Computer Basics

Computer Basics Parts of the Computer

Storage Devices

Flash (USB) Drive Hard Drive

• • • •

CD/DVD

Floppy Disk

The hard drive is inside the case. A lot of information can be stored there, but it is not portable. Flash or USB drives can hold quite a lot of data and are a safe way to transport your documents. The biggest danger is probably misplacing them. CDs hold more information than a floppy. (A 650 MB CD is equal to approx. 450 floppy disks) Floppy disks are an old technology but can still be used in older computers. New computers do not automatically come with floppy drives anymore.

Computer Basics Updated: January 2011

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The “Desktop” The Desktop is the first screen you see once the computer has finished starting up.

Background

Recycle Bin My Computer

Icon / Shortcut

Folder Taskbar

Start Button

System

Button

Examples of Desktop Icons Each icon gives you access to a “tool” (often called a program or application) that enables you to do a specific task with your computer. For example:

Allows you to see what’s on your computer’s storage devices.

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Web browsers like “Internet Explorer” and “Firefox” allow you to view websites.

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Word processors like “Microsoft Word” are used for typing letters, resumes and other documents

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The Mouse We use the keyboard and mouse to tell the computer what we want it to do. Scroll wheel

Mouse Parts Left button • •

Left button

Right button •

Brings up menu of options related to what the mouse is pointing at.

Scroll Wheel •

Right button

Single click: to select an icon OR follow a web link Double click: to open a file or a program.

Used to move up and down on pages

Holding the Mouse 1. Put your hand over the mouse. 2. Rest the heel of your hand on the desk at the bottom of the mouse, with the mouse buttons facing away from you. 3. Rest your index finger over the left mouse button.

The Mouse Pointer

Exercise: Pointing & Clicking -What shape is your mouse pointer? -Move the pointer around the desktop - Point at an icon and left click once - Point at another icon and left click twice (double click) - Point at an icon and right click - Point at the background and right click - Point at the “Start” button and left click

By moving the mouse around on the table we can “point” at different things on the computer’s monitor. The “mouse pointer” can take different shapes, and shows us where the mouse is currently pointing.

I

Mouse pointer shapes • Arrow – it is most often an arrow • Hourglass - when the computer is “thinking • Hand – when pointing at a web link • Bar – when over a place where you can type

Using the Mouse to Drag an Icon 1. 2. 3. 4.

Move the mouse pointer over the item. Click the left mouse button once and hold it down. Drag the item to its destination. Release the left mouse button.

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Exercise: Dragging an icon - Point at an icon - Click and hold down the left button - Move the mouse. The icon moves too! - Stop moving the mouse and let go the left button.

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The Keyboard The Cursor

I

Before you use the keyboard, you need to position the “cursor”. The “cursor” looks like a black flashing vertical line. It shows you where on the screen you will be typing. Letters appear to the left of the cursor and it moves to the right as you type.

Exercise: Putting the Cursor into a Box - Double (left) click on the Internet Explorer icon - Use your mouse to point at the “Ask a Librarian” button and left click once. - Point at the white box under “name” and left click once. (Did you notice the “I” shape of the mouse pointer? Do you see the flashing bar in the box now?) - Find another box where the mouse pointer becomes an “I” and click there to relocate the curser. - Return the cursor to the “Name” box

Caps

Shift

Backspace

Space

Enter

Special Computer Keys

Exercise: Typing in a Box

Arrow Keys: Move your cursor Space bar: Adds a space Enter/Return: Puts your cursor on a new line Shift: Hold down the shift key while typing a letter to get a capital letter. When there are two symbols on a key, you can hold the shift key down to type the upper symbol Caps Lock: After you press caps lock, all the letters you type will be capital letters. To go back to typing lowercase letters, press caps lock a second time. The caps lock has no effect on number or symbol keys Backspace: Deletes everything to the left of your cursor

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Arrow Keys

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(Continued from cursor exercise)

- Type your first and last names in the box. (Hint: you will need the shift key and the space bar.) - Use the backspace button to delete your names. - Press the Caps Lock key once. Type something. Press the Caps Lock key again. Type some more.

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Windows A “window” is a framed square where information is displayed. Opening a Window Double (left) click on an icon to open a window. In the previous exercise you double clicked on the Internet Explorer icon which opened a window like the one below. When you open a window a new button appears on the taskbar (see illustration of desktop on page 2 if you can’t remember where the taskbar is.) The Window Frame Although the stuff in the middle changes depending on which icon you click on, the window frame always looks the same and has the same functions. Top Blue Bar

Buttons

Edges

Scroll Bar

Application menus and buttons

Content

Corners

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Buttons: Maximize Minimize

• •

•

Close

Minimize: Click here to hide the window. Helpful if you want to see stuff underneath the window. You can get the window back by clicking on the button on the task bar. Maximize: Click on the middle button to expand the window to the size of the entire screen. Once the window is maximized, clicking the button again will shrink the window back down to its original size. Close: Closes the window completely. To bring it back you will have to double click on the icon again.

Top Blue Bar:

• •

Provides information about the application (e.g. Windows Internet Explorer) and what you are using it for (e.g. to view the Home web page for Halifax Public Libraries) When a window is not maximized, you can use the blue bar to drag a window to a new position. o Point at the blue bar with your mouse o Press and hold down the left mouse button o Move the mouse, and the window will move too. o Release the mouse button once you have the window where you want it.

Edges and Corners: •

When the window is not maximized, you can use the edges and corners to resize the window. o Hover over the edge/corner until the mouse pointer becomes a little double arrow.

o o

o

Press and hold down the left mouse button Move the mouse and the edge/corner will move too, resizing the window. Release the mouse button.

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Exercise: Manipulating Windows - Double click on the Internet Explorer icon to open a window. - Click the “minimize” button. The window is now hidden. - Double click on the Firefox icon. - Find the buttons for your two windows on the taskbar. - Click the buttons to alternate which window is on top. - Close one of the windows. (Notice that its button is no longer on the task bar.) - Use the edges and corners to resize the remaining window.

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Scroll Bar: When a window is too small to show all the information on a page, scroll bars will appear on the bottom and/or right of the window frame.

Exercise: Scroll Bars 1. Click the arrows on either end to move a little at a time. 2. Click the lighter area to move more rapidly. 3. Drag the darker part of the bar: - point at it with your mouse - press and hold the left mouse button - move the mouse

Try these other ways to scroll too: • •

Roll the mouse scroll wheel Use the arrow keys on the keyboard

Websites You now have all the basic skills you need to start looking at websites and surfing the internet! The Internet – Lots of computers, all over the world, connected and able to communicate with one another. This makes e-mail, surfing the web and online chatting possible. Information available via the internet that can be displayed visually by a “web browser” is called the “World Wide Web” (i.e. web sites). Web Browsers – Programs (software applications) on your computer that allows you to view web sites. Examples of browsers include Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, Mozilla’s Firefox, Google’s Chrome and Apple’s Safari.

Hyperlinks – Clicking your Way to More Web Pages: Hyperlinks are text or pictures on a web page that can be clicked on to take you to another web page. Words that are hyperlinks are often (but not always) a different colour than their neighbours and they are sometimes underlined. You can tell when your mouse is over a hyperlink because the mouse pointer will become a hand.

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Exercise: Clicking on Hyperlinks 1. Open Internet Explorer 2. Move your mouse around in the window and find some hyperlinks. (Hint – look for words or pictures 3. Point

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Website Addresses – Going Directly to Your Favourite Sites A website address is the information your browser needs to connect to another computer on the internet and retrieve a web site for you to view. They often begin with “www.” and are sometimes called URLs (Uniform Resource Locator). They need to be typed into the browser’s address bar.

Examples of Website Addresses / URLs : • • • • • • • •

Halifax Public Libraries: www.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca Halifax Regional Municipality: www.halifax.ca Halifax Chronicle Herald: www.thechronicleherald.ca Government of Nova Scotia: www.gov.ns.ca Nova Scotia Tourism Site: www.novascotia.com Canadian Broadcasting Corporation: www.cbc.ca Environment Canada’s Weather Office: www.weatheroffice.gc.ca The Canadian Encyclopedia: www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com

Steps for Going to a Website: 1. Point your mouse anywhere in the browser’s address bar and left click once. 2. Press the backspace button on the keyboard to delete the address that was in the box. 3. Type the address for the website you want to visit. 4. Press the Enter key on the keyboard.

Computer Basics

Exercise: Going to the CBC Website 1. Open a web browser by double clicking on its icon. 2. Find the browser’s address bar. What address is currently in it? 3. Click in the address bar and delete what’s currently in there. 4. Type www.cbc.ca and press the Enter key. 5. Enjoy looking at the CBC website and try clicking on a few hyperlinks. 6. Now see if you can repeat these steps to visit another website from the list above.

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Search Engines - Finding Websites Search engines are special websites that make it possible for you to find other websites even when you don’t know their web addresses. The most widely used search engine is Google. Website Address: www.google.ca

Exercise: Using Google 1. Go to www.google.com 2. Click in the Google search box 3. Type Halifax health 4. Press Enter. 5. A list of websites related to health in Halifax will appear. Do you recognize any? 6. Each item in the list has a blue heading followed by some text. Click on one of the blue headings to go to the associated website.

Finishing Up for Today We hope you’ve enjoyed your introduction to computers! FINAL EXERCISE: Shutting Down the Computer

Shutting Down the Computer Whenever you’re finished using a computer you should shut it down. For the computer it’s a bit like tidying up your desk and filing important papers away so you can find them again.

Practice is Essential! The only way to improve your computer skills is to practice what you have learned. If you don’t have a computer at home you can use the library computers to practice. Here are the website addresses for two excellent tutorials. Use them to perfect some of your new skills. (The library’s information desk staff can help you to get to these exercises.) • www.mesalibrary.org/research/mouse/page01.htm • www.pbclibrary.org/mousing

1. Single left click the Start button, click Shut down. A little window will open. 2. Click Shut down. Click OK. 3. Your computer will start shutting down and switch itself off. (If you see a message saying “It is now safe to turn off your computer” you can push the power button to turn it off.)

Want to Learn More? The library offers many computer classes. You can learn how to search the internet, use email and type using word processors. To find out about upcoming classes call or visit your nearest branch or visit this page on the library’s website: • www.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca/computers

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Basic Computer Terms Application:

a computer program designed for a specific task or use. Examples: a word processing application to write letters, a communication application to do email

Background:

the image that fills the background of the desktop. Could be a picture, scenery, etc.

Buttons:

found on the taskbar; represent open applications and include images and text describing the application.

Desktop:

the first screen you see after the operating system loads and contains icons, buttons, task bar, shortcuts, etc.

Icon:

a picture that acts as a shortcut to a particular file, directory, window, option, program or application.

My Computer:

icon that, when clicked, will open a window displaying a list of disk drives found in your computer (A drive, C drive, CDROM drive, etc.)

Operating system: also known as the “OS”; software designed to make hardware and applications work together; Examples: Windows, MS-DOS, UNIX, MacIntosh Program Menu:

a list of programs installed on your computer; can be accessed from the Start menu.

Recycle Bin:

When you delete a file from your computer, it does not get “completely” deleted from your computer; instead it is moved into the Recycle Bin. From the Recycle Bin you choose then to completely delete the file from your computer or restore it.

Shortcut:

a time-saving link to an application

Software:

a set of instructions that 1) tells the computer what to do, 2) talks to and controls hardware, and 3) tells the computer how to display information. Examples: Operating system software like Windows and application software like Internet Explorer for viewing websites.

Start Button:

can be opened by clicking on Start button at the bottom left corner of the desktop. It gives access to programs, recently used documents, settings for particular hardware and software applications, search function for files and folders, and a help option.

System tray:

Is a section of the taskbar that displays the time and contains icons for constantly running applications.

Taskbar:

a horizontal bar located at the bottom of the computer screen that lists applications that are currently in use

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