COM 111 INTRODUCTIONS TO COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY

Designation:

Mr. J. DEVANATH
(Senior Research Fellow Maths)

E-mail ID:

devanathj@yahoo.co.in

Course Teacher:

(0+1)

Practical
Computer Hardware Software
Operating system DOS WINDOWS LINUX directory commands for
managing files - Copy Rename delete.
Windows Icons desktop My computer Recycle Bin My documents Task
bar Start menu options
LINUX KDE - GNOME
OFFICE MS.Office, K.Office, OPEN Office packages for word processing,
spreadsheet, and presentation software.
MS Word creating, editing and printing files Tool bar options.
MS Excel creation of charts.
MS Power point Creating presentations
Internet type of connectivity applications of Internet email and browsing
internet.
Practical Schedule
1.

Computer input device output device units of CPU and their functions - Input
/ output devices floppy hard disk - types of printers - Compact disc modem
scanner mouse - their functions - Computer types digital ,analog and hybrid Operating system - DOS commands for copying, renaming and deleting files

2.

Windows versions icons desktop folders copying, renaming and deleting

files in Windows.

3.

Shortcut task bar options in Start menu quick launch system tray - My
computer my documents and recycle bin.

4.

LINUX OS, K Desktop, Gnome Desktop

5.

Office Packages - MS.Office - K.Office - OPEN Office

6.

MS Office package word processing spread sheet presentation software - MS

WORD parts of a word opening screen menu bar options tool bars ruler

7.

File menu new. Open, save, save as, close, exit, page setup, print preview and print
- Edit cut, copy, paste, clear, select all, find, replace and goto Insert menu
Break, page numbers, date and time, auto text, symbol, picture

8.

Format menu font, paragraph, bullets and numbering, borders and shading,
columns, tabs, crop cap, change case and background - Tools menu - Spelling and
grammar language, word count, track changes, protect document auto correct
options letters and envelopes.- Printing the word document

9.

Mid Semester Examination

10.

MS Excel cell, work sheet and work book creating a Excel sheet preparation of
charts pie chart, bar diagram, multiple bar diagram, component bar diagram and
percentage bar diagram line diagram.

11.

PowerPoint Creating Presentations

12.

PowerPoint Multimedia Presentations

13.

Network Intranet and Internet methods of getting internet connectivity dial-up,

ISDN, leased line and VSAT connectivity.

14.

E-mail creating a email account inbox, compose, reply, reply all, forward and
attachments in email

15.

Browsing internet search engine yahoo, google etc. searching by keywords

downloading, Net-meeting, Video Conferencing

16.

Searching information through Internet, search engines

17.

Final Practical Examination

INTRODUCTION TO COMPUTERS
Introduction
The computer is a fascinating machine. It is a gateway to a wonderful world of
information and myriad applications for the good of humans. In business, academics,
defence strategy, budgeting, research, engineering, medicine or space exploration, computers
have established themselves an indispensable part.
Definition of a Computer
A computer is an electronic device, which accepts data (observation, facts and concepts)
in prescribed form, processes the data according to set of instructions that are fed into it and
output the results in a specified format as an information. It also stores the result in a
primary or secondary storage and retrieves the same for later use.

HARDWARE
The physical components of the computer are called Hardware. The Hardware
components can be classified into four types:
Input Unit
Central Processing Unit
Output Devices
Storage Devices
Input Unit:
Computers need to receive data and instructions in order to solve any problem.
Therefore we need to put the data and instructions into the computer. The input unit
consists of one or more input device. The keyboard and mouse of a computer are the most
commonly used input devices.
Central Processing Unit (CPU):
It is the main part of a computer system like the heart of a human being. It
interprets the instructions in the program and executes one by one. It consists of three major
units.

Control Unit: It controls and directs the transfer of program instructions and
data between various units.
Arithmetic and Logic Unit (ALU): Arithmetic operations like (+,-,*,^,/),
logical operations like (AND, OR, NOT) and relational operations like
(<,>,<=,>=) are being carried out in this Unit.
Registers: They are used to store instructions and data for further use.

Memory Unit: It is used to store the Programs and data.

Output Unit: It is used to print/display the results, which are stored in the memory unit.
BLOCK DIAGRAM OF A COMPUTER

Secondary stored devices refer to floppy disks, magnetic disks, magnetic disks, magnetic
tapes, hard disks, and compact disks etc., which are used to store huge information for
future use. The input unit, output unit and secondary storage devices are together know as
Peripheral devices.

Motherboard
A motherboard is the largest circuit board in the computer and it is referred to as the
backbone of the entire system. It is the main circuit board and the core component of the
computer. The circuitry or component of the motherboard defines the computer's
capabilities and limitations. It interprets information between the various components of the
computer. Nowadays, the memory capacity of RAM ranges from 1 GB to 45 GB and the
speed is 256 MHz.
There are two types of built-in memory:
Non-volatile memory (In it, the memory chip always retains the data they hold
even when the computer is turned off. Example: ROM).
Volatile memory (In it, the memory chip loses its contents when the computer's
power is shut off. Example: RAM).
Input devices
Input, as a term, refers to the process of transferring data or program instructions into
the memory from some peripheral unit. Input devices are designed for data entry purposes
and it provides a vehicle of communication between the computer and the people who are
concerned with its operation. Some input devices include Keyboard, Mouse, Scanner, etc.
Keyboard
It is an input device directly connected to a computer. Most PC keyboards have the
following parts:
Functions keys at the top
Main keyboard at the centre
Numeric keys on the right
Additional keys between the main keys and the numeric keys
Status lights in the upper right corner
Function keys (F1 to F12)
They provide an easy way to give certain commands to the computer. The works done
by the function keys are according to the software used.

Main keyboard
This includes alphabets, numbers, special characters and certain special command keys.
Command keys have different uses that depend upon the software used. Some of the most
common uses of command keys are:
S.No

Command key

Use

Esc

To negate the current command.

Tab

To advance the text cursor to the next user defined tab stop.
If it is pressed, the status light under Caps Lock lights up. Then

Caps Lock

upper case letters are produced. The numbers and symbols are
unaltered.
To produce upper case letters & the upper symbols shown on the

Shift

Ctrl

These two keys are pressed in combination with other keys to

Alt

initiate commands specified by the software.

Backspace

Enter

keys.

To move the cursor one position left and delete the character in
that position.
Traditionally this key is used to send keyed-in data or selected
command to RAM for processing

Numeric keys
The numeric keys serve one of the two purposes depending on the status of the Num
Lock key.
Num Lock is

Num Lock is off

on
Key

Function

Ins

Inserts the characters in the cursor position

End

Moves the cursor to the end of the work area

Pg Dn

Moves the cursor down

Advances one screen
Moves the cursor to the left

Moves the cursor to the right

Home

Pg Up

Moves one full screen up

Delete

Deletes characters in the current cursor position

Moves the cursor to the beginning of the work area

Moves the cursor up

When the Num Lock is on, we can also use mathematical symbols /, *, - and +.
Additional keys
Arrow keys perform the same function as that of the 2, 4, 6 and 8 numeric keys when
Num Lock is off. Above the arrow keys, there are six keys Insert, Home, Page Up, Delete,
End and Page Down which duplicate functions of the numeric keys 0, , 7, 1, 9 and 3. At the
top of the keyboard and to the left of the status lights, the following keys are there to
perform additional tasks:

Key
Pause

Scroll Lock
Print Screen

Function
It causes the screen to pause when information in the screen is appearing
too fast to read.
It causes the current lines of text, not the cursor, to move when the cursor
keys are used.
It causes the current screen display to be printed.

Toggle Keys
When a single key is used for the application and non-application of a particular
function, it is termed as a toggle key. Example: Insert, Caps Lock, Num Lock, etc.
Mouse
A mouse is a pointing device that lets you move a cursor or a pointer on the screen just
by moving the mouse around on a flat surface. It is also used to create graphic elements on
the screen, such as lines, curves, and freehand shapes. It makes using menus and message
boxes easier. There are three simple techniques clicking, double clicking and dragging.
Some mouse devices are connected to the computers bus through a special electronic card
and other tie into the bus through a serial port, a socket to which external devices are
connected.

Drawbacks of a mouse
It is not useful in word processing or in computer programming applications
It requires space on tabletop or other hard surface to roll.
It requires a serial port for connection with computer system.
Scanners
A scanner reads text, photographs and graphics from paper, which are then converted
into bit patterns for processing, storage or output. Scanner is a device that examines a spatial
pattern one part after another and generates analog or digital signals corresponding to the
pattern. In a scanner, as the image is scanned, it is converted into light and dark picture
elements or pixels. Colour scanners can assign a specific colour to a pixel. The pixels are
then stored as bit patterns. This technique makes the image usable by word processing,
desktop publishing and graphic packages.
Output devices
The function of the output device is to present processed data to the user. The most
common output devices are the monitor and the printer. There are two basic categories of
computer - produced output:
Output for immediate use by people.
Output that is stored in computer usable form for later use by the computer.
Hardcopy
Hard copy is a permanent copy of a display image generated on an output device such as
printer or plotter and which can be carried away.
Softcopy
Information that is displayed on a screen, given by voice, or stored in the form that can't
be read directly by person as on magnetic tape, disk or micro film.
Hardcopy output devices
A printer is an output device that produces printed-paper output, known as hardcopy,
because it is tangible and permanent. Letters and numbers are formed by a printer either as
solid characters or dot matrix characters. It is classified into two distinct categories:
1. Impact Printers
2. Non Impact Printers

1. Impact Printers
A printer in which printing is the result of mechanically striking the printing medium.
The impact is produced by a print hammer character, like that of a typewriter key striking a
ribbon against the paper or by a print hammer hitting paper and ribbon against a character.
Some impact printers are:
1. Serial or character printers
2. Line printers
Serial or Character printers
It is the slowest printer. The two major types of character-at-a-time impact printer are:
1. Dot matrix printer
2. Daisy wheel printer
Dot Matrix Printer
In it the individual characters are formed by a matrix of wires. The images are formed by
a print head that is composed of a series of little print hammers that look like the heads of
pins. The bottom two pins are used to form descenders of lower case letters namely, p, q, g,
and y. Dot matrix printers can be either 80-column printer or 132-column printer depending
on the maximum number of characters that can be printed in a line. Some of dot matrix
printers include EPSON EX-1000, EPSON LQ 1050, etc.
Daisy wheel printers
It is a serial impact printer in which the printing element is a plastic hub that has a large
number of flexible radial spokes. Each spoke has one or more different raised printing
characters. The wheel is rotated as it is moved horizontally step by step under computer
control, and stops when a desired character is in a desired print position, so a hammer can
drive that character against an inked ribbon.
Line Printers
It prints an entire line in a single operation. Line printers are generally electro-mechanical
devices, which print upto 160 characters per line with speed 300 to 2000 lines per minute.
Some examples of line printers are:
i.

Chain printers

ii. Band printers

iii. Drum printers
9

2. Non-Impact printers
Printers that do not strike characters against ribbon or paper when they print, are nonimpact printers. Non impact printers include
1. Ink-Jet printers
2. Laser printers
InkJet printers
It uses a technique of projecting droplets of ink at paper to form the required image.
Ink-jet printer creates an image directly on paper by spraying ink through as many as 64 tiny
nozzles. It provides a print resolution of around 360 dots per inch.
Laser printers
LASER (Light Amplification by Stimulate Emission of Radiation) printer creates, by
means of a laser beam directed on a photosensitive surface, a latent image, which is then
made visible by a toner and transferred and fixed on paper. A separate computer is built into
the printer to interpret the data that it receives from the computer and to control the laser.

PRINTERS

IMPACT PRINTERS

SERIAL OR
CHARACTER PRINTERS

NONIMPACT PRINTERS

LINE PRINTERS

INKJET PRINTERS

DAISY WHEEL
PRINTERS

CHAIN PRINTERS

DOT MATRIX
PRINTERS

DRUM PRINTERS

BAND PRINTERS

10

LASER PRINTERS

The Monitor
It is a softcopy output device that displays images faster than printers. There are two
basic types of monitors:
1. The first is the typical monitor that you see on a desktop computer, which looks like a
TV screen and work in the same way. This type uses a large vacuum tube called a
Cathode Ray Tube (CRT).
2. The second type, known as a flat panel monitor, is commonly used with notebook
computers. Most of these employ Liquid Crystal Displays (LCDs) to render images.
Either of these types can be
1. Monochrome: displaying one colour against a contrasting background colour.
2. Colour.
The common technique for forming a character on video screen is the dot matrix form.
A screen usually displays between 500 to 2000 characters.
Storage Devices
Secondary storage devices are used to store system programs, data files, software
packages and so on.
Floppy Disk
It is used to store data, which is encoded by electromagnetic means on to tracks on the
disk surface. A floppy disk is made up of a kind of plastic, which has magnetizable particles
upon its surface. Floppies come in two physical sizes (size refers to the diameter of disk):
5 inches
3 inches
Formatting a disk
Before storing data in a new disk, it must be magnetically mapped. The process of
mapping a disk is called formatting or initializing the disk. The first thing in formatting a disk
is to create a set of magnetic concentric circles called tracks, numbered from outer to inner
tracks. Each track on a disk is split into smaller parts. Each part cuts across all the tracks,
resulting in short segments called sectors. All the sectors on the tracks are numbered in one
long sequence, so that computer can access each small area on the disk with a unique
number.

11

Hard disk (Fixed disk or non removable disk)

It is also called as mass-storage device. They store data in tracks that are divided into
sectors. It is a stack of metal platters that spin on one spindle. Each platter is coated with
iron oxide and the entire unit is encased in a sealed chamber to make it free from dust. Hard
disks are sealed inside an airtight vacuum chamber. This allows the head of the disk to fly
much closer to the surface of the disk.
Compact Disk
The most used technology for high-capacity portable storage is the CD-ROM. This
technology has evolved out of the entertainment electronics where cassette tapes and long
playing records are being replaced by CDs. The CD-ROM disk, also known as laser disk is a
shiny metal like disk whose diameter is 5.25 inches. It can store around 650 MB. Images,
sound files, movies and text can be stored in this disk. Because of its external storage, the
machine can access games, graphics, and a variety of sources that use large amounts of
memory.
MODEM
MODEM is a device that translates computer signals into acceptable format and then
transmits those signals over a phone line to another computer. Bi-directional, capable of
sending and receiving the data via the telephone line.
Computer classification
On the basis of the usage of data ((i.e.) discrete or continuous) computers can be
classified as:
Analog computers
Digital computers
Hybrid computers
Analog computers
Analog computers are computers in which numerical magnitudes are represented by
physical quantities, such as electric current, voltage or resistance, mechanical movements etc.
Analog computers accept data and the process it to produce analog data. Analog computers
are machines designed to perform arithmetical functions upon numbers where the numbers
are represented by physical quantity.

12

Uses
They have many applications in the scientific and industrial fields in simulating
various physical systems or automatically controlling industrial processes.
They are widely used for research into design problems.
They are used in manufacturing where temperatures, pressure or flow of liquids are
to be monitored continuously.
They are also used at service station where gasoline pump contains an analog
processor that connects fuel flow measurements into quantity and price values.
Drawbacks
They do not have the ability to store data in large quantities.
They do not have the logical facilities afforded by programming digital machines.
Although the arithmetic functions performed by the computing units are very
complex in analog computers, the cost of the hardware required to provide a high
degree of accuracy in an analog computer is prohibitive.
Digital Computers
A digital computer operates on data in the form of digits. Its input must be discrete and
it may consist of combinations of numbers, characters and special symbols, written in
appropriate programming language. Digital computers are usually based on the binary
notation, numbers and letters being coded into group of digits consisting only of 1 or 0, each
of these digits is represented in an electronic circuit or magnetic store by a component in an
on or off state. Example: Passing current or not passing current magnetized or not
magnetized.
The great power of any digital computer rests in the ability to store large volumes of data
and to perform these various functions at extremely high speed.
Arithmetic and logical circuits for processing data in binary form are constructed from
simple basic units designed to perform the operations of Boolean algebra AND, OR, NOT
etc. These simple units are used as building blocks in constructing the complex logic and
control circuits required.

13

Classification of Digital computer

They can be classified into two parts:
General purpose Digital computer.
Special purpose Digital Computer.
General purpose Digital computer
It is also known as all-purpose digital computer. Theoretically it can be used for any type
of application. Example: Computers used for payroll, graphs, analysis etc.
Special purpose Digital computer
A digital computer is designed to solve problems of a restricted type. That is, special
purpose digital computer is designed to be especially efficient in a certain class of
applications. Example: Computers installed in washing machines.
Hybrid Computers
Hybrid computer is the outcome of the integration of analog computer components and
digital computer components. This integration is obtained by digital-to-analog converter and
analog-to-digital converter. The basic objective of hybrid computer is to obtain for the user
the best properties of the two computing philosophies. Hybrid machines are generally used
in scientific applications or in controlling industrial processor, in both situations the user is
able to exploit the machines ability to process both discrete and continuous data using
accurate digital subroutines wherever necessary and the analog machines for fast integration
functions.
Operating System
Computers can understand only the binary language, which is very difficult. Therefore,
programs are written in high-level language. Compilers are needed for translation and
routines are required for working with input/output devices or peripherals. So, a computer
should have many routines, which enable a user to use the system effectively. An operating
system provides these routines. Thus a user while operating a computer is interacting with
the machine, compiler and an operating system simultaneously.

14

Definition
An operating system is the overseer of the computer and processes it performs. In
general, an operating system is a collection of the programs that manage system resources
and aid in the development and execution of application programs.
DOS (Disk Operating System)
DOS is a "System Software" used by IBM Compatible personal computers.
DOS tracks and controls the hardware, and communicates with each piece of
hardware.
DOS keeps the software in line.
DOS stores the information and retrieves the same.
The Command prompt
When computer is turned on, some information flashes by. When this information stops
scrolling past, the following appears on screen:
C:\>
This is called the command prompt or the C prompt.
Parameter
This specifies the field, the directory, or the drive with which to work.
Switch
It is an option used along with a command.
DOS COMMANDS
DIR: used to view a directory's contents.
Format:
C:\> DIR
Example:
C:\> DIR /P
Volume in drive C is MS-DOS_6
Volume Serial Number is 1E47-9258

15

Directory of C:\
[PCPLUS] COMMAND.COM IMAGE.BK WIN386.SWP IMAGE.BAK
IMAGE.DAT CONFIG.SYS [UTILITIE] [QVT] [TEMP]
[NETSCAPE] [DOS] [WINDOWS] [BALLPT] [PCMPLUS3]
[WINUTILS] [NAV] [NU] [SYMANTEC] [MSOFFICE]
[CLSI] [PROWIN2] [VIR] [NWCLIENT] OLDAUTO.BAT
$UTOEXEC.BAT CONFIG.SYD [NCDTREE] [UNI3] WINA20.386
DEINSTAL.BAT AUTOEXEC.BAT

32 file(s) 3,650,514 bytes

102,002,688 bytes free
Note that "/P" is the switch used to display the contents page by page.
MD: creates a new directory.
Format:
C:\> MD <directory name>
Example:
C:\> MD COMP
Then a new directory named COMP is created.
CD: changes the current directory
Examples:
C:\> CD QBASIC
This command opens the QBASIC directory.
C:\WINDOWS> CD..
This command quits the windows directory.
EDIT: edits a text file.
Format:
C:\> EDIT <file name>
Example:
C:\> EDIT comp.bas
This command opens the already existing file named "comp.bas"
(If the file not in the current directory, the file path should be specified.)
MOVE: moves a file from one place to other.
Format:
C:\> MOVE <File path> <new path>

16

Example:
C:\>MOVE c:\stuff\stuff.txt a:\stuff\stuff.txt
COPY: copies a file from one directory to another, or to a different file name.
Format:
C:\>COPY <file path> <new path>
Example:
C:\>COPY comp\math.bas mat\math.bas
1 file(s) copied
REN or RENAME: renames a file name.
Format:
C:\>REN <file path> <new name>
Example:
C:\>REN mat\math.bas maths.bas
CLS: clears the screen
DEL: deletes the file.
FORMAT: formats a disc.
Exit: exits MS DOS.

17

INTRODUCTION TO WINDOWS
Windows is an operating system that improves upon DOS in a number of ways. It
provides a Graphical User Interface (GUI), a type of human-computer interface through
which the user interacts with the computer by selecting options presented in the form of
icons or graphical images. Any of the program groups can be selected by clicking (clicking
the left mouse button) on the group. Double clicking on the application starts it up.
Versions of windows:
Windows 1.0

Nov 1985

Development began in September 1981

Windows 2.0

Fall of 1987

overlapping windows

Windows/386

Late 1987

Ran multiple applications

Windows 3.0

May 1990

sold over 10 million copies

Windows 3.1

Apr 1992

3 millions copies sold in the first 2

Windows for Workgroups 3.1

Oct 1992

Integrated Network Support

Windows 3.11

Nov 1993

Free upgrade to Windows 3.1

Windows for Workgroups 3.11

Nov 1993

Upgrade to WFW 3.1

Windows NT 3.1

Aug 1993

First version on Windows NT

Windows NT 3.5

Sep 1994

NT upgrade

Windows 95

Aug 1995

Remake of windows with new GUI

Windows NT 4.0

Aug 1995

Remake of NT with new GUI

Windows CE

Sep 1996

operating system for hand-held PCs

months

Microsoft Windows 95
Windows 95 is a 32-bit operating system that takes advantage of newer technology while
still providing a wide range of support for older software programs and hardware. Hardware
is fairly easy to manage with the built in Plug and Play support.
Microsoft Windows CE
Microsoft Windows CE is an operating system platform for a broad range of
communications, entertainment and mobile-computing devices. Windows CE is compact in
size and does not require large amounts of memory.

18

Microsoft NT 4.0
There are currently two different versions of Microsoft NT 4.0, NT Server and NT
workstation. The basic difference between Workstation and Server is that Workstation is
tuned for use as a desktop system and Server has additional components for Network
services and user management. The development of the NT operating system was lead by
David Cutler.
Windows 98
The heir apparent to Windows 95 was released in mid 1998, Windows 98 offers
support for a number of new technologies.
Windows 2000
Microsoft is continually enhancing its Windows OS product line. Windows 2000 is the
state of art OS that uses the latest hardware.
Windows Millennium
Windows ME brings its own set of improvements and targets a different kind of market
that needs performance, ease of use and more stability.
Windows XP
Windows XP is the most important operating system release since Windows 95.
Windows XP has been updated, tweaked, improved, and massaged from top to bottom, in
order to create an OS that is equally useful for new users, typical home users, power users,
and business desktops.
Desktop
The area of the computer seen in the monitor is called the desktop. From the upper left
to the lower left side of the screen, there are small pictures or images called icons. Each one
represents a program used to make the computer do something. Some of the most regular
icons are:
My Computer
It is a program utility used to explore the content of your computer and to do other
routine things.
Network Neighbourhood
It is used to communicate with other computers if the computer is part of a network.
19

Recycle Bin
The deleted items (files or folders) of the computer go to an area called the Recycle Bin,
which gives a chance of recalling them.
Task Bar
At the bottom of the desktop, there is a long strip called the task bar. It contains "Start"
menu at the left end, system tray at the right end, Quick Launch toolbar and Task Manager.
Start Menu
Although Windows makes icons available on the desktop, the equivalent of program
groups can be found in the start menu. Some commands are:
COMMAND

ACTION

Programs

Displays a list of programs to start.

Documents

Displays the list of last 15 documents that have been opened recently.

Settings

Displays a list of system components for which the settings can be

changed.

Find

Enables to find a folder, file shared computer

Help
Run

Starts Help and enables to use the help contents, index to find out how to
do the jobs in windows.
To open a program from a hard disk or floppy disk

Log Off

To remain the computer on and restricting other users to access the files.

Shut Down

To completely turn off the power of the computer.

System Tray
It is situated near the system clock. Various programs use System Tray to display their
current state and provide easy access to some of their functions. The key to the System
Tray's popularity is the ease of use and permanent availability (unlike the desktop shortcuts it
is very seldom obscured by any application windows).
Quick Launch Tool Bar
This toolbar contains buttons to open frequently used programs such as Internet
Explorer, Outlook Express, etc. and to minimize all open windows or view channels.

20

Task Manager
When a program is started or a window is opened, a button representing the window
appears on the part of taskbar, called Task Manager. This provides an easy way to switch
between windows, just clicking the button to make it active.
Common Windows menus
Another GUI element is the ability to issue commands to the operating system or
application software by using the mouse to make selections from menus. Clicking on the
menu's title pulls it down; clicking on an item in the menu carries out that command. Some
of the items on the menu may be greyed out, or printed in a lighter shade. This means that
now is not an appropriate time to make that selection.
The File menu
Almost every Windows program has a menu called File, which is the main control menu
for the program. The File menu may contain many options, but almost always has the
following:
Open is used to pull up a file created by the current application, such as pulling up a
paper created by a word processor.
Save is used to write a file to disk with a filename. Successive calls to Save will
simply update the file on disk. To save the file under a different filename or in a
different location, Save As command is used.
Print is used to send a file to the currently selected printer under Windows.
Exit or Quit is used to quit the current program.
The Edit menu
Sometimes it is necessary to transfer data from one location to another. Windows
provides a mechanism called the clipboard, which transfers data without re-entering it, even
between applications. Most Windows applications moves data to and from the clipboard
with the Edit menu, and almost every Edit menu contains at least the following:
Cut removes a block of data from its current location and places it on the clipboard.
Any data stored on the clipboard beforehand is replaced; the clipboard can only
store one data block at a time.
Copy also puts a block of data on the clipboard, but does not delete it from its
current location.

21

Paste copies the clipboard's contents to a new location. The data remains on the
clipboard until it is replaced by another Cut or Copy, or until the user exits
Windows.
The GUI interface also features drag-and-drop. Moving an icon to another location is
called as dragging the icon. To drag an icon, click the icon, hold the mouse button and
move to its new location. When the icon is positioned inside its new group, leave the left
mouse button to drop it.
Files
Files are the little things floating around the computer. They hold information. The
filename consists of two parts. First part is the name and the second two parts. First part is
the name and the second part is the extension. Name and extension are separated by a
period (.). The extension tells the file type. Example: MATH.BAS, COMP.BAS.
Folders
Files are stored in computer file cabinets called Folders. Folders organize files in the
computer.
My Computer
The programs, documents and data files are all accessible from one place called "My
Computer". It is a tool used to browse all disks, printers, etc. that are physically attached to
the computer. Double click the "My Computer" icon to view its contents. A window appears
displaying several icons. To use the items, double click the icons.
My Documents
All the programming files, software, documents, etc. are stored in the hard disc, which is
attached to My Computer. Files and folders created by the users are stored in My
Documents folder in the hard disk. To open the files and folders, double click the icons.
Recycle Bin
The deleted files or folders are not deleted from the hard disk until they are deleted from
the recycle bin. Double click the icon to view the contents. They can be viewed as large
icons or small icons or just the list of folders and files or details regarding the original
location, date of deletion, type and size of the folders or files. The files or folders can be

22

brought back to its original location when they are deleted accidentally. To bring them back,
select the files and click the restore option in the file menu. To empty the recycle bin,
Click File Empty Recycle bin
(or)
Press Ctrl + A and delete.
To free up disk space, empty the recycle bin periodically.
Shortcut
Shortcuts are duplicate copies of files, folders and programs that enables to promptly
access the files, folders or programs often used. They are identical in appearance to the icons
they represent except for a small arrow at the bottom. To create a shortcut on the desktop to
a program or file, do the following,
Right-click an open area on the desktop, point to New, and then click Shortcut.
Click Browse.
Locate the program or file to which you want to create a shortcut, click the program
or file, click Open, and then click Next.
Type a name for the shortcut. If a Finish button appears at the bottom of the dialog
box, click it. If a Next button appears at the bottom of the dialog box, click it, click
the icon you want to use for the shortcut, and then click Finish.
Windows Explorer
Windows explorer is the comprehensive organization and management tool for
Windows files or folders. All the files and folders can be viewed using this tool. Creating a
folder, copying, renaming, moving and deleting files or folders are made easy with the help
of windows explorer.
Creating a Folder
In windows Explorer, select my documents in c: Then,
Click File New Folder.
Then a new folder is created with a temporary name. Type the name and press enter.
Now the folder is ready for use.

23

Copying a file or Folder

In windows explorer, select the files to be copied. If there is more than one file to be
copied, hold the ctrl key and click the files to select them. To copy the files, do the
following,
Press Ctrl + C in the keyboard
(or)
Click Edit Copy in the menu bar using mouse
(or)
Click the copy icon in the standard toolbar.
Then the files are stored in the clipboard. Select the folder in which the selected files are
to be placed. To place the files in that folder, do the following,
Press Ctrl + V in the keyboard.
(or)
Click Edit Paste in the menu bar using mouse.
(or)
Click the paste icon in the standard toolbar.
Note
Simple way of copying the files is to select the files, holding the ctrl key, drag them to its
destination folder and release the buttons.
Moving A file or Folder
In windows explorer, select the files to be moved. If there are more than one file to be
moved, hold the ctrl key and click the files to select them. To move the files, do the
following,
Press Ctrl + X in the keyboard.
(or)
Click Edit Cut in the menu bar using mouse.
(or)
Click the Cut icon in the standard toolbar.
Then the files are stored in the clipboard. Select the folder in which the selected files are
to be placed. To place the files in that folder, do the following,
Press Ctrl + V in the keyboard.
24

(or)
Click Edit Paste in the menu bar using mouse.
(or)
Click the paste icon in the standard toolbar.
Note
Simple way of moving the files is to select the files, drag them to the destination folder
and release.
Renaming a File or a Folder
Select the file or folder in windows explorer and then do the following:
(i) Right click in the filename. A short cut menu pops out. Click the rename command in
that menu.
(or)
(ii) Click File Rename
Type a new name and press enter.
Note
An easy way of renaming the selected file is to click (left click) the selected file, type the
new name and press enter.
Deleting a File
Select the files or folders to be deleted. Then do the following,
Right click in one of the selected files to display the shortcut menu and click the delete
command in the menu.
(or)
Press delete key in the keyboard.
(or)
Click File Delete command in the menu bar.
The above procedures send these files to the recycle bin. If we hold the shift key and
press the delete key in the keyboard, then the selected files are deleted permanently without
entering into the recycle bin.

25

LINUX OS GNOME DESKTOP AND K DESKTOP

Linux
It is a UNIX operating system that has gained popularity in recent years. The basic Linux
system is a standard environment for applications and for user programming, but it does not
enforce any standard means of managing the available functionality as a whole. As Linux has
matured, there has been a need for another layer of functionality on the top of the Linux
system. A Linux distribution includes all the standard components of Linux system, plus a
set of administrative tools to simplify the initial installation and subsequent upgrading of
Linux, to manage installation and deinstallation of other packages on the system. A modem
distribution also typically includes tools for management of file systems, creation and
management of user accounts, network administration and so on.
Components of Linux system
The Linux system is composed of three main bodies of code, in line with most
traditional UNIX implementations:
The kernel is responsible for maintaining all the important abstractions of the
operating system, including such things as virtual memory and processes.
The system libraries define a standard set of functions through which applications
can interact with the kernel, and which implement much of the operating-system
functionality that does not need the full privileges of kernel code.
The system utilities are programs that perform individual, specialized management
tasks. Some system utilities may be invoked just once to initialize and configure some
aspect of the system; others (known as daemons in UNIX terminology) may run
permanently, handling such tasks as responding to incoming network connections,
accepting logon requests from terminals, or updating log files.
GNOME Desktop
GNOME is a user-friendly desktop environment that enables users to easily use and
configure the computers. GNOME includes a panel (for starting applications and displaying
status), a desktop (where data and applications can be placed), a set of standard desktop
tools and applications, and a set of conventions that make it easy for applications to
cooperate and be consistent with each other.

26

GNOME panel is a long bar at the bottom of the screen that contains a collection of
useful panel applets and menus. Panel applets are tiny programs designed to be placed in a
panel. For example, the clock applet on the right shows the current time. The arrows on
each side of the panel hide (or unhide) the panel. The button in the panel containing a
stylized foot is the Main menu button. Click the Main menu button to display a menu of
preloaded applications and actions, including a logout command. The rest of the screen is
called the desktop. Place the items on the desktop, which are often used.
Double clicking an item
If the item is a program, the program will start.
If the item is data, the appropriate program will start with that data loaded.
If the item is a directory, the file manager application will start and show the
contents of that directory. The desktop will probably have a folder icon labelled
"Home Directory". Double-clicking it, will start the File Manager at the home
directory.
The File Manager application helps to manipulate the files. The left side of its window
shows directories, and the right side shows the contents of the selected directory.
To move the file or directory, just drag-and-drop it.
To copy a file, hold the Ctrl key while dragging.
To run a program or edit a data file, double-click it.
To perform other operations on a file (such as rename or delete), select it using the
right mouse button. To select more than one item at a time, click the items after the
first one while holding the Shift key or Ctrl key.
The default desktop will include a folder of the Home directory. By default, the
GNOME File Manager window will also appear to access other areas of the system.
Desktop areas are virtual extensions of one desktop. They allow to keep a well organized
system when there are many tasks to be performed at one time. GNOME is aware of
desktop areas even though they are controlled by another software program called window
manager. The number of desktop areas is set within the configuration of the window
manager. Most window managers provide the option of having multiple desktops. (Note that
multiple desktops are separate desktops.)

27

K Desktop
The K Desktop Environment (KDE) is a collection of tools that will make the UNIX
life easier and more enjoyable. KDE provides:
A good-looking, easy-to-use windows environment
A powerful, easy to use file manager
A simple, centralized configuration
An online help that will support in every situation.
The three main parts of KDE desktop are the desktop, the panel and the task list.
Panel
It is situated at the bottom of the screen.
K button:
Clicking this button removes the panel from the screen and replaces it with a mini
panel. The K button stays on the screen so that the main panel can be brought back. This
feature applies to current desktop.
Application Starter:
This button is next to the K button. This button is used to start KDE applications.
Task List:
This button is located at the right of the application menu. It is a menu containing all
the windows active on the desktops, sorted by desktop name. When the panel is minimized,
the application menu and the task list are available at the top of the taskbar with the same
functionality.
Logout button:
Located to the right of the list of active windows, there are two buttons. The top
button, which looks like a big X, is used to quit the current KDE session.
Lock screen button:
One click on this button will lock the screen, preventing others from reading the
private mail or playing around the work done by the user.
Desktop buttons:
There are four buttons labeled "One", "Two", "Three" and "Four" to represent 4
desktops. Using multiple desktops is one of the most powerful features of KDE.

28

Icon bar:
This contains additional buttons next to the desktop buttons. For example, shortcut
to Home directory, etc.
Time and Date:
At the far end of the KDE panel, the time and date are present.

29

OFFICE PACKAGES MICROSOFT OFFICE, OPEN OFFICE AND K OFFICE

Introduction
To facilitate different functions of the office like correspondence, accounts, advertising
and marketing, a number of specific packages have been evolved. According to their
applications, they have been aptly categorised as word processors, spreadsheets, database
management systems, presentation software, a personal information manager, etc. All these
applications needed office suit for a convenient and fast operation. Microsoft office, Open
Office and K Office are some of the office packages, which contain all the necessary office
tools.
Microsoft Office
Microsoft office is a suite of programs that help to create and manage written materials,
publications, databases, spreadsheets and web pages. All the pieces of MS Office suite are
programs written for the Windows environment. Each program is viewed within a window
and those windows can be manipulated in ways that enable to easily move from program to
program.
Microsoft Word is a word processing package used to create documents in the form of
text.
Microsoft Excel is a spreadsheet application in Windows. It performs mathematical
calculations, statistical analysis, etc. It also represents data in the form of graphs.
Microsoft PowerPoint is presentation software used to present the lectures and notes
by creating and printing slides.
Open Office
OpenOffice.org is a feature-rich office productivity suite distributed and maintained by
Sun Microsystems. Comparable to Microsoft Office, OpenOffice.org includes a word
processor, a spreadsheet application, presentation software and graphic program
applications. OpenOffice.org is incredibly powerful; many believe that it is not only as good
as MS Office, but better in many ways. OpenOffice.org is able to read and write Microsoft
Office files. This allows users to open and save Word, Excel and PowerPoint files on their
preferred platform including Windows, Linux and Solaris.
The new macro recorder records and automates recurring tasks. For more sophisticated
programming tasks the OpenOffice.org Software Development Kit (SDK) can be used. The
30

SDK provides libraries, tools and documentation for the Java programming language, C++,
Basic, OLE and XML. The SDK is a separate download.
OpenOffice.org Writer is a full-featured word processor. The powerful Navigator
and Stylist tools make changing the formatting throughout a document a simple task.
OpenOffice.org Calc provides full spreadsheet functionality incl. a huge number of
statistical and scientific functions, pivot tables and charts.
OpenOffice.org Impress is a full-featured presentation tool that allows to create
and modify diagrams and pictures right within the application.
OpenOffice.org Draw is a drawing tool that supports both vector and bitmap
images. The powerful Connectors allow to easily complex diagrams and org charts.
With the database tools in OpenOffice.org users can easily access and analyze data,
create complex reports or do a mail merge based on a customer database. Many open source
and commercial database systems are supported.
K Office
It is a rapidly developing native Linux package. It has many advanced DTP features. It is
the de-facto Office suite for the K Desktop Environment (KDE) the most popular of the
Linux desktops. It also runs on PowerPC based computers including the Apple Mac.
KWord is a FrameMaker-like word-processing and desktop publishing application. It
is capable of creating demanding and professional looking documents. KWord will
prove a valuable and easy to use tool for all your word processing and layout needs.
This can be used to place components in precise locations, as with many professional
DTP applications. KWord can also handle huge amounts of texts and allows you to
do professional markup with ease.
KSpread is a scriptable spreadsheet program which provides both table-oriented
sheets and support for complex mathematical formulas and statistics.
KPresenter is a presentation application.
Kivio i s a flowcharting and diagramming application for the KOffice application
suite, and has an user-interface. It is fully integrated into KOffice and can for
example be embedded into KWord.
Karbon14 is the vector drawing application in KDE.

31

Krita is a painting and image editing application for KOffice. Because of the current
unfinished state, Krita is not yet part of the regular KOffice releases, but the source
is available from the KDE CVS repository.
Kugar is a KDE tool for generating business quality reports which can be viewed
and printed. It includes a standalone report viewer and a KPart report viewer. The
latter means that any KDE application can embed the report viewing functionality
and that reports can be viewed using the Konqueror browser.
KPlato is a project management application, allowing for the planning and
scheduling of projects. It is in the very early stages of development.
Kexi is an integrated environment for managing data. It helps in creating database
schema, inserting, querying and processing data. The idea of this development effort
came because of noticeable lack of application like MS Access, FoxPro, Oracle
Forms or File Maker that is powerful enough, inexpensive, open standards driven
and highly portable between many OSes and hardware platforms.
KChart is the KOffice chart drawing application. Use it to embed charts into the
KOffice documents, e.g. a report written with KWord.
KFormula is an easy to use formula editor. It provides the basic input facilities and
the support functionality you come to expect of a KOffice application.

32

MICROSOFT OFFICE PACKAGES

Word Processing Package
Word processing involves the transformation of written text into a form that gives it a
formal, systematic look that facilitates easy reading and understanding. The application
program that enables the processing of words is called a word processing program or simply
a word processor. A word processor is therefore a computer-based program that is used to
type text, correct spelling and grammatical errors. It allows to preview the complete text
before printing and gives a variety of character styles and sizes to choose from. Some
applications of word processor are creating circulars, reminders for business, prospectus for
universities, reports, tenders, contracts, agreements, letters, memos, timetables, work
schedules, etc. Examples: Word Star, Microsoft Word, Word Pad, etc.
Spreadsheet Application
Spreadsheet (or electronic worksheet) is an array of rows and columns, used to store
information in the memory, calculate results and display information and results on the
screen. Data can also be viewed in the form of graphs. If some data are altered, then the
spreadsheet automatically recalculates the results and alters the graphs accordingly. Some
applications of a spreadsheet are Budgets, Annual Reports of a Business Firm, Payrolls,
Inventory Control, Scientific Calculations, Production and Marketing Analysis, Investment
and Loan Analysis, Banking, etc. Examples: Lotus 1-2-3, Microsoft Excel, etc.
Presentation Software
Presentation is simply the way an idea or a thought is communicated to another person.
We present or communicate our thoughts and ideas to several people all through our lives
without actually realising that we are in effect making a presentation. The presentation
software is a collection of slides that allows the user to design charts, arrange the text in a
readable format, add pictures and other designs to make it look attractive and more
meaningful. Examples: Harvard Graphics, Microsoft Power Point, IBM-Storyboard.
Word Processing Package
Ms word
Ms word is a powerful word processing application that allows to create dynamic
documents through simple keystroke and menu navigation. It enables to create, edit and

33

print various types of documents, including letters, reports, brochures, forms, memos, fax
sheets and more. To start Microsoft Word, click Start Programs Microsoft Word.
Screen Layout
Microsoft Word has a display that features four 'bars' and a document window.
Title bar at the top of the window, which contains the name of the application, and
name of the file in use at the left corner, minimize button, maximize (or) restore
button and close button at the right corner. The colour of the title bar indicates
whether the window is active or not.
Menu bar beneath the tile bar, which contains at least 9 menus such as File, Edit,
View, Insert, Format, Tools, Table, Window and Help. Clicking the words in the
menu bar, displays the corresponding dropdown menu to select the commands to be
carried out. The keyboard shortcut is Alt + (the underlined letter in the word).
Vertical scroll bar at the right of the document window and horizontal scroll bar
at the bottom of the document window to move the document accordingly. To the
left and right of the horizontal scroll bar there are two buttons to move the
document left and right respectively. Similarly, above and below the vertical scroll
bar, there are two buttons to move the document up and down one line. Below this
button there are three buttons, browse object button in the middle and previous
browse object button and next browse object button at the top and bottom of
the browse object button. Browse object button is used to select the objects such as
page, section, table, graphics, etc. from the icons so that the previous object button
and next object button could move the cursor accordingly.

34

Title
Bar

Menu
Bar

Drawing
toolbar

Standard
Toolbar

Formatting
Toolbar

Minimize
Button

Maximize
Button

Close
Button

Vertical
Scroll
Bar

Ruler

Previous
Browse Object
Button

Document
Window
Status
Bar

Browse
Object Button

Horizontal
Scroll Bar

Next Browse
object Button

Status bar at the bottom, which gives information about the document. It displays
page number, section number, total number of pages, distance of the cursor from
the top of the page (in inches or cms), line number, column number. It also provides
the status record macro, track changes, extend selection, overtype, spelling and
grammar status, background save grayed out when they are off.
Tool Bars
The toolbars consist of icons for the various commands that occur in the drop-down
menus. There are at least 16 tool bars in MS Word, namely, standard, formatting, auto text,
clipboard, control tool box, database, drawing, forms, frames, picture, reviewing, tables and
borders, visual basic, web, web tools and word art.

35

The standard tool bar consists of icons for the following commands:
New

Cut

Columns

Open

Copy

Drawing

Save

Paste

Document Map

Print

Format painter

Paragraph

Print Preview

Undo

Office Assistance

Spelling and

Redo

Find

Grammar

Insert Table

The formatting toolbar consists of icons for the following commands:

Font Style

Centre Justification

Borders

Font

Right Justification

Highlight

Font Size

Justification

Font Color

Bold

Numbering

Language

Italics

Bullets

Subscript

Underline

Decrease Indent

Superscript

Left Justification

Increase Indent

Ruler
A ruler is at the top of the document window. It is used to set tabs as well as indents,
and left and right margins in the page layout view. The ruler contains four indent markers,
first line indent, hanging indent, left indent and right indent.
First line indent works the same way as the pressing tab key on the keyboard.
Hanging indent (sometimes called as the outdent) hangs the remaining lines in a
paragraph in the position of this marker.
Left indent sets a paragraph off from the rest of the text by moving all the lines from left
margin.
Right indent moves text from the right margin and is typically combined with a left
indent to make a dual indent. Dual indents are used most commonly to set off block
quotations.

36

File Menu
The file menu consists of the following commands:
New... (Ctrl + N) command opens a dialog box. To create a new document, select
Blank Document in the General tab and click OK.
Open... (Ctrl + O) command opens an already existing file. Select the folder, which
contains the file from the Look in box at the top and click the file name and click Open.
Save (Ctrl + S) and Save As
When a new document is to be saved, there is no difference between these two
commands. They allow to enter a file name to save the file. From next time onwards, the
former updates the document and the latter saves the file in a different name or location.
Close (Ctrl + F4 or Ctrl + W) command closes the current document.
Exit (Alt + F4) command closes Microsoft Word.
Page Setup...
This command opens a dialog box containing 4 tabs, Margins, Paper Size, Paper Source
and Layout. In Margins tab, Top, Bottom, Left and Right spin box controls are available to
set the amount of white space at the corresponding sides. Mirror margins check box is
selected to adjust left and right margin so that while printing on both sides of the paper, the
inside margins are the same width and the outside margins are the same width. Gutter is
used to enter the amount of extra space to add to the margin for binding. Word adds the
extra space to the left of the margin, if Mirror margins check box is cleared, or to the inside
margin, if Mirror margins is selected. The Header and footer spin box controls are used to
adjust the size of the header and footer from the top or bottom edge of the page. In Paper
Size tab, the height and the width of the paper can be adjusted. Portrait and Landscape
options are available to change the text direction according to which it is to be printed in the
paper. In Layout tab, there are options available to align the text vertically (top or bottom or
centre), view the line number, etc.

Print Preview and Print (Ctrl +P)

Previewing the document before printing gives a chance to see how the pages break. It
also allows to view multiple pages of the document at once, zoom in and out of pages easily,

37

adjust margins and shrink the document by one page to prevent a carryover from appearing
on a page by itself. Print command prints the document.
Edit Menu
Cut (Ctrl + X) removes a block of data from its current location and places it on the
clipboard. Any data stored on the clipboard beforehand is replaced; the clipboard can
only store one data block at a time.
Copy (Ctrl + C) also puts a block of data on the clipboard, but does not delete it from
its current location.
Paste (Ctrl +V) copies the clipboard's contents to a new location. The data remains on
the clipboard until it is replaced by another Cut or Copy, or until the user exits Windows.
Clear (Delete) deletes the character in the current cursor position or selected text.
Select All (Ctrl + A) selects the entire document.
Find (Ctrl + F) locates the entered text in the document.
Replace (Ctrl + H) locates the given text and replaces it with the text entered.
Go to (Ctrl + G) takes the cursor to the desired page, section, etc.
Insert Menu
Break gives a page break or column break at the current cursor position or section break
at the next page, next odd page, next even page or at the current cursor position.
Page Numbers enters the page number at the top (Header) or at the bottom (Footer).
It also provides to align the page number at the left, right or centre of the header or
footer, or inside or outside when the document is to be printed on both sides of the
paper.
Date and Time has many date and time formats to choose from.
Auto Text provides an option to enter the text automatically while typing. For example,
if the word "Mathematics" is available in the Auto Text list, while typing the word, the
application shows the word "Mathematics" above the cursor so that pressing the enter
key will enter the text automatically.
Symbol has many symbols other than the symbols available in the keyboard to select
from.
Picture may be Clip Art, AutoShapes, Word Art or Chart or copied from other files.

38

Format Menu
Font... (Ctrl + D) opens a dialog box which contains three tabs, Font, Character
Spacing and Animation. In Font tab, the following options are available:
Font (Ctrl + Shift + F) provides so many font types to choose from.
Font Style may be regular, italics, Bold, Bold italics
Size (Ctrl + Shift + P) specifies the size of the font.
Under line styles like single line, underlining Words only, Double line, Dotted line,
Thick line, Dash line, Dot dash line Dot dot dash line and Wave line are available
in MS Word.
Color gives attraction to the text. We can choose the desired colour to our
text.
Effects include Strikethrough, Double Strikethrough,

subscript

superscript

SHADO W, OUTLINE, EEM

MBBO
OSSSS, EEN
NG
GRRA
AV
VEE, SMALL CAPS and ALL
CAPS.
In Character Spacing tab the following options are available:
Scale stretches or shrinks the text according to the percentage specified.
Spacing expands or condenses the text by the specified point.
Position aligns the text raised or lowered by the specified point.
In Animation tab, there are six options cause the text to blink, sparkle, or shimmer:
Blinking Background, Las Vegas Lights, Marching Black Ants, Marching Red Ants,
Shimmer and Sparkle Text.
Paragraph helps to indent the text. It consists of two tabs: Indents and Spacing and
Line and Page Breaks. In Indents and Spacing tab, the following options are available:
Alignment includes Left Alignment (Ctrl + L), Center Alignment (Ctrl + E), Right
Alignment (Ctrl + R) and Justification (Ctrl + J).
Indentation sets the position of the text with respect to the left and right margin.
Spacing sets the amount of space between paragraphs and between lines. Note the
keyboard shortcuts for spacing between lines are: Single spacing - Ctrl + 1, 1.5
spacing - Ctrl + 5 and Double Spacing - Ctrl + 2.
In Line and Page Breaks tab, the following options are available:

39

Widow/Orphan control prevents Word from printing the last line of a paragraph by
itself at the top of the page (Widow) or the first line of a paragraph by itself at the
bottom of a page.
Keep with the next prevents a page break between the selected paragraph and the
following paragraph.
Keep lines together prevents a page break within a paragraph.
Page break before inserts a manual page break before the selected paragraph.
Suppress line numbers prevents line numbers from appearing next to selected
paragraphs. This has no effect in the documents or sections with no line numbers.
Don't hyphenate excludes a paragraph from automatic hyphenation.
Bullets and Numbering applies numbers or symbols to the beginning of each
paragraph. This includes Bulleted to include symbols, numbered to include numbers
and outline numbered to include numbers inside a numbered paragraph.
Borders and Shading adds borders and shading to the selected text, paragraphs, pages,
table cells or pictures. Border format may be box, shadow, or 3-D. Various colours,
styles, width for the border lines are also available. Shading includes filling background
colors along with a pattern to the selected text or paragraph.
Columns splits the text into desired number of columns with a specified width. The
Word gives a section break, by default, when the number of columns is different.
Tabs specifies the measurement for tab stop and the alignment.
Drop Cap formats the first letter of the paragraph as a dropped capital letter to the
specified number of lines. It is aligned with the left margin and the text wraps around
the letter or it is placed at the left margin.
Change Case changes the case of the text to Sentence case, lower case, UPPER
CASE, Title Case and tOGGLE cASE. The keyboard shortcut to change the case the
selected text is Shift + F3.
Background contains so many colours, patterns and pictures to choose from.
Tools Menu:
Spelling and Grammar (F7) checks and list the spelling and grammar mistakes in the
document and also provides options to correct the same. It also displays the spelling
mistakes with a red underline and grammar mistakes with a green underline.

40

Language has three options, namely, Set Language, Thesaurus (Shift + F7) and
hyphenation. Set Language changes the language used to check. If a language other
than the default language is chosen, then a spelling dictionary and other language tools
are to be purchased and installed. Thesaurus lists the words/group of words, which
are synonyms to the selected word or related concepts and provides an option to
replace the selected word with a word in the list. Hyphenation is used when there are
spaces at the end of a line because long words wrap to the beginning of the next line.
Word Count displays the number of pages, number of words, number of characters
(without including spaces), number of characters (including spaces), number of
paragraphs and number of lines. This may include the text in footnotes and endnotes
according to the choice of the user.
Track Changes tracks every change made to the document. Highlight Changes turns
on the track changes. Accept or Reject Changes is used to accept or reject the changes
made to the document by finding each change and deciding whether to accept or
reject the change. Options is used to highlight the changes like new text, old text
(deleted text), formatted text and changed lines in a desired format.
Protect Document protects the document for Track Changes, Comments or Forms.
If the document is protected for Track Changes, then every change made to the
document is highlighted, Track Changes cannot be turned off and no change can be
accepted or rejected. If the document is protected for comments, then the comments
can be inserted to the document, but the contents of the document cannot be
changed.
Auto Correct corrects the mistakes made by the user while typing. It corrects the use
of two initial capitals and accidental use of Caps Lock key, capitalises first letter of the
sentences and names of the days. It also replaces the typed words with that of the
specified word. Example: teh is replaced as the, adn is replaced as and, etc. There
are exceptions to make these changes by the Word.
Letters and Envelopes: In the envelopes and labels dialog box, enter the delivery
address in the Delivery address box. Choose to enter or omit the return address. Click
options to enter into Envelope options dialog box. There size of the envelope, the
font and location of the delivery address and return address can be specified. The
label option allows to print one label or a full page of the same label. It also allows to
specify the row and column to print the label (if single label is selected).

41

MICROSOFT EXCEL
Introduction
Microsoft Excel is an electronic spreadsheet application used to process business and
financial calculations of various kinds. It is a Multiple Document Interface (MDI), which
means more than one file can be opened inside this application.
Workbook, Worksheet and Cells
Each excel file is a workbook that can hold many worksheets. The workbook can
contain worksheets, chart sheets, or macro modules. Every Excel worksheet contains 65,536
rows, numbered from 1 through 65,536 and 256 columns, lettered A through Z, AA through
AZ, BA through BZ and continuing to IA through IV. The intersection of a row and a
column in a rectangular area is called a cell. Each cell is identified by its address, which is
represented by the column name and the row number.
Creating a new workbook
To create a new workbook, click File New from the menu bar (or) press Ctrl + N
(or) click New icon in the standard toolbar. To add a new worksheet to the workbook, click
Insert Worksheet from the menu bar. To enter data into the cells, click the cell and type
the data. The data may be text, number, date or formula.
Defining Formulae in Excel
Formulae are entered in the worksheet cell and must begin with an "equal to" sign.
When a formula is entered into a cell, the formula itself is displayed in the formula bar and
the value is calculated immediately and displayed in the cell. Numbers, operators and cell
addresses are used to define the formula.
Edit Formula Key
Excel allows to define formula desired by the user. Activate the cell and click Edit
Formula key to enter the desired formula into the cell. The Excel provides an equal to sign
in the formula bar and allows to type the formula in it. After typing the formula, press enter.
Then Excel calculates the value and the answer will appear in the cell.
Paste Function Key
To enter a formula into it, first activate the cell. Click the Function Wizard key (Paste
Function key) to open the Paste Function dialog box. Browse through the functions by
42

clicking in the function category and select the function from the function name choices.
Then click OK to apply the function. Next, choose the cells to be included in the function.
Then click OK to get the result. The answer will be displayed in the activated cell.
Auto Sum
This function is used to add the contents of a cluster of adjacent cells.
Charts
Charts are graphical representation of numeric data. It facilitates the comparison of two
or more frequency distribution. Following are some of the important types of graphs:
Pie Chart shows the proportional size of items that make up a data series to the sum
of the items. It always shows only one data series. To make small slices easier to see,
it can be grouped into one item in a pie chart and then that item is broken down in a
smaller pie chart next to the main chart.
Column Chart shows data changes over a period of time or illustrates comparisons
among the items. The subtypes of the column chart include
Bar Diagram or Multiple Bar Diagram: This is the first subtype, which depends
upon the number of data series chosen. If one data series is given, Excel will create a
simple bar diagram. If two or more data series are selected, then Excel creates
multiple bar diagram.
Component Bar Diagram (Subdivided Bar Diagram): This is the second
subtype, where a single bar is subdivided into various parts to compare the
contribution of each data to its total.
Percentage Bar Diagram: This is the third subtype, in which the bars are at equal
height and each one is subdivided into various parts to compare the percentage of
contribution of each data to its total.
Line Chart shows trends in data at equal intervals. It emphasizes time flow and the
rate of change.
Creating a Chart
Clicking the Chart Wizard button opens the Chart Wizard dialog box. It displays a
variety of chart types and chart subtypes to choose from. After selecting the desired chart
click Next to move to chart source data dialog box.

43

In Source Data dialog box, Data Range tab is used to select the data for which the
chart is to be created. It also has the option to put the chart for the data row-wise or
column-wise. Series tab provides options for adding or removing the data series, selecting or
typing names and values to each series and giving labels in the X-axis. Click Next to open
the Chart Options dialog box.
There are six tabs in Chart Options dialog box, namely, Titles, Axes, Gridlines, Legend,
Data Labels and Data Table.
Titles - allows to give titles to the chart, X-axis and Y-axis.
Axes - allows to display the X-axis values and Y-axis values in the chart.
Gridlines - allows to put horizontal and vertical lines in the graph to see the accuracy
of the chart.
Legend - allows to show legends at a desired place (bottom, upper right corner, top,
right or left of the graph) or hide them.
Data Labels - allows to display the data values or data labels along with the legend key
(optional) in the chart.
Data Tables - allows to show the data table in the chart along with the legend key
(optional).
Then click Next to enter into Chart Location dialog box. This provides an option to
place the chart in a separate sheet or an object in the worksheet. At last, click Finish to
create the chart.
Resizing the Chart
To resize the chart, click in the border and drag any of the eight black handles to change
the size. Handles on the corners will resize the chart proportionally while handles along the
lines will stretch the chart.
Moving the Chart
Select the border of the chart, hold down the left button and drag the chart to the new
location. Elements such as the title and labels may also be moved within the chart. Click on
the element to activate it and use the mouse to drag the element to move it.
(iii) Monthly Expenses of a family earning Rs. 15,000/- in India
Item

Food

Clothing

Expense

3000

2500

Education
3500

Shelter
3000

44

Miscellaneous

Savings

3000 2000

POWERPOINT CREATING PRESENTATIONS

Microsoft PowerPoint is a powerful tool to create professional looking presentations and

slide shows. PowerPoint allows to construct presentations from scratch or by using the easy
to use wizard. PowerPoint presentation consists of a series of slides.
Slide
Text or objects displayed on a graphic background is called a slide.
After Microsoft PowerPoint is opened, a screen pops up asking whether to create a New
Presentation or Open an Existing Presentation.
AutoContent Wizard
Creates a new presentation by prompting you for information about content, purpose,
style, handouts, and output. The new presentation contains sample text that can be replaced
with new information. Simply follow the directions and prompts that are given by Microsoft
PowerPoint.
Design Template
Creates a new presentation based on one of the PowerPoint design templates supplied
by Microsoft. Use the presentation that is already supplied by Microsoft PowerPoint and
change the information to your own.
1. Select Open An Existing Presentation from the picture.
2. Click on the presentation in the white box below.
If the presentation is not seen in the white box, select More Files and hit OK.
Locate the existing Presentation and hit the Open button.
Blank Presentation
After Blank Presentation is selected a window pops up asking to select the layout of the
first slide.

45

Pre-Designed Slide Layouts (Left to Right)

Title Slide
Bulleted List
Two Column Text
Table
Text & Chart
Chart & Text
Organizational Chart
Chart
Text & Clip Art
Clip Art & Text
Title Only
Blank Slide

46

There are different views within Microsoft PowerPoint that allow to look at the
presentation from different perspectives.
Normal View:
Switching to normal view, allows to work on one slide at a time or organize the structure
of all the slides in the presentation.
Outline View:
Switching to outline view allows to work with the structure of the file in outline form.
Working in outline view helps to organize the structure of the file.
Slide View:
Switching to slide view allows to work on one slide at a time
Slide Sorter View:
Displays miniature versions of all slides in a presentation, complete with text and
graphics. In slide sorter view, you can reorder slides, add transitions, and animation effects.
You can also set the timings for electronic slide shows.
Slide Show:
Runs your slide show in a full screen, beginning with the current slide if you are in slide
view or the selected slide if you are in slide sorter view. If you simply want to view your
show from the first slide:
1. Click Slide Show at the top of the screen
2. Select View Show.

47

POWERPOINT MULTIMEDIA PRESENTATIONS

In general, multimedia is the use of computers to present text, graphics, video,
animation, and sound in an integrated way. Multimedia applications were, until the mid-90s,
uncommon due to the expensive hardware required. With increases in performance and
decreases in price, however, multimedia is now commonplace.
The diversity of learning styles in the classroom requires the teacher to design lessons
using methods that may reach the different styles. Therefore, the use of multimedia has
become an effective tool to help learning in the classroom.
Then, the focus turned towards assessment. More than one method of assessment was
required so that the individual differences were accounted for. As a method of assessment,
multimedia presentations gave the students a new way of expressing their understanding of
the subject material. Creating multimedia presentations is a skill that needs to be taught. It is
a form of communication that does not suppress the creativity of the student and allows
them to express themselves in a multiple number of ways.
Tools are the foundation upon which the multimedia presentations are built. Usually
teachers will adopt a specific tool, or combination of tools, for all multimedia presentations
given in a certain class in order to minimize the amount of "new" learning that comes with
using new tools. Exposure to the different tools, however, can also expand the student's
experience and can also provide more choices to fit the student.
There are over one hundred software applications designed for creating multi media
presentations, however, only a few are used in most cases. Until recently, Hyperstudio was
the multimedia creation tool. Then, other types of software and mediums were created or
made more accessible to the general public and thus decreased the stronghold of
Hyperstudio. Today, many multimedia presentations are created using software such as
PowerPoint, Video editors like I-View, and media such as the internet.
Use of Internet in Multimedia Projects
There are many sources on the Internet that have digital video clips that can be
downloaded and used in multimedia projects. These clips can be viewed from within the
browser, but also saved to the hard drive. To save to the hard drive, choose "Save as..."

48

from the File menu. There are two options to save the movie as a "file" or "source". Choose
"source".
This is a list of a few sites:
Near Earth Objects. This is a NASA site with jpeg images and QuickTime movies of
"near earth objects" like asteroids and comets.
National Weather Service. Need a clip of a tornado or flood? Try the National Weather
Service archive of mpeg, avi, and QuickTime movies.
Video and Animation Utilities. Sometimes a movie to be used in a project may be a
wrong type of movie for the program used in the project. This link contains a list of utilities
that can be used to convert one movie format to another.
Multimedia Presentations in PowerPoint
PowerPoint comes with music, sounds, and videos you can play during your slide shows.
Some sounds such as a typewriter or applause are available on the Animation Effects
toolbar. Other sounds, as well as music and videos, are available in the Clip Gallery.
The Microsoft Clip Gallery is a collection of clip art images and other objects, like
sounds, pictures, and videos. Click the [Insert Clip Art] button to access images in the Clip
Gallery. You can also add images from other sources by choosing INSERT Picture
From File from the menu bar. Microsoft's large Clips Online collection can be accessed
through the Clip Gallery.
Buttons on the picture toolbar provide options for changing clip art properties, like
brightness, contrast, cropping, and colors. Buttons on the drawing toolbar can be used to
add text boxes and a variety of shapes to the active slide. Slide masters control the placement
of text areas and graphics on slide templates. Changes can be made to individual slide
templates, or to an entire presentation using the slide master. Custom backgrounds and color
schemes can be applied to all or selected slides.
Microsoft Graph is an accessory application that you use within PowerPoint 2000 to
create data charts. There are 14 main data chart styles and many more sub-types for each.
Slide layouts hold placeholders for data charts, organization charts, and objects like
equations. Organization charts can be used to show the formal or informal structures within
organizations. They are created using the accessory application Microsoft Organization
Chart. Special characters and symbols can be added to any text area using the INSERT

49

Symbol menu item. Even more symbols are available when you create equations using the
Microsoft Equation Editor. This application lets you create graphic versions of complicated
formulas and include them on your PowerPoint slides.
To use the Clip Gallery, point to Movies and Sounds on the Insert menu, and then click
either Movie from Gallery or Sound from Gallery. Sounds, music and videos are inserted as
PowerPoint objects. To play a sound or video as a Media Player object instead, click Object
on the Insert menu, and then click Media Clip. This method uses the Media Player
installed with Windows 95 to run the sound or video. The Media Player plays multimedia
files and controls such playback devices as compact disc and videodisc players.
Special equipment is needed on the computer to play music, sounds, and videos. To find
out what's installed and what settings are in use, check both the Multimedia and Sounds
categories in the Windows Control Panel.
Insert a music, sound, or video clip on a slide where it is to be played during a slide
show. By default, the sound or video starts when its icon is clicked during a slide show. To
change how the clip starts or to add a hyperlink to the clip, click Action Settings on the Slide
Show menu.
Additional locations of clip art, pictures, music, sound, video clips, and animations
If you can't find a picture, music, sound, video clip, or animation in PowerPoint, here are
some other places you can look for more clips (to use Clip Gallery Live and PowerPoint
Central, access to the Internet and a Web browser such as Microsoft Internet Explorer):
Windows Media folder
Windows 95 has additional sounds and music you can use in a presentation. Just point to
Movies and Sounds on the Insert menu, and then click Sound from File. Locate and open
the Media folder (in the Windows folder), and then select the sound you want.
Clip Gallery Live
If Clip Gallery is installed, connect to Clip Gallery Live, a Web site used to preview and
download picture, sound, and movie clips. Click Insert Clip Art to open Clip Gallery, and
then click the Connect to Web for additional clips button.

50

PowerPoint Central
From the PowerPoint Central presentation, you can jump to Internet sites or to the
Office 97 on the CD-ROM for such resources as clip art, videos, sound clips, graphic
effects, templates, and presentation tips. Just click PowerPoint Central on the Tools menu.
Some Special Features
PowerPoint 2000 offers a variety of tools to use while presenting a slide show. Access
the Slide Show tools by right-clicking on the current slide. Outlines prepared in other
applications can be used to build PowerPoint presentations. Special FILE Send to
options enhance the capability for printing PowerPoint presentations using Word. The
Windows Clipboard is a useful tool for copying and pasting data, graphs, or text among
Windows applications. Writing tools are available for checking spelling, visual clarity, and
ending punctuation. The AutoCorrect option helps keep presentation styles consistent and
for correcting common spelling mistakes. The content and visual design of your presentation
are the most important aspects of creating great presentations.
Animating text and objects
Animate text, graphics, sounds, movies, and other objects on your slides so as to focus
on important points, control the flow of information, and add interest to your presentation.
Each main bullet point may appear independently of others, or objects may appear
progressively, one after another. Set up the way each bullet point or object to appear on the
slide and if other bullets or objects to dim or change color when a new element is added.
Order and timing of the animations can be changed and set to occur automatically
without having to click the mouse. To set up and preview the animation of your text and
objects, click Custom Animation on the Slide Show menu.
Slide transitions are effects that change the way one slide is replaced with another during
a slide show. Slide show animations can be used to animate titles, text areas like bulleted lists,
and charts with movement and sound. Both transitions and animations add impact and
variety to your presentations, but should be used with discretion to avoid becoming
distracting. Hide slides that are not needed to display during a slide show. Hypertext links
can be added to link to other slides, presentations, files, or Web pages.

51

N ETWORK- INTERNET AND INTRANET

Network
A network is a group of two or more devices, such as computers, printers and scanners
that can communicate and share files with each other. Networks are interconnection of
computers. These computers can be linked together with wide variety of different cable
types, and for a wide variety of different purposes.
Local Area Network
A Local Area Network or LAN is a group of computers in a localized area. Another
definition states that a LAN is a computer network that is confined to a building or a cluster
of buildings. A LAN is a network that is typically personal to an organisation and is installed
for the exclusive use of a particular office or factory of a given organisation.
Internet
Over 30 years ago an experimental network was designed to support military research.
This network was called ARPA Net (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network). The
idea was to find a way to connect some networks around the country. ARPANET is
frequently called as "Mother of Internet".
Internet is a communication tool through which the information can be transferred from
one part of the world to another. In this a lot of web sites and services are available to meet
our varied requirements. Internet is an inter-connection between several computers of
different types belonging to various networks all over the world. It is a network of networks.
It has a rich content of information in the form of text, pictures, sounds and video clips.
TCP/IP
TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol) is made up of two
components TCP and IP. TCP breaks up the data sent into little packets. It guarantees that
any data, sent to destination computer, reaches it intact. IP is a set of conventions used to
pass packets from one host to another. It is responsible for routing packets to a destination
IP address. Packets are passed using three kinds of mechanisms: bridge, routers and
gateways.

52

Getting the connectivity

The different ways of getting the Internet connectivity are Dial-up connection, ISDN
connection, leased line connection and VSAT connection. In Dial-up link we establish the
link by dialing a telephone number given by the service provider. This service is provided by
VSNL, BSNL, Dishnet, BPL etc. We have to pay the money in advance and specify the
duration of Internet usage. Based on the duration the charges will vary. ISDN is another way
of establishing the link and here we pay the service charge every month. Here also by dialing
a telephone number be given by the service provider we establish the link. In both the above
methods we have to pay telephone charges to the telecomm department. In leased line and
VSAT methods the connection is available all the twenty-four hours and no telephone
charges are to be paid. These two methods are faster when compared to the other two.
Web Site
The term Web Site refers to a collection of one or more web pages created by a person,
company or organization on the web. The first introductory page of the web site is known as
the Home Page. The home page contains links to all the other pages on the site. From any
page, we can get back to the home page. We can connect to different web sites on the
Internet by typing the Internet address, known as URL (Uniform Resource Locator) in the
address bar. URL consists of three parts: Protocol, Domain and Path.
Example: http://www.aln.org/net101/basic.htm
The protocol section tells the computer which protocol to be used. It is either http or
ftp. http (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol) is the default protocol and does not need to be
typed.
The next part follows the protocol and the separator shows that the computer is acting
on the web server. The default address is www (World Wide Web). Most web addresses use
this as a sort of standard.
The next part is the domain name. Each site has a unique domain name that identifies
that site. It identifies the entity that supports the network server. In the above example, aln is
the domain name.
The next portion is the extension and it tells the type of the site. This identifies the
general type of organisation the entity is. org organization, edu educational institution,
com commercial site and gov government site.

53

Then the file path is specified. Here net101 is a folder inside the web site and basic.htm
is the file name used.
Intranet
An Intranet is defined as "An infrastructure based on Internet standards and
technologies that supports sharing of content within a limited and well-defined group." The
"infrastructure" referred to the organizational and management infrastructure that created,
managed, and shared the content. The only technical constraint was that the physical
network be based on the Internetworking Protocol (IP).
There's one major distinction between an Intranet and the Internet: The Internet is an
open, public space, while an Intranet is designed to be a private space. An Intranet may be
accessible from the Internet, but as a rule it's protected by a password and accessible only to
employees or other authorized users.
From within a company, an Intranet server may respond much more quickly than a
typical Web site. This is because the public Internet is at the mercy of traffic spikes, server
breakdowns and other problems that may slow the network. Within a company, however,
users have much more bandwidth and network hardware may be more reliable. This makes
it easier to serve high-bandwidth content, such as audio and video, over an Intranet.
E-MAIL
The Internet enables group of people to have discussions in which the participants may
be anywhere in the world. This group communication can take the form of text on the
screen, voice or video and messages and responses can be exchanged "live" or they may be
read and responded to later. All these types of online communication are referred to as
online chat or online conferencing.
Real-time chat
In some types of chating, messaging and conferencing, messages are sent immediately
after they are complete. Each participant sees each message within seconds of when it is
sent, so a dialog can happen quickly. However all the participants need to be online at the
same time. Example: chatting.
Asynchronous chat
Messages are stored so that the participants can read them when they have a chance,
which allows participants to consider their responses, gather information, and formulate a
54

response carefully. It allows people with different time zones or with different schedules to
participate. Example: e-mail.
e-mail
E-mail (electronic mail) is the most frequently used application on the internet. Many
people use Internet for no other reason than to send or receive email. Email is the ability to
write a message to someone, using a mail program and use internet as a means of delivering
the message. Documents or images can be attached to the email to send to the recipient. The
advantages of e-mail are faster, cheaper and confidential.
E-mail address
The email address is made up of certain components that help to route it to the proper
recipient.
Example: i101@famvid.com
First part is the user name or identification number. Here, the user name is i101.
The @ symbol serves as the divider between email sections.
Next part is the domain name, which is the name of the user's Internet system or
location. In this case, the domain name is famvid
Last part is the type of the institution. In this example, com specifies that it is the
commercial type.
To create an email account, do the following:
First connect to the Internet.
Enter into any one of the Internet services such as yahoo.co.in, rediff.com, hotmail.com,
sify.com, etc.
Click "Sign Up Now" option provided for the new user.
Fill up the form which appears on the screen that includes email address, password and
some personal information. The personal details are necessary to help the user if the
password is forgotten. The website will ask for the personal details and provide an
option for changing the password if they match with the original information.
Finally click "Submit" to create an address.
Then a new account is created for you.
Sending Mail
To send an email, click Compose button in the Mail page.

55

In the "To" column give the e-mail address to which the message has to be sent.
Subject will contain a title to which the message pertains. This is very important, as the
message is accessed by the receiver through the subject.
CC, which is known as carbon copy can be used if the same mail has to be sent to
different addresses. All the other addresses can be given here and each address is to be
separated by comma or space.
BCC known as blind carbon copy can be used if the user does not want others to know
to which addresses this mail is sent.
ATTACH FILES: To attach files as enclosures along with some message. Click this
button and it provides the option to send at most 10 files at a time. Write the full path of the
files to be sent in the boxes provided or click Browse button beneath each box to locate the
files to be sent. Click Done to return to message.
Below this we have the message area, which can be used to enter the message. Type the
message. To save time, type the message in word and copy them to the clipboard and click
the paste command above the message box.
Click the save a copy to sent items folder check box to save the message in that folder.
Finally we click the button SEND to send the e-mail. The information "message sent" will
appear on the screen. Now the e-mail will be sent to the addresses given in To, CC and
BCC.
Receiving Mail
Click Inbox button in the mail page. This provides a table consisting of sender's email
address, subject of the message, date and time of the receipt of the message and the size of
the message, if there are messages sent to the address. To read the mail, click the subject of
the message, which is the hyperlink to message.
The options available in e-mail are:
REPLY: To reply to a message along with the original message received.
REPLY ALL: To send the reply to all the addresses available in CC in addition to TO
address.
FORWARD: To forward a message received by a user to another address.

56

Spam
Spam is a term that Internet users apply to unsolicited commercial email (UCE) or unsolicited
bulk email (UBE). Spam is received because the sender has obtained an email address, either
from a mailing list or newsgroup or directly from the person on a web site. If a large mail
provider like Hotmail, AOL, Yahoo or EarthLink is used, then spam is received from the
dictionary attacks in which spammers try to guess users email addresses spammers dont
care if they send out messages to 99 nonexistent addresses if one message gets a valid
address. The following are a few ways to prevent spammers from getting the email address:
Set up separate email accounts and use them selectively.
Consider an email account with an ISP that uses a mail filtering service such as
Brightmail or Postini. These services filter out spam before it gets into the inbox.
Dont answer messages that look as though they were sent by mistake they may be a
way to find a valid email addresses for spamming. Once it is replied, the spammers found
that they have found a valid email address.

INTERNET BROWSING
There are number of free online resources that help with the hunt of targeting
information. These resource sites are often referred to as Search Engines. There are literally
dozens of such free resources that help in locating a particular piece of information. Among
the popular ones are Google, Yahoo, Alta Vista, WebCrawler, HotBot, Infoseek, etc.
Search Engines
Search engines are web sites that allow the users to search on keywords or combination
of keywords. The amount of information on the Web is vast. Since there is no possible way
to know every address of every Web site to be visited, search engines are included to find the
Web sites that contains the chosen keyword. A search engine employs a program called
search agent (or spider) that goes out and looks for information on web pages. This
information is indexed and stored in a huge database. When a search is conducted, the
search engine looks through its database to find entries that match the entered information.
Then the search engine displays a list of the web pages it determines are most relevant to the
search criteria.

57

To search information KEY WORDS are to be used in the box provided and click the
button search or go. If the keyword is more than one then we can use which implies that
all the words given in the quotes should appear together. Another operator that can be used
is + which implies the first and second word. For example Tissue + culture will search
for the key words tissue and culture. If the same keywords are given Tissue culture then it
will search for both the words and they should appear in the same sequence. Once the
search is over and the relevant information has been located it can be copied or downloaded
in the secondary storage device.
Web Directory
A web directory is a web site that categorizes web pages so that we can browse links to
web pages by topic. The advantage of web directory over a search engine is that human
beings have categorized the web pages, so all links in the directory belong there. Web
directories are great for searching when the name, which is to be looked for, is not known
exactly. On the other hand, a search engine is quicker than web directories if the information
is about a specific unusual term.
Saving a Web Page
Some ISPs do not provide unlimited time accounts, so people may be stressed when
surfing because they know the clock is ticking. Often, the best web sites are so large that
sitting and reading all of the materials is not possible in a single session. To overcome this
difficulty, files can be downloaded and saved in the hard disc to view them offline.
The steps to be followed while saving the file in the hard disc:
Click on File Menu
Select the option Save As
Select the location for the file and save.
This will save the file as html document in the hard disc. Unless we specifically
reconstruct the directory structure and saving all of the associated graphics, the images are
not visible offline.
Saving a graphic
If the web page contains a graphic such as picture, graph, photograph, etc., it can be
saved as an object.
1. Position the cursor over the image and click on the object with the right mouse button.

58

2. Select Save Picture As...

3. Select the location and enter the appropriate file name for the image.
4. Click OK button.
Some popular search engines are:
Google
Most searches can be successfully completed with the use of a good search engine and
correct search words. Google is the clear choice of the people who are experienced and
successful web searches. It is fast, big and it finds the pages that are looked for. One reason
Google is able to find most things better than the other search engines is that it strongly
weights backlinks when it ranks web pages. One of the biggest annoyances of using the web
is the disappearing page. Google's solution to this particular frustration is to enable us to
view a copy of the page it stored when it indexed the site. This copy is cached (stored) on
the Google servers and can be viewed by clicking gray Cached link at the end of each
individual search result.
Yahoo
Yahoo! Search Technology (YST) works night and day scouring billions of documents
on the Internet to give you the most comprehensive, up to date, and relevant search
experience. It provides quick, intuitive access to the wide variety of information available on
the Web. Each time you search, Yahoo! Search Technology instantly scans through its
comprehensive database of web pages, determines the comparative relevancy to your search
query, and offers these web pages as ranked results. YST ranks web pages according to their
relevance to a particular query by analyzing document features, including text, title and
description accuracy, source, associated links, and other unique document characteristics. A
single search gives you immediate results from a database that is updated daily to capture
newly created and changing pages, including late breaking news and timely events
Alta Vista
Alta Vista is a super-search engine that has 150 million Web pages indexed easily
making it the largest search engine. It is fast and very popular among dedicated web-surfers.
Excellent online help is available to construct both simple and advanced searches. The new
AskJeeves question technology allows users to post their questions in plain English.
HotBot
HotBot is a search engine with first-rate speed and some unusual features, including the
ability to limit searches to Web pages that contain specific technologies such as JavaScript.
This is used to find sites with a particular technology, or to find the most recent information.

59

VIDEO CONFERENCING AND N ET- MEETING

Internet brings people together. This chapter describes Internet phone applications, the
voice and video conferencing features of the instant messaging programs and a stand-alone
conferencing program, NetMeeting.
Internet Phone
Internet phone programs are designed to simulate phone calls over the Internet, avoiding
long-distance phone charges. Each person in the Internet phone call needs a computer with
microphone and speakers. To participate, download and install an Internet Phone Program
and sign up for a user name on the system. Dial the Internet phone call by specifying the
friend's user name. Chat using the microphone and speakers attached to the computer.
Internet phone is one form of voice-over-IP (VoIP) voice information transmitted over
the Internet.
Voice Conferencing
It can be PC-to-PC or PC-to-phone, with two or more people in the conversation. It
replaces conference calls, which get expensive when they include many people over long
distances.
Video Conferencing
Video conferencing enables to send the image to one or more people through a camera
attached to the computer and to receive pictures back. Instead of typing messages to
conduct a conversation the video conferencing enables to see the faces and transmit the
video so that others can see you. For video conferencing, a digital video camera (that
produces output for the computer) should be connected to the computer. Small, cheap
video cameras designed for connection to computers are called webcams. Webcams are
connected to the computers via a USB or FireWire port. They come with drivers to install
for Windows or Macs.
Video Conferencing in Yahoo Messenger
Follow these steps for first time to use the webcam:
Click the Webcam button on the Instant message window. A window headed "My
Webcam" appears that others can see. Adjust the camera to be the right distance and
angle from the face.
60

Choose File Preferences in My Webcam window to display the Yahoo Messenger

dialog box and click the Webcam category. Set the privacy settings to control who can
see the image.
Click the Camera Settings button to display the Video Source dialog box. Move the
sliders to make the image brighter or darker and to make other adjustments. Click OK to
finish.
Finally, click OK to dismiss the Yahoo Messenger Preferences dialog box.
Next time just click the Webcam button on the Instant Message window. The other
people in the conversation see a dialog box saying that they are invited to see the Webcam.
Those who click yes see the image in the webcam. Close the My Webcam window to stop
transmitting the picture.
Net Meeting
Before instant-messaging programs started adding voice and video conferencing features,
people used stand-alone conferencing programs. The most widely distributed conferencing
program is NetMeeting, which comes with Window Me and Windows 2000.
NetMeeting is used to chat, talk, video conference, or share applications or a whiteboard.
To connect to the other people, with whom the meeting is to be done, the following are the
several ways NetMeeting uses:
Windows Address Book: If the email address and other information are stored in the
Windows Address Book, NetMeeting can search it for the person be connected.
Directory server: A directory server stores the addresses of people who use
NetMeeting. When the user logged onto a directory server, his name appears on its lists,
so that anyone else can 'call' him. The user can also call another person or several other
people.
IP address: If the person's IP address is known, it can be typed directly. However, most
internet users have a different IP address each time they connect to the Internet or
restart Windows. If the user is on a LAN that connects to the Internet, then he can use
IP addresses only for the people on LAN.
After connecting to other person, communication can be done using the following
features:

61

Text Chat: Click the chat button to display the widow in which messages can be typed
to the other people in the chat.
Voice Chat: If both the persons have microphones and speakers, voice chatting can be
done. Unless the communication is fast, the sound may be interrupted. Keep the
microphone away from the speakers, or use headphones to avoid feedback.
Video Conferencing: If other people in the call have video cameras, the video can be
viewed from one of their cameras (one at a time) in the NetMeeting window. The video
appears in the Remote Video window, a small box on the right side of the window,
when the Current Call icon is selected. NetMeeting can be set to enable the video
camera automatically the call is made. Also set the size of the video image, choose
between faster, low-quality video and slower, high-quality video, be sure to light the face
or object (whoever or whatever the camera points at) from the front.
Sharing a Whiteboard: Whiteboard feature is used when the other participants also
wanted to draw diagrams or pictures that are visible to everyone in the call. Whiteboard
button is visible near the bottom of the NetMeeting window. Click the button to view a
window similar to Microsoft Paint. When anyone in the call makes a change to the
Whiteboard window, everyone in the call sees the change.
Sending and receiving files: Click the File Transfer button at the bottom of the
window to open the File Transfer window. Click Add Files button and specify the file to
be sent. Alternatively drag the name of the file from Windows Explorer to the File
Transfer window. Click Send All button to send the files. To send a file to one caller
rather than to everyone in the call, select the person from the drop-down list at the top
right of the File Transfer window. If someone sends a file, NetMeeting automatically
saves it in the received files folder. A window appears and tells about the arrival of the
file. To open the file in the default application for the type of the file received, click the
Open button.

62