Chapter 2. Using Windows XP
This material in this
chapter provides a quick overview of the features of the Windows XP
user interface, which should be sufficient to help you get oriented
and make the most of the system fairly quickly. If
you're already familiar with the basic Windows
interface, you may still find subtle differences between Windows XP
and previous versions, making this chapter worth a quick read. If
you're fairly new to Windows, you should definitely
take the time to read this chapter. Concepts that advanced users
might consider elementary should prove pretty enlightening. The most
important thing is to get a sense of the continuity (or occasionally
the lack thereof) in the Windows XP interface so that you can tackle
any new Windows application with ease. Note, however, that if you are
a very inexperienced user, you may prefer to start with a tutorial
book on Windows XP, such as
O'Reilly's
Windows XP: The Missing
Manual , by David Pogue. Even though this chapter is more
introductory than the rest of the book, it still moves pretty
quickly. Still, if you just take your time and try each feature as
it's introduced, you may find that you
don't need a step-by-step introduction after all.