GUI Operating System: Introduction

Learning Outcomes

• Understand the layout of the windows desktop and an open window
• Understand and use the graphic user interface (GUI) operating system
• Learn how to navigate the start button
• Learn how to open applications
• Learn how to use the help facility in a GUI environment
• Understand the utilization of a pointing device in a GUI environment
• Understand the utilization of generic print options in a GUI environment

Understanding and Using the GUI

• Operating systems are computer programs
• The operating system is the first software a computer executes upon being turned on
• The operating system loads into memory and manages computer resources
• It then provides these resources to other applications for user execution
• A standard operating system provides:
  • Task scheduler
  • Memory manager
  • Disk manager
  • Network manager
  • Other I/O services manager
  • Security manager
• The three most common operating systems for personal computers include:
  • Microsoft Windows
  • Apple Mac OS X
  • Linux
• Modern operating systems use a Graphical User Interface, or GUI
• A GUI allows the user to use a mouse to click icons, buttons, and menus
• It clearly displays data on screen using a combination of graphics and text
• Each operating system's GUI has a different look and feel
• However, modern operating systems are designed to be easy to use, and most basic principles are the same

Windows Desktop Layout

• The desktop is split into areas, the bottom strip known as the taskbar
• The window icon to the left of the taskbar is the Start menu
• The space aside from the taskbar is where programs will run
  • It contains a background wallpaper
  • It can contain program, document, and folder shortcuts
• The taskbar is where open files and programs are displayed
  • The Start menu is located here
  • You'll receive pop-up notifications

Navigating the Start Menu

• The Start menu is accessed by clicking the Windows icon at the bottom left-hand corner of the screen
• The Start menu is split into two columns (Left and Right)
• You can resize the Start menu by clicking/dragging horizontally
• To put the computer in sleep mode, restart, or shut down, choose Power
• To change your account settings, lock, sign out, or switch accounts, click on your name at the top
• To configure the Start menu, click on Settings
• In the Settings window, click Personalization
• Click Start on the left-hand side, then adjust the settings from the options listed
• The new item will appear in the left column in the lower section
• To find your software in the full screen mode, click the icon in the lower left-hand corner
• To access the menu, select the icon in the upper left-hand corner

Opening Applications/Programs

• There are two ways to find/open a program
• The first is to type the program such as WordPad into the white, Search window
• The second way is to find the program is to look in the Start menu
  • To navigate to a section, click between any of the letters to bring up an alphabet
  • Click a letter to bring up folders starting with that letter
  • Some applications of interest include:
    • Calculator
    • Outlook (E-mail)
    • Photos - to edit them
    • Weather
  • The Windows Accessories folder includes:
    • Paint
    • WordPad
    • Windows Ease of Access folder (for persons with a disability)
    • Word program (word processing)

Using the Help Facility In GUI

• Windows has a built-in help library much like Microsoft Office
• There are two ways to launch the help facility

Keyboard Option:

• Windows logo key + F1 displays Windows Help and Support

Menu Option:

• Click on the [Start] button on the Taskbar and select Help and Support
• The Help and Support Center window then opens, home section displayed

Finding Help (Search and Index):

• Open the Help and Support Centre
• In the Search box, enter a topic of interest; click the green arrow key
• Search results listed in the left pane
• Click to choose a result that best answers your concerns; the explanation will display in the right pane
• Use the Index by:
• Open the Help and Support Center
• Click the Index button
• The Index opens with its contents in alphabetical order in the left pane
• Enter a keyword that that is of interest
• Double-click a topic to explore; information displays in the right pane or a Topics Found dialog box appears
• If a Topics Found dialog box appears, click Display or Cancel
• If you click Display, information will show in the right pane
• Close and begin a new search by clicking Cancel

Using a Pointing Device in a GUI Environment

• The mouse gives you control over your computer
• Mouse in hand, you cause the onscreen arrow to move around
• This is based on the "point and click" philosophy
• Move the mouse where you want an action to happen and then click to start that event
• You may click once, twice or hold down

Right and Left Clicking:

• Most computer mice have at least two mouse buttons
• Clicking the left one is called a left-click, clicking the right is called a right click
• A left-click is used for common tasks such as object selection and double-clicking
• The right mouse button opens contextual pop-up menus based on the area you click on

Double Clicking:

• Quickly pressing the left-mouse twice in rapid succession invokes a double-click
• This is typically used to open an onscreen object
• Dimmed icons mean a single-click has activated the object, double clicking will open the file

Single Clicking:

• Additionally, you can click and hold the left mouse button
• This highlights text or moves onscreen objects
• Left-click and hold the mouse, then drag across the area to highlight

Selecting Groups of Objects:

• To select just certain files:
  1. Go into detail view by right-clicking in your folder, then View > details
  2. Hold the CONTROL key on your keyboard, and select the first file, then the second, third, etc.
  3. Right-click again, and cut or copy the files to move/copy them
• To select a range of files:
  1. While in detail view, hold down the SHIFT button and click the first file
  2. Scroll down to the last file you wish to select and click the SHIFT again; everything in between is selected

Configuring/Changing Mouse Settings:

• To adjust the mouse for optimal use:
  • Swap left and right-click:
    1. Open Mouse by clicking the Start button, clicking Control Panel, clicking Hardware, clicking Mouse
    2. Click the Buttons tab
       • To swap the functions of the right and left mouse buttons, select the Switch primary and secondary buttons check box
       • To change double-click speed, move the Double-click speed slider towards Slow or Fast
       • To highlight or drag without holding down the mouse button, select the Turn on Clicklock check box
• To change click speed, and right/left-handedness
  1. Select the Buttons tab
  2. Select right- or left-handed
  3. Select single or double click for opening items
  4. Move the slider along to choose the speed for double-clicking
  5. Apply the settings
• To change the visibility and size of the mouse pointer:
  1. Select the Pointers tab
  2. Choose the scheme of pointers from the drop-down menu
  3. Apply settings
• To change the motion of the mouse:
  1. Select the Motion tab
  2. Move the slider along to choose the speed you want for the mouse
  3. Select the acceleration that you prefer
  4. Apply the settings

Drag and Drop:

• Drag-and-drop is the manipulation of objects on a computer using the mouse
• Follow these steps:
  1. Move the mouse pointer until it is directly over the object
  2. Hold down the left mouse button
  3. With the left mouse button held down, move the mouse to where you want to drop the object
  4. Drop the object by letting up on the left mouse button

How to Use Generic Print Options in a GUI Environment

Print Preview

• A Print Preview feature allows you to see exactly how your pages will print
• Print Preview is easy to use and allows users to avoid wasting paper
• Users can generally print directly from the Print Preview page by clicking on the print button
• Common applications for print preview include:
  • Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or Internet Explorer, select Print Preview from the File menu
  • In Microsoft Word, Excel or PowerPoint click the icon and view one page or multiple pages at a time
  • In Microsoft Excel, look at multiple pages, then select Preview from the File Print menu to ensure expectations are met

Selecting Printer Options:

• Select the basic settings for the document or photo you wish to print

1. Open a photo or document for printing
2. Select the print command in your application (printer icon on your screen, the Print option in the File menu, or another command)
3. If necessary, select the printer to use; select Properties or Preferences to view your print settings
4. Select the size of the paper loaded as the Document Size setting
5. If printing a borderless photo, select the Borderless checkbox, then click the Settings button and select borderless printing options

• A compatible borderless paper type and size is needed to print borderlessly, check for details

6. If printing a document or a photo with borders, leave the Borderless checkbox deselected
7. Change orientation by selecting landscape

• For printing an envelope, select landscape

8. Select the type of paper loaded as the Paper Type setting

• Check the paper type settings list for details

9. Select the Quality setting that matches the print quality you want to use
10. Select a Color option, To print a color document or photo, select the Color setting, To print text and graphics in black or shades of gray, select the Black/Grayscale setting
11. To print on both sides of the paper, select the 2-Sided Printing checkbox and select the options
12. To print on one side of the paper and eject the printout facedown (WorkForce 645 Series only), select the 1-Sided Face Down checkbox and select the options you prefer
13. To print multiple pages on one sheet of paper, or print one image on multiple sheets of paper, select one of the settings in the Multi-Page menu and select the printing options preferred
14. To print multiple copies and arrange their print order, select the Copies options
15. To preview before printing, select Print Preview
16. To save your print job as a project that can be modified and combined with other print jobs, select Job Arranger Lite
17. To reduce noise during printing when you select Plain Paper/Bright White Paper, select Quiet Mode

Printing Parts of a Document:

• You can print all or part of a document from the "Print" tab
• Click "Print All Pages" under "Settings"

1. Choosing Print All Pages will print the entire document
2. Choosing Print Selection will only print the selected content
3. Choosing Print Current Page will only print the current page
4. Choose Print Custom Range to print a range of pages. Your cursor will move automatically to the Pages box

• Enter the page numbers and/or page ranges separated by commas counting from the start of the document or the section
• To specify a range of pages within a section, enter p page numbers section number. For example, p1s2, p1s3-p8s3
• To print an entire section, enter s section number. For example, s3

5. Choose Only Print Odd Pages to print odd pages
6. Choose Only Print Even Pages to print all even pages within

Printing a Document:

1. Click the File tab, and then click Print

• Tip: To go back to your document and make changes before you print it, click the File tab

2. Under Settings, click the Print All Pages button and choose the part of the document to be printed
3. The properties for your default printer automatically appear in the first section -When the properties for your printer and document appear the way that you want them to, click the large Print button to print the document

Submitting a Print Job and Checking Progress:

• Within the application you are attempt to print from, choose File and Print
• Choose the desired printer from the selection of available printers on your computer, Then, click the OK (or Print) button
• Check the progress of your print job
• Double-click the Printer icon in the status area of the taskbar
• When a file is printed, the icon disappears
• Note: If the doc is short, the printer icon may not appear long enough to click to check printing progress

Manipulating Print Jobs:

• Double-click the Printer icon in the status area of the taskbar
• Then,
  • To delete a print job:
    • Select the item to delete, right-click, and click cancel
  • To pause a print job:
    • Select the item to pause, right-click, and click pause
  • To restart a print job:
    • Select the item to restart, right-click, and click restart