Sample Windows Vista Intermediate Manual

Windows Vista
Intermediate Level
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Microsoft Windows Vista – Intermediate - Page 3
DESKTOP CUSTOMISATION .................................................................................................................. 5
PERSONALISING THE DESKTOP ......................................................................................................................... 5

Sorting Desktop icons................................................................................................................................. 5
Auto Arranging Desktop icons ................................................................................................................... 5
Creating a Desktop shortcut ...................................................................................................................... 5
Creating a Desktop folder .......................................................................................................................... 6
Copying Desktop icons to Desktop folders.............................................................................................. 7
Deleting Desktop folders ............................................................................................................................ 7
Deleting Icons .............................................................................................................................................. 8
Desktop Personalisation options............................................................................................................... 8
Desktop Personalisation - Windows Colour and Appearance .............................................................. 9
Using non-Aero windows display, or classic Windows display .......................................................... 10
Desktop Personalisation - Desktop Background .................................................................................. 12
Desktop Personalisation - Screen Saver ............................................................................................... 15
Desktop Personalisation - Sounds ......................................................................................................... 17
Desktop Personalisation - Mouse Pointers ........................................................................................... 19
Desktop Personalisation - Theme........................................................................................................... 21
Desktop Personalisation - Display Settings .......................................................................................... 23
TASKBAR CUSTOMISATION .............................................................................................................................. 25
Taskbar Locking ........................................................................................................................................ 25
Moving the Taskbar .................................................................................................................................. 25
Using AutoHide and Group ...................................................................................................................... 26
Other taskbar customization options ...................................................................................................... 27
Customizing Notification Area icons ....................................................................................................... 28
Displaying and hiding Taskbar toolbars ................................................................................................. 29
CUSTOMIZING THE QUICK LAUNCH TOOLBAR ................................................................................................. 31
What is the Quick Launch toolbar?......................................................................................................... 31
Adding program icons............................................................................................................................... 32
Removing program icons ......................................................................................................................... 33
Reordering icons within the Quick Launch toolbar ............................................................................... 33
CUSTOMIZING THE START MENU ..................................................................................................................... 33
Customizing the Vista Start Menu .......................................................................................................... 33
SIDEBAR AND GADGETS................................................................................................................................... 35
Displaying the Sidebar.............................................................................................................................. 35
Customising the Sidebar .......................................................................................................................... 36
Adding Gadgets to the Sidebar ............................................................................................................... 37
Removing gadgets from the Sidebar ...................................................................................................... 39
Customising the Clock gadget ................................................................................................................ 40
Customising the Slide Show gadget....................................................................................................... 41
Getting more gadgets online ................................................................................................................... 41
SHARING FILES AND FOLDERS ......................................................................................................... 44
Sharing Folders ......................................................................................................................................... 44

Stopping folder sharing ............................................................................................................................ 46
Accessing shared folders and files on your network ............................................................................ 47
Mapping a drive ......................................................................................................................................... 49
SECURITY ISSUES................................................................................................................................. 52
Opening the Security Center window ..................................................................................................... 52

Firewall........................................................................................................................................................ 54
Automatic updating ................................................................................................................................... 56
Malware protection .................................................................................................................................... 57
Other security settings .............................................................................................................................. 57
VISTA PROGRAMS ................................................................................................................................ 58
FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

1995-2008 Cheltenham Courseware Pty. Ltd. - www.cheltenhamcourseware.com
WINDOWS PHOTO GALLERY ............................................................................................................................ 58

Opening the Gallery .................................................................................................................................. 58
Controlling the pictures and videos display within the Photo Gallery ................................................ 59
Adding tags ................................................................................................................................................ 60
Deleting tags .............................................................................................................................................. 61
Thumbnail views, grouping and sorting ................................................................................................. 62
Adding a folder to the Photo Gallery ...................................................................................................... 64
WINDOWS CONTACTS ...................................................................................................................................... 67
Starting Windows Contacts...................................................................................................................... 67
Adding Contacts ........................................................................................................................................ 68
Importing a contact list.............................................................................................................................. 71
Opening Contacts ..................................................................................................................................... 73
Editing a record ......................................................................................................................................... 74
WINDOWS CALENDAR ...................................................................................................................................... 74
Opening the Calendar .............................................................................................................................. 75
Creating New Calendars .......................................................................................................................... 75
Adding Appointments ............................................................................................................................... 76
Changing the Calendar View ................................................................................................................... 80
WINDOWS MEDIA CENTRE ............................................................................................................................... 81
Setting up Windows Media Centre ......................................................................................................... 81
Navigating Through Windows Media Centre ........................................................................................ 83
Music ........................................................................................................................................................... 84
Pictures and Videos .................................................................................................................................. 84
Online Media .............................................................................................................................................. 85
TV and Movies ........................................................................................................................................... 85
Tasks........................................................................................................................................................... 86
WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER ............................................................................................................................... 86
Opening Windows Media Player ............................................................................................................. 86
Playing a movie DVD ................................................................................................................................ 87
Playing a music CD................................................................................................................................... 89
Ripping a CD.............................................................................................................................................. 90
Burning a CD ............................................................................................................................................. 91
The Classic menu view ............................................................................................................................ 93
Creating Playlists....................................................................................................................................... 94
Listening to a Playlist ................................................................................................................................ 95
WINDOWS MOVIE MAKER ................................................................................................................................ 96
Opening Windows DVD Maker ............................................................................................................... 96
Importing media ......................................................................................................................................... 97
Publishing a movie .................................................................................................................................. 102

Desktop Customisation
Personalising the Desktop
Sorting Desktop icons

• Right click on the Desktop and from the popup menu displayed click on the
Sort By command. From the submenu displayed click on one of the sort
options. Experiment sorting the icons using the sort options available.
Auto Arranging Desktop icons

• Right click on the Desktop and from the popup menu displayed click on the
View command. From the submenu displayed, click on the Auto Arrange
command.
• You will find that your icons now ‘Auto Arrange’ according to the ‘Sort By’
options that you have chosen. Try dragging an icon to a different position on
the screen. You will find that the icon will be automatically sorted for you
and you can no longer place icons on the Desktop in any location you choose.
Before continuing switch off the Auto Arrange function, by re-clicking on the
•
command.
Creating a Desktop shortcut

• Click on the Start button and then click on the All Programs button. Click
on the Accessories group. You should see the Welcome Center program
icon listed under the Accessories group.

• Right click on the Welcome Center program icon. From within the popup
menu displayed select the Send To command. From the submenu displayed
select the Desktop (create shortcut) command.
• You will see the following icon displayed on your Desktop.
• Double click on this icon to run the Welcome Center window.

• Close all open windows before continuing.
Creating a Desktop folder

• Right click on the Desktop and from the popup menu displayed, select the
New command. From the submenu displayed, select the Folder command.

• You will see the new folder displayed on your Desktop, as illustrated.
• Type in a new name for the folder, in this case call it My New Folder.
Copying Desktop icons to Desktop folders

• Click on the Welcome Center icon to select it. Depress the Ctrl key (and
keep it depressed). Drag the icon over your new folder icon, release the
mouse button followed by the Ctrl key. You have now copied the icon to the
folder. The folder will now look different, as illustrated.
TIP: If you drag a Desktop icon without pressing the Ctrl key at the same
time, you will move rather than copy the icon.
• Double click on the new folder to open it and display the Welcome Center
icon within it. Close the folder window.
Deleting Desktop folders

• Click on your new folder to select it and then press the Del key. You will see
a warning dialog box. Click on the Yes button to confirm the deletion.

Deleting Icons
• Create another Desktop icon and then select the Desktop icon. Press the Del
key. You will see a dialog box. Click on the Yes button to confirm the
deletion.
Desktop Personalisation options

• Right click on the Desktop and from the popup menu displayed select the
Personalize command.

This will display the Personalization dialog box.
Desktop Personalisation - Windows Colour and Appearance

• Click on Window Color and Appearance option
This will display the following dialog box, allowing you to customise the
appearance of your windows, Start Menu and Taskbar.

• Experiment with selecting different colours and look at the effects. You can
also use the Color intensity slider to add more impact to your changes.
• Before continuing, click on the Default color mixer button to set the colours
back to the original settings.
Using non-Aero windows display, or classic Windows display

• Within the Windows Color and Appearance dialog box, click on the
following link.
This will display the Appearance Settings dialog box.

Within the Color Scheme section you can select from a range of options.
Useful options include.
Windows Aero.
If your version of Windows and your hardware allows it, this will give you the
full Aero effect with translucent windows.
Windows Vista Basic.

This will give you the Vista look and feel without the Aero enhancements.
Windows Classic.
This will give you the classic pre-Vista Windows look and feel.

• Experiment with changing the Color schemes.

• Set the colour scheme back to its original Windows Vista setting.
• Click on the OK button to close the dialog box.
Desktop Personalisation - Desktop Background

• Click on the Desktop Background link.
This will display the Desktop background window. Clicking on the down
arrow to the right of the Picture Location option will display a range of
Desktop background options.

• Selecting Windows Wallpapers from the drop down menu will display a
range of Windows Wallpaper options.
• Selecting Sample Pictures from the drop down menu will display pictures
from which you can choose wallpaper, as illustrated.

• Selecting Solid Colors from the drop down menu will display a dialog box,
allowing you to set solid colours as your Desktop background.
• Experiment with applying these various options and look at the effects.

• Click on the OK button to close the desktop background window.
Desktop Personalisation - Screen Saver

• Click on the Screen Saver option.
This will display the following dialog box.
• In the example shown, the Ribbons screen saver is active. Click on the
down arrow and you will see other screen savers that you can select.

• Try applying some of these other screen saver types, and click on the
Preview button to view the screen saver.
• You can use the Wait control to set the time of inactivity before the screen
saver kicks in.
• Choose the 3D Text screen saver. Click on the Settings button, which will
display a dialog box.
• Within the Custom Text section type in your name.

• Click on the Choose Font button and select a font that you like the look of.
• Click on the down arrow in the Rotation Type section on the dialog box,
and select the Spin option.

• Select a Resolution, Size and Rotation speed.

• Click on the OK button to apply your options and Preview your changes.
• Click on the OK button to close the Screen Saver Settings dialog box.
Desktop Personalisation - Sounds

• Click on the Sounds option.
• Select the Exit Windows event.

• Click on the test button. You will hear the sound associated with shutting
down Windows.
• Click on the down arrow within the Sounds section of the dialog box and
you will see a list of alternative sounds that you can use.
• If you see it, select Tada (if you don’t see this sound, select any alternative
sound).
• Click on the OK button to apply the change and then close down Windows,
using the Restart option.

• When Windows restarts, you should hear the new sound that you selected.
• Before continuing, reset the sound back to the original sound, as illustrated.
Desktop Personalisation - Mouse Pointers

• If necessary, re-open the Personilization window.
• Click on the Mouse Pointers option.

• Clicking on the down arrow within the Scheme area allows you to modify
the scheme used, as illustrated. Do not make any changes, just remember
some of the options so that if you ever want to make changes such as
applying the Extra large scheme you would know how to.

• Click on the Cancel button to close the Mouse Properties dialog box.
Desktop Personalisation - Theme

• Click on the Theme option.

• Clicking on the down arrow within the Theme area lets you choose from a
range of options, such as Windows Classic.

• Try applying the Windows Classic Theme and spend a short time using the
Start Menu and opening dialog boxes, to view the effect.
• Before continuing, set the theme back to its original setting.
Desktop Personalisation - Display Settings

• Click on the Display Settings option.
• To learn more about the complexities of setting the resolution and colour
setting, click on the help link displayed towards the bottom-left of the
Display Settings dialog box. Read this information carefully before making
any changes.

• You can use the Resolution section to increase or decrease the resolution
used.
• Click on the Advanced Settings button to see many more options. If you
have time, you may like to investigate some of the customisation options
available. Remember to use help if you get stuck.

• Click on the OK button to close the Display Settings dialog box.
• Close the Personalisation window.

Taskbar Customisation
Taskbar Locking
• The Taskbar is normally locked in place and displayed along the bottom of
your Desktop. To unlock the Taskbar, right click on an empty portion of the
taskbar and from the popup menu displayed, click on the Lock the Taskbar
command, to remove the tick.
Moving the Taskbar

• Once you have unlocked the Taskbar you can move it. Click on an empty
portion of the Taskbar and while keeping the mouse button depressed drag
the Taskbar to the top of your Desktop, as illustrated.
• Drag the taskbar to the left edge of your Desktop, as illustrated.

• Drag the Taskbar to the bottom of your Desktop. Re-lock the Taskbar in
place.
Using AutoHide and Group

• Right click on an empty part of the Taskbar. From the popup menu select the
Properties command which will display the Taskbar and Start Menu
Properties dialog box, as illustrated.

• Click on the Auto-hide the taskbar check box and click on the OK button,
the taskbar will disappear. Move the mouse pointer to the bottom of the
screen and the Taskbar will be displayed again. Move the mouse pointer
away for the bottom of the screen and the Taskbar will become hidden again.
Before continuing, remove the tick next to the Auto-hide the taskbar
•
option.
Other taskbar customization options

• Display the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box. You can set
the following options.
Keep the taskbar on top of other windows.

This option forces the Taskbar to be displayed on top of other windows that
contain your programs. This means that the Taskbar is always visible.
Group similar taskbar buttons.

This option allows multiple icons from a particular program to be stacked on
top of each other. With this option active, you will see something like this
when you open a lot of Microsoft Word documents (10 in the example
shown).
Clicking on the stacked icon will display a list of the individual windows as
illustrated.

With this option not active the Taskbar would look like this.
Show Quick Launch.

The Quick Launch toolbar is the section of the Taskbar next to the Start
button. Shortcuts to programs can be added to the Quick launch toolbar.
Show window previews (thumbnails).

This option allows you to view a thumbnail preview of the contents of a
window when you point to an icon within the Taskbar.
• Close the dialog box.
Customizing Notification Area icons

• The Notification area is the area on the right end of the Taskbar.
• Right click over an empty part of the Notification Area of the Taskbar.
From the popup menu displayed select the Customize Notification Icons
command.

• This will display the Customize Notification Icons dialog box.
• You can select an icon and change its behaviour, as illustrated.
NOTE: Do not change the behaviour of the icons on your computer; just
remember how to do this.
• Close the dialog box.
Displaying and hiding Taskbar toolbars

• Right click on an empty part of the Taskbar and from the popup menu
displayed, select the Toolbars command. You will see a list of available
toolbars. Those that are currently displayed are ticked.

Click on of the Address command and you should see an address field
displayed within the Taskbar.
Type a web address into this field, such as www.microsoft.com and when
you click on the arrow to the right of the address field, the Internet Explorer
window will open and display the web page that you typed the address of.
Re-click on the Address command to stop the display of the Address toolbar.
• Click on the Desktop command.
This will display Desktop related elements within the Taskbar. When you
click on the arrow next to this item you will see a popup list as illustrated
below, allowing you to run programs by clicking on an item from the list.

Re-click on the Desktop command to stop the display of the Desktop toolbar.
• Click on the Quick Launch command (which should be ticked). Clicking on

this will de-select it. The Quick Launch icons (normally displayed next to
the Start button in the left section of the Taskbar) will disappear. Re-click on
the Quick Launch command.
The Quick Launch icons will once again be displayed.
Customizing the Quick Launch Toolbar
What is the Quick Launch toolbar?

• Displayed next to the Start button and contains icons for launching
programs. By default the Quick launch Toolbar contains:
Launch Internet Explorer Browser.

Opens the Internet Explorer window.
Show Desktop.
Toggles between displaying and minimising all windows on the Desktop. The
keyboard shortcut to do this involves pressing the Microsoft Logo key and

the D key.
Switch between windows.

Displays the windows using the Flip 3D view. The keyboard shortcut to do
this involves pressing the Microsoft Logo key and the Tab key.
Adding program icons

• It is very easy to add program icons to the Quick Launch toolbar. To
illustrate this we will add the Notepad program icon to this toolbar.
• Click on the Start button and then click on All Programs. Click on
Accessories. Select the Notepad program.
• While pointing to the Notepad program, press down the mouse button and
while keeping it pressed drag the icon down to the Quick Launch toolbar.
Release the mouse button and you will see the Notepad icon displayed within
the toolbar.
NOTE: You may need to click on the double arrows within the Quick Launch

toolbar to see the Notepad icon displayed, as illustrated below.
Removing program icons

• If necessary click on the Desktop icon so that you can see the Desktop icons
on your screen. Point to the icon you wish to remove from the Quick Launch
toolbar. Drag the icon to the Recycle Bin, and the icon will be removed.
NOTE: When you drag an icon from the Quick Launch toolbar to the Recycle
Bin you are not deleting the actual program. You are just removing a
shortcut to that program.
Reordering icons within the Quick Launch toolbar

• To reorder icons within the Quick launch toolbar simply drag icons from one
location to another.
Customizing the Start Menu
Customizing the Vista Start Menu

• Right click on the Start button and from the popup menu displayed, click on
the Properties command.
• This will display the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box.

• Click on the Classic Start menu button and then click on the OK button to
apply the change and close the dialog box. Click on the Start button and you
will see the type of Start menu used by previous versions of Microsoft
Windows.
• Re-display the Taskbar and Start menu Properties dialog box and click on
Start menu which will deselect the Classic Start menu option. Click on the
Apply button to apply the change, but leave the dialog box open.

• Within the Privacy section of the dialog box, you will see check boxes to
allow or disable the display of recently used files. If you do not wish your
recently accessed files to be displayed on the Start menu you can deselect
these options. In this case leave the options as they are and close the dialog
boxes.
• To see a list of recently accessed files, click on the Start button and then click
on the Recent Items button. A list of recently accessed files will be
displayed.
Sidebar and Gadgets
Displaying the Sidebar

• If the sidebar is not displayed, press the Windows Logo key and the
Spacebar.

Customising the Sidebar

• Right click over an empty part of the sidebar and from the popup menu
displayed select the Properties command.
• This will display the Windows Sidebar Properties dialog box.
• Make sure that the Start Sidebar when Windows starts box is ticked, so
that each time you start Windows the Sidebar is automatically displayed.
• You can opt to have the sidebar displayed over other program windows that
you run. This is not normally a good idea as your screen can look very
crowded.
• You can opt to display the Sidebar on the left or right side of the screen.

• Close the Window Sidebar Properties dialog box.
Adding Gadgets to the Sidebar

• Right click on an empty part of the Sidebar and from the popup menu
displayed, select the Add Gadgets command.
• You will see the following window displayed.
• Double click on the gadget you wish to install and it will appear in the side
bar. Add all the gadgets, one by one. Your Sidebar will now look something
like this.

• There are too many gadgets to be displayed at the same time, so you now
need to use the controls displayed at the top of your Sidebar.
• The plus control allows you to add gadgets, while the two arrow controls
allow you to scroll around the gadget displays, as illustrated.

TIP: You can install more than one copy of most gadgets. For instance, you
could install 3 Clock gadgets, allowing you to display the time in 3 separate
time zones.
Removing gadgets from the Sidebar

• Right click on the gadget to wish to delete and from the popup menu
displayed select the Close Gadget command.
• Remove all the gadgets apart from the Slideshow, Clock and Feed
Headlines.

Customising the Clock gadget

• Point to the Clock gadget and then click on the small spanner icon displayed
to the right of the gadget.
• This will display the Options window for the gadget.
TIP: Alternately you can right-click on a gadget and select the Options
command from the popup menu displayed.
• You can use the arrow controls just under the clock image to select different
types of clock. Experiment and find one you like.

• You can change the time zone and also specify that the second hand is
displayed within the clock display.
Customising the Slide Show gadget

• Right click over the Slide Show gadget and from the popup menu displayed
select the Options command. This will display a window allowing you to
customise the Slide Show.
• Spend a little time experimenting with the options available, such as altering
the amount of time each slide is displayed and also adding transition effects
between slides.
• Close any open windows.
Getting more gadgets online

• Within the top of the Sidebar, click on the plus link.
• This will display a window allowing you to add more gadgets that are already
stored on your hard disk. To get more gadgets online, click on the Get more
gadgets online link (displayed at the bottom-right of the window).

• You will see a window displayed within your Internet Explorer.
• Locate a gadget of interest, such as a calculator and then download it by

following the on-screen instructions.


Sharing Files and Folders
Sharing Folders
• Open the Windows Explorer. To do this, right click on the Start button and
from the popup menu displayed select the Explore command.
• Scroll up the folder display (in the left side of the window) until you can see a
folder called Cheltenham Courseware.
Click on the arrow to the left of the Cheltenham Courseware folder and the
• folder will expand to display the Vista level 2 folder.
• Click on the Vista level 2 folder to select it.
• We have selected the Vista level 2 folder. Now we want to share the
contents of this folder with other people on our network. To do this, right
click over the selected folder and from the popup menu displayed select the
Share command.

• This will display the File Sharing window, as illustrated.
• Click on the Share button. You will see a warning dialog box. Click on the
Continue button. You will now see that the folder has been shared.
• Click on the Done button.

Stopping folder sharing

• Select the Vista Level 2 folder within the Windows Explorer. Right click on
this folder and from the popup displayed, select the Share command. This
will display the File Sharing dialog box.
• Click on the Stop Sharing button. You will see a warning dialog box. Click
on the Continue button. You will then see the following dialog box. Click on
the Done button to close this dialog box.

• The folder is no longer shared.
• Re-share the folder before continuing.
Accessing shared folders and files on your network

• NOTE: Just read through this section. You do not have these shared folders
on your network, these instructions are simply to illustrate how you would
connect to folders and files on networked computers. After you have read
through this section you may wish to investigate your own network and see
what resources have been shared with you across your network.
• Within the Windows Explorer click on the Network icon, as illustrated.
• You will see other computers that you can connect to.

• Double click on the computer you wish to connect to, and you will see the
resources that have been shared by that computer.
• Double click on the folder that you want to connect to. In the example
illustrated, we double clicked on a folder called rowan-share. The contents
of the folder are now displayed.

• To open a file within this folder, double click on the file in the normal way and
you will see the Microsoft Word file loaded up within the Microsoft Word
program.
Mapping a drive
• NOTE: Just read through this section. You do not have these shared folders
on your network, these instructions are simply to illustrate how you would
map a drive. After you have read through this section you may wish to
investigate your own network and see if you can map to a shared folder on
your network.
• Drive letters are assigned to disks. Your hard disk is called Drive C. If you
have a CD/DVD drive this is often Drive D. If you use a memory stick this
could be assigned a drive letter such as Drive E. If you want to you can
assign a folder, which is actually contained on the hard drive of a computer
on your network, a drive letter. Once assigned you can treat this folder on a
networked computer, exactly as another drive as far as your computer is
concerned. It would be listed within the Windows Explorer window as a drive
and you could copy files to and from the assigned drive in the normal way.
• To assign a network folder to a drive letter, first open the Windows Explorer
window and select a folder that has been shared by a computer connected to
your network. In this example, we have connected to a shared folder on
Rowans computer.
• Right click on the folder that you wish to map to a drive letter. From the
popup menu displayed; select the Map Network Drive command.

• You will see the following window displayed.
• You can click on the down arrow next to the Drive section and select a free
drive letter of your choice. Clicking on the Finish button will map the drive.
If the Reconnect at logon box is ticked then Windows will remember this
drive is mapped even after you reboot the computer.
• After the mapping is complete you will see a window displaying the contents
of the mapped drive.

• Close this window.

• If you look at the drives listed within your Windows Explorer, you will see the
mapped drive displayed (as drive Z in this example).

Security Issues
Opening the Security Center window

• Click on the Start button and select the Control Panel.
• This will display the Control Panel window.
• Click on the Security icon and you will see a window related to Vista security
issues.

• Click on the Security Center icon and you will see the Security Center
window.

Firewall
• Click on the down arrow within the Firewall section.
The section will expand, as illustrated.
• In the example illustrated McAfee Personal Firewall is handling the firewall for
your computer. Most anti-virus programs have a firewall element within
them and handle the firewall rather than Windows doing the job itself.
• To see what firewall programs are available on your computer, click on the
following link.
This will display a list of firewall programs available. Only one should be
active, multiple active firewalls can cause problems as they can conflict with
each other.

• Close the list of firewalls available, by clicking on the Close button.
• Click on the following link to get more information about firewalls.
• If you have the time use Windows Help to find out more about firewalls.
Close the Help window before continuing.
• Click on the up arrow within the Firewall section to contract the section
back to its original size.

Automatic updating
• Click on the down arrow within the Automatic updating section to expand
the display.
• Clicking on the link for more information about automatic updating will
display the following screen.
• Take some time to investigate these related links, especially the Frequently
asked questions link.
• Close any open Help windows.

• Click on the up arrow within the Automatic updating section to contract

the section back to its original size.
Malware protection
• Click on the down arrow within the Malware protection section to expand
the display. In this example McAfee is handling the Virus, Spyware and other
malicious programs protection.
• Spend a little time investigating the Help links that are available. Close the
Help windows before continuing and shrink this section back to its original
size.
Other security settings

• Click on the down arrow within the Other security settings section to
expand the display.
• Use the help links to understand more about Internet security settings
and User Account Control.

Vista programs
Windows Photo Gallery
Opening the Gallery

• Click on the Start button, click on All Programs and then click on Windows
Photo Gallery (you may have to scroll up the list to see this option).
• This will display the Windows Photo Gallery window.

Controlling the pictures and videos display within the Photo Gallery
• If you were to collapse the folder structure display, in the left side of the
Photo Gallery window, you would see the following.
• It is important to realise that the Photo Gallery organises photos from

different folders and displays them within the Photo Gallery window,
depending on which of the options you choose:-
All Pictures and Videos:

This option displays all the pictures and videos that the Photo Gallery is
aware of.
Recently Imported.
Displays files recently imported to your computer.
Tags.
Allows you to display files with a particular tag.
Date Taken.
Allows you to display files by date.
Ratings.
Allows you to display files by rating.

Folders.
Allows you to display files in a particular folder.
• Experiment with applying some of the options outlined above.
Adding tags
• Click on All pictures and Videos. Select the photo called Forest. If
necessary, click on the Info button.
• You should see tag information displayed in the right hand section of your
screen.
• As you can see the current tags are Landscape and Sample. We will add a
tag to this photo called Exhibition. To do this click on the Add Tags icon,
and type in the word Exhibition.

• Press the Enter key and you will see that this tag has been added.
TIP: You can select multiple files by holding down the Ctrl key as you click
on each file. You can then apply a new tag to all the selected files in one
operation, rather than having to tag the files one at a time.
Deleting tags
• Select the tag you wish to remove, in this case the Exhibition tag for the
photo called Forest.

• Press the Delete key and the tag will be removed.
Thumbnail views, grouping and sorting

• Click on the Choose a Thumbnail View icon and you will see a drop down
list displayed.
• The default view, called Thumbnails display a small preview of the picture or
video.
• The Thumbnails with text view displays the thumbnail along with basic file
information, as illustrated.
• The Tiles view looks like this. More information is displayed about the file.

• The Group By option allows you to group your files, based on particular
criteria, such as ‘Year Taken’.
• The Sort By option allows you to specify how you want the files sorted.

• The Table of Contents option displays a ‘Table of Contents’ to the left of the
thumbnails, allowing you to jump to the group you are interested in.
• Experiment with using some of the concepts outlined above.
Adding a folder to the Photo Gallery

• By default the Windows Photo Gallery displays pictures and videos contained
within your picture and video folders. Folders can be added to the Photo
Gallery so that you can also view pictures and videos stored in multiple
folders throughout your hard disk. In fact individual pictures and videos can
be added to the Photo Gallery as well as entire folders.
There are some sample files in a folder called:
•
C:\Cheltenham Courseware\Vista Level 2
We shall now add this folder to the Photo Gallery, so that any pictures or
videos in this folder will also be displayed within the Photo Gallery window.
• Click on the File drop down menu and select the Add Folder to Gallery
command.

• You will see the Add Folder to Gallery dialog box.
• Double click on Computer.
• This will expand the display, as illustrated.

• Double click on the C: drive icon and you will see the Cheltenham
Courseware folder displayed.
• Double click on the Cheltenham Courseware folder and select the Vista
level 2 folder.

• Click on the OK button. You will see the following dialog box.
• Click on the OK button. You will be able to see all the photos and movies
contained within the folder you have just added.
Windows Contacts
Starting Windows Contacts

• The Windows Contacts program allows you to store details about your
personal or business contacts, including email addresses, physical addresses
and phone numbers. Click on the Start button and then click on All
Programs. You may need to scroll up to see the Windows Contacts

command. Click on this to open the program.
Adding Contacts
• Click on the New Contact button.
• This will display a dialog box into which you can type details about the new
contact. Enter a set of fictitious details into the Name and E-mail tab.

• Click on the Home tab and continue entering fictitious data.
• Click on the Work tab and continue entering fictitious data.

• Click on the Family tab and continue entering fictitious data.

• Create two more fictitious contacts before continuing.

• Close any open dialog boxes before continuing.
Importing a contact list

• You can import contacts contained within a list rather than having to type
them all in one by one. To do this click on the Import button.
This will display the Import to Windows Contact window.
• First you have to select the file format of the list that you are importing. In
this case select CSV. This format is a text only file and is a common format
for mailing and contact lists. Click on the Import button.
• This will display the CSV Import window.

• Click on the Browse button to select the file you wish to import. You need to
navigate to the folder containing the CSV file. In this case the file is
contained in the folder.
C:\cheltenham courseware\Vista level 2
• Select the file called Contacts then click on the Open button.
• This will display the following window. Click on the Next button.

• This will display the following window. Click on the Finish button.
• Close the Import to Windows Contacts window.

• You will see the contacts listed within the Windows Contacts window.
Opening Contacts
• Click on a contact to see more information. For instance within the list you
have just imported, click once on Birgit Wilson to select the contact. You
will see the following information displayed.

Editing a record
• Select a record and click on the Edit button.
• You will see a window allowing you to edit that record. Add additional
fictitious details for Birgit Wilson.
Windows Calendar

Opening the Calendar

• Click on the Start button and then click on All Programs. You may need to
scroll up to see the Windows Calendar command. Click on this to open the
program.
Creating New Calendars

• Click on the File drop down menu and click on the New Calendar command.
• You will see the new calendar button displayed, as illustrated.

• Click over the New Calendar text and change the name to Office Calendar,
as illustrated.
• Make sure that the Office Calendar is selected. You should see the text
‘Office Calendar’ displayed in the Title Bar of the window.
Adding Appointments
• Click on the New Appointment button.

• Your screen will now look like this.
• Within the New Appointment section you can enter a brief description of
the appointment.
• Within the Location section you can enter the location of the appointment.
• Use the drop down list within the Calendar section to select which calendar
the appointment relates to.
• Within the Appointment Information section you can click on the All-day
Appointment check box, for a full day appointment. Or you can select start
and end times for the appointment.
• If the appointment is to reoccur regularly, you can click on the down arrow
within this section to specify the time interval.
• You can set a reminder using the Reminder section.

• To create a list of attendees, click on the Attendees button.
• This will display a dialog box.
• Click on the New Contact button.

• This will display a dialog box. Enter the contacts details and click on the OK
button.
• To add a contact to the attendee list click on the Attendees button.
• Within the dialog box displayed, click on the contact that you wish to add to
the attendee list.
• Once selected click on the To button.
• The contact will then be displayed in the attendees list, as illustrated.

TIP: If you have a large contact list and want to add multiple contacts to the
attendee list simultaneously, click on contacts with the Ctrl key depressed to
select more than one contact and then add all of them to the Attendee list at
the same time.
• The attendees will be listed at the bottom-right of your window.
• You can then invite people to attend your meeting using the Invite button.
Changing the Calendar View

• Click on the View drop down menu and select a view, such as Month.
• This will change the view as illustrated.

• Reset the view back to Day.
Windows Media Centre
Setting up Windows Media Centre

• Click on the Start button and then click on the All programs command. If
necessary scroll up the list and then click on the Windows Media Center.

• The Windows Media Center program will start. If you have not opened this
program before, then the first screen will invite you let Windows run a short
setup sequence. In most cases you would click on the Express Setup option
and then click on the OK button.
• After a short delay you will see the Windows Media screen displayed, as
illustrated below.
TIP: The reason that the fonts are so large is that the Windows Media Center
is designed to be used on a large screen TV, while you watching it from
across the room on your sofa, and controlling the screen using a remote
control.

Navigating Through Windows Media Centre

• It takes a bit of getting used to navigating through this program. There are
none of the usual tabs, toolbar or menus bars. If you move the mouse
pointer up or down the middle of the screen, you will see vertical arrows
displayed and moving the mouse over these arrows will allow you to scroll
through the various elements within the Windows Media Center.
• You will also see horizontal arrows at one or both sides of the screen.
Clicking on these horizontal arrows will display more options for each screen.
Try it now.
• Alternatively, if you see an item such as Pictures + Videos or Music,

clicking on these will display that item.

• Spend a little time just finding your way around. The more you look, the
more you will see.
Music
• When selected the Music screen will look like this. Investigate the options
available using the horizontal arrows.
Pictures and Videos

• When selected the screen will look like this. Investigate the options available
using the horizontal arrows.

Online Media
• When selected the screen will look like this. This lets you download online
media sources.
TV and Movies
• When selected the screen will look like this. This feature will only work if you
have a TV tuner installed within your computer and you are connected to a
source of TV signals. Once installed you can watch, pause and record TV
signals. When combined with a large screen TV display this starts to blur the
boundary between your computer and your TV.

Tasks
• When selected the screen will look like this. You can use the horizontal
arrows to select tasks, such as burning a CD/DVD or shutting down your
computer. Investigate the options available.
• When you have finished experimenting close the Windows Media Center by
clicking on the close icon in the top right of the screen.
Windows Media Player
Opening Windows Media Player

• Windows Media Player is used to listen to music or watch DVDs.
• Click on the Start button and then click on All Programs. You may have to
scroll up to see Windows Media Player. Click on it to launch the program.
TIP: When you place a CD or DVD into the CD/DVD drive you will see a
screen similar to the illustration below. This offers to automatically start the
Windows Media Player for you.

Playing a movie DVD

• Insert a DVD into the DVD tray and close the tray. The file will load up
automatically, as illustrated, and you can play the film by clicking on the start
link within the start-up screen.
• While the file is playing you will not normally see navigation controls, but if
you move the mouse you will see the following navigation controls displayed
on your screen.

• Clicking on the arrowed buttons allow you to jump forwards or backwards

one scene at a time.
TIP: If you click on a button and keep the mouse button held down you can
fast-forward or fast-rewind through the film.
• The sound controls allow you to mute the sound or control the volume level.
• Click on the DVD icon and a menu is displayed allowing more control over
what is displayed.
For instance you may be able to control the display of subtitles.
• The film will normally play full screen but if you press the Esc key you will
see the film playing within a windowed copy of the Windows Media Player. In
windowed view you can easily jump from one chapter to another.

TIP: You can switch between the full screen view and the windowed
view by pressing Alt+Enter.
Playing a music CD
• Insert a music CD into the CD/DVD tray and close the tray. You may see an
opening screen (in this case click on the OK button to start the CD playing).
The Windows Media Player will start and you will hear your music. You will
see an animated display that responds to the music.

• The controls at the bottom of the screen are very similar to those displayed
when you are playing a DVD. A useful control is the Repeat button which
means that the CD will play continuously.
• Clicking on the rounded arrow buttons displays a range of additional controls,

such as a graphic equaliser. Experiment to see what additional controls are
available.
Ripping a CD
• This term describes copying the music on your CD to files that can be stored
on your hard disk.
WARNING: In some countries this is a very grey area when it comes to

copyright issues. If in doubt do not use this facility until can are confident
that it is legal in your country.
• To rip a CD, click on the Rip icon within the toolbar.
• You will see the music titles listed as illustrated.

• Click the Start Rip button and the copying processing will start.
TIP: If you only want to rip certain songs, not the entire CD, then you can
de-select the tracks that you do not wish to copy to your hard disk.
• Once the ripping process is complete, click on the Library button and you
can view the ripped files.
Burning a CD
• Click on the Burn tab.
• Insert a blank, recordable CD.
TIP: When you insert a black CD, even if you have not previously started the
Windows Media Player, you may see the following dialog box. As you can see
Vista makes life easy for you! If you see this window, click on the Burn an
audio CD option.

• You will now see the following screen.
TIP: The amount of time remaining (i.e. the space left on your disk) is
displayed towards the top-right of the window.
• Simply drag the sounds that you wish to burn to CD to the Burn List on the
right part of the window.
• Once you have dragged the sound you wish to burn to the Burn list, your
screen will look something like this.

• To start the burn process, click on the Start Burn button. You will see each
track is analyised and then burned, as illustrated.
• When the burning process is complete the CD will automatically be ejected.
The Classic menu view

• To display the classic menu, click on the Layout Options icon and select the
Show Classic Menus command.
• You will see the following menu toolbar displayed.

• If you have a little time you may want to investigate the options available
within the classic menu.
TIP: Check out the skin options within Classic View.
Creating Playlists
• You can use playlists to create lists of your favourite songs which you can
save and play when you like. For instance you may like to create a list called
Quiet, consisting of a number of soft quiet sounds. You could create another
list called My wakeup songs, which includes a list of very loud rock songs!
To create a playlist, click on the Library tab and select the Create Playlist
•
command.
• To add a sound to your playlist select a sound and drag it to the playlist
displayed down the right side of the window. After you have dragged a few
songs, your screen will look something like this.
• Currently the playlist is untitled. Click on the Save Playlist button.

• In this case, type in the title Monday Music, as illustrated, and press the
Enter key.
TIP: To create another Playlist, close the current Playlist, by clicking on the
Clear List Pane icon, as illustrated. Create the new list by dragging sound
to the right side of the window.
Listening to a Playlist
• To play a playlist, click on the Library tab and expand the Playlist display, so
that you can see a list of playlists. Double click on the playlist to wish to
hear.

• Close the Windows Media Player before continuing.
Windows Movie Maker
Opening Windows DVD Maker

• Click on the Start button. Click on the All programs button. If necessary
scroll up until you see Windows Movie Maker and click on the link.
• This will display the Windows Movie Maker window.

Importing media
• Click on the Import Media button.
• This will display the Import Media Items window. Within the Favorite
Links section to the left of the window, select Pictures. You will see the
Sample Pictures folder displayed.
• Double click on the Sample Pictures icon (displayed in the right side of the
window) and you will see the sample pictures contained within the folder.

• We want to select all the pictures within this folder. To do this click on the
first picture. Then while holding down the Shift key click on the last picture.
When you release the Shift key all the pictures will be selected, as
illustrated.

• Click on the Import button to import all the selected pictures. Once
imported your Movie Maker window will look like this.
• Click on the AutoMovie button to automatically create a movie.
• You will see the following.

• In this case select the Flip and Slide option, as illustrated.
• Click on the Create AutoMovie button.
• Your screen will now look like this. Notice the pictures are displayed across
the bottom of the window.
• Click on the Play button.
• You will see the movie previewed. If you look closely you will see the movie
timeline moving through the slides at the bottom of the screen.

• To save the movie, click on the File drop down menu and select the Save
Project command.
• You will see the Save Project As dialog box. Enter a File name of My New
Movie. Click on the Browse Folders button to save the file in the folder
containing your other sample files, i.e.
C:\Cheltenham Courseware\Vista Level 2

• Click on the Save button to save the movie.
Publishing a movie
• Click on the Publish Movie button.
• You will see window asking where you want to publish your movie to.
• In this case select DVD. Click on the Next button (bottom-right of the
window). You will see the following window.
• Click on the OK button and save the file.

• The Windows DVD Maker window displayed.

• Click on the Next button. You will see the following window displayed.
• Click on the Burn button to burn the movie to a DVD. Once the DVD has
been created, close all open windows and then eject the DVD. Re-insert the
DVD and the DVD should start. Close all open programs and then remove
the DVD.


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Windows Vista

• Established in 1994 with thousands of clients in over 60 countries.

Our commitment to ECDL / ICDL

DESKTOP CUSTOMISATION .................................................................................................................. 5

PERSONALISING THE DESKTOP ......................................................................................................................... 5

SHARING FILES AND FOLDERS ......................................................................................................... 44

Sharing Folders ......................................................................................................................................... 44

Opening the Security Center window ..................................................................................................... 52

VISTA PROGRAMS ................................................................................................................................ 58

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

WINDOWS PHOTO GALLERY ............................................................................................................................ 58

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

Personalising the Desktop

Sorting Desktop icons

Auto Arranging Desktop icons

Creating a Desktop shortcut

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

• You will see the following icon displayed on your Desktop.

• Double click on this icon to run the Welcome Center window.

Creating a Desktop folder

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

Copying Desktop icons to Desktop folders

Deleting Desktop folders

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

Desktop Personalisation options

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

This will display the Personalization dialog box.

Desktop Personalisation - Windows Colour and Appearance

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

Using non-Aero windows display, or classic Windows display

This will display the Appearance Settings dialog box.

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

Windows Vista Basic.

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

• Experiment with changing the Color schemes.

Desktop Personalisation - Desktop Background

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

• Click on the OK button to close the desktop background window.

Desktop Personalisation - Screen Saver

This will display the following dialog box.

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

• Within the Custom Text section type in your name.

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

• Select a Resolution, Size and Rotation speed.

Desktop Personalisation - Sounds

This will display the following dialog box.

• Select the Exit Windows event.

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

Desktop Personalisation - Mouse Pointers

This will display the following dialog box.

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

Desktop Personalisation - Theme

This will display the following dialog box.

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY

• Before continuing, set the theme back to its original setting.

Desktop Personalisation - Display Settings

This will display the following dialog box.

FOR USE AT THE LICENCED SITE(S) ONLY