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Learning how to use your desktop is the first step to learning computers. Your desktop is your basic starting point that allows you to access everything from software programs, the Internet, your files and pictures, and just about everything else. It's the first thing you'll see when you turn your computer on. Think of it as your own personal office space.
This tutorial will teach you how to use your desktop and will explain your desktop icons, icon arrangement, desktop taskbar, desktop appearance, your recycling bin, and your time and date settings.
Icons are the little square pictures that you see on your desktop. They generally represent a link that when double-clicked will open up a file or program on your computer. They are shortcuts that allow you to save time.
To arrange your icons simply right-click anywhere on your desktop and go to > Sort by > choose name, size, item type, or date modified. By clicking one of these options, your icons will be arranged in the format you chose.
You can also manually arrange icons. To do this hover your cursor over one of your icons. Left click the icon and hold down the left click button, drag the icon to your desired location, and then release the left click button on your mouse yo place the icon. This is referred to as drag and drop.
You can also change the size of your icons for easier viewing. To do this, right click on any open space on your desktop then go to view and choose the large, medium, or small icon choice.
Your desktop taskbar is located at the bottom of your desktop screen and looks something like this:
The purpose of your taskbar is to provide a place to store more shortcuts to your files and software programs. For example, if you want to create a shortcut for your Google Chrome browser, you'd simply hover your cursor over your Google Chrome icon on your desktop, right-click, and choose pin to taskbar. The shortcut will then appear in your taskbar. Any shortcut in your taskbar can be used by simply left clicking it one time. This makes opening programs and files even faster than using your desktop icons. To unpin or remove the shortcut, you can right click on the shortcut and choose "unpin from taskbar".
Windows allows you to change your desktop theme and background images. When you change your desktop theme, the color of your taskbar and your background image will change but will usually always match in color.
To change your desktop theme, you will need to go to your control panel. You can locate your control panel by clicking the start button on the lower left of your desktop. If you are using Windows vista or Windows 7 there will be a search box at the bottom of the start menu. To search Windows 8 simply go to your start menu and start typing. Type in "Control Panel" and hit the enter key.
Once you have located your control panel, go to Appearance and Personalization and click "change the theme" under the Personalization section. Choose your favorite theme and then click save or close that window. Right next to the "change the theme" link is another link called "change desktop background" . Click the link and choose your favorite background. Click save and your background image will now be different.
Your recycling bin is what you use to delete files, folders, or icons from your desktop. To move one of the above to your recycling bin, you will need to drag and drop the item into the recycling bin icon.
Hover your cursor over the file that you want to delete and left click on it but do not release the left click button. Now drag the item over to the recycling bin causing an overlap of icons and release the left click button. The file that you wanted to delete will now be in your recycling bin.
To check if the file is now in your recycling bin, just double-click the recycling bin icon. Note : Files in the recycling bin are not permanently deleted from your computer until you click the "Empty Recycling Bin" button at the top left of the recycling bin window.
Changing your desktops time and date is a simple task. Move your cursor to the bottom right of your desktop screen and hover it over the time. Left click once and your clock and calendar will show up. Underneath your clock and calendar is a link that says change date and time settings. Click the link and adjust your time zone and time to your preferred setting. When you're done click the button. The correct time and date will now appear on the bottom right of your desktop window.
That's basically all there is to the basics of desktop navigation. To learn more computer basics, simply click the link below.
