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
    • Introducing the Help and Support Center (HSC)
    • Getting Topical Help
    • Obtaining Support
    • Searching the Index
    • Other Forms of Help
    • Summary
    • Q&A
    • Workshop
  • 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
  • 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

Other Forms of Help

The help you obtain in Windows XP does not always come from the help system itself but from auxiliary help systems that add support to the tasks and programs you work with.

Using Application Help

When you use a Windows XP program, you often need help with the program rather than Windows. Almost every Windows application's menu bar includes a Help option you can click for help with that program.

For example, if you select Help, Help Topics from the Windows XP Calculator program, a Help dialog box appears with tabs at the top of the window that list helpful help divisions such as Contents, Index, and Search. The Contents pages offer a general overview of the program. You're already familiar with the Index page because it mimics the Index page in the Help and Support Center window described in the previous section. Figure 6.7 shows the Calculator's Index page.

Figure 6.7 Most applications provide indexed help topics.

The Search tab on many applications'help screen makes looking for a particular topic not indexed on the Index tab easier. To search for a topic, click the Search tab, enter a topic, and then click the command button labeled List Topics. If the help engine locates your search candidate, a list of all help pages that include your search topic appears, and you can open that help page to view its details in the right pane by clicking the Display button.

Using Pop-Up Help

Sometimes, you'll be in the middle of a dialog box working inside Windows when you spot a command button or other control that you do not understand. Look in the upper-right corner of the window for a question mark on one of the command buttons. If you find such a question mark, you've found the Windows Pop-Up Help command button and cursor (sometimes called Roving Help).

The Pop-Up Help enables you to narrow the focus and request help on a specific screen item. Not all dialog boxes or screens inside Windows contain the Pop-Up Help feature, so look for the question mark command button, which is to the left of the window minimizing and resizing buttons.

As long as the dialog box contains the Pop-Up Help button, you can request Pop-Up Help for any item on the dialog box as the following To Do item demonstrates.

To Do: Requesting the Pop-Up Help

1. Right-click on the Start button to display the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box (you can also access this dialog box from the Control Panel). The dialog box displays the Pop-Up help button with the question mark in the upper-right corner.
2. Click the question mark once and your mouse cursor changes to a question mark that follows the mouse pointer as you move the mouse.
3. Point the question mark mouse cursor over the link labeled Show the clock and click the option. Windows displays the Pop-Up Help message box shown in Figure 6.8.
   

   Figure 6.8 The Pop-Up Help helps you when you point to a place on the screen.

4. Press Esc to get rid of the pop-up description box and return to the regular mouse cursor shape.

Another way exists that produces the Pop-Up help. Point your mouse cursor over an item. Right-click and select What's This? from the single-option menu that appears to display the pop-up description.

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