Datasheet

Figure 1-4: Pointing to the Start button
Pointing to an item often displays its screen tip (also called a tooltip), like
the words “Click here to begin” in Figure 1-4. Whenever you’re clueless
about what some little symbol on your screen represents, point to it to see
whether it has a screen tip.
✦ Click: Point to the item and then tap (don’t hold down) the primary
(left) mouse button.
✦ Double-click: Point to the item; tap the primary (left) mouse button
twice, as quickly as you can.
✦ Right-click: Point to the item; tap the secondary (left) mouse button.
✦ Drag: Point to the item and then hold down the primary (left) mouse
button while moving the mouse.
✦ Right-drag: Point to the item and then hold down the secondary
(right) mouse button while moving the mouse.
✦ Drop: Release the mouse button after dragging or right-dragging.
Using Your Keyboard
Like the mouse, the keyboard is a means of interacting with your computer.
Most of it is laid out like a typewriter. If you already know how to type, you’re
in luck. If you don’t know how to type, I can’t help you there. But you can at
least take solace in that you need the keyboard only to type text. You can use
the mouse for everything else.
Aside from the regular typewriter keys, you need to recognize some additional
keys and areas on the keyboard. Figure 1-5 shows an example, although your
keyboard probably won’t look exactly like the one in the figure. But you should
be able to find all the keys pointed out, even if your keyboard is arranged a little
differently from the example in Figure 1-5.
Navigation Keys and Numeric Keypad
The arrow keys and keys labeled Home, End, and so forth are the navigation
keys. As you’ll discover throughout the book, you can use those keys to move
around in certain types of programs. The numeric keypad contains a set of
numbers and math symbols laid out exactly as they would be on a standard
adding machine. For people who are already quick with a standard adding
machine, the numeric keypad offers a familiar way to type lots of numeric
information into the computer.
6 Part I ✦ Beginner’s Crash Course
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