tips and tricks windows 7

7/31/2019 Tips and Tricks Windows 7

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The Network Bible

Chapter 3: Windows Tips and Tricks

Home Page 1

Logging on 2

Start bar Search tool 2

Creating your own Jumplist 3Windows Gadgets 5

Windows Key shortcuts 7

Adding a folder to Favourites 12

Docking Windows 13

Pinning a program to the taskbar 16

Customising your desktop 17


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1. Logging on

The process of logging on to a Windows 7 staff laptop has changed. On XP it was necessary to

change the drop-down box to log in to This Computer when working at home, now the process

is the same, whether you are at work or at home; it is simply a case of entering your username

and password.

This new process relies on you using your laptop in school regularly. Files that you have created

on your laptop are transparently copied to the server and can be included in our backup. Files

that are created on the school PCs should be quietly synchronized to your laptop with no

interaction on your behalf.

2. Start bar Search tool

If you click on the start button icon:

This screen appears.

This is the start bar and allows you to search for programs / files. The programs that your

computer is loaded up with can be found on the menu, e.g. Calculator. You will also find shortcuts

to your Documents, Pictures, etc. along the right hand menu.


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However, a really important tip is the Search programs and files function. This search

function allows you to find any files you may have created / saved and programs you want to use.

For example:

I want to revise waves with the Year 10s and have information saved somewhere but I cant

remember where. All I do is type waves into the search function and this appears:

Anything that matches waves in my documents, pictures, e-mail andfiles appears. I can then select what I want. This tip is both useful but also time saving!

3. Creating your own Jumplist

The Jumplist is a feature that groups your recently/regularly accessed files by application.


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Generally, regularly accessed applications are added automatically to the start bar, but you may

wish to customise what applications are featured in the Start menu. To add a program to the

Start menu:

a. Open the Start menu, go to All programs. Locate and right click on the application thatyou wish to add to the Jumplist.

b. Highlight and select Pin to Start Menu.

c. Thats it! The application is now pinned to the Jumplist and by hovering over it you can

see a list of all recently opened files related to that application.


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4. Windows Gadgets

Then the names of all the other things on board a ship! I dont know half of them yet; even the sailors forget at times, and if

the exact name of anything they want happens to slip from their memory, they call it a chicken-fixing, or a gadjet, or a gill-guy,

or a timmey-noggy, or a wim-wom.

Robert Brown: Spunyarn and Spindrift, A sailor boys log of a voyage out and home in a China tea-clipper, 1886

Windows Gadgets are designed to be small, lightweight tools that extend the functionality of

the desktop. They come in all shapes and sizes, and can perform a plethora of tasks. The

example below demonstrates how to add a specific Gadget, but it may prove fruitful to look into

other gadgets more suited towards your individual needs.

a. Right click on an available area of the desktop. In the menu that appears, select

Gadgets.


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b. Click on Get more gadgets online

c. On the website that opens, click on Get more desktop gadgets

d. Here you can peruse a huge selection of user created Gadgets. In this instance we are

going to install a Wikipedia Gadget. In the search box at the top of the page, enter wikiand press return.

e. Find the Wikipedia by Orange Gadget, and click Download, then Install and then

Open on the dialogue boxes that follow.

f. More dialogue boxes Run then Install.

g. Voila!


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h. Another nice gadget is the Stickynotes that come with Windows 7. To create a

Stickynote go to Start, and in the text box type stikynot (without the quotation marks).

5. Using the Windows key shortcuts and tricks available on Windows 7

a. Windows logo / Tab

This trick allows you to scroll through all the windows you have opened to allow a seamless (and

pretty funky!) transition between programs in lessons. It looks like this:


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By holding the Windows logo button and the Tab button you can scrollbetween all programs you have open.

b. Windows logo and G button

By holding the Windows logo button and the G button on your computer, the gadgets you have

will appear in front of the

other windows you have open.For example:

c. Windows Logo and the plus key (+)

This allows you to zoom into something you may want to get closer to. For example:

I was working on thi

document, wanted to

check it was still sunn

outside (!) and

brought my gadgets t

the front of thewindows.


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By zooming in, I can magnify using the + and button

The magnifying glass comes up and I can move around

By pressing the Windows Logo and minus key, I can zoom out where appropriate.

d. Windows Logo and Up (Maximize the current window) and Windows Logo and Down

(Minimize the current window)

By pressing the Windows logo button and the Up and Down arrows, I can either maximize or

minimize the current window open. Please note, the window must be open to use this trick.

For example at the moment, the Word window is up, so if I now press the windows logo button

and the down arrow, I can minimize this window. This screen appears:

The current

window has

been minimized


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If I now press the windows logo button and the up arrow, I can maximize the screen again. The

current view reappears:

e. Windows Logo and Left (Snap to the left hand side of the screen) and Windows Logoand Right (Snap to the right hand side of the screen)

By pressing the Windows logo button and the left and right arrows, you can snap your current

window to the left and right of the screen. For example:

Windows and left arrow looks like this:

Windows and right arrow looks like this:

Back to full

screen


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Both my daughters get their moment!!

You may want to get to something on the desktop and this trick is a nice shortcut instead ofminimizing / closing down your current programs.

f. Windows Logo and Homebutton

This trick allows you to minimize / restore everything you may have open except the current

window. It cleans up any programs you may have opened and not minimized BEHIND the current

program you are working on. It saves time minimizing any open programs.

g. Windows and the P button

This allows you to seamlessly hook up to a projector in your teaching base. This screen appears:

You can now choose your preference from the options on screen.

h. Shake!

Finally, time to shake your windows! If you have a few programs on screen that you havent

minimized, all you need to do is click on the program you want to keep by left clicking on the


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mouse and shaking the tool bar of the current program the rest are minimized behind the

shaking program!

6. Adding a folder to favorites

The favorites folder is a key function to utilize. It allows you to access folders / programs

you use regularly and as a result saves time but also allows you to move around your computer

easily.

By accessing my documents, I get the following screen:

One folder I use a lot is my School folder. Instead of clicking through 3 or 4 screens to get to

my School folder, Ican just add it to the Favorites feature.

All I have to do is click on School and drag it to the Favorites section an icon which says

create link in Favorites comes up.

My Favorites feature

can be found here


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I am now creating a shortcut in

Favorites to the folder I want.

Drop it here and I now have a link to the resources in my School folder. This can be done for

any folder you use regularly.

7. Docking Windows.

Quick pro tip! Windows 7 allows you to quickly organise your workspace by grabbing and forcibly

moving the application window. There are key areas of the screen that windows will intuitively

snap to.

I now have a handy link to a

well-used folder..


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a. Seize your window by the top blue bar!

b. Drag the window to the left of the screen A blue transparent rectangle should appear

c. Release! The window will snap to the right of the screen


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d. The same happens on the other side of the screen, allowing you to line up documents

e. The top of the screen maximises a document.


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8). Pinning a program to the taskbar

If you have been using Windows 7 after using Windows XP you may have noticed the

QuickLaunch area is missing. If you hadnt, it was the area next to the Start Button that

allowed you to store frequently used applications. Microsoft have removed the QuickLaunch

tray, and now allow you to pin items to the Taskbar. The concept (and process) is identical to

the one used for pinning applications to the Start Menu (described in detail earlier in Chapter 3 Creating your own Jumplists).

Should you wish to pin an application to the Taskbar:

a. Either open the application or locate the application in the Start Menu

b. Right click and select Pin to Taskbar


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c. Finished! Your application is now available on the Taskbar.

9). Customising your desktop.

You can now tweak your profile so that it reflects your individuality! You may choose to change

the way your Start Menu is displayed, change your mouse pointers or change your wallpaper. To

get started:

a. Right click on the desktop and select Personalize


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b. The screen that opens will allow you to make all of the previously mentioned changes andmore! To change your background:

i) Click on Desktop Backgroundii) Select a Windows wallpaper or browse to a folder with a picture of your choice.iii) By clicking on the heading of a group of images, all will be selected, and you can

even opt to change your wallpaper at configured intervals. Pretty!