PCs All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

Your one-stop guide to a long and happy relationship with your PCMark Chambers doesn't believe computers are supposed to be complicated, and this book proves it. Here you'll find the straightforward scoop on using and enjoying your PC, whether it's your first one or your fifth. From using Microsoft Works and getting online to digital multimedia, problem-solving, and network security, it's all at your fingertips!Discover how to\* Use the different ports on your PC\* Troubleshoot Windows XP\* Listen to Internet radio\* Use Microsoft Works and Office 2003\* Make movies and DVDs\* Set up and secure a network PCs All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies 1 Introduction 25 What¡ ̄s Really Required 25 What¡ ̄s Not Required 26 About This Book 26 Conventions Used in This Book 26 Stuff that you type 26 Menu commands 27 Display messages 27 How This Book Is Organized 27 Book I: PC Hardware 27 Book II: Windows XP 27 Book III: The Internet 27 Book IV: Microsoft Works 28 Book V: Office XP 28 Book VI: Fun with Movies, Music, and Photos 28 Book VII: Upgrading and Supercharging 28 Book VIII: Home Networking 28 Icons Used in This Book 28 Book I: PC Hardware 31 Chapter 1: Starting with the Basics 33 Defining Basic Terms 33 Hardware 34 Software 35 Peripherals 36 The Common Components of a Desktop PC 37 The computer 38 The monitor 40 The keyboard and mouse 40 Speakers 42 Desktop PCs versus Laptop PCs 42 RAM and Processors: The Keys to Performance 43 Your Friend, Your Operating System 44 Chapter 2: Additional Toys Your PC Will Enjoy 47 Printers 48 Inkjet versus laser printers 48 Photo printers 50 Label printers 51 Scanners 52 Keyboards, Tablets, and Pointing Things 54 Tickling keys wirelessly 54 Putting a tablet to work 54 Repeat after me: Buy a trackball! 55 Big- Time Game Controllers 56 Video and Digital Cameras 57 External Drives 59 Portable hard drives and CD/ DVD recorders 59 Backup drives 61 USB flash drives 61 Surge Protectors and UPS Units 62 Chapter 3: Connectors, Ports, and Sundry Openings 65 Using USB Stuff 65 Riding in the Fast Lane with FireWire 67 Your Antique Serial Port 68 The Once- Renowned Parallel Port 68 Meet Your Video Port 69 Audio Connectors You¡ ̄ll Likely Need 70 Keyboard and Mouse Ports on Parade 71 Chapter 4: Maintaining Your Hardware 73 When Should I Move My PC? 73 Avoiding Dust Bunnies 74 Watching Your Cables 75 Cleaning Monitors and Scanners 76 Cleaning Your Mouse and Keyboard 77 Cleaning and Maintaining Your Printer 78 Cleaning laser printers 78 Changing inkjet cartridges 80 Calibrating your printer 81 Cleaning inkjet cartridges 84 Should you refill used inkjet cartridges? 84 Book II: Windows XP 87 Chapter 1: Shake Hands with Windows XP 89 Why Windows XP, Anyway? 90 Shutting Things Down 91 Shutting down completely 91 Restarting your PC 92 Using standby mode 92 Yes, your PC can hibernate 93 Logging off 93 Your Windows XP Controls 94 Icons 94 That constantly changing cursor 94 The Start menu 96 The taskbar 97 Menus and toolbars 99 Using Bill¡ ̄s Funky Keys 100 The Windows keys 101 The Shortcut key 101 Other PC- specific keys 102 Using the Windows XP Help System 102 Displaying Help 103 Searching for specific help 104 Yelling for assistance 106 Chapter 2: The Many Windows of Windows 109 Managing Windows Means Productivity 109 Opening and closing windows 110 Scrolling windows 111 Minimizing and restoring windows 113 Maximizing and restoring windows 114 Moving windows 114 Resizing windows 115 Switching windows 115 A Field Guide to Icons 116 Hardware icons 117 Program icons 118 File icons 118 Folder icon 120 Shortcut icons 120 System icons 122 Selecting Icons 123 Selecting a single icon 123 Selecting multiple contiguous icons by dragging 124 Selecting multiple contiguous icons by clicking 124 Selecting multiple separated icons by clicking 124 Using the Toolbar 126 Chapter 3: Windows XP Basics 129 Running Applications from the Start Menu 130 Running Applications from Your Hard Drive 131 Running Applications from a CD- ROM or DVD- ROM 132 Putting Your Files in Order 134 Copying and moving stuff 134 Creating a new folder 137 Deleting stuff with mouse and keyboard 137 Displaying properties 137 Renaming items 138 Emptying the Recycle Bin 139 Recovering Items from the Recycle Bin 140 Putting the Start Menu through Its Paces 141 Tossing the Recent Applications list 141 Using the Run item 142 Accessing printers and faxes 143 Working with your network 145 Configuring the Start menu 146 Handling the Taskbar 147 Switching programs 147 Controlling the notification area 148 Adding Quick Launch icons 149 Configuring the taskbar 150 Terminating a Program with Prejudice 151 Formatting a Floppy Disk 152 Chapter 4: Customizing Windows XP 155 Personalizing Your Desktop 156 Changing the background 156 Using themes 157 Changing system sounds 158 Switching Views and Sorting Items 159 Adjusting toolbars 161 Using the Explorer bar 162 And don¡ ̄t forget the Folders view! 164 What¡ ̄s This Stuff in the My Documents Folder? 165 Share the Documents 167 Using Favorites 167 Adding a favorite 168 Organizing favorites 168 Creating a Shortcut 169 Multiuser Operation 170 Logging in 171 Be my guest 172 Fax Me, Please 173 Setting up faxing under Windows XP 173 Sending and receiving faxes 175 Doing the Multimedia Thing 176 Playing your MP3 files 177 Viewing and downloading digital photographs 178 Recording your own CDs 180 Watching a DVD movie 182 Chapter 5: Maintaining the XP Beast 185 Device Manager: The Hardware Tool 185 Checking Your Hard Drives in Windows XP 188 Defragmenting Just Plain Rocks 191 Be Smart: Back Up Your Stuff 194 Safeguarding Your System with System Restore 198 Have At Thee, Foul Virus! 201 Windows XP Boot and Recovery Options 202 Using Safe mode 203 Using the Last Good Configuration 203 Using ASR 204 Using Windows Update 205 The fully automatic way 205 The ( somewhat) manual way 206 Chapter 6: Taking Control of the Control Panel 209 But First, Put the Control Panel on the Start Menu! 210 Configuring the Date and Time 212 The Time Zone tab 212 The Internet Time tab 212 Changing Display Settings 213 The Themes tab 213 The Desktop tab 214 The Screen Saver tab 214 The Appearance tab 215 The Settings tab 216 Scheduling Tasks 217 Adjusting the Power Options 219 The Power Schemes tab 220 The Advanced tab 221 The Hibernate tab 221 The UPS tab 221 Tweaking the Keyboard 222 The Speed tab 222 The Hardware tab 223 Configuring Internet Properties 224 The General tab 225 The Security tab 226 The Privacy tab 226 The Content tab 227 The Connections tab 228 The Programs tab 229 The Advanced tab 230 Adding or Removing Programs 230 Fine- Tuning User Accounts 232 Configuring Phone and Modem Options 234 The Dialing Rules tab 234 The Modems tab 235 The Advanced tab 235 Chapter 7: Easy XP Troubleshooting 237 Relax and Breathe Easy 237 The Troubleshooting Process, Step by Step 239 Drastic Things That You Won¡ ̄t Do Often 245 Using Automated System Recovery 245 Re- installing Windows XP 246 HELP! Additional Troubleshooting Resources 247 The Windows XP Help system 248 Microsoft tech support 248 The Microsoft Web site 249 Those unsupported newsgroups 249 Book III: The Internet 251 Chapter 1: Making Sense of the Internet 253 Exactly What Is the Internet, Anyway? 253 Exploring the Possibilities of Your Internet Connection Chapter 1 255 Exploring the potential of the Web 255 Communicating via e- mail 257 File transferring via FTP 258 Communicating with instant messaging 259 Reading newsgroups 259 Using Web cams and Web videoconferencing 261 Understanding Internet Connections 262 Dialup connections 262 ISDN connections 262 DSL connections 263 Cable modem connections 263 Satellite connections 264 So What Exactly Do I Need? 265 Chapter 2: Adding a Dialup Connection to Windows XP 267 Gathering the Incantations 267 Making the Physical Connection 268 Creating a New Connection in Windows XP 269 Is My Connection Alive? 273 My Connection Appears to Be Dead 273 Chapter 3: Protecting Your Internet Privacy 275 So What Can Really Happen? 275 Common Sense Goes a Long Way 277 Passwords 277 Risky behavior 278 E- mail 280 Your Friend, the Firewall 281 Using the built- in XP firewall 283 Commercial firewall alternatives 284 Using Antivirus Software 285 Chapter 4: Cruising the Web with Internet Explorer 287 Running Internet Explorer 287 The Explorer Window and Basic Controls 288 More buttons for your buck 290 Finding a home page 292 Navigating the Web 293 Simplifying surfing with Favorites 293 Searching for the hay in the needlestack 295 Downloading Files 297 Keeping Track of Where You¡ ̄ve Been 300 Printing and Saving Web Pages 301 Putting the Web in print 301 Saving the best ( for last) 302 Chapter 5: Harnessing Your E- Mail 305 Introducing the Outlook Express Window 306 Setting Up Your Mailbox 309 The Three R¡ ̄s: Receiving, Reading, and Replying 312 Sending E- Mail to Friends and Enemies 315 Sending and Receiving File Attachments 318 Spam: I Hate It! Truly I Do! 320 Working with the Address Book 322 ¡° Hey, Who Are You Now?¡± 325 Chapter 6: Instant Messaging Done Right 327 Selecting a Chat Client 327 AIM 328 ICQ 329 Running Windows Messenger 330 Configuring Windows Messenger 331 Keeping Track of Friends and Family 333 Chatting with Your Brethren 335 Selecting a Status 338 Squelching the Unwelcome Few 339 Book IV: Microsoft Works 341 Chapter 1: An Overview of Works 343 What Can I Do with Works? 343 Word processing 344 Spreadsheets 345 Calendar 346 To Dos 346 Databases 348 Introducing the Task Launcher 349 Displaying Help within Works 350 Chapter 2: Word Processing in Works 353 Running the Word Processor 353 Your Word Processing Tools 354 Typing Text 355 Selecting and Editing Text 356 Finding and Replacing Stuff 357 Formatting Fonts and Paragraphs 359 Formatting Bullets and Numbered Lists 361 Adding Graphics 362 Adding Tables 364 Checking Your Spelling 365 Printing Your Documents 366 Chapter 3: Working with Spreadsheets 369 Running the Spreadsheet 369 Introducing the Spreadsheet Window 370 A Word about Works Spreadsheets 371 Navigating the Spreadsheet and Entering Data 372 Selecting and Editing Cells 373 Formatting a Cell, Row, or Column 374 Choosing a number format 375 Changing cell alignment 375 Changing the text formatting 376 Formatting the borders 376 Choosing shading options 377 Inserting and Deleting Rows and Columns 378 Using Easy Calc 378 Adding a Chart 381 Printing Your Documents 382 Chapter 4: Using the Works Calendar 385 Checking Out the Calendar 386 Selecting a Calendar View 387 Adding and Editing Appointments 389 Searching for Specific Appointments 391 Filtering Appointments 392 Exporting Appointments 393 Printing Appointments 395 Chapter 5: Having Fun with Works Database 397 Getting Started with Works Database 398 Whoops! What¡ ̄s this dialog box mean? 398 Elements of the Works Database window 398 Creating a Database and Entering Data 400 Editing a Database 404 Sorting and Searching for Specific Records 404 Printing Database Documents 408 Book V: Office XP 409 Chapter 1: Introducing Office XP 411 The Components of Office XP 411 Word 412 Excel 414 PowerPoint 415 Access 416 Outlook 418 Putting the Office Clipboard to Work 420 Using the Office Help System 421 Displaying the Help system 421 The three tabs of justice 422 That silly paper clip, Clippit 422 Chapter 2: Using Word 423 Running Word 424 The Elements of Word 424 A Word about the Views 427 Normal view 427 Outline view 427 Print Layout view 428 Web Layout view 428 Typing, Selecting, and Editing Text 429 Typing like the wind 429 Selecting what you will 430 Editing text in Word 431 Finding and Replacing Stuff 432 Building Tables 434 Adding Bulleted and Numbered Lists 436 Adjusting Tabs and Margins 437 Setting margins with the ruler 437 Setting margins from the menu 438 Setting tabs with the ruler 439 Setting tabs from the menu 439 Applying Formatting 440 Font formatting 441 Paragraph formatting 442 Using AutoFormat 443 Adding Graphics 445 Doing the Collaboration Thing 447 Using revision marks 447 Using Comments 448 Using highlighting 449 Printing Your Document 449 Creating Web Pages with Word 450 Chapter 3: Putting Excel to Work 453 Running Excel 454 Waltzing Around the Excel Window 454 Selecting, Entering, and Editing Cell Data 456 Filling a cell to the top 456 Moving around the worksheet 457 Selecting cells the easy way 457 Editing cell contents 458 Working with Numbers and Dates 459 Working with Rows and Columns 461 Resizing rows and columns 461 Inserting blank cells 462 Inserting cells from the Clipboard 463 Inserting rows and columns 463 Formatting in Excel 464 Font formatting 464 Cell alignment 465 Changing borders and shading 465 The Basics of Excel Formulas 466 Working with Graphics in Excel 470 Adding a Chart 471 Linking Cells 474 Adding Headers and Footers 475 Printing Your Worksheets 476 Chapter 4: Performing with PowerPoint 479 Getting Your Bearings in PowerPoint 479 Changing Views 482 Normal view 482 Slide Sorter view 482 Notes Page view 483 Slide Show view 483 Creating Slides 484 Inserting slides 485 Inserting a document 486 Typing, Selecting, and Editing Text 486 Adding text 487 Moving within text fields 487 Selecting text and objects 488 Editing text 489 Moving slide elements 489 Installing Graphics in Your Slides 490 Applying Templates and Schemes 491 Entering Notes 494 Using Movies and Sound 495 Building and Running a Slide Show 496 Making a Transition ¡ ̄ twixt Slides 499 Using Pack and Go 500 Printing Your Document 503 Chapter 5: Doing Database Magic with Access 505 Running Access 506 A Quick Tour of the Access Window 506 Creating Tables with the Wizard 508 Creating a Form with the Wizard 512 Entering and Editing Fields Manually 517 Using Queries 518 Using Access Templates 520 Printing Your Data 520 Chapter 6: Staying in Touch with Outlook 523 Running Outlook 524 Elements of the Outlook Window 524 Configuring Your Mail Account 526 Reading and Replying to E- Mail 529 Composing and Sending Messages 532 Using File Attachments 534 Keeping Track of Your Contacts 536 Entering a contact 537 Editing a contact 539 Using the Outlook Calendar 539 Creating an appointment 540 Displaying appointments in Outlook Today 542 Printing within Outlook 543 Book VI: Fun with Movies, Music, and Photos 547 Chapter 1: Scanning with Gusto 549 What Happens Inside a Scanner? 549 Your Friend, the Flatbed 551 Popular Scanner Features 553 Basic Scanning with Paint Shop Pro 554 Acquiring the image 554 Rotating and cropping images 559 Converting and saving the image 561 Scanning Do¡ ̄s and Don¡ ̄ts 563 Those Irritating ( Or Invaluable) Copyrights 564 Adding a Copyright Line 565 Chapter 2: Dude, MP3 Rocks! 569 An MP3 Primer 570 Ripping Your Own MP3 Files 571 Listening to Your Stuff 574 Downloading to an MP3 Player 576 Using Other Sound Formats 577 WAV format 578 WMA format 578 AU format 578 AIFF format 578 MIDI format 579 Chapter 3: Making Movies with Your PC 583 Getting the Lowdown on ArcSoft¡ ̄s ShowBiz 583 Rounding Up Clips and Images 585 Building Your First Movie 587 Adding Transitions without Breaking a Sweat 590 Adding Special Effects without Paying George Lucas 592 Adding Sound 594 You¡ ̄ve Just Gotta Have Titles! 595 Previewing Your Oscar- Winning Work 597 Saving and Burning Before Traveling to Cannes 598 Creating a digital video file on your hard drive 598 Recording your own CD or DVD 600 Chapter 4: I Can Make My Own DVDs? 603 Welcome to MyDVD 604 Menus ¡ ̄ R Easy! 606 Changing the Look of Your Menus 613 Trimming Movies with Panache 615 Time to Preview 618 Burning Your DVD and Celebrating Afterwards 620 Chapter 5: I’m Okay, You’re a Digital Camera 623 How Does a Digital Camera Work? 624 The Pros and Cons of Digital Photography 626 Digital Camera Extras to Covet 629 External card readers 629 Rechargeable batteries 630 Lenses 630 Tripods 631 The Lazy Man¡ ̄s Guide to Composing Photographs 631 The Rule of Thirds 632 The Rule of Asymmetry 632 Using lighting creatively 634 Organizing Your Pictures 636 Downloading Your Images 637 Book VII: Upgrading and Supercharging 641 Chapter 1: Determining What to Upgrade 643 Making Performance Upgrades: 644 CPU, Motherboard, and Memory 644 Upgrading your CPU and motherboard 644 Adding memory 645 Expansion Upgrades: USB 2.0 and FireWire 645 Making Storage Upgrades: 646 Internal and External Drives 646 Adding a hard drive 647 Adding a recorder or a tape drive 647 Making Sound and Video Upgrades: 648 Sound and Video Cards 648 Sound cards on parade 649 Deciding which video card is right for you 649 Chapter 2: Adding RAM to Your Hot Rod 651 Figuring Out What Type of Memory You Need 651 RDRAM 652 DDR 652 SDRAM 652 EDO 652 Deciding How Much RAM Is Enough 653 Installing Extra RAM 654 Chapter 3: Scotty, I Need More Power! 657 Hey, Do I Need to Do This? 657 Selecting a New Motherboard 659 Installing a Motherboard and CPU 659 Installing an Athlon XP or Pentium 4 CPU 660 Installing your motherboard 662 Chapter 4: Adding Hard Drive Territory to Your System 665 The Tale of Virtual Memory 665 Recognizing a Well- Dressed Hard Drive 667 Size definitely does matter 667 How fast is your access? 668 What does rpm have to do with hard drives? 668 Internal versus External Storage 668 Adding a Second Internal Hard Drive 670 Chapter 5: Partying with USB, FireWire, and Hubs 675 Comparing USB Ports 675 I Vote for FireWire 677 Or Do You Just Need a Hub? 677 Installing a Port Card 678 Chapter 6: Pumping Up Your Sound and Video 681 Sound Card Features to Covet 681 3- D spatial imaging 681 Surround sound support 682 MP3 hardware support 683 Game and FireWire ports 683 MIDI ports 683 Shopping for a Monster Graphics Card 684 Pray, what slot do you need? 684 Exploring the differences between chipsets 685 Other video card features that you¡ ̄ll want 686 Book VIII: Home Networking 689 Chapter 1: Do I Really Need a Network? 691 Discovering the Advantages of a Network 691 File transfer 691 Sharing that there Internet 692 One word: Games! 693 Shared documents and applications 694 What Can I Connect To? 694 What Hardware Do I Need? 695 What Software Do I Need? 696 To Network or Not to Network . . . 696 Chapter 2: Ethernet to the Rescue 699 A Quickie Ethernet Primer 699 Hardware That You¡ ̄ll Need 701 Cables 701 Hubs 703 NICs 703 Switches 704 Heck, let¡ ̄s buy a kit! 704 Doing the Cable Dance 704 Configuring Windows XP for Your Network 705 Ah, sweet DHCP 706 Browsing the neighborhood 710 Sharing folders and documents 712 Printing Across the Network 713 Using a Standard Hub with a Cable or DSL Modem 717 Troubleshooting Your Network 717 Windows XP doesn¡ ̄t recognize my NIC 718 No lights show up on my network card( s) or hub 718 Nothing shows up when I browse 719 I can¡ ̄t connect ( or print) to a shared printer 719 Chapter 3: Going Wireless 721 Understanding Wireless Networking 721 How does wireless compare with wired? 722 The standards involved 723 AC and phone line networking 727 Ensuring Security on Your Wireless Network 728 Using Wireless Hardware in Windows XP 730 Preparing to install 730 Installation tricks 730 Making the connection 732 Chapter 4: Sharing Your Internet Connection 735 Why Share Your Internet Connection? 735 Sharing through Software in Windows XP 736 Sharing through Hardware 738 Wired sharing devices 739 Wireless sharing devices 742 Why You Need NAT 744 The Magic of Virtual Private Networking 745 Index 749 Numerical 749 A 749 B 750 C 751 D 754 E 756 F 757 G 759 H 759 I 760 J 762 K 762 L 763 M 764 N 766 O 767 P 769 Q 774 R 774 S 775 T 779 U 780 V 781 W 782 X 787 Y 787 Z 787