What are the Basic Skills?

1. Basic Skills
2. Opening A Window
3. Resizing A Window
4. Moving A Window
5. Too Many Open Windows?
6. What Is A Scrollbar?
7. What Is A Menu?
8. What Is A Menu Bar
9. Using Menus And Sub-Menus
10. What Is A Shortcut Menu?
11. What Are The Key Functions?
12. How Do I Close A Program?

Basic Skills

Basic skills are used repeatedly in every program. They include selecting text,
cutting and pasting text, copying and deleting text. You will also need to know how
to open a document, save a document, and print your work. 
• Selecting text. Click at the beginning of the text you want to select. Hold down
the mouse button and drag across the text. Release the mouse button and the text
will appear highlighted. 
• Cutting, copying and pasting. These commands are found under the Edit menu. The
Cut command allows you to remove text from your document and use it elsewhere.
The Copy command lets you duplicate a section of your document, for use
elsewhere, without removing it from the original spot. After you have Cut or Copied
your selection, move the cursor to the place in the document where you want the
section to appear. Then select the Paste option. 
• Deleting text. Select the text you want to delete. Press the Delete key. This is
different from Cut, as this text is not stored in the computer's memory for your
use. 
• Saving a document. One of the most important precautions you can take while
working is to save your work frequently. On the File menu of the program you are
working in, click Save As. The Save As window appears. In the File Name text box
there is a blinking cursor or highlighted text. Type in the name you want the file to
be called. Click on Save. As you continue working on the document, you need only to
choose the Save command from the File menu. 
• Printing your work. From the File menu, choose Print. After making sure all of the
options are set as you like them, click on OK.

Opening A Window

There are two types of windows, and both types have the same set of controls. 
• To open a window displaying the contents of a disk or folder, double-click on the
icon. The window is displayed on the Desktop. 
• To open a window displaying a program, start the program. The program is started
and displayed in a program window. If you are working in a program, you can have
two windows open: the program window and the document window. Each window has
its own set of controls. Confusing? Don't worry. With a little practice, you will be a
pro at this.

Resizing A Window

You may want to change the size of the window to make it easier to read. There
are several ways to resize a window. 
• Put the pointer on any of the window's borders, but not on the title bar. The
mouse pointer turns into a two-headed arrow. Drag the border to change the size
of the window. 
• Use the Minimize and Maximize buttons that are located in the upper right
corner of every window. If you click on the Minimize button, the window "closes".
You will notice how the program button is still on the taskbar. This is different
from actually exiting the program that you can do by clicking on the "x" button.
• Instead of quitting the program entirely, minimizing closes only the window of the
program. The title of the program you minimized now appears as a button on the
taskbar. To maximize or open the window again, click on the button.

Moving A Window

You may want to rearrange where a window is located. Follow these steps to move a
window: 
• Point to the window's title bar. 
• Drag the title bar to the location you want and release the mouse button.

Too Many Open Windows?

There are some commands you can use to "clean up" the window clutter on your
Desktop. 
• Right-click on the mouse anywhere on the taskbar. A menu appears. 
• Select Cascade. The Cascade command displays the windows so that the title bars
of each window appear.
• Click on the title bar to bring its window to the front of each stack. 
• Tile Horizontally stacks each window in horizontal panes and Tile Vertically stacks
each window in vertical panes.

What Is A Scrollbar?

A scrollbar is a gray rectangle with small black arrows on both ends. It lets you
select the portion of the window you want to see. It is on the right side of a
window for vertical scrolling and on the bottom for horizontal scrolling. When a
document is so big it cannot completely be displayed on the monitor, a scroll bar
appears so you can see all of its contents by moving the document up and down the
screen, or right and left. 
The Page Up key scrolls the document up and the Page Down key scrolls it down one
full page rather than one line at a time. By clicking the up/down scroll arrow one
time, you will move the document one line at a time. By clicking on a blank spot
above or below the scroll indicator, you will move the document up/down one page.
You can continuously scroll by depressing the mouse button steadily instead of by
just clicking it.

What Is A Menu?

A menu is a list of commands displayed on your screen, which allows you to perform
tasks. When you click on any of the words in the menu, a list of choices drops down.
Just as you would select your choices from a restaurant menu, you select the
choices of what to do on your computer

What Is A Menu Bar

A menu bar is an onscreen display that lists available categories of commands. It is

Using Menus And Sub-Menus

It is as simple as this: 
• On the menu bar, choose the category of the command that you want. The menu
opens. 
• Click on the command you want. Voila! 
If a sub-menu opens, it is just giving you more options of how to accomplish your
task at hand.

What Is A Shortcut Menu?

A shortcut menu is a hidden menu that can be opened at any time. Almost every
object on your Desktop has one. If you right-click on the item, the shortcut menu
will appear.

What Are The Key Functions?

• Fl-F12. These are programmable keys called function keys. They provide special
functions depending on the software you are using. 
• Esc. The escape key cancels a command or an operation. 
• Numeric Keypad. A calculator-style, set of keys for entering numbers. 
• NumLock. The Number Lock key switches the right-hand keypad between typing
numbers and being used as cursor keys. 
• Arrow Keys. The keys that move the cursor onscreen. The arrow keys move the
cursor in the direction indicated by the arrow on each key-one character left or
right or one line up or down. 
• Page Up (Pgup) and Page Down (PgDn). These keys move the cursor to the
preceding screen (PgUp) or the next screen (PgDn). 
• Ctrl. The control key pressed in combination with other keys, acts as a shortcut
to execute commands and to select commands from the drop down menus. 
• Delete (Del). This key deletes the current character.

How Do I Close A Program?

Always remember to close a program when you are finished working in it.
Otherwise, it will be taking up memory that other programs may need. 
To close a program: 
• Save your work. 
• Click the Close (x) button in the title bar of the window of the program. 
• If you have not saved your work, the program asks you if you want to. Click Yes to
save it, click No to lose it. 
• The program window disappears. Alternate method if the close button does not
work: 
• Go to File. 
• Save your work. 
• Click Close from the drop down menu.