Getting More Help

Getting More Help

So, you've come this far. Welcome! But where to go from here?

Online Help

All computers come with built-in or online help.

Note: Online has two meanings:

1. As a general term: when you do something within the computer, not outside of the computer that's Online. If you do something not on the computer that's offline. Examples: using the help systems running on the computer is an online activity. Looking at a paper manual is an "offline" activity.
2. Online also means having a computer that's connected to the Internet. Examples of this meaning: you send and receive e-mail when you're online. But you can write a memo to the boss on your word processor whether you're connected tothe Internet or not.

Three Levels of Online Help

Pointer Based

Windows, starting with system Windows 98 in 1999, has information that shows up as you move the pointer around the screen. You get one or two word yellow tabs that show up when you let your pointer rest over most parts of your display.

Activity 1: Windows Tags

If you have Windows 98 or later, put the pointer over any part of the Windows desktop or a directory window. You'll see a little yellow tag appear which tells what that thing is. That's it!

Real Help

Here's how to get to the standard online help:

1) From within any application window, call down the Help menu and click on the main topics menu item. This will look something like this: (My examples are from WordPad.)

2a) This will call up the Help window for that program. That dialog box has three "tabs" each of which offer you different functions. The Contents tab looks like this:

This is a narrative mode. Open the books by double-clicking on them and then double-click on any topics you want to learn more about. Please click on one of the topics and a window will open that looks like this:

Now click the X in the upper right to close that window and proceed.

2b) The Index tab allows you to search the index to all the help topics by typing some letters. Click on the Index tab and type in "sav" as in my example below. You will get to the help topics on Saving. Double-click on one topic you might want to know more about. The click on the X in the upper right to get rid of the help window.

2c) The Find tab allows you to find keywords within all the help topics. Click on the Find tab and type "sav" to show how this takes you to topics that have that text somewhere within them. Now you've got the hand of this!

3) If you double-click on one of these you get the online help about that topic. This looks like this:

Although the help topics will differ for individual programs, this is the standard way help works within Windows.

Help with the Windows System

Note that the instructions for help above are for getting help for an individual application. To get help about the Windows System, take these steps:

1) Click the Start button.

2) Go up the Start menu and click on the Help menu item.

The window that opens up will be exactly like the windows in the earlier screen shots.

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