Windows 7 for Dummies (ISBN - 0470497432)

435 Pages·2021·8.71 MB·English

Andy Rathbone
Author of all previous editions of
Windows For Dummies

Learn to:
• Personalize your Windows 7 desktop
with your own photos

• Speed up Windows with built-in
shortcuts

• Customize Windows warnings to only
give the notices you want

• Move your files from your old PC to a
Windows 7 computer

Windows

® 7

Making Everything Easier!™

Open the book and find:

• Shortcuts for finding photos,
music, and video on your PC

• Steps to setting up separate user
accounts for a whole family

• Tips for laptop users

• How to get photos from your
digital camera to your computer

• Advice on managing e-mail with
Windows 7

• Common Windows 7 headaches
and how to avoid them

• How to create a simple home
network

• Windows 7’s tools for safe
computing

Andy Rathbone has written all previous editions of Windows For Dummies,
the bestselling computer reference book of all time. Andy’s helpful tips
and easy-to-understand directions have helped millions of people run
Windows on their home and business computers.

Operating Systems/Windows

$24.99 US / $29.99 CN / £17.99 UK

ISBN 978-0-470-49743-2

Go to Dummies.com®

for videos, step-by-step examples,
how-to articles, or to shop!

The fun and easy way® to
get up to speed and get
things done with Windows 7!

Windows 7 is loaded with features, tools, and shortcuts
designed to make life easier for all users. To learn how they
all work, you need this latest version of the book that’s been
making Windows clear for years! It starts at Square One,
helping you set up Windows 7, use folders and files, get
online, play with media, and keep Windows happy.

• New to Windows? — Part I is full of stuff everybody thinks you
already know, like how to use the Start menu, taskbars, and files

• What’s new in Windows 7 — control the number of prompts and
warnings, enjoy plentiful shortcuts, and explore interactive
previews

• Lost and found — use the Search function to locate anything:
missing windows, programs, e-mails, songs, photos, files, even
other computers on your network

• Cruisin’ with the new Internet Explorer — set up and customize
Internet Explorer, understand plug-ins, and navigate the Web

• Move your stuff — transfer your files from an old PC to your
Windows 7 system

• Where the fun starts — play music and movies with Media Player,
organize photos, and create slideshows you can put on DVD

• Keep your files safe — make backups and create a system repair
disk

Windows

® 7

Rathbone

spine=.864”

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Start with FREE Cheat Sheets

Cheat Sheets include

• Checklists

• Charts

• Common Instructions

• And Other Good Stuff!

Get Smart at Dummies.com
Dummies.com makes your life easier with 1,000s
of answers on everything from removing wallpaper
to using the latest version of Windows.

Check out our

• Videos

• Illustrated Articles

• Step-by-Step Instructions

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Find out “HOW” at Dummies.com

*Sweepstakes not currently available in all countries; visit Dummies.com for official rules.

Get More and Do More at Dummies.com®

To access the Cheat Sheet created specifically for this book, go to
www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/windows7

by Andy Rathbone

Windows
® 7

FOR
DUMmIES

‰

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Windows® 7 For Dummies®

Published by
Wiley Publishing, Inc.
111 River Street
Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774

www.wiley.com

Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

Published simultaneously in Canada

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or
by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permit-
ted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written
permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the
Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, [phone], fax [phone].
Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley
& Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, [phone], fax [phone], or online at http://
www.wiley.com/go/permissions.

Trademarks: Wiley, the Wiley Publishing logo, For Dummies, the Dummies Man logo, A Reference for the
Rest of Us!, The Dummies Way, Dummies Daily, The Fun and Easy Way, Dummies.com, Making Everything
Easier, and related trade dress are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/
or its affi liates in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission.
All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Wiley Publishing, Inc., is not associated
with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.

LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHOR MAKE NO
REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF
THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITH-
OUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. NO WARRANTY MAY BE
CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES OR PROMOTIONAL MATERIALS. THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES
CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY SITUATION. THIS WORK IS SOLD WITH THE
UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PUBLISHER IS NOT ENGAGED IN RENDERING LEGAL, ACCOUNTING, OR
OTHER PROFESSIONAL SERVICES. IF PROFESSIONAL ASSISTANCE IS REQUIRED, THE SERVICES OF
A COMPETENT PROFESSIONAL PERSON SHOULD BE SOUGHT. NEITHER THE PUBLISHER NOR THE
AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES ARISING HEREFROM. THE FACT THAT AN ORGANIZA-
TION OR WEBSITE IS REFERRED TO IN THIS WORK AS A CITATION AND/OR A POTENTIAL SOURCE
OF FURTHER INFORMATION DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE AUTHOR OR THE PUBLISHER ENDORSES
THE INFORMATION THE ORGANIZATION OR WEBSITE MAY PROVIDE OR RECOMMENDATIONS IT
MAY MAKE. FURTHER, READERS SHOULD BE AWARE THAT INTERNET WEBSITES LISTED IN THIS
WORK MAY HAVE CHANGED OR DISAPPEARED BETWEEN WHEN THIS WORK WAS WRITTEN AND
WHEN IT IS READ.

For general information on our other products and services, please contact our Customer Care
Department within the U.S. at 877-762-2974, outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax [phone].

For technical support, please visit www.wiley.com/techsupport.

Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may
not be available in electronic books.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2009933370

ISBN: 978-0-470-49743-2

Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

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About the Author

Andy Rathbone started geeking around with computers in 1985 when he
bought a 26-pound portable CP/M Kaypro 2X. Like other nerds of the day,
he soon began playing with null-modem adapters, dialing computer bulletin
boards, and working part-time at Radio Shack.

He wrote articles for various techie publications before moving to computer
books in 1992. He’s written the Windows For Dummies series, Upgrading and
Fixing PCs For Dummies, TiVo For Dummies, PCs: The Missing Manual, and
many other computer books.

Today, he has more than 15 million copies of his books in print, and they’ve
been translated into more than 30 languages. You can reach Andy at his Web
site, www.andyrathbone.com.

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Author’s Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Dan Gookin, Matt Wagner, Tina Rathbone, Steve Hayes,
Nicole Sholly, Virginia Sanders, and James Kelly.

Thanks also to all the folks I never meet in editorial, sales, marketing,
proofreading, layout, graphics, and manufacturing who work hard to bring
you this book.

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Publisher’s Acknowledgments

We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments at http://dummies.custhelp.com.
For other comments, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at 877-762-2974,
outside the U.S. at 317-572-3993, or fax [phone].

Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:

Acquisitions, Editorial, and Media
Development

Project Editor: Nicole Sholly

Executive Editor: Steve Hayes

Copy Editor: Virginia Sanders

Technical Editor: James F. Kelly

Editorial Manager: Kevin Kirschner

Sr. Editorial Assistant: Cherie Case

Cartoons: Rich Tennant
(www.the5thwave.com)

Composition Services

Project Coordinator: Katherine Crocker

Layout and Graphics: Christin Swinford,
Ronald Terry

Proofreaders: Laura L. Bowman,
John Greenough

Indexer: Potomac Indexing, LLC

Publishing and Editorial for Technology Dummies

Richard Swadley, Vice President and Executive Group Publisher

Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher

Mary Bednarek, Executive Acquisitions Director

Mary C. Corder, Editorial Director

Publishing for Consumer Dummies

Diane Graves Steele, Vice President and Publisher

Composition Services

Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services

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Contents at a Glance

Introduction ................................................................ 1

Part I: Windows 7 Stuff Everybody
Thinks You Already Know ............................................. 7

Chapter 1: What Is Windows 7?........................................................................................9
Chapter 2: The Desktop, Start Menu, Taskbar,
Gadgets, and Other Windows 7 Mysteries .................................................................19
Chapter 3: Basic Windows Mechanics ..........................................................................47
Chapter 4: Flipping Through Files, Folders, Flash Drives, Libraries, and CDs ........69

Part II: Working with Programs and Files .................... 95

Chapter 5: Playing with Programs and Documents .....................................................97
Chapter 6: Briefly Lost, but Quickly Found ................................................................117
Chapter 7: Printing Your Work .....................................................................................129

Part III: Getting Things Done on the Internet ............. 139

Chapter 8: Cruising the Web ........................................................................................141
Chapter 9: Sending and Receiving E-Mail....................................................................165
Chapter 10: Safe Computing .........................................................................................189

Part IV: Customizing and Upgrading Windows 7 ........ 207

Chapter 11: Customizing Windows 7 with the Control Panel ..................................209
Chapter 12: Keeping Windows from Breaking............................................................233
Chapter 13: Sharing One Computer with Several People .........................................245
Chapter 14: Connecting Computers with a Network .................................................255

Part V: Music, Movies, Memories (And Photos, Too) .... 283

Chapter 15: Playing and Copying Music in Media Player .........................................285
Chapter 16: Fiddling with Photos and Movies ...........................................................309

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Part VI: Help! ......................................................... 333

Chapter 17: The Case of the Broken Window.............................................................335
Chapter 18: Strange Messages: What You Did Does Not Compute .........................347
Chapter 19: Moving from an Old Computer to a New Windows 7 PC .....................357
Chapter 20: Help on the Windows 7 Help System .....................................................371

Part VII: The Part of Tens ......................................... 377

Chapter 21: Ten or So Things You’ll Hate about
Windows 7 (And How to Fix Them) ..........................................................................379
Chapter 22: Ten or So Tips for Laptop Owners .........................................................387
Appendix A: Upgrading to Windows 7 ........................................................................393
Index ...................................................................... 399

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