|
Quiz-n-Spell
- the Quiz Master/Study Buddy quizzing system software tool that
re-enforces accurate spelling.
We call it Quiz-n-Spell, but you might want to call it your
study buddy!
Computer Skills Checklist
There
are numerous tips and tricks for nearly all Windows versions,
and Microsoft Office versions, at: http://www.tipsdr.com/
To find information on this page, click the browser's
"Edit" menu item, then select "Find (on This
Page)..." [Internet Explorer], or "Find in Page..."
[Netscape]. You can search the current page. This
works for most web pages.
Most
windows can be sized by pointing the mouse pointer at the border of
the window, then when it turns into a double pointed arrow, click
the left mouse button down and slide the mouse in the direction of
the arrow (to grow it or shrink it).
Dialog windows generally cannot be
resized, and most of the windows in Quiz-n-Spell are dialog windows. Note that the Help windows in Quiz-n-Spell are the one
exception, and can be resized.
Windows
can be moved by pointing the mouse at the title bar (that is just
below the top border of the window), clicking the left mouse button
down and holding it, then sliding the mouse to move the window.
back to
Top of Page
Quiz-n-Spell is viewed best at 800 x
600 pixels resolution, or higher.
Windows 95 and 98:
-
First, close any
applications that you may be using. After you have
adjusted the screen resolution you will be prompted to reboot
the machine.
-
Either click the
"My Computer" icon on your desktop then click the
"Properties" item in the popup menu, or click
'Start'/'Settings'/'Control Panel' then double-click the
"Display" item.
-
Next, click the
"Settings" tab in the dialog box that opens.
-
You should see a
slider bar in a box labeled "Screen Resolution".
-
Move the slider
towards the right. The slider will move in short, discrete
'jumps' and the resolution will be labeled as something like,
"800 by 600 pixels" or "1024 by 768
pixels".
-
After you have made
the adjustment, click the <Apply> button. You will
probably need to restart your machine.
Windows 2000 and XP:
-
Click
'Start'/'Settings'/'Control Panel' then double-click the
"Display" item.
-
Next, click the
"Settings" tab in the dialog box that opens.
-
You should see a
slider bar in a box labeled "Screen Resolution".
-
Move the slider
towards the right. The slider will move in short, discrete
'jumps' and the resolution will be labeled as something like,
"800 by 600 pixels" or "1024 by 768
pixels".
-
After you have made
the adjustment, click the <Apply> button.
An important thing to know is that
you can change how all the dialog boxes in all applications look on your
desktop by changing the size of the 'System font'. You can change the
size in this "Display" dialog box. Go to the
"Appearance" tab and select a different sized font. If you are
using Windows 95 or 98, you will need to reboot your computer to see the
change.
Remember, you can always get back
into the "Display" dialog box and undo any changes you make here.
back to
Top of Page
[The editing techniques
described on this page can be applied to most Windows applications to
accomplish some very sophisticated and powerful computing operations involving
copying and pasting between two open documents.]
Editing – applies
to nearly all Microsoft Windows Editing situations
There are three basic editing operations: cut,
copy and paste. And there are three ways to do each.
Cut moves material to the
clipboard.
Copy makes a copy of the material on the clipboard, but leaves the
original.
Paste copies material from the clipboard to where the cursor is located.
Undo (usually) can undo an editing operation.
Cut and copy will not work unless you first select
what you want to cut/copy. Before you tell the computer what to do, you
need to tell the computer what to do it with.
Cut and copy operations place information on the
clipboard. Whatever's on the clipboard stays
there until something else replaces it (see "The System Clipboard",
below). You can paste the same thing in
several different locations, if you wish.
To select some
text:
-
Move the mouse pointer to the beginning of the section you want to select.
-
Left-click-and-drag to the end
of the section you want to select.
-
Release the mouse button. You
will see the selected text highlighted.
back to
Top of Page
#1
To cut selected text, open
the Edit menu and choose cut.
To copy selected text, open the Edit menu and choose copy.
To paste what's on the clipboard, open the Edit menu and choose paste.
#2
You can use keystrokes instead of always going to the
Edit menu.
Ctrl + X = cut (think:
"X" looks like scissors)
Ctrl + C = copy (think: "C" for Copy)
Ctrl + V = paste (think: "V" looks like a caret ^ which
indicates an insert)
Ctrl + Z = undo (think: “Oh-Oh!”. The ‘Z’ isin the same row on a QWERTY keyboard)
#3
You can also use the ‘context’ menu. After selecting the text, keep the mouse
pointer in the selected area and click the right mouse button. A small ‘context’ menu will pop open beside
the mouse pointer, and it will have the three cut/copy/paste commands
listed. Point to one of the commands
and click the left mouse button to execute the command.
back to
Top of Page
Dragging and dropping are generally used as
shortcut copy or move editing operations.
'Dragging' is performed by clicking and holding
down the <Ctrl> key and the (usually) left mouse button, and moving the mouse.
CAUTION:
If you don't hold down the <Ctrl> key, you may inadvertently
perform a Cut and Paste operation rather than a Copy and Paste
operation.
'Dropping' simply means to release the mouse
button.
Dragging and dropping is a very fast way to copy or
move information or files (even entire folders - so be careful!).
Not all applications support drag and drop. Quiz-n-Spell
does NOT support drag and drop.
back to
Top of Page
What shortcut keys are and how to use them.
Shortcut keys give the computer user a way to select menu
items, or an item in a list, simply by pressing a combination of keys, rather
than by using the mouse. This can speed things up by eliminating the
fumbling that typically happens when moving from the mouse to the keyboard and
back.
To find shortcut keys, look for underlined characters in
menu items and on buttons.
Usually by pressing the <Alt> key and the underlined
character, the command will be performed, or focus will be given to the item.
Quiz-n-Spell makes extensive use of shortcut keys to facilitate entering and editing word
lists.
For more information about shortcut keys, read the following
document from Microsoft’s web site: http://www.microsoft.com/enable/download/products/windows/win98key/w98_kbd.doc
For a complete list of Microsoft
Windows shortcut and hot keys, go to Microsoft's web site, and
search their documentation using the key phrase:
"Keyboard
Interface Summary"
back to
Top of Page
The Microsoft Windows Explorer gives the computer
user a graphical way to view the files and folders on the computer's
drives. A drive is an actual physical device that stores information, and
are typically hard-drives, floppy drives, and CD-ROM drives. These are
commonly known as persistent or permanent media because the information stored
on them stays even when the computer is turned off.
CAUTION:
Before you open Explorer, be aware that you can cause permanent
damage to your computer's operating system if you move or delete
system files!
The following section is for
informational purposes only, and 21 Firs Software Services, Inc.,
will not be liable for any damage you might incur from misusing
this information.
To open Explorer, point the mouse at the Windows
"Start" button and press the right mouse button. A
'context' menu will pop open, and one of the will be 'Explore' (some computers,
such as computers in most libraries, have this feature disabled). Move the
mouse pointer over the 'Explore' item and click the left mouse button.
-
Folders are typically displayed in
a familiar, yellow 'manilla' folder shape.
-
Folders are arranged in a 'tree'
fashion (think of an upside-down tree, with the branches and
leaves pointing down), called a 'hierarchical structure', with
the 'root' folder or directory being the top. The root
folder contains all the other folders on the drive.
-
Folders are also called
directories.
-
If a folder is contained in another
folder, it is known as a subdirectory. A subdirectory can
contain other subdirectories.
-
Folders can contain both files and
other folders.
back to
Top of Page
The system clipboard is used in virtually all editing
operations.
The system clipboard is a versatile storage area in the
computer's memory (RAM) that can store information for copying or moving
between applications. The information can be stored in
different ways, so the clipboard can be used to copy or move
documents or parts of documents, images, files and even whole
folders. The one thing to remember is that when you copy
something onto the system clipboard, you usually erase whatever
was stored there before. If you copy something to the
clipboard, then copy something else to the clipboard before you
paste the first thing, the first thing will be lost.
Copying and pasting is preferable to typing. Every time a
person has to type, there is a chance that an error will occur.
Remember that information stored on the clipboard is temporary,
and exists only while the computer is turned on. If you copy
something to the clipboard, then turn off the computer, that
something will be erased from memory (RAM).
back to
Top of Page
This page provides the briefest of looks at some
important information. You will want to scour your local bookstore and the
Internet for more complete descriptions and examples.
There are numerous tips and tricks for nearly all
Windows versions, and Microsoft Office versions, at: http://www.tipsdr.com/
Download a copy of this file in
Microsoft Word 6/95 format.
|
