A Simple Guide to Windows ME

Contents Introduction xiv Who is this book for? xv About the author xvii 1 The Windows Me philosophy 1 A more user-friendly system 2 The 32-bit architecture 3 The Windows Me Registry 3 A system plugged in to the world 4 A version that can be used by anyone 5 An intuitive graphics interface 5 Plug-and-play technology 9 2 Setting up Windows Me 13 Installing Windows Me 15 Register Now 18 Help and Support ...19 Maintain your computer 21 Connect to the Internet 26 3 Discovering the interface 27 Your workbench: The Windows Me Desktop 28 My Computer properties 31 The Taskbar 34 The Start button 35 Smart menus 37 The Programs menu 38 The Documents menu 38 The Search menu 39 The Help menu 43 The Run menu 43 The Shut Down menu 43 The Settings menu 44 Taskbar settings 44 Start menu settings 46 4 Working in Windows Me 47 Changing from one task to another 48 The Recycle Bin 50 Starting a program 52 My Computer 53 Handling files and folders 55 Managing objects with Explorer 55 Properties of objects 58 Shortcuts: the fast way to fetch an object 59 Customizing the Start menu 60 Handling diskettes 60 5 The Control Panel 63 The Control Panel 64 Accessibility set-up 65 Keyboard set-up 65 Sound and picture settings 66 Monitor display settings 67 Mouse set-up 69 Joystick set-up 70 Modem settings 70 Date and time management 72 Sound management 72 Multimedia set-up 73 Printer management 75 Font management 76 Mail management 77 Connecting to the Internet 78 Creating a password 78 Adding applications 79 The Add New Hardware Wizard 80 6 Windows Me tools 83 The Calculator 84 Notepad 84 Word-processing in WordPad 85 The Paint program 86 The Phone Dialer 87 Dial-Up Networking 87 Direct connection by cable 88 The HyperTerminal utility 89 7 Windows Me and the Internet 91 The Start button 92 Calling up favourite Web sites 93 Finding documents on the Web 94 Paging 94 Executing a command 96 The Taskbar 97 The Quick Launch bar 97 Adding new toolbars 98 Creating a toolbar on the Desktop 98 Windows Explorer 100 Surfing the Web with Explorer 103 Adding a page to Favorites 103 Sending a Web page by e-mail 104 The Windows Me Desktop in Web style 105 Folder settings 105 Folder display settings 106 Display settings for all files 109 Image file management 110 The My Computer folder 111 8 Internet connection and Home Networking 113 The Internet connection 114 Setting up a dial-up connection 115 The basic protocol 118 TCP/IP settings 118 The Internet Connection Wizard 119 Choosing a provider and opening an account 120 Adding a log-on account 120 Home Networking 122 9 The Internet Explorer browser 129 An improved Search facility 128 Easier routines for organizing Favorites 128 Support for multiple connections 128 Running the browser 128 Establishing or terminating your Internet connection 130 Browsing principles 131 The navigation buttons 133 The History file 135 Displaying links 136 Full-screen surfing 137 Opening Web pages in a new window 137 The explorer bar 138 Web surfing 139 Managing your favourite Web sites 139 Storing Favorites 140 Scheduled downloading from a Web site 141 Internet Radio 145 10 Electronic mail 147 Handling your messages effectively 150 Creating document folders 150 Handling the arrival of new messages 151 Looking up your messages 153 Transferring a message 155 Deleting a message 155 Sorting messages 155 Drafting a message 156 Inserting an attachment 157 The Address Book 158 Handling the Address Book 159 Adding a new contact 159 Filling in the Address Book automatically 161 Setting up an electronic mailshot 161 Filtering messages 161 Reading your mail from more than one computer 163 11 System tools 165 Scheduled tasks 166 The system software 169 System Information 170 Tidying up the hard disk 171 The FAT 32 converter 172 Defragmenting the hard disk 172 Checking the disk with ScanDisk 174 DriveSpace 175 Activity monitoring tools 175 12 Windows Me and multimedia applications 177 AutoPlay mode for CD-ROMs 179 Multimedia utilities 179 Media player 179 CD Audio 179 Radio 181 Video 182 Portable Device 182 The Sound Recorder 183 Overall volume adjustment 184 Plug-ins and players 185 Audio and video 187 Movie Maker 187 Playing DVDs 189 Image processing 190 Index 195