Sams Teach Yourself Microsoft Windows XP in 24 Hours

By Greg Perry

• Table of Contents
  • Copyright
  • About the Author
  • Acknowledgments
  • Tell Us What You Think!
  • Introduction
  • Part I: Wake Up with Windows XP
  • Hour 1. Taking a Bird's-Eye Look at Windows XP
  • Hour 2. Getting Started with Windows XP
  • Hour 3. Managing the Windows XP Interface
  • Part II: Morning Windows Desktop Exploration
  • Hour 4. Working with the My Computer Window
  • Hour 5. Navigating Files with Windows Explorer
  • Hour 6. Calling for Help
  • Hour 7. Improving Your Windows Desktop Experience
  • Part III: Early Afternoon Windows Exploration
  • Hour 8. Installing Programs with Windows XP
  • Hour 9. Finding Files, Folders, and Friends
  • Hour 10. Using the Desktop Accessories
  • Part IV: Late Afternoon Internet Integration
  • Hour 11. Surfing the Web with Internet Explorer
  • Hour 12. Tying Windows into the Web
  • Hour 13. Networking with Windows XP
    • Networking Your Environment
    • Working with a Network
    • Summary
    • Q&A
    • Workshop
  • Hour 14. Managing E-mail and Newsgroups with Outlook Express
  • Part V: An Evening with Advanced Windows
  • Hour 15. Exploring Your Hardware Interface
  • Hour 16. Understanding Printing and Fonts
  • Hour 17. Using Windows on the Road
  • Hour 18. Giving Windows XP a Tune-Up
  • Hour 19. Managing Your Hard Drives
  • Hour 20. Tinkering with the Advanced System Tools
  • Part VI: Having Fun at Nighttime
  • Hour 21. Using Media Player
  • Hour 22. Picturing Windows XP Graphics
  • Hour 23. Making Movies with Windows XP
  • Hour 24. Advanced Windows XP Tips
  • Part VII: Appendixes
  • Appendix A. Differences Between the Windows Home and Professional Edition
  • Appendix B. Glossary
  • Appendix C. Answers to Quizzes

Q&A

1. How does a network ensure file integrity?

   Consider what happens if you use the same program, such as Microsoft Outlook, on your kitchen PC as you use in your upstairs office. What if you record a new contact's name and phone number upstairs and then, two days later, you want to call from the downstairs PC? The second PC will not have the name. What do you do? You can walk upstairs to make the call, manually look up the name once again and type the information in the downstairs PC, or you can make a backup of your upstairs PC's PIM files and copy those files to your downstairs PC.

   Neither of those solutions is adequate. As a matter of fact, they leave too much room for error. You might type the name and number incorrectly into one of the PCs. If you restore one file on the other PC, you might overwrite information someone had just typed in the second PC! Without a network, your files can lose integrity and contain different information.

   By utilizing a shared, networked-based disk drive, both PCs will use the same data file. You'll install the program to the shared disk drive and any PC on the network will then be able to use that program and access the shared file's information. If you make a change from one PC and then walk to the other PC, that change will appear there as well.

2. If I build a new home, should I install network cabling if I think I'll network, or will high-speed wireless be here soon?

   By all means, install the wiring. It appears that wireless network technology is getting better, faster, and less expensive every day, but the king of networks is the hard-wired system. As wireless speeds get better, wired speeds do too, so you still win if you have the wire.

   Wire-based networks don't allow for as much freedom of machine placement as the wireless devices allow. Nevertheless, the low-cost of hard-wired networks makes them attractive alternatives for many years to come. When you install the wiring at the time you build your home, the added cost of the installation is negligible compared to the cost of having the cabling installed in an existing structure where sheetrock might have to be patched. Therefore, if you have any reason to believe you'll network your home, install the wire when the walls are still exposed.

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