Windows.XP.in.a.Nutshell.1002005.2Ed [Electronic resources] نسخه متنی

The Desktop is the
basis for the modern GUI paradigm. The Desktop is considered a
container for all other resources on your computer, as well as a
backdrop for your Windows workspace. The Desktop is always underneath
any open windowsto access the Desktop if it's
covered, you need to minimize or close any open windows (press the
Windows logo key and D, or right-click on the Taskbar and select
Minimize All Windows to accomplish this quickly).

As shown in Figure 3-7, the Desktop contains two
types of

icons;

namespace icons
and file icons.

Figure 3-9. Of the icons shown on the Desktop, some are virtual objects and some are files; those that are actual files are also shown in your Desktop folder

File icons can be files or
folders (actually located in your
\Documents

and
Settings\{username}\Desktop\ folder on your hard
disk)you can drag-drop them to and from the Desktop as though
it were any other ordinary folder. The Desktop is a good place to
store newly downloaded files from the Internet, email attachments,
items from floppies, and other files you're
currently working on.

Namespace
icons, on the other hand, such as My Computer, My Network Places, and
the Recycle Bin, aren't files, but rather specific
resources built in to Windows. All of these icons can be renamed or
even hidden, although the process isn't always
obvious. (See Chapter 5 for details specific to
the object you wish to customize or remove.) The exception is that
the Recycle Bin cannot be renamed, unless you have Norton Utilities
or edit the Registry manually. (See directions at http://www.annoyances.org.)

As with most other components of the Windows interface, the

Desktop has properties you can
customize. Right-click on an empty portion of the Desktop and click
Properties to change the wallpaper, color, screensaver, and settings
for the display. (This is the same property sheet that you will get
by opening Display Properties in Control Panel.)

Notes

• The Arrange Icons By entry is also available in
  the Desktop's context menu.
  
  Icons
  can be arranged on the Desktop by type (system facilities, folders,
  and files, in that order), alphabetically by name, by date (with the
  most recent first), and by size (with the smallest first). Select
  Auto Arrange if you want the icons to go into neat rows
  automatically; unselect it if you want to be able to drag them
  anywhere on the Desktop. When the Desktop is full, auto-arrange stops
  working.

• The Line Up Icons feature found here in earlier versions of Windows
  has been removed in Windows XP. In its place, Microsoft has added the
  Align to Grid option in the Arrange Icons
  By menu. Unfortunately, this is a toggle; to simply align the icons
  on your Desktop without restricting their future placement,
  you'll have to turn on the Align to Grid option and
  then turn it back off.

• The
  
  Quick Launch toolbar
  (see "Taskbar" and "Toolbars", later in this chapter)
  includes a Show Desktop button that instantly hides
  all open windows, thus allowing access to your Desktop. If you click
  the button a second time without opening any new items, all windows
  are restored to their original state.

• The "Active Desktop" functionality
  found in earlier versions of Windows has been taken out of Windows
  XP.

• Various options for customizing the Desktop, as well as the icons on
  it, are detailed in Chapter 5.