May 2002
Beginner
584 pages
18h 18m
English
Content preview from Windows XP Home Edition: The Missing ManualBecome an O’Reilly member and get unlimited access to this title plus top books and audiobooks from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, thousands of courses curated by job role, 150+ live events each month,
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Chapter 1. A Welcome to Windows XP
Microsoft Windows XP is the latest and, technically speaking, the best version of the most-used software in the world. If you recently bought a new PC, Windows XP probably came preinstalled. If you already own a computer (running Windows 98, 2000, or Me, for example), you can buy Windows XP separately to upgrade your machine (see Appendix A).
No matter how you get it on your PC, however, you’ll be spending a lot of time with Windows XP. It’s your computer’s face; it’s the first thing that greets you when you turn on your machine, and the last thing you see before it blinks off.
What It’s For
Windows is an operating system, the software that controls your computer. It’s designed to serve you in several ways:
It’s a launching bay. At its heart, Windows is a home base, a remote-control clicker that lets you call up the various software programs (applications) you use to do work or kill time. When you get right down to it, applications are the real reason you bought a PC.
Windows XP is a well-stocked software pantry unto itself; for example, it comes with such basic programs as a Web browser, email program, a simple word processor, and calculator. Windows XP comes with eleven games, too, several of which you can play live against other people on the Internet. (Chapter 7 covers all of these freebie programs.)
If you were stranded on a desert island, the built-in Windows XP programs could suffice for everyday operations. But if you’re like most people, ...
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