Menu and its types. Windows XP operating system, interface, windows, menus What is the main menu on a computer

Program windows

Working with Windows

A window is an area of the screen delimited by a rectangular frame. It displays the contents of a folder, a running program or document.

There are three options for displaying a window on the screen:

· a standard size window takes up part of the screen area. If desired, you can move it or any of its borders to another location on the screen

· a window maximized to full screen has maximum size

· a minimized window is displayed as a button on the taskbar.

The program continues to run in the minimized window. To open a minimized window or minimize an already open one, click the window button on the taskbar.

Windows can be classified by type:

· program window (folder window)

document window

· dialogue window

help window

Program windows are windows in which programs are displayed.
Operations on windows:

· Open and close a program window

·Move

· Resize windows

· Search for a window

· Arrange windows on the screen

Elements of the program window:

· title bar (on the left is the system menu, on the right are buttons for switching display modes on the screen)

· menu bar

· toolbar

· Workspace

scroll bars

· status bar

Dialog boxes in Windows are used to set parameters and settings of the OS, hardware and programs.

Main elements of the dialog window:

· Tab

Switch

· Text field

· List expansion button

· Indicator

· Slider

Windows uses four types of menus (a menu is a list of commands displayed on the screen and offered to the user for selection):

· Main menu (opened by the Start button)

· Menu bar in application windows (all programs included in the standard Windows package have a menu bar)

· System menu in application windows (for changing window sizes and position)

· Context menu

Application Conductor is the main Windows tool to view files and folders stored on hard and floppy drives and other storage media.

Explorer displays the hierarchical structure of files, folders, and drives on your PC. On the left side Windows Explorer uses a hierarchical representation of folders, files, and other resources connected to a computer or network.

File and folder manipulation:

· Create a new file and folder

· Naming

· Renaming

· Move and copy

· Removal

· Recovery

· View and change properties of files and folders

· Create a shortcut on the desktop (right-click, from Explorer, from the main menu, from the My Computer folder)

NON-GOVERNMENTAL EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION

HIGHER PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION

"INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY OF BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT"

INSTITUTE OF LAW

CUSTOMS AFFAIRS

Abstract on the discipline "Informatics"

"My computer: purpose and procedure for use. Main menu of Windows OS. Setting up a computer: procedure for operation"

Performed:

1st year student

Lungu Nikoleta Nikolaevna

Bryansk 2014

Introduction

Chapter 1. My computer: purpose and use

Chapter 2. Windows OS main menu: purpose of items

Chapter 4. Setting up your computer: operating procedures

Introduction

In my work I will consider a large number of issues, topics and subtopics.

I'll reveal the meaning of the "My Computer" folder. How to launch it, is this folder and the Explorer program similar? I will answer the question: “What does this folder contain?”

I'll tell you about the main menu of Windows OS and its purpose of items. In the same chapter, I will talk about getting started with the Start menu, the search field, the right panel, and the Start menu settings. These questions are very relevant because any person who works on a computer very often uses “Start” and this person does not necessarily have special knowledge. So this information is very useful and at the same time easily accessible. It is not necessary to read special reference books; it is enough to browse through the settings, properties and folders yourself.

Also in my work I will describe such computer operations as: loading, rebooting, and shutting down the operating system. I will tell you about several methods known to me to reboot the operating system. I will talk in detail about system overload and speeding up system shutdown. This method makes it possible to reduce the waiting time for the computer to turn off. In everyday life, every second is precious and valuable and this method although not common, it is very effective.

In the last chapter (I mean 4), I will try to cover a very difficult topic (it is difficult because it requires special knowledge to understand or at least experience working with a computer and its system). My work has already discussed the issue of Explorer, but in this topic I will explain how you can change its parameters for your convenience.

It will be a little more complicated to explain about optimizing the Windows OS, its IP address, and setting up the worker. An easy to understand topic is creating icons, which is the easiest for me.

Finally I'll tell you useful tips to improve the properties and settings of the computer for its owner, because this information will be the direction for creating your own, individual settings. Of course, they will not be able to globally change the properties and settings of the operating system; they will only change a few “default” settings.

Chapter 1. My computer: purpose and use

The My Computer program is designed to access computer disks. It opens the contents of the computer.) Purpose of the My Computer folder.

The "My Computer" folder contains all the resources of the computer and is intended for working with the computer through this folder. The default location of the My Computer folder is in the upper left corner of the desktop. IN Lately The folder was renamed to "Computer".

To enter the folder you need:. Place the mouse pointer over the My Computer folder icon.

II. Double-click the left mouse button on the icon. A window corresponding to the “My Computer” folder will open.

Or is there a second option

In a menu brought up by clicking the Start button or pressing the Windows button on the keyboard.

File Manager, also known as Explorer allows you to perform the most common operations on files - creating, opening/playing/viewing, editing, moving, renaming, copying, deleting, changing attributes and properties, searching for files and assigning rights.

Double-click on this icon with the LEFT mouse button - a window called “My Computer” will open. By the way, this window can also be opened using the Win+E key combination. Win is a button on the keyboard with the Windows logo on it.) Contents of the My Computer folder.

The My Computer folder contains the following folders:

· Folders for each drive installed on the computer.

These can be folders of the following disks and drives:

Drive A folder: - flexible magnetic disk measuring 3.5 inches (1 inch = 2.54 cm).

Drive B folder: - flexible magnetic disk 5.25 inches in size (recently such disks have almost gone out of use, however, in a number of organizations they are still used, especially on older computers). May be missing.

Drive folder C: - main (system) partition hard drive(Winchester). Typically this contains the operating system installed on the computer. For example, the C: drive folder may contain a special Windows folder dedicated to the Windows 95/98 operating system.

The user can, at his discretion, allocate the entire hard drive to the main partition and not create any other working partitions on the hard drive. Then, starting with the letter D:, the remaining disk resources of the computer will be recorded, such as laser drives, and so on, if they exist. However, let us still keep in mind that most often HDD is divided by the user into several independent sections. This reduces the degree of virus infection and damage to the user’s information and makes it possible to allocate some sections of the hard drive for an archive of programs, pictures and other files needed by the user. Below we describe exactly this option, when 4 partitions are created on the hard drive.

Drive folder D: - the first working partition of the hard drive. Used at the discretion of the user. This may be a partition of the hard drive that the user usually works with so as not to load the main system partition of the hard drive. Here may be located all the sites created by the user, all mailings received and created by him, as well as programs downloaded by him via the World Wide Web, and other user documents and materials.

Drive E folder: - second working partition of the hard drive. Used at the discretion of the user. This may be a part of the hard disk allocated by the user for saving music files in midi or mp3 formats and so on. Music programs such as Winamp 3 and other files needed by the user may be located here.

Drive folder F: - third working partition of the hard drive. Used at the discretion of the user. For example, archive files or other information needed by the user that he does not consider necessary to destroy may be stored here. For example, there may be games and everything for games and entertainment: humor, jokes, jokes, congratulations, toasts, fashion, makeup, hairstyles, psychology of communication, and so on other topics of interest to the user.

Drive folder G: - laser compact disc type CD ROM - Compact disk: Read only memory - read-only memory. The disk is intended only to read the data written to it. May be missing. However, in most cases it is installed on the computer as a very convenient resource that significantly expands the hard drive space.

Drive H folder: - laser compact disc type CD RW - Compact disk: Rewritable - a disk for repeated rewriting of information. Due to the significant reduction in cost recently, it is becoming a very popular storage medium for every user. Installs on most computers.

· "Arrange"

Organize the contents of this folder

· System Properties allows you to open a new window with information about this computer, such as processor speed or size random access memory

I will demonstrate the information of the computer on which I am performing this essay.

· Remove or change programs installed on this computer.

When pressed, it goes to all programs that have ever been installed.

· "Map network drive" Create a shortcut for shared folder or a computer on the network.

· "Open Control Panel"

Designed to configure computer devices and perform essential functions and actions on the computer. For example, this folder contains folders for computer devices such as keyboard, modems, sound, screen, joystick, mouse, and so on. In addition, there are also folders for performing important actions, such as “Add or Remove Programs”, “Accessibility for Disabled People”, “Language and Standards”, “Date and Time”, “Hardware Installation” and so on.

Launching the Control Panel. The Control Panel icon is usually found in the Home program group of the File Manager, and to launch the Control Panel you must double-click this icon as usual. The Control Panel window will appear on the screen.

The Control Panel window contains many icons, each of which corresponds to one of the sections of this program. To enter any of the sections, you need to double-click its icon, and a dialog request corresponding to this section will appear on the screen.

You can change certain parameters in this request and click the OK request button to set them. To exit without changes, press the Control Panel Cancel request button. Control Panel Features. Let's describe the main sections of the Control Panel and their purpose.

Color - Set the screen color used by Windows.

Fonts - installing and removing fonts.

Ports - setting the characteristics of communication ports COM1-COM4.

operating system windows explorer

Mouse—Controls mouse pointer speed and double-click detection options.

Design - setting parameters Windows screen(frequency of cursor blinking, distance between icons, width of window borders, etc.).

Keyboard - specifying keyboard parameters (character repetition speed, etc.).

Printers - installing and uninstalling printer drivers, setting printing parameters. - (Standards for date and time, monetary amounts, decimal separators, etc.

Date/Time - set the current date and time.

Network - manage your local network connection. - 386 Advanced - setting parameters specific to Windows advanced mode (paging file modes, multitasking priorities, etc.).

Drivers - installing, removing and configuring drivers for additional devices (say, a sound card).

Sound) - control of sound signals issued at different Windows events and Windows programs.

Chapter 2. Windows OS main menu: purpose of items

The main menu of Windows OS is the main link with programs, folders and computer settings. It's called a menu because it contains a list of choices, just like a menu in a restaurant. The "Windows OS Main Menu" will be referred to as "Start" in the following. And as the word "Start" implies, this menu is often the place to open or launch items.

Start Menu

· launching programs;

· opening the most frequently used folders;

· search for files, folders and programs;

· setting up computer parameters;

· obtaining help on working with the Windows operating system;

· turning off the computer;

· ending a user session in Windows or switching to account another user.

o Getting started with the Start menu

To open the Start menu, click the Start button in the lower left corner of the screen. Or press the Windows logo key on your keyboard.

The Start menu is divided into three main sections.

· The large panel on the left displays a short list of computer programs. Your computer manufacturer may change this list, so the way it appears varies greatly. Clicking a menu item All programs can be displayed full list installed programs (this will be discussed in more detail later).

· In the lower left corner there is a search field that allows you to search for programs and files on your computer using keywords.

· The right pane provides access to the most frequently used folders, files, settings and key system properties. Here you can end the user's session in Windows or turn off the computer.

o Search field

The search field is one of the most convenient ways to search on your computer. The exact location of the items doesn't matter—the search field searches for programs and all folders in the user's personal folder (which contains the Documents, Pictures, Music, Desktop, and other common folders libraries). The search is also carried out in messages Email, saved instant messages, meetings and contacts.

Search box in the Start menu

To use the search field, open the Start menu and start typing. It is not necessary to click inside the search field before typing. As you type, search results appear above the search field in the left pane of the Start menu.

The program, file, or folder will appear in search results in the following cases:

· Any word in the title matches or begins with the entered search criterion.

· Any text in the file contents - for example, text in text document- matches or starts with the entered search criterion.

· Any word in a file property, such as the author's last name, matches or begins with the entered search criteria. (For more information about file properties, see Changing file properties<#"785824.files/image004.gif">to clear search results and return to the main program list. You can also click Show all results to search your entire computer.

In addition to programs, files, folders and contacts, searches are also performed in the browser's Favorites list and in the history of visited websites. If any of the web pages contain the search term, they will be displayed under the "Files" heading.

o Right panel

· Personal folder. Opens a personal folder named after the current Windows user. For example, if in this moment the current user is Alexey Orekhov, the folder will be called "Alexey Orekhov". This folder, in turn, contains the user's personal files, including the My Documents, My Music, My Pictures, and My Videos folders.

· Documentation. Opens a document library where you can access text files, spreadsheets, presentations and other types of documents, and open them.

· Images. Opens the Image Library, where you can access and view digital images and graphics files.

· Music. Opens the music library, where you can access music and other sound files, and also reproduce them.

· Games. Opens the Games folder, which is where you access all the games on your computer.

· Computer. Opens a window that provides access to disks, cameras, printers, scanners, and other equipment connected to the computer.

· Control Panel. Opens the control panel, which allows you to configure appearance and computer functions, add and remove programs, install network connections and manage user accounts.

· Devices and printers. Opens a window that allows you to view information about the printer, mouse, and other devices installed on your computer.

· Default programs. Opens a window allowing you to select the program that your operating system Windows system will be used to perform actions such as accessing the Internet.

· Help and support. Opens the Help Center and Windows support, where you can find help for using Windows and your computer.

At the bottom of the right pane is the Shut Down button. To turn off your computer, click the Shut Down button.

Click the arrow next to the Shut Down button to open a menu with additional features such as switching users, terminating a user session, rebooting, and shutting down the computer.

Click the Shut down button to turn off your computer, or click the arrow to open more options.

o Customizing the Start Menu

You can customize the display of items in the Start menu. For example, you can pin icons for frequently used programs to the Start menu for quick access, or remove programs from the list. You can also hide or show some items in the right pane

Operating system files are stored in external, long-term memory (hard, floppy or laser disk). However, programs can only run if they are in RAM, so operating system files must be loaded into RAM.

The disk (hard, floppy or laser) on which the operating system files are located and from which it is loaded is called systemic.

After turning on the computer, the operating system is loaded from the system disk into RAM. The download must be carried out in accordance with the download program. However, in order for a computer to execute a program, that program must already be in RAM. The resolution of this contradiction consists in sequential, step-by-step loading of the operating system.

Computer self-test. The computer includes a non-volatile read-only memory (ROM) containing programs for testing the computer and the first stage of loading the operating system - this is the BIOS (Basic Input/Output System).

After turning on the computer power or pressing the Reset button on system unit computer or simultaneously pressing the key combination (Ctrl+Alt+Del) on the keyboard, the processor begins executing the self-test program computer POST(Power-ON Self Test). The performance of the processor, memory and other computer hardware is tested.

During testing, diagnostic messages may first be issued in the form of various sequences of short and long beeps (for example, 1 long and 3 short - the monitor is not connected, 5 short - processor error, and so on). After successful initialization of the video card, short diagnostic messages are displayed on the monitor screen.

To set the correct date and time, or to make changes to your computer's hardware configuration, you must press the (Del) key while performing the self-test. The system will boot BIOS utility Setup, which has an interface in the form of a system of hierarchical menus. The user can set new computer configuration parameters and store them in a special memory chip, which, when the computer is turned off, is powered by a battery installed on the system board. If the battery fails, configuration parameters are lost and the computer stops booting normally.

After self-testing, a special program contained in the BIOS begins searching for the operating system loader. There is an alternate access to the disks available in the computer (floppy, hard, CD-ROM) and a search in a certain place (in the first, so-called boot sector disk) availability special program Master Boot(operating system loader program).

If the disk is the system one and the bootloader program is in place, then it is loaded into RAM and control of the computer’s operation is transferred to it. The program searches for operating system files on the system disk and loads them into RAM as program modules (Fig.).

Rice. Operating system boot process

If system drives are missing from the computer, the message " Non system disk", and the computer “freezes,” that is, the operating system stops loading and the computer remains inoperative.

After the operating system has finished loading, control is transferred to the command processor. If you use the command line interface, the system prompts you to enter commands. The prompt is a sequence of characters indicating the current drive and directory. For example, if the operating system was loaded from the C: drive, and the operating system was installed in the WINDOWS directory, a prompt will appear:

:\WINDOWS>

If the operating system GUI is loaded, commands can be entered using the mouse.

Rebooting the operating system may be necessary after installing some applications, after making changes to its configuration, and also to free up RAM. Depending on the situation, you can restart the operating system different ways.

§ There are several ways to restart the operating system.

Method 1

If the operating system is working normally, then to reboot it it is better to use the most standard way. Open the "Start" menu and at the very bottom of it, click on the "Shutdown" button. A dialog box will open with three buttons - "Standby", "Shutdown" and "Reboot". Click on the "Restart" button to restart the operating system.

IN Windows Vista and Windows 7, when you click the "Shutdown" button, the dialog box does not open; the reboot command can be selected here from a special drop-down list.

Method 2 rebooting the operating system involves using a special Windows tools called Task Manager. The task manager is called by pressing the key combination "Ctrl"+"Alt"+"Del". The Task Manager always opens on top of all active windows. Using it, you can see the load on the operating system, running processes, and also remove unresponsive tasks, thereby saving the operating system from the need to reboot. If there is still a need to restart the system, then click on the “Shutdown” button at the top of the Task Manager window, and in the drop-down menu click on the “Restart” line.

Method 3 If the operating system is completely frozen, then it can only be rebooted using “radical methods”. To do this, press the Reset button, which is located on the system unit case. The computer will shut down for a second and then begin to boot. Please note that with this reboot method, data that you did not have time to save will be lost forever.

If you are using a laptop, you can reboot by pressing and holding the power key for two seconds.

§ If you need to not just reboot the operating system, but reboot the system.

Any operating system sooner or later reaches a state where using the computer becomes difficult, inconvenient, or even impossible. Familiar programs stop running, or trusted tools unexpectedly stop working. This can happen either due to malware or due to careless user actions. The most faithful and reliable way To resolve these problems, reinstall the operating system.

You must purchase a disk with the operating system (it does not matter which version you choose) and a license key for it. Time-tested, more old Windows XP is great for computers that are not very powerful or new. A more modern, beautiful and in many ways more convenient Windows 7 system is perfect for powerful machines, with sufficient memory, hard disk space and preferably a dual-core processor. Whatever version you choose, the main thing is that you have the disk and product key.

2. Find drivers for your hardware, i.e. motherboard, video card, sound card or network adapter- if they are not built into system board. If you don't have the software discs, just download the drivers from the manufacturer's website. Save the drivers and all important data on a flash drive or write it to another logical drive - this will be very useful after reinstallation.

Click the Start button and select Restart. After the black and white test message appears on the screen when the system starts, press the source button to boot the system. Most often this is the F8 button, but some motherboard models use F10 or another key. This is exactly indicated in the instructions for your model or is written on the bottom line of the loading screen.

Select from the boot menu the item labeled CD-ROM or DVD-ROM with the name of your drive model. Insert the disk with the operating system installation data and press Enter.

Specify an unformatted area as the installation location for the system. Confirm the creation and formatting of the new partition. Wait for the Windows file formatting and loading procedure to complete. After this, the computer will reboot on its own.

Wait 15 minutes to 1 hour for these systems to be unpacked and set up. Enter your computer details, personal details, account name and password if required. Also specify your time zone and preferred language when you start your computer when prompted. After this, the computer will inform you that the installation is complete and will reboot.

Take out installation disk from the drive, wait until the system boots completely. Insert the flash drive or driver disc and install it.

Be sure to activate your copy of the operating system, otherwise it will stop working after 30 days. To activate, select the item in the Start menu called "Activation". The most convenient option is via the Internet. To do this you will need a key, also known as a product code. Enter the required information in the activation wizard and restart your computer after the process is completed.

v Shutting down the operating system

Typically, shutting down the operating system begins by pressing the "Start" button or on the keyboard.

If a person cannot find the Start button, he must press the key and, without releasing it, the key . Then release both keys. This action is equivalent to clicking the button

Start, revealing the main thing Windows menu(or Start menu).

In the menu that opens, click on the red Shutdown button

Click on the Start button in the lower left corner of the screen, in the lower right corner of the menu.

By doing this, you initiate the process of shutting down the operating system. A dialog box appears on the screen: Turn off computer

In the window that appears, click on the red (middle) button again. If you forget to save a file to disk, a message will appear on the screen asking you to save your work (saving files will be discussed in Chapter 10). If you haven't forgotten anything, the operating system will perform necessary actions When you have completed your work, the message The computer can be turned off will appear on the screen.

Speeding up system shutdown

Surely many users, after finishing working with Windows, have encountered a message that some application is still running and they first need to close it, and only then exit the OS again. A similar situation occurs when a program cannot correctly process the shutdown message sent to it by Windows, as well as to all other running applications, when the OS stops working. It turns out that there is a parameter in the Registry, the value of which affects the behavior of Windows in such a situation. To change it, launch Registry Editor and go to

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ControlPanel\Desktop. Create (if it doesn't exist) a new String parameter and name it AutoEndTasks. If you assign it the value “0” (and also in the absence of the AutoEndTasks parameter), then the termination of such applications will be transferred to the user, if “1”, then the OS will be informed about the forced closure of applications that are not able to finish their work on their own when “exiting” Windows .

You should always remember that by changing the system registry you directly affect your OS. Therefore, you need to be extremely careful and attentive. If any of the above is not clear, then there is no point in putting it into practice! You always need to be aware of what you are doing and why!

Chapter 4. Setting up your computer: operating procedures

Let's start with the fact that we won't talk about banal computer settings.

MS Windows Explorer settings.

It’s not worth talking about the “service” menu of the explorer; this issue has already been mentioned earlier. But now we’ll talk a little about what you can do with the conductor without touching the “service” menu.

Change the conductor

In order to deposit some changes in your conductor First you need to right-click on its shortcut and a context menu will appear. Then select the properties tab and left-click on it. A shortcut menu will appear with two tabs, “general” and “shortcut”. We need the “shortcut” bookmark, select it with the left mouse button. Here in the “object” field you can enter additional parameters for our conductor.

It's no secret that by default Explorer opens in the Desktop\My Documents folder. But is this convenient? What if I want to see drive C:\ when opening? What should I do? Each time go to the desired folder? What if I want to go into a level 5 subdirectory when opening it? This is where the commands entered in the “object” field come in handy.

Below are the most commonly used commands.

All commands are entered separated by spaces and commas.

"/e" - allows you to open two panels in a standard Explorer window, the left directory tree and the right contents of the current directory of the left panel View all folders and the contents of the source folder. Without this parameter, only the contents of the source folder are opened.

/select - Select the required object in the parent folder.

"c:\" - open one panel with a specific drive. Instead of "c:\", you can specify any existing drive. You can also specify the path to a given folder or subdirectory. For example "from:\my documents\documents". It’s not hard to guess that you can combine the above commands; this is done separated by a comma and a space. For example "/e, c:\my documents\documents".

"/root" - prohibits moving through the explorer tree above the path specified after it. For example, “/root, c: \” by entering this command, we will get an Explorer window with one panel and a view of drive c: \, but we will not be able to get, for example, to drive a: \ since it is not currently visible and there is no way transition to this disk. This command can also be combined with the "/e" command, separated by commas.

Well, if everything is clear with the guide, then there is still a lot of things where I would like to look and correct something. And the point is not at all that Windows is a bad "axis". It's just difficult to create a system that pleases everyone. But the head is given to us in order to understand the world around us, including the PC. (purely the opinion of the author of the abstract)

Every time you boot, Windows polls the state of folders for storing temporary files, and also loads fonts into RAM, plays the logo, allocates a dynamic IP address for TCP/IP, and does a bunch of other unnecessary things. Some of these things can be successfully gotten rid of. And so let's get started.

Setting up and optimizing Windows OS.

IP address

I encountered this problem relatively recently on Either Express 100TX PnP adapters from Intel, when installing them into the system I had to wait about 5 minutes to load on the P2-450. Despite all this, the HDD did not work at all. By installing a permanent IP address instead of a dynamically allocated one, the loading time was reduced by more than 5 times. This is done like this: the Control Panel opens, in it we go to Network Properties, there we open TCP/IP properties ( Please note, this refers to the LAN settings, please do not ruin your Internet by writing the wrong IP addresses). And in the protocol properties, right on the first tab, we change the receipt of an IP address automatically to a permanent address of 4 digits. Example 169.254.0.1 for the first machine, 169.254.0.2 for the second machine, etc. Why are the first two digits like this? Because Microsoft considers it an unwritten standard ( maybe written, but you yourself know our attitude towards what they wrote), what in local networks IP addresses start with these two numbers.

Desktop Settings

The first problem is that many people like to make drawings for themselves on their desktop. But in vain, they significantly reduce system performance in some areas, and also waste precious RAM. An example of a decrease in productivity has been observed more than once among those who like to spend time in Photoshop, when they created images of a smaller or, even more scary, larger size than the desktop resolution, and then set the “Stretch” option in the background settings

But, in addition, an elementary background with 1024 by 768 pixels takes up more than 2 megabytes of RAM, which, let’s say, is quite significant with a memory capacity of less than 128 MB. In addition, if there is a strong desire to hang a picture on the background, then wouldn’t it be better to try to optimize it using Photoshop to 256 colors, while turning on dithering. Even some of the photographs look quite good. For a practical example, you can look at the recommendations/settings section of Detonator..., there is a photo of a hare at 256 and 16M colors. Looks almost identical. But the amount of memory it takes up is completely different.

The second problem is that our beloved corporation is passionate about design, and sometimes takes this passion to insanity. An example is the continuous animation of Windows98, all these pop-up menus, minimizing windows, etc. You understand that it is much easier to display an instantly appearing window than the same one, but moving out of an empty space, and accordingly, much less resources are required for this. And, besides, all sorts of pretty things and animations greatly increase the instability of the system. It’s also easy to disable - you need to go to Display Properties (via the control panel or simply by calling the desktop properties), go there, to the section where all the beauties are configured (in English version- Effects), and disable animation output there. By the way, if font blurring is turned on, you can turn it off at the same time, it will be faster.

Creating icons.

Well, this is advice from the field of beauty, it has nothing to do with optimizing the system. Everyone probably saw how, when installing a compact with a toy, the CD icon changed to the toy icon, and many know how this was done. And if anyone doesn’t know, I’ll tell you. It's all in the AUTORUN file. INF, which lies at the root of the CD. It's something like this:

Icon=icon. ico

Has anyone thought what would happen if such files were copied onto a screw? It turns out that the hard drive icon (HDD) will change. And the editors of icons on the Internet are like half-cut Quakers. So you can decorate “your computer” nicely

Optimization OptimizationMsdos. sys

Msdos file. sys, which has the attributes "hidden", "system" and "read-only", is located in the root directory of the boot disk. To start working with it. you need to remove these attributes using any modern file manager, for example the same Explorer.

All changes to the file are made with any text editor, such as Notepad or Wordpad.

Parameters with a short description:=path

where path is the location of the windows directory, for example C:\Windows. Thanks to this, you can keep several on the screw without any additional utilities. copies of Windows, pre-supplied in different catalogues. Just when you need to run another version, we just go into the file and correct the path. But don’t think that it’s enough to COPY the Windows into different folders and point the way to them, and everything will be OK. After all, information about the path to system files is not stored in this file, and errors may (and most likely will) occur during loading. = path is the same thing, only about where Windows is loaded from. = drive_without_colon - the drive from which Windows is loading.=path - the place where the installation program put the files for uninstallation. In principle, most people don’t need this...=1 (or 0) - makes it possible to save the old DOS, while pressing F4 will load DOS. It used to be terribly glitchy, now I don’t know. In principle, it is not necessary at all; almost all old programs can be deceived by the SETVER program, which comes bundled with the DOS kernel of Windows. = 1 (or 0) - allows you to immediately go to AUTOEXEC and CONFIG after processing booting Windows. You can remove it and make multi-boot for old DOS applications or anything else. If you need to log into Windows after this, just type WIN or write this in AUTOEXEC. BAT=1 (or 0) - sets double buffering of some SCSI devices. In this case, doublebuff is loaded each time. sys driver. It eats up memory, if there is no SCSI, then you don’t need to enable it. =x (where x is 0, 1 or 2) - it is responsible for how the system will behave if the system previously crashed, i.e. whether the file system will be checked and how.

AutoScan=0 - despite the abnormal termination, the file system will not be scanned. Suitable only for users who understand and carry out autoscan themselves or have another file system check system. By the way, it will be very useful for users of the Russian version of W95OSR2 - there is scandisc. exe has an error and often crashes the system when checked. =1 - default parameter - the file system after the previous crash will be checked, but will warn about it. =2 - the file system after the crash will be checked without asking permission for this - it is advisable to set it to ALL users who do not understand how Win9x works and therefore do not know what file system checking is and why it is necessary.

If you do not plan to use DoubleSpace, then it is better to set = 0DrvSpace = 0

Below is a list of parameters and their values that increase download speed.

BootDelay=0 (indicates the delay time after the Starting Windows message is issued. Not supported on Windows 98).

DisableLog=l (indicates that there is no need to create a boot log).

Logo=0 (indicates that the Windows logo should not be displayed). But you can also do the opposite and make your own logo. To do this, you just need to create an image with a resolution of 320 by 400 pixels with 8-bit color (256 colors), save it in BMP format and write it to the root directory of the boot disk under the name LOGO. SYS, and if in MSDOS. SYS does not indicate that the logo should not be displayed during boot, then after rebooting the system you will see your picture. In exactly the same way, you can create logos for “Preparing the computer to turn off the power” (logow. sys file in the folder where Windows is installed) and “Now you can turn off your computer” (logos. sys file in the same folder). If you don't have any graphic editor Besides PAINT (comes with Windows), it’s easier when creating a picture not to bother with changing its size, but to open these files (logos or logow. sys) and simply fix them. By the way, they are opened not with the standard “Open.” option, but with “Open as.” indicating the file type - BMP.

Network=0 (1) (indicates the absence or presence of a network - speeds up the boot process).

SystemReg=0 (indicates that the Registry is not scanned at boot). Dblpace=O (warns that no compression system is being used).

OptimizationConfig. sysAndAutoexec. bat

Config. sys

To change these files, perform the same operation with them as with the msdos file. sys.

Here are some parameters and their values that affect system performance.

SWTTCHES=/F (indicates a 2 second pause when loading).

ACCDATE = C - F - (used to set the names of disk drives in the system that do not work with the dates of the last access to files: this somewhat increases the performance of file operations, but complicates the functioning of individual programs for sorting files on a disk by last access date).

DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM. SYS /TESTMEM: OFF /Q (the TESTMEM: OFF parameter prevents memory testing during boot, and the /Q parameter does not allow messages to be displayed about the boot progress).

DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS EMM386. EXE RAM A=64 H=128 D=256 AUTO NOTR (the NOTR parameter tells the EMM386 driver not to search for the Token Ring Network adapter; D=256 sets the size of the direct exchange buffer with memory to 256 KB);

BUFFERSHIGH=65.0 /x (additional caching is required, since working with a FAT32 disk in a DOS environment is noticeably slower than in Windows).

Windows will run a little faster if you enter it in CONFIG. SYS line STACKS=0,0 (old stuff, needed for compatibility.)

Autoexec. bat

It can also be opened with any text editor.

The main commands in this file provide support for the Russian language in DOS and launch drivers various devices. This line tells applications where to place temporary files:

SET TEMP=d:\temp

Please note that it is advisable to organize such a place not on boot disk, otherwise lost clusters may appear after failures.

Optimization of standard tools

As a rule, in this case it is recommended to set minimum size swap file and defragment the hard drive, and also enable the DMA option for hard drives, CD-ROM drives. DVD-ROM and CD-RW. The size of the paging file is determined by the size of your hard drive and its speed. And although when you try to change the size of the paging file, Mrs. Windows will swear and try to reason with you, do not give in, she, like a child, simply does not like when her toys are touched. For disks with a size of at least 1000 mV, it makes sense to set the minimum paging file size to 200 mV; you can not set the upper limit, or make it 3-4 times larger than the lower one.

OptimizationSystem. ini

This file is located in the Windows directory. Can also be changed with a text editor.

The following settings must be made in the section:

PageBuffers=32 (to increase the speed of working with a constant-size page file).

ConservativeSwapfileUsage=l (to prevent Windows 98/Me from using the swap file unless absolutely necessary).

Cache Windows work It's quite peculiar. It first gets completely trashed, after which it begins to free up RAM for itself, dumping working applications into the swap file. This significantly reduces their speed, especially on systems with less than 128MB of RAM. You can only somehow put up with this if you have about half a gigabyte of memory, but if it’s less, then the problem seems quite serious. The solution is quite simple - open SYSTEM. INI via the System Editor, a section is added there in which 2 parameters are written - CacheMinSize and CacheMaxSize (minimum and maximum cache size, respectively), with different amounts of RAM, the recommended cache size is different. An approximate calculation is given below. Or you can also download the Cacha Manager utility from the arRIVAl server, and not write anything manually. You can also use the Cashemen 3.60 program.

For those with 32 MB RAM:

MinFileCache=2048MaxFileCache=6144

For those with 48 MB RAM:

MinFileCache=2048MaxFileCache=8192

For those with 64 MB RAM:

MinFileCache=2048MaxFileCache=10240

For those with 128 MB RAM:

MinFileCache=4096MaxFileCache=16384

Regarding the paging file, we can say the following: Windows by default makes it dynamic, that is, constantly changing its size. And this is not good, since in most cases the hard drive is fragmented, which is not a parameter that speeds up work. In this regard, advice - make the swap file permanent, and then, if you have previously defragmented the disk, then your swap file will never become fragmented again. As for the size, we can say this - about 200MB, more is possible if you don’t mind the space.

The second measure is to move it to the very beginning of the disk using optimizers like NU4, Nuts&Bolts, and the best option is to place it on the second screw under the same conditions.

Optimizing the System Registry

The registry is the central MS Windows database that stores configuration information. It consists of 6 main sections, but in principle it is not necessary to learn them all, although it is useful. And if such a desire suddenly arises, there is a sufficient amount of literature on this topic. One thing that is important to us now is that with the help of the registry we can and should make Windows work faster and better.

You can edit the registry using a special registry editor. It is launched simply, from the start menu with the “run” command. In the command line that opens, you need to type the command “regedit”. Or find it in the folder windows file regedit. exe and run it. There are also programs that allow you to optimize the registry automatically. Personally, I don't trust them, although many people use them. But, in my opinion, it is always better to know for sure what and where you are changing. Why then wonder why applications suddenly began to freeze, and the machine took three minutes to boot instead of the required 40 seconds. You should also take into account that all changes made to the registry will only work after rebooting your PC.

CPU priority management

ForWindows 9 x/ Me. By managing task priority, you can achieve more efficient CPU utilization. Anyone's job Windows applications depends on the CPUPriority parameter. So, if you set CPUPriority=0, all active applications will receive additional CPU cycles (real-time priority).

CPUPriority=l - all loaded applications (active and background) receive slightly more processor cycles than loaded ones (Win32 TSRs/DLLs/Runtimes/APIs);

CPUPriority=2 - all loaded applications (active and background) receive much more processor cycles than loaded ones (Win32 TSRs/DLLs/Runtimes/APIs);

CPUPriority=3 - all applications and TSRs/DLLs/Runtimes/APIs share the same CPU cycles (this value is set by default).

So, launch Regedit Registry Editor. Next, open the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VxD\BIOS section. In the right pane, create a new DWORD value, name it CPUPriority and set its value by double-clicking on it.

There are several other parameters that affect the distribution of priorities. Therefore, in the same place where CPUPriority was organized (HKEY_ LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VxD\BIOS), create three more DWORD parameters and assign values to them:

PCIConcur = 1 (enabled).

FastDRAM = 1 (enabled).

AGPConcur = 1 (allowed) - with an AGP card installed.

ForWindows 9x/Me/NT4-5. WITH Using the Priority Control parameter, you can control the redistribution of priorities between active and background tasks. Launch Regedit Registry Editor, go to

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\PriorityControl. (If there is no PriorityControl section, then create it: right-click on the Control section, select "New* Section" and give it a name.) In the right pane, organize the DWORD parameter - Win32Prio-ritySeparation - and give it one of the following values:

O - active and background tasks have the same priorities;

The priority of active applications is higher than that of background ones;

Active applications have much higher priority than background ones.

Z remembering files and directories

When working with files in Windows environment The OS saves their names and placement. If you select from the list "Typical role of this computer" ("Control Panel" System "Performance "File system" Hard disks") corresponding mode (pattern) of operation, then you can specify the number of directories and names that you need to remember - see table

Creating your own template/mode of operation

Launch Registry Editor and go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\FSTemplates\. Create a new section by right-clicking on FS Templates and give it any name, such as The Best or For Quake. Now let's move on to this new template by clicking on its name. It is recommended to assign the first parameter of the right panel "Default Value" to the name of the resulting template. Right-click in the right pane and select Binary Option to create the NameCache and PathCache options for caching names and paths. If, for example, you need to remember 1024 names and 64 directories, which in hexadecimal will be 400h and 40h, respectively, then taking into account the reverse byte order, you will get

NameCache=00 04 00 00

PathCache=40 00 00 00

Now add these parameters with their values to the NKEU_ LOCAL_MACHINE\System\Currem ControlSet\control\FileSystem\ section.

Useful tips

Quick application launch

Windows Me allows you to configure your system to launch applications faster. To do this, you need to reformat the hard drive for file system FAT32 and run the Maintenance Wizard from the Utilities menu. This wizard allows you to schedule regular disk defragmentation sessions that automatically adjust when applications start. ( To be honest, I have never used this wizard myself; I launch all utility programs manually. Not because, but just a habit.)

Intensive system maintenance

The most intensive maintenance mode involves running three tasks (Disk Cleanup, ScanDisk, and Disk Defragmenter) every day at night, with half-hour intervals between them. In this case, the ScanDisk program should work in automatic error correction mode. With this approach, the system will be 100% ready every morning. ( Honestly, this is a promise from the Microsoft guys, I wouldn’t trust it too much; the need for defragmentation occurs approximately once every 2 weeks, and only if you work on the computer quite intensively).

Configuration Details

Quite often a situation arises when you need to know the configuration of your computer. To print system configuration information, follow these steps:

Click the Start button, select Programs, Accessories, System Tools, and System Information.

From the File menu, select Print. ( you will receive a pack of approximately 20-30 sheets)

There are also programs that allow you to obtain information about the system in a more compact form. For example, "complekt. exe" is a very nice and useful thing, especially when conducting an inventory. You can get it from Freesoft.ru, the volume is only 397 kilobytes. Outputs a text file with all the main parameters.

Utilities

To run the cleaning program for this disk, click the button

"Disk Cleanup".

To run scanning, archiving and disk defragmentation programs, go to the "Service" tab.

Screen resolution

To quickly change screen resolution ( Well, if anyone still doesn’t know how) For various programs, follow these steps.

Right-click an empty area of your desktop and select Properties.

Go to the "Settings" tab.

In the Screen Area group, select the desired resolution by dragging the slider. If your screen resolution changes frequently, follow these steps to quickly display the Settings tab.

On the Settings tab, click the Advanced button.

On the General tab, select the "Display settings icon on taskbar" checkbox.

To open the Settings tab, double-click the corresponding icon on the taskbar.

Restarting the taskbar

To restart the taskbar (for example, after changing a registry key), press CTRL+ALT+DEL, select Explorer, and click End Task. The taskbar will be closed and reopened.

Quick access to system properties

To view system properties, right-click the My Computer icon and select Properties. If your keyboard has a Windows button, press WINDOWS+BREAK.

Running Windows applications from the command line

To run a Windows application from the command line, just enter the program name and the necessary parameters into it. For example, to run text editor"Notepad" should be entered into the command line "notepad" and press ENTER. Windows applications can also be launched from batch files. The Start command allows you to run a program or open required document. For example: C: >start calc. exe.

Start Menu

Use the Start menu to perform the following tasks:

· launching programs;

· opening the most frequently used folders;

· search for files, folders and programs;

· setting up computer parameters;

· obtaining help on working with the Windows operating system;

· turning off the computer;

· ending a user's Windows session or switching to another user's account.

o Getting started with the Start menu

To open the Start menu, click the Start button in the lower left corner of the screen. Or press the Windows logo key on your keyboard.

The Start menu is divided into three main sections.

· The large panel on the left displays a short list of computer programs. Your computer manufacturer may change this list, so the way it appears varies greatly. Clicking a menu item All programs you can display the full list installed programs(this will be discussed in more detail later).

· In the lower left corner there is a search field that allows you to search for programs and files on your computer using keywords.

· The right pane provides access to the most frequently used folders, files, settings and key system properties. Here you can end the user's session in Windows or turn off the computer.

o Search field

The search field is one of the most convenient ways to search on your computer. The exact location of the items doesn't matter—the search field searches for programs and all folders in the user's personal folder (which contains the Documents, Pictures, Music, Desktop, and other common folders libraries). You can also search email messages, saved instant messages, appointments, and contacts.

Search box in the Start menu

The program, file, or folder will appear in search results in the following cases:

· Any word in the title matches or begins with the entered search criterion.

· Any text in the file's contents—for example, text in a word processing document—matches or begins with the entered search term.

· Any word in a file property, such as the author's last name, matches or begins with the entered search criteria. (For more information about file properties, see Changing file properties.)

Click any search result to open it, or click the Clear button to clear the search results and return to the main program list. You can also click Show all results to search your entire computer.

o Right panel

· Personal folder. Opens a personal folder named after the current Windows user. For example, if the current user is Alexey Orekhov, the folder will be called "Alexey Orekhov". This folder, in turn, contains the user's personal files, including the My Documents, My Music, My Pictures, and My Videos folders.

· Documentation. Opens a document library where you can access and open text files, spreadsheets, presentations, and other types of documents.

· Images. Opens the Image Library, where you can access and view digital images and graphics files.

· Music. Opens your music library, where you can access and play music and other audio files.

· Games. Opens the Games folder, which is where you access all the games on your computer.

· Computer. Opens a window that provides access to disks, cameras, printers, scanners, and other equipment connected to the computer.

· Control Panel. Opens Control Panel, which allows you to customize the appearance and features of your computer, add and remove programs, establish network connections, and manage user accounts.

· Devices and printers. Opens a window that allows you to view information about the printer, mouse, and other devices installed on your computer.

· Default programs. Opens a window that allows you to select the program that the Windows operating system will use to perform actions, such as access the Internet.

· Help and support. Opens Windows Help and Support Center, where you can find help for using Windows and computer.

At the bottom of the right pane is the Shut Down button. To turn off your computer, click the Shut Down button.

Click the arrow next to the Shut Down button to open a menu with additional options, such as switching users, logging out, restarting, and shutting down the computer.

Click the Shut down button to turn off your computer, or click the arrow to open more options.

o Customizing the Start Menu

And programs? When you visit a restaurant, you will be offered a current menu from which you can choose the dishes you need. In relation to the operating system and applications, "Menu" is a list of operations that the user can select to perform.

Windows main menu

In the main menu of Windows (Windows7 is considered the most common system at the time of writing), you can select the programs you need to run them, open for access to documents that you have saved on, access operating system settings, get help and help with system, search for the ones you need.

Main menu opens by left-clicking on the “Start” button located in the lower left corner of the taskbar. In the menu that opens, in its left panel, there will be a list of programs that you launched last. To restart, all you have to do is left-click on the application name.

To view all installed programs, click on the menu item "All programs". A list of all installed programs on the computer will appear in the left panel in the form of icons or folders with the name of the application. To start the program you need to click on its name. If the program name in the main menu is located in a folder, then you need to open the folder by clicking the left mouse button. As a rule, in the folder with the name of the program there are icons for its launch, uninstallation and help file.

At the bottom of the left panel of the main menu there is a search bar. For search the desired file you need to enter his name and click the magnifying glass icon. The found file will be displayed in the left panel of the main menu.

In the right pane of the Windows main menu there is a list that allows you to get fast access to some operating system functions:

Documentation. This main menu item allows you to open a folder in which you can store documents.
Images. Main menu item that gives access to the contents of the folder with graphic files(photos, drawings, etc.)
Music. Opens a folder with audio files stored in it.
Computer. Clicking on this main menu item will open a window where all available storage media will be shown: logical drives and removable media.
Control Panel. Access to basic Windows settings.
Devices and Printers. Left-clicking on this item opens a window showing the presence of connected printers.
Default programs. Gives quick access to setting up programs that will process this or that type of file by default. For example, in addition to the standard media player that was originally included in the operating system, you installed a third-party player. Using this menu item, you can select that files with the .mp3 extension will only be played by this player, and all other types of media files will be played by the standard one.
Help and support. Call the help system of the installed operating system, where you can learn about certain of its functions.

Menu of programs, windows and documents

Programs developed for Windows have a standard interface in which the program menu is based on a single principle.

Interface or user interface is a set of tools, methods and rules for interacting with a program or operating system.

This means that any program running on Windows has a standard appearance and standard controls. The menu in the program, which can be either horizontal or vertical, consists of menu items, which can be selected by clicking the left mouse button. Clicking a menu item triggers an action or opens additional list with items - submenu.

Hovering your mouse over a menu item highlights it visually. This may be by coloring or highlighting the item in relief. Menu commands that are not available (those that do not have the required execution conditions) are grayed out.

Vertical menu items, depending on their purpose, may have additional elements:

To the left of the vertical menu item there may be a dot that serves as a value switch.
To the left of the vertical menu item there may be a checkmark indicating the status of the mode, on or off.
A triangle-shaped pointer to the right of a vertical menu item indicates the presence of an additional menu (submenu) for this item.

A context menu is a special type of menu that is called up by right-clicking on any object and displays a valid list of actions with this object.

Share.

Every user imagines what the Main Menu is and that it is, in a way, the most important control element of the Windows operating system. To enter the Main Menu, you need to find and click the Start button, which is located on the system desktop. In addition, the Main Menu can be opened using a keyboard shortcut. In this case we are talking about the combination of Ctrl and Esc.

The main menu is a convenient user tool, thanks to which you can carry out all the basic operations for working on a computer. It is the menu that provides access to programs, applications, documents, folders and other system devices, as well as to the settings of the Windows XP operating system itself.

The operating system developers have provided for the possibility of some changes in the interface and functionality of the Main Menu. For these purposes, right-click on the “Start” button, after which the user will have access to a context menu. In this menu you can find an option responsible for properties; when you click on it, a window will open with the properties of the Taskbar and Start menu. The settings allow you to change the style of the menu interface between the classic version and the regular menu for Windows XP.

If the user is confident in his own abilities, he can additionally use the customization function in the style of the selected menu.

Main sections of the Main Menu:

1. If the user has chosen the standard Main Menu style for the Windows XP operating system, then the name of the active user will be displayed in the top field of the Main Menu. In the classic version there is no such display.

2. The upper area of the Main Menu is reserved for programs frequently used by the user. Here are the icons of the applications that were launched by the user last. Setting up the display and updating of these icons is carried out automatically.

3. Moving below, the user has access to all programs that are currently installed on the user’s PC. It should be noted that this section of the Main Menu is the most used.

4. Below it is a section with the user’s personal documents, where traditional folders that are inherent in the Windows XP operating system are located. In this case, they are the folders “My Documents”, “My Drawings”, etc.

6. Under this option there are help functions of the operating system, in which the user is given the opportunity to search for documents or other network devices. For these purposes, you must enter the desired command from the keyboard. Besides, this area contains a number of system commands entered through command line in the Start menu. These commands are used to configure the OS, check disks, perform some work with the registry, edit files, etc.

7. In the lowest field of the Main Menu there are options that allow you to manage the system session. Here the user can make himself active or change to another; it is also in this field that you can end the session or restart and turn off the PC.