What Is Windows 98?

Windows 98 is the operating system that runs the standard Tribble A10 computers.

An operating system is the "ground-level" software that allows us to run programs. The operating system is automatically loaded when you start the machine, and all the other programs run in the environment it creates. Other examples of operating systems are Windows 95, Windows NT, and MacIntosh.

What Is the Desktop?

The desktop is the screen that appears after you have entered your login and password, when the computer is finished starting up.

You can save files and folders on the desktop, move files from folder to folder, and start applications by clicking on icons.

The major icons on the desktop are:

1. My Computer, which contains the various drives accessible for information. This includes the floppy (A:) drive and the hard (C:) drive, as well as the CD-ROM drive. If you attach a zip drive to the computer, you can access it here as well.

2. The Network Neighborhood is the icon that allows you to access the network and the server. You will use this to access your server account when you save a homepage.

3. The Recycle Bin is the trash can. You can delete files by dragging and dropping them here. To empty the Recycle Bin, click on it with the right mouse button, then choose Empty Recycle Bin from the pop-up menu with the left mouse button.

Other icons will be located on the desktop. If an icon is a "shortcut," or if it has an arrow, then you may double-click on this icon to start the program.

What Is the Taskbar?

The taskbar is at the bottom left side of the screen, and it contains the "Start" button. When you click on "Start" and hold the mouse button down, the taskbar pops up a series of options for you. This includes:

1. Programs, a folder full of applications that are not used often or are non-standard programs for this machine. Simply drag the cursor to the program and release.

2. Find, which allows you to search for files on your computer.

3. Help, which allows you to click on a topic and access online help.

4. Shut Down. You should ALWAYS go through this procedure at the end of a session.

5. Internet Tools, a group of programs containing Netscape for browsing the Internet, Dreamweaver for creating Web pages, and WS-FTP Pro for transferring files across the network and the Internet.

6. MS Office, a program group containing Word, Excel, Access, and PowerPoint.

7. Research and Classroom Tools, which allows network access to various library indexes and other resources, both on and off-campus.

How Do I Work with Windows 98?

When a program opens, its area on the screen is called a window. Each window contains the following parts:

1. A title bar at the top, usually blue.

2. Three icons at the right side of the title bar. On the left is a horizontal line used to "minimize" the window. Clicking this button will keep the program open. The program's window will close, leaving its icon in the taskbar at the bottom of the page; clicking on that icon will re-open the window. In the center, there are one or two squares used to "maximize" a window. If it is already as large as possible, this button will reduce its size. The right icon is an "X" which can be used to close the window and, usually, the program.

3. Just under the title bar is the menu bar which gives the headings of the menus available. You may click and drag down to select these commands.

4. At the right of the window, you will find a vertical scroll bar. You may click on the up or down arrows to scroll through your document.

5. At the bottom of the window, you will find the horizontal scroll bar. If you have a wide document, this will allow you to scroll right or left.

6. You may move an entire window around the desktop by clicking and dragging the blue title bar.