Using the Keyboard Only

DOS and UNIX systems are character- or text-based, responding only to commands that are typed in. You will need to pay attention to the directions on each screen, because programs ask you to use different keys at different times. Sometimes you will

• Type the number of the item you want
• Type the highlighted letter of the item
• Type the word or phrase; press Enter/Return
• Using an arrow or tab key, highlight the item; press Enter/Return

Usually, the directions will appear at the bottom of the screen, but sometimes, you'll be "prompted" by a blinking cursor right on the line where you should type. If nothing happens after you have typed something, press Enter/Return.

You can also use your keyboard instead of the mouse for navigating around mouse-based Websites (as you will have to if you use the Lynx Web browser). Just use the arrow keys to reach the phrase you want, and then press the Enter/Return key to select the phrase.

Using the Mouse

Windows and Macintosh systems use design and pictures (graphics) in addition to words. With a mouse-based program, you mouse-click on highlighted phrases in the text or on icons (little symbolic pictures). You will then either press a key, or mouse-click, or type in what you want. As you are working within a program, you will notice various borders that outline "windows" on the screen. You open and close these "windows" as you move through the program.

If you've never used a mouse before, practice with it before going online. Move the mouse around on the desk until the cursor (arrow or vertical bar) on the screen is positioned on the icon or phrase you want to select; then click once (press the upper portion of the mouse--if there are two buttons to press, press the left one). You will see your selection highlighted on the screen. When you have to type in a line, position the cursor on the left margin of the space where the first letter should go, and then click the mouse before you type.

Maneuvers with either Keyboard or Mouse

• Selecting
  
  Often you will tell the computer what you want by choosing from a menu (list) of options, or by selecting an underlined phrase presented in a different color from the rest of the text. You communicate your selection by clicking the mouse or by pressing Enter/Return after the choice is highlighted. Note that a phrase can't be selected until the cursor is positioned exactly on the phrase; with many programs, the cursor changes from an arrow to a hand pointing upward to indicate that you can select at that point.
  
  
• Scrolling
  
  Whether with keyboard or mouse-based systems, you scroll down (move vertically down through the text) as you read the material on the screen. For scrolling, you can use the arrow keys, the Page Up or Page Down keys, or the mouse. To use the mouse, look at the right edge of the screen. You will notice a vertical border for the window you are working in. Caution: There may be two borders; if so, the one on the inner frame controls the window you're working in. You either position the cursor and click continuously on an arrow pointing in the direction you want to move the text (up or down), or you may click on a square "button" to slide it down the margin as you read. Just click and hold the mouse as you guide it smoothly and in a straight line (towards you to go down; away from you to go up). This method is particularly useful if you want to skim a document quickly.
  
  You won't be able to scroll through or save a document while it is loading. Programs usually provide a visual clue to the status of downloading--for example with a horizontal bar graph, a thermometer, shooting stars (Netscape), or a spinning pyramid (America Online).
  
  Note: the position of the square "button" in the right margin is also a clue to the length of the material you are reading--since most of the time the pages aren't numbered. It will be at the top at the beginning of the document and all the way at the bottom at the end.
  
  
• Saving
  
  In nearly every program, the top of the screen will have a section labeled Options or Commands. Mouse-click (or arrow and press Enter/Return) to read a menu of choices. Save or Record will allow you to save the data in the file on your current screen (which you can then read more carefully and extract specific notes) and many even give an appropriate footnote.
  
  Insert your formatted disk into the computer; be sure to name each file with a different name, and write down the full title and Internet address (because you can't enter any of your own writing directly on this file yet). Non-Mac users will need to specify which computer drive their disk is in. Note that only the file you're actually reading will be saved--not any of the linked files. If you want them also, you have to get each file on the screen and save each one separately.
  
  If you are working in a library or computer lab, be sure to save your notes in text-only format--both to save space and to make sure that your word processing program can read them. Some libraries or computer labs may not allow you to save on your own disk; if not, see whether you can print the files you want.
  
  
• Other Options
  
  The headings in each program vary, but there are usually a number of other useful options listed on the top of the screen. If you highlight them there will either be an explanation or a drop-down menu (mouse-click on the heading; then, while holding the mouse button down, drag down to highlight your choice; release the mouse). See the definitions of the Back, Forward, Reload, Bookmark, Home, History, and Stop buttons.
  
  
• Error Messages
  
  Many programs will alert you with a sound effect if you're trying to perform something that won't work. Others will give an error message. You can usually click on help (or type h or ?) to learn what to do.
  
  
• Exit
  
  As you enter a program, often there will be a line at the beginning telling you how to exit or quit. Note that command (frequently Alt + F4, or Command-Q on a Macintosh). If you forget, you can usually type Q or mouse-click in the top-right or top-left corner where you'll see an X or square. Don't just turn off your computer—particularly if you're connected to a text-based host computer program. It can leave that computer line busy for others.