Lecture three

Windows operating system

 1. Introduction
Microsoft Windows is a multitasking operating system developed by Microsoft
Corporation which uses Graphical User Interface to interact with the users.
Microsoft was originally named “Traf-O-Data” in 1972, was renamed as “Micro-
soft” in November 1975, then “Microsoft” on November 26, 1976. Microsoft
entered the marketplace in August 1981 by releasing version 1.0 of the operating
system Microsoft DOS (MS-DOS), a 16-bit command-line operating system. Bill
Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft and windows operating system has been its
primary product.

In this Introduction to Windows, we will also clear you about the latest OS
release of Windows is “Windows 10” which was launched in the year 2015.

In a nutshell, below is how Microsoft windows evolved over time:

Windows 1.0 – Nov 1985 Windows XP – Oct 2001

Windows 2.0 – Dec 1987 Windows Vista – Nov 2006
Windows 3.0 – May 1990 Windows 7 – July 2009
Windows 95 – Aug 1995 Windows 8.0 – Oct 2012
Windows 98 – June 1998 Windows 8.1 – Oct 2013
Windows ME – Sep 2000 Windows 10 – July 2015
 2. Main Components of Windows
The main components of the Windows Operating System are the following:

Configuration and maintenance User interface

User interface Applications and utilities
Applications and utilities Windows Server components
Windows Server components File systems
Configuration and maintenance Core components
Services Kernel
DirectX NET Framework
Networking Security
Scripting and command-line Deprecated components and app

 Desktop
It is the very first screen that you will see once the windows start. Here you will
see “My Computer”, “My Documents”, “Start Menu”, “Recycle Bin”, and the
shortcuts of any applications that you might have created.
  Taskbar
At the bottom, you will see a row which is known as the taskbar. It has the
currently running applications, you can also pin applications that you frequently use
by using an option Pin to Taskbar”.

 Start Menu
This is located in the bottom left corner of Windows OS GUI. This is the place
where the user can search for any setting and for any application for their use. Users
can uninstall or repair applications from the control panel. The user can do a lot of
activities just by searching through the start menu.

 My Computer
When you double click on “My Computer” menu, it will let you navigate
between your different computer drives and the control panel tools. You can see and
manage the contents that are inside your drive.

 Recycle Bin
When you delete an item from any of your drives by making use of “delete”
button or even by simply clicking right clicking and selecting “delete” option, it is
not deleted completely, instead, it is moved to “Recycle Bin” folder of Windows.
You can recover your content if you have deleted it by mistake from here or if you
choose to delete the items from here, it will get deleted permanently. Should you
wish to delete the item in first go itself without moving it to recycle bin, you can use
the key “Shift+Del”
 3. Features of Windows
 Windows Search: We can have numerous files and contents located on
our system and sometimes we may run out of memory about the exact location of
our file. Windows Search is a search function included with Windows that allows
the user to search their entire computer

 Windows File Transfer: We may have the need to transfer in or transfer

out the files and contents from our machine to other devices such as other computers
or mobiles and tablets. We can do this by using an Easy Transfer Cable, CDs or
DVDs, a USB flash drive, wireless Bluetooth, a network folder, or an external hard
disk.

 Windows Updates: Windows includes an automatic update feature with

the intended purpose of keeping its operating system safe and up-to-date.

 Windows taskbar: At the bottom most part of your windows, you will
see a row which is known as the taskbar. It has the currently running applications,
you can also pin applications that you frequently use by using an option Pin to
Taskbar”. The taskbar is the main navigation tool for Windows

 Remote Desktop Connection: This feature of windows allows you to

connect to another system and work remotely on another system.

4. Windows Applications

A program that is written to run under MS operating System is the Windows

Application. Examples of applications that run on Windows OS are the Microsoft
Outlook, Internet Explorer, Remote Desktop Condition, Snipping Tool, and
numerous others.
 These applications provide great functionality for users to do their day to day
activities. Every application that is developed, for them to launch on windows,
should be compatible with the Windows operating system .

5. Advantages and Disadvantages of Windows

Advantages
Let us see some advantages:

 Desktop as well as tablet-friendly OS

 Switch between applications is very easy
 Not much technical knowledge is required to operate windows
 Windows OS is the dominant OS and enjoys more than 90% of Market
share
 MS OS have a great support community and it also has the largest
number of applications
 Microsoft provides a powerful set of Enterprise focused Operating
System, Applications and the services making it the most dominant player in
the OS market.

Disadvantages
There are privacy and security concerns and incidents and they are widespread.
Linux OS is by far most secure OS ever built.

 Cost for upgrade

 Windows OS attracts a large number of virus programs due to its largest
market share and easy to breach paradigm
 Windows OS is not that much of touch-friendly
 6. desktop icons in Windows :

our desktop icons may be hidden. To view them, right-click the desktop,
select View, and then select Show desktop icons. To add icons to your desktop such
as This PC, Recycle Bin and more:

1. Select the Start button, and then select setting > Personalization
>themes .
2. Under Themes > Related Settings, select Desktop icon settings.
3. Choose the icons you would like to have on your desktop, then
select Apply and OK.

- 4.1 How to change desktop icon image:

 Folder – Properties-Customoze –Change Icon

7. Windows 10 – Taskbar
The Windows 10 taskbar sits at the bottom of the screen giving the user access
to the Start Menu, as well as the icons of frequently used applications. On the right-
side, the Taskbar features the Notification Area which informs the user of different
things like the state of the Internet connection or the charge of the laptop battery.

The icons in the middle of the Taskbar are “pinned” applications, which is a
way to have a quick access to applications you use frequently. “Pinned” applications
will stay in the Taskbar until you “unpin” them.

A. Pin an Application to the Taskbar

Step 1 − Search for the application you want to pin in the Start Menu.
 Step 2 − Right-click on the application.

Step 3 − Select “More” option at the top of the menu.

Step 4 − Select the “Pin to taskbar” option.

This will attach or “pin” the application icon to your Windows Taskbar.

B. Unpin an Application from the Taskbar

To “unpin” it, just right-click the icon in the Taskbar and select “Unpin from
taskbar”. You can “pin” it back again any time you want.
 C. Notification Area

The Notification Area is located at the right side of the Taskbar. It shows
different types of notifications from your computer like your Internet connection, or
the volume level.

At first, the Notification Area shows a limited amount of icons. But you can
click the upward arrow on its left-side to see other icons as well.

D. Task View

Task View allows you to quickly move within your open windows and
applications. You can access it by clicking the “Task View” button from the
Taskbar.
 You can also press and hold the Windows key, and then press Tab to achieve
the same result.
By pressing the Alt+Tab keyboard shortcut also serves a similar purpose.

-log out from account of windows :

 -shutdown

8. Parts of a Windows in Computer:

Microsoft Windows, the most widely used operating system in the world,
employs the metaphor of a window for navigation and file management.
Understanding the parts of a window is the first step to knowing how to navigate
through the operating system.

The Title Bar

At the top of every window is the title bar. The center of the title bar displays
either the name of the program you are currently working in or relevant information
about what is happening in the program at any given moment. When the window is
not maximized, this is where you can click and drag to move the window to a new
location on the screen.
Minimize, Maximize, Close Buttons
In the upper right-hand corner of the window are the three buttons used to
minimize, maximize, and close the window. Minimizing the window shrinks it to
nothing and places it out of sight. Maximizing the window makes it fill the screen
and locks it into position so that it cannot be moved by dragging the title bar.
Closing the window shuts down the program.
The Scroll Bar
On the right side of the window is the scroll bar, which appears only if there is
information to be displayed beyond the bottom range of the current window size.
Clicking and dragging on the slider in the scroll bar moves the contents of the
window up or down so you can view all of the data available.
The Menu Bar
Most programs will have a menu bar visible in the upper left-hand corner of the
window. The menu bar appears as the text for most programs and usually starts with
“File” at the far left. Accessing the menu allows you to view various commands
available to that program, including closing the program or the window.
The Work Space
The workspace is all of the areas inside the window where data for the current
program is displayed. usually, the workspace will have a white background, but it is
possible to customize this in all versions of Windows, and it may vary by program.