard

Double-Click

Just like in the real world, you sometimes want to put things away on your computer, or move them to another spot

This is done by “dragging” on the computer

Dragging

When you move the mouse pointer over something, it is “floating” above that thing

When you click the mouse, the pointer briefly touches the thing, then lifts up again◦Think of this as a tap on the shoulder

Dragging

If you hold the mouse button down, it’s like closing your fingers on the thing, or “holding” it

While you are holding something, if you move the mouse, the thing moves along with the mouse pointer

Dragging

If you release the mouse button, you “drop” the thing you were dragging at the place you let go

Dragging

Dragging takes some practice, so don’t get frustrated if you drop things now and then◦You can just pick them up and start a

new drag

Dragging

Your starting point for most activities will be the “Start” menu

Move the mouse pointer over the start button◦Remember to slide your mouse on the

tabletop◦Remember to put the tip of the arrow on

the button

Let’s get started!

Click the mouse◦Press and release the left mouse button

The Start Menu opens!

Let’s get started!

The Start Menu is a special menu, with a special design

The Start Menu

On the left, you’ll see programs that you have used recently, or often

Above the grey line are programs you always want

The Start Menu

On the right, you’ll see a list of “special places” on your computer

The Start Menu

At the top of this section are links to special folders for your documents, pictures, or games

The Start Menu

The bottom area (Computer, Network, etc.) are areas for control of your computer

You probably won’t need those places right away

The Start Menu

At the bottom of the left side you’ll see a bar called “All Programs”

The Start Menu

Clicking “All Programs” will show you all of the programs on your computer rather than just the ones you’ve used recently

The Start Menu

If you click this (now), you’ll notice a lot of programs that you didn’t put on your computer

The Start Menu

These come with Windows, but we won’t use them in this training

The Start Menu

Your computer uses an “operating system” (the program you’re looking at now) called Windows Vista

The “Windows” part is because all of the work that you do will happen inside a window

The Windows of “Windows”

The first thing we have to do is learn about the “windows” of Windows

The skills we’ll learn apply to almost all windows, regardless of the program you are using

The Windows of “Windows”

The first step of working on a window is to “open” it

In your home, opening a window means moving part of the glass so air can get through

Opening a window

On your computer, opening a window means to make it◦Before a window is open, you can’t see

it at all!Since all of your work on the

computer happens inside a window, there are lots of ways to open them

Opening a window

For now, we are just going to look at one of the special places on your computer, and one way to open a window

Opening a window

Open the Start menu by moving your mouse over the start icon on the lower left corner of the screen and clicking the mouse

Opening a window

When the Start Menu opens, move your mouse toward the upper right corner of the menu, to the word “Documents”

Opening a window

When the mouse pointer is in the right place, a “box” will appear around the word “Documents”

Opening a window

This is your computer’s way of saying “I think this is what you want me to work on.”

Opening a window

Click the mouse (press and release the left button) while the word “Documents” is highlighted.

Opening a window

The start menu will disappear, and a window will appear on the screen!

You’ve just opened a window!

Opening a window

If you look at the top of your new window, you’ll see a lighter area with words in it.

This is the window’s “name tag”The name of this new window is

“Documents”

Your new Window

When we talk about a window, we usually use it’s first and last name:

This is the “Documents Window”

Your new Window

A window on the computer is like a piece of paper on your desk.

You can have more than one at a time, and the one on top can hide what’s underneath it

Moving a Window

Just like shuffling papers on your desk, you can bring a window to the top of the stack by clicking on any part of it

You can see what is under the top window by moving it to a different place

Moving a Window

Windows on your computer can be “full screen” ◦This means that they cover the entire

screen, can not be changed

Windows have Locks

Alternatively, a window can be “resizable”◦This means you can make it bigger or

smaller

Windows have Locks

Look at the top, right corner of the window

You should see a row of three symbols that looks something like this:

How Can I Tell Them Apart?

The middle symbol tells you what kind of window you are looking at.


If the button shows a single box, you have a resizable window.

The symbol means “make me full screen”


If the button shows two, overlapping squares, you have a full-screen window

The symbol means “make me resizable.”


A resizable window might cover the whole screen, but you can change that.


Normally, the window we opened starts as a resizable window, but let’s change it.

Changing the window’s type

Move the tip of the mouse pointer over the middle icon in the top, right corner of the window

Now, click the mouse button ◦press and release the left button

without moving the mouse

Changing the window’s type

When you clicked the icon, the window got larger, and covered the entire screen, except for the task bar

The control changed too

What Happened?

The control changed from this:

To this:

What Happened?

Windows remember what they were like before they became full screen

If you click the “make me resizable” icon, the window will go back to the size and place it was before

Change your window back and forth a few times, to get the feel of it

Change Can Be Good!

Like a piece of paper on your table, you can move a window to another spot

You do that by “dragging” the window to a new location, using its handle

A Moving Experience

The top of your window probably looks something like this:◦If you still have a full screen window,

change it back now

A Moving Experience

The area to the left of the window controls is the handle.

A Moving Experience

Move the tip of the mouse pointer over any part of this handle (not over the controls)◦If your mouse pointer changes to a

double-ended arrow, you are not quite on the handle, and you’ll stretch the window instead of moving it

A Moving Experience!

Press and hold the left mouse button down

When you move the mouse, the window will move along

A Moving Experience!

Let’s open another window, so you can see what happens when one window is over another

Move your mouse pointer over the start button and click the left button

More Mouse Tricks

On the Start menu, find “Pictures” on the right side of the Start menu

Click the left mouse button once

More Mouse Tricks

You should now have two windows open on your computer at once!

More Mouse Tricks

More Mouse Tricks

If they are not overlapping like two pieces of paper, drag the “Pictures” window so that it “covers” part of “Documents” window ◦It should look rather like two pieces of

paper, one on top of the other

More Mouse Tricks

What if you wanted to look at the paper on the bottom of the pile?◦You’d move it to the top!

You do the same thing with windows

More Mouse Tricks

Point to any part of the Documents window that you can see, and click the mouse

The Documents window is now on top of the Pictures window!

More Mouse Tricks

More Mouse Tricks

Suppose you want a window to be bigger or smaller than it is, but not full screen…

This is why we call them “resizable” windows

More Mouse Tricks

Move the mouse pointer to the bottom right corner of your “Documents” window

Your mouse pointer will change to a double-ended arrow, something like this:

More Mouse Tricks

If you are a bit above the corner, it might look more like this:◦Just move down a bit, and you’ll see

the diagonal arrowThe double-ended arrow means that

you are over a stretchy handle, and can change the size of your window

More Mouse Tricks

Press the left mouse button, and hold it down

Still holding the button down (just like you did for moving the window), move the mouse

The bottom corner of the window will move with the mouse, but the top left corner stays in the same place!

More Mouse Tricks

Just move the bottom corner until the window is the size you want, and release the mouse button◦You’ve just resized a window!

More Mouse Tricks

Sometimes you want a window completely out of the way, but don’t want to “close” it (we’ll do that in a bit)

There is a control on the window to “Minimize” the window, which makes it as small as it can be

Making a Window REALLY Small

In the upper right corner of the Documents window, the left-most control looks like an “underline”

This is the “Minimize” control


Move your mouse pointer over the Minimize control and click the left button

It looks like the window disappeared!

It’s not gone, just “minimized”


You’ll remember we talked about the “task bar” at the bottom of the screen◦This extends from the Start button

How Do I Know It’s Not Gone?

Look at the Task bar on your computer◦You should see to “buttons” labeled

“Documents” and “Pictures”


These are the open windows on your computer, even though you can only see “Pictures”


To make the Documents Window visible again:

Mouse the mouse pointer over the Documents button on the task bar

Click onceThe window is visible again!

Bringing It Back

When you minimize a window, you move it out of sight, but it’s still there

When you are done working on a project, you should put your tools away

Closing a window

You do this with a window by “Closing” it

You close a window using the “Close control” in the upper right corner

Closing a window

You’ll often hear people refer to this control as the “red X”◦The control isn’t always red◦The X isn’t the red part!

Closing a window

To close a window◦move the tip of the mouse pointer over

the X◦click the left mouse button

The window will close, and all of its parts will be put away for future use

Closing a window

By itself, your computer isn’t very interesting.

You can think of it like a desk with a bookshelf built in. ◦It might be a nice piece of furniture,

you wouldn’t spend all day looking at it.

Starting Programs

What makes your desk useful is the things that you do on it.

Similarly, what makes the computer useful is the things you do with it.

You “do things” with your computer by running “programs.”

Starting Programs

You can think of a program as a set of instructions, like a recipe.

If you follow one set of instructions, you get a meatloaf, if another, you get chocolate cake

What is a program?

When your computer follows one set of instructions, it lets you access the World Wide Web

When it follows another set of instruction, it lets you write a letter to your brother

What is a program?

We’ll cover several programs in detail in the next lessons

What is a program?

As you might expect, you use the “Start” menu to start a program

Move the mouse over the Start Menu icon on the lower left corner of the screen

Click the left mouse-button onceThe Start Menu will appear

Starting a Program

Look for the program you want to start

Starting a Program

If you’ve used it recently, or if it is one that you’ve made “permanent,” it will be on the left side of the Start Menu

Starting a Program

If the program isn’t visible, click on the “All Programs” bar at the bottom left of the Start Menu

Starting a Program

This will change the left side of the Start Menu to show new information

Starting a Program

This list shows all of the programs installed on your computer

Starting a Program

The program you want might be inside one of the “file folders”

Starting a Program

If it is, you can click once on the folder to see what is inside

Starting a Program

When you see the program you want to use

Starting a Program

◦Position the tip of the mouse pointer over the name ◦Click the left

button once

Starting a Program

The program will start, opening a new window

Starting a Program

Starting a Program

In general, you can close a program simply by closing its window◦Move the tip of the mouse pointer over the close

control◦Click the left mouse button once

Stopping a Program

If you have work that you haven’t “saved”, you’ll get a message asking if you want to save your work

For now, click “No”The program will close

Stopping a Program

Usually, you will use the Start menu to turn off your computer

There are two “Off” switches on the Start Menu

Turning Off The Computer

Move the mouse pointer over the Start button in the lower left corner of the screen

Click onceThe Start Menu will open

Turning Off The Computer

Off and Off?

Your computer can be “off” in three different ways

Sleep◦Rather like putting your head down on

your desk, all of the work stays in place◦If the power goes away, so does your

work

Three kinds of off

Hibernate◦This is like putting your work away at

the end of the day, but planning to continue from the same place tomorrow.◦The computer stores all of your work,

keeping track of where you were.

Three kinds of off

Shut Down◦This is “I’m done and putting away my

tools.”◦All of your work is put away, and the

computer forgets all about what you did

Three kinds of off

Sleep◦Your computer will wake up fastest

from “sleep,” though some computers don’t wake up reliably◦If your electricity is reliable, use sleep

So, what should I use?

Hibernate◦It takes a bit longer to wake up from

hibernation, but the computer has saved your work in a safe way◦If your electricity sometimes goes out,

or you will be away from your computer for a time, use hibernate


Shut Down◦It takes longest to turn your computer

on from Shut Down◦You have to remember where you

were, and what you were doing


◦In this state, your computer is most nearly “Off.”◦Use Shut Down when you will be away

from your computer for some days


Using Your Computer

Documents

mouse pad

mouse buttonlogging

mousethe mouse

mouse pointer

left mousebuttonholding

separate switch

monitorthis switch

big boxthis switch