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Introduction:
Computers have been around for a very long time however still are not perfect. They were built to follow explicit instructions from both you and the software programmer. A combination of various complex math problems create your applications and games. The heat, moisture and behavior of our envirment can often cause these machines to misbehave but most of the time we all hope our computer is working normally. Understanding how to help keep it running normally is the first step to keeping a healthy computer. Computers 4 U, Inc would like to provide you with some basic skills to help you along your way.

The Mouse

Using a mouse may seem pretty simple but it does have it's advanced features. First understand that most mice normally move an arrow around your screen when you move it. Two buttons on the top that we will refer to as your left and right mouse button (perhaps a wheel in the middle).

- The Left Mouse Button: The left mouse button is used for SELECTING an object or icon that you want to either open or do something with. Holding the arrow over what you want to select. Clicking the left mouse button once will simply highlight the object, double clicking the left mouse button quickly will normally execute whatever your mouse was over. Holding down the left mouse button and moving the mouse will drag or move an icon.
- The Right Mouse Button: The right mouse button is more of an OPTION or MENU button. Hold the mouse over an icon and click the right button one time will normally give you options in a small menu. Moving your mouse to the option you want then choosing it with a single left click.
- The Wheel: The wheel is normally used for SCROLLING or UP AND DOWN actions within a web page or document. Rolling the wheel forward goes up and rolling it back toward yourself goes down. Clicking it down often locks the mouse to scroll mode allowing you to only move the mouse to scroll (clicking it down again releases this effect).
- Side Buttons: Buttons on the side of your mouse can be configured in various ways depending upon what type of mouse you have. You may have to follow the instructions that came with your mouse to set the buttons to operate the way you want. In a standard layout your side buttons will be used for FORWARD and BACK. It is normally used when surfing the internet as the left side button will take you back 1 page per click and the right side button taking you forward again.

Copy and Paste

Learning to copy and paste files, text and icons is very important and helpful when using a computer. For example if you have spent two months writing a book you probley wouldn't want to one day lose that book... copy and paste will help you to backup this book incase your computer ever breaks down.

- Text: Take your mouse, and place your cursor at the beginning of the bold text below, then click and hold the left mouse button, while pulling your mouse over the text (The text should now be highlighted). Now release the left mouse button, and with the cursor over the highlighted text, right click the mouse for options, and select COPY. Now over the empty box below, right click your mouse again, and select PASTE and you will have copied and pasted the text.
This method can be used from web sites to word documents, notepad or other word processing applications.

COPY and PASTE me to the EMPTY BOX.

- File: Now let's learn how to backup that book. For this example we will use Notepad.
To open notepad click START>PROGRAMS>ACCESSORIES then left click on Notepad. Go ahead and type anything you'd like (this will be your book for example). After you have typed a few lines, let's save this document. Left click File at the top left of your notepad window, and left click again on Save As... and a new window will open.
First locate the Save in: box and notice the arrow just to the right point down (this allows us to save it where ever we want). Left click the down arrow one time and select DESKTOP.
Second, locate the File name: box below and click the left mouse button in the text box. Using your left arrow key and the delete key, remove the * and replace it with the name you'd like the file to have (example: mybook.txt). Once you have the name you want left click save. The Save as... box will disappear and your note pad window will remain open (you have just saved your file to your desktop). Go ahead and close your notepad window and locate the notepad file on your desktop.
Third, insert a blank floppy into your floppy drive.
Fourth, right click one time the file on your desktop and select COPY with a one left click. Now that you've told Windows that you want to copy the file, you must tell it where.
Fifth, Double left click your My Computer icon. Now double left click your A drive or Floppy Drive. Provided this is a blank floppy nothing will be there. Right Click in the empty box then left click one time on PASTE. You should now see your document on the floppy. Now Close this window.
To double check yourself, left double click the My Computer Icon and the Floppy drive or A drive again. You should now see the document you made earlier (if not try this lesson again). Left double click the document and it should now load from your floppy disk.

Computers 4 U, Inc can't stress enough how important backing up your data can be! Computers are not perfect and sometimes have a major breakdown which can often lead to loosing your data. Having it backed up is a sure way to protect yourself from disaster. Remember that floppy disk also have a very high failure rate so having it backed up more than one is also highly recommended.

Windows Updates

You should be aware that Microsoft has a web site that is integrated into Internet Explorer that is used to keep your current version of Windows up to Date. In several cases Microsoft will find a software glitch that needs to be fixed. By installing these updates, you can help keep your computer running better and safely while using the internet. Using the left mouse button, click Tools (located on the menu with File, Edit, View, Favorites, Tools and Help). Then select Windows Update. Internet Explorer will load the update page (if asked to install something you must select Yes). You should now see the following screen, go ahead and select Scan for Updates. After clicking Scan for Updates the computer will scan and compare your Windows Version with Microsoft's Web site. When the process is done, you should have a screen like this. Click Review and Install Updates. Click the Install Now button to install the updates. Once the updates are done you will get a prompt to restart your computer. Select "Yes" and the computer will restart. In some cases you will have to keep running Windows Update while restarting in between in order to get them all. We can't stress enough how important keeping your computer up to date is. Updates are famous for protecting you against new viruses and hacking attacks.

Running Scan disk and Defrag

Ever notice that scan disk and/or defrag rarely or never finish? This can be caused by many simple problems. Most of the time it is due to programs running in the background. Try rebooting your computer to safe mode and running them there. Safe mode loads windows with a bare minimum of what it needs to run while leaving out all those programs in the background. In order to boot Windows into safe mode the F8 Key must be pressed right before your computer starts loading windows (You kinda gotta be quick on the draw). If you find you keep missing it, try inserting a blank floppy disk into your floppy drive and restart. Once the computer stops and tells you to insert a bootable disk, remove the floppy. Tap any key followed by F8 a couple times. You should now see a boot menu. Using your arrow keys down to Safe Mode and tap the Enter Key. Once you've ran scan disk and defrag simply restart the computer to return to a normal mode of Windows.