MODULE 1

Lesson 1 - Desktop and Windows Applications

Introduction:

Many people are naïve on how’s and why’s of modern day computer. To
add to, many electronic companies issues their technologies with more advanced
aspects one after another. In the span of only few years, leaps and bounds of
computer technology advancement have left many people behind. That also
includes the older versions of hardware and software.

Hardware refers to the physical components of a computer. Computer

Hardware is any part of the computer that we can touch. This are the primary
electronic devices used to build up the computer. Example of hardware in a
computer is the Processor, Memory Devices, Monitor, Printer, Keyboard, Mouse
and the Central Processing Unit. Software on the other hand, is collection of
instructions procedures, documentation that perform different tasks, on a
computer system. We can say also Computer Software is a programming code
executed on a computer processor. The code can be machine-level code or the
code written for an operating system. Examples of software are MS word, Exel,
Power Point, Google Chrome, Photoshop, etc.

Furthermore, in the age of modern technology, information can be

accessed in a most convenient ways possible, the basics and the essential parts
and terms are left behind by the modern generation. Unless a student takes a
course majoring on the computer field, he will not know this parts.

In this lesson, the parts of the Windows screen, The ones that users see
what they can interact, and what they can manipulate are discussed. These parts
are put in different functions, each of which has its own different functions, each
of which has its own purpose.

What is a Desktop?
 A desktop is working area of computer screen regarded as a representation
of imaginary desktop and containing icon representing items such as files, folders
and recycle bin. Desktop is sometimes called as the window screen.

Parts of the Desktop

1. Start button – When you click the start button, the start menu appears. The
start menu is your gateway to the applications that are on your computer. The left
side of the start menu lists programs, and the right side allows access to common
Windows folders (My Documents, for example). It also provides access to Help
and Support, Search, and Run.

Note: If you select All Programs, a pop-up menu appears. Pop-up menus like this
are called cascading menus. If a cascading menu is available, a small black triangle
appears next to the name of the application or function.

Components of a Start Button:

a. Log Off – to Log off the current user.

b. Turn Off Computer – to shutdown, restart, and standby
c. All Programs – to access additional programs
d. Run – is used to manually start executable files (programs)
e. Search – search your PC for pictures, music, documents, files, and folders.
f. Help and Support - Opens the built-in Windows help, including various help
topics and windows updates it also allows you to request remote assistance from
a friend/colleague via the internet or network.
g. Printers and faxes – Give you access to your printers and faxes folder; allows
you to add and configure printers/faxes.
h. Control Panel – used to configure various Windows XP setting. We will be
looking at the Win XP control panel in details later in the tutorial.
i. My Computer – gives access to computer’s disk drivers and files and show you
the local and network drives
j. My Music - Links to a folder created by Windows XP which is used (by default)
to store any music files on your hard drive.
k. My Pictures - Links to a folder (again created by Windows XP) used (by default)
to store any pictures/images on your hard drive.
l. My Recent Documents - This folder contains any recently viewed documents.
m. My Documents - Gives access to a folder created by Windows XP which is used
to store any documents on your hard drive. It includes My Music, My Pictures,
and My Documents.

2. Task Bar - The taskbar is the small blue bar you see at the bottom of your
desktop. It contains the Start Menu and the Quick Launch Bar, which contains
icons for Internet Explorer, Windows Media Player, and Show Desktop. Click an
icon to open a program. Click Show Desktop to quickly view your desktop without
closing any programs or windows.

The box on the right is called the Notification Area/System Tray. The clock and
several other icons depending on what you have installed on your computer is
found in the system tray. Other icons appear in the Notification Area detailing the
status of your activity. For example, when you're printing a document, a printer
icon appears. Microsoft also uses the Notification Area to remind you when
software updates are available for download.

On the other hand, when you open or minimize a window or program, a

rectangular button appears on the taskbar that shows the name of the
application. These buttons disappear when you close a window. This button is
called window tab. Switching the window tab is done by pressing alt+tab.

Task bar and components

3. Icons - are small graphical images that can represent your computer's
programs, files, folders, printers, web page, or command. One type of icon is an
Object Icon. Examples of object icons are My Computer, Recycle Bin, and Internet
Explorer. These icons allow you to open files and programs on your computer.
Shortcut Icons allow you to open an application quickly. These icons appear on
your desktop and with a little arrow in the left corner. Desktop shortcuts are links
to files and programs. You can add or delete shortcuts without affecting the
programs on your computer.

Object Icon Shortcut Icon

(Folders and Recycle Bin)

1. Folders - Locations where you can store files, documents, and another
folder.

To create:
Right click the mouse on the desktop, hover the mouse pointer to New, and
click Folder.

To rename:
Right click the folder, select Rename, and type a new name.

To copy and paste:

Click the folder and press ctrl+C, then click ctrl+V to any location or,

Click the folder and press the left mouse button steady, then drag the folder to
any location.
 2. Recycle Bin - It is where you move icons and folders if you want to get rid of
them or delete them from the desktop.

(Parts of a Window Application Screen)

1. Title Bar – the colored bar across the top of the window.

2. Window Controls – the four buttons (maximize, minimize, restore, and

close) at the right end of the title bar, which you can use to change the size of the
window.

3. Menu Bar – contains the menus that will allow you access to all the
operations that can be done with a file or folder.

4. Toolbars – one or more rows of graphical buttons that provide shortcuts to

common activities in the program you are working with.

5. Status Bar – a thin bar at the bottom of the window, in which status
messages appear.

6. Explorer bar – a pane that shows details about the selected file(s) or
folder(s) in a file management window.

7. Scroll Bar – a bar that appears to the right of (or sometimes below) the
window content when there is more content than can fit in the window at once.

8. Additional Parts:

(a) Control Menu Icon – a quick menu, usually an icon that is found on the upper
left most portion of an application window.

(b) Document Window – a white wide space where you can find all files, folders,
and documents stored in the system.

(c) Border – lines that surround the entire application screen.

(d) Address Bar – usually a part where you can change directory and drives.
The Parts of an Application Windows

Mouse Pointer
A mouse pointer is a symbol or graphical image on the computer monitor or
other display device that echoes movements of the pointing device, commonly a
mouse, touchpad, or stylus pen. (Different Kinds of Mouse Pointer)
Dialog Box - A dialog box is a graphical control element in the form of a small
window in which the user is prompted to provide information or select
commands. Examples of dialog boxes are save as and shut down.

Components of a Save As Dialog Box

Command buttons – are used to execute the command displayed on the button
such as Save, Open, Help, Quit, Cancel, Ok, etc.
Text box – provides a place to type an entry such as filename and it is also a path
used to find a specific file.
Drop-down List box – is a single line list box with an arrow button located at the
right of a dialog box that displays a list of choices.
List box – is a box that shows a list of possible choices.

Components of a Shutdown Dialog Box

Standby / Sleep - This will put your computer into standby mode; basically it will
power down components like the monitor and hard drive to preserve energy.
Turn Off / Shut down - Shuts down the PC; always use this option to turn off your
PC.
Restart - This will restart the computer.

Note: Some dialog boxes are extremely simple, asking simple questions and
providing only a few command buttons for your answer.
Lesson 2 - Computer Keyboard

Introduction to Computer Keyboard

Keyboard mastery, a skill required for the users to efficiently input the data to be
fed to a computer system. Keyboard is used as a means of data input. In addition,
keyboard is used to operate a computer system in the absence of a mouse. Also,
keyboard is used to run commands on a computer BIOS.

In this lesson, the parts and functions of the keys of the keyboard shall be
discussed. Moreover, the principal keys shall be discussed with their special
attributes and actions that will be executed once pressed.

What is a computer keyboard?

A computer keyboard is modeled after a type writer. It is a piece of computer
hardware used to input text, characters, and other commands into a computer or
similar device. Many computer keyboards are wireless, which means it
communicates via Bluetooth and RF (radio frequency) receiver.

Modern computer keyboards were modeled after, and are still very similar to,
classic typewriter keyboards. Many different keyboard layouts are available
around the world (like Dvorak and JCUKEN) but most English language keyboards
are of the QWERTY type. Other languages have different default formats such as
QWERTZ for German and AZERT for French.

Note: Both wireless and wired keyboards require a specific device river in order to
be used with the computer. Drivers for standard, non-advanced keyboards usually
don't need to be downloaded because they're already included in the operating
system.

(Parts of the Keyboard)

Alphanumeric keys – consist of the letters from A to Z with punctuation symbols.

Cursor Movement keys – are also called arrow keys. Pressing these keys will
move the cursor one character or one line in the direction of the arrow
Numeric keys – are located in the numeric keypad on the right side of the
keyboard which functions like a calculator.
Functions keys – are keys from F1 to F 12, which are used to perform special
functions.
Special keys – are additional keys of the computer keyboard that perform special
functions. These are normally found in modern keyboards.

The Main Parts of the Keyboard

(Components of Special Keys)

1. Shift Key – is pressed to change the alphabetic characters to the uppercase

mode.
2. Enter or Return Key – is the carriage return key. It is pressed if you want to
go down to the next line. It is also pressed to tell the computer that you are done
entering the command or have completed a line of text.
3. Control Key (Ctrl) – is similar to the shift key in that it is held down while you
press another key. When pressed together with the alphabetic key, it enables
the user to perform specific functions and commands.
 4. Alternate Key (Alt) – is used in the same manner as the control key. When it
is pressed together with the alphanumeric key, it enables the user to enter some
of the basic key words.
5. Caps Lock or Capital Lock Key – locks, when pressed once, the characters A
to Z in the uppercase mode.
6. Print Screen Key – is pressed when you want to capture a snapshot of what
you see on the screen.
7. Backspace Key - is pressed to move the cursor one character to the left
while deleting the character.
8. Space Bar – is pressed to enter a blank space on the screen instead of a
character.
9. Escape Key (ESC) – is pressed in case of process interruption; it is used to go
back to a previous screen, previous application, or to clear or reset a command.
10. Tab key – is usually used to move the cursor to the next tab stop at the
right of the cursor’s present position
11. Page Up and Page Down Keys – are pressed to display screen information
one screen up or one screen down.
12. Scroll Lock Key – is a special-purpose key. It locks the scrolling of the
“electronic page”. When pressed together with CTRL, it enables the user to
return to the command level without saving any changes made.
13. Delete Key ( Del) – is used to delete character at the cursor position; or it is
used to delete characters to the right of the cursor while moving the cursor one
space to the right.
14. Insert Key (Ins) - allows you to insert characters to the left of the cursor
when the insert mode is on.
15. Home Key – brings the cursor to the beginning of a line.
16. End Key – brings the cursor to the end of a line.
Lesson 3 - Touch-Typing Technique

Introduction to Touch Typing Technique

Typing mastery is essential in all jobs that require computer application. Proper
typing and accurate input of data are a necessity in every job. Both speed and
accuracy are essential in office, school and workplace. The same goes in any
maritime field.

In this lesson, the proper placing of fingers in the keyboard will be taught.
Furthermore, the techniques and guides will be given; at the same time, both
accuracy and speed shall be assessed using the typing master software

What is touch typing technique?

Touch typing technique is simply typing quickly and accurately even without
looking at the keyboard.

(The Benefits of Touch Typing)

Double your typing speed
Get rid of typos
Save valuable work time
Focus on your text and ideas
Improve your typing skills
Be confident with computers

What is typing master pro?

Typing Master Pro is a professional typing tutor that helps you to double your
typing speed. With TypingMaster Pro, it takes only a couple of hours for you to
learn the blazing fast-touch typing system. As a result you will save hours and
hours of time.

Typing Master monitors your progress in real time as you do the typing drills. If
your typing is accurate and fluent enough, the program lets you complete the drill
in a shorter time span. Similarly, it will provide more practice when you need it.
Typing Reference: Proper Typing