Usually, nobody thinks of mounting a desktop sideways. Keeping the pencils from rolling off a normal desk is hard enough.
But in Windows XP, your computer monitor’s screen is known as the Windowsdesktop,and it’s the area where all your work takes place. You can create files and folders right on your new electronic desktop and arrange them all across the screen.
For example, do you need to write a letter asking the neighbor to return the circular saw she borrowed? The following steps show how to put the desktop’s functions to immediate use.
Point at just about any Windows XP item and click your right mouse button to see a menu listing the things you’re allowed to do with that item.
1. Right-click on an uncovered area of your desktop.
A menu pops up, as shown in Figure 10-1.
Figure 10-1:
Clicking an empty area of your desktop with your right mouse button brings up a list of helpful options.
2. Point at the word New and click WordPad Document from the menu that appears.
Because you’re creating something new — a new letter — you should point at the word New. Windows XP lists the new things you can create on the desktop. Choose WordPad Document, as shown in Figure 10-2. Poof! A little WordPad icon appears on the desktop, bearing the vivid name New WordPad Document.
As your computer fills up with programs, your menu choices change, too. In fact, if you install Microsoft Office or Microsoft Word, WordPad is kicked off the menu completely. If you don’t see WordPad on the menu, try this alternative approach: Click the Start button and choose Run. When the Run box appears, type WordPadinto the Open box and then press Enter. WordPad opens automatically, ready for action. Now run ahead to Step 5.
3. Type a name for your letter and press Enter.
When an icon for a new WordPad document appears on the desk-top, the first step is to give it a name of up to 255 characters — something likePolite Circular Saw Request. As soon as you start typing, your new title replaces the old name of New WordPad Doc-ument, as shown in Figure 10-3.
Figure 10-2:
Point at the word New and choose WordPad Document from the menu.
Figure 10-3:
Start typing to create the icon’s new name.
Press Enter when you’re through typing the name, and WordPad saves the new name. (Occasionally, Windows XP frets about your choice of name; if so, try a different name or skip ahead to Chapter 11 to see why Windows is so finicky about names.)
4. Double-click your newly created WordPad icon to open it.
Double-clicking the new icon calls up WordPad, the word proces-sor, so you can write the letter requesting the return of your circu-lar saw.
5. Write your letter.
Remember, word processors automatically wrap your sentences to the next line for you; don’t hit the Enter key when you’re nearing the right side of the page.
6. Click Save from the WordPad File menu to save the letter.
If you created the file by right-clicking on the desktop, you’ve already named the file, and Windows will save it without further ado. If you opened WordPad through the Start menu’s Run com-mand, Windows now asks you to choose a name for the file.
7. Head back to the WordPad File menu and choose Print to send the letter to the printer.
8. Close the file by clicking the X in its upper-right corner. To delete it, drag the file to the Recycle Bin.
After you finish writing and printing the letter, you can either save it or throw it away. You can simply leave your new WordPad letter icon on your desk. When your desktop gets too cluttered, feel free to move the icon to a new folder, a process covered in excruciating detail in Chapter 11.
If you want to delete the letter, drag the icon to your Recycle Bin, which I describe in the nearby section “Using the Recycle Bin.”
AWindows XP is designed for you to work right on top of the desk-top. From the desktop, you can create new things like files, folders, sounds, and graphics — just about anything. After working with your new file or folder, you can store it or delete it.
AAre you confused about what something is supposed to do? Right-click on it or simply rest the pointer over the confusing spot. Win-dows XP often tosses up a menu that lists just about everything you can do with that particular object. This trick works on many icons found on your desktop or throughout your programs.
ASometimes Windows XP does something nasty, and everything on your desktop disappears, leaving it completely empty. What gives?
To fix the problem, right-click on your desktop and choose Arrange Icons By from the pop-up menu. Then choose Show Desktop Icons from the next menu to make everything reappear with no harm done.