VI. Exploring the digital lifestyle
30. Using your PC with a digital camera
Transferring pictures via USB
Transferring pictures from a memory card
Storing your photos in Windows
31. Organizing and editing your digital photos
Choosing a photo editing program
Editing your photos with Windows Photo Gallery
32. Sharing your digital photos online
Sharing photos at a photo sharing site
33. Playing, ripping, and burning CDs
Choosing a music player program
Using Windows Media Player
34. Downloading and playing digital music
Understanding digital audio formats
Downloading from online music stores
Playing digital music on your PC
Listening to Internet radio
35. Using your PC with an iPod or MP3 player
Working with the Apple iPod
Using Windows Media Player with other MP3 players
36. Playing DVDs and videos on your PC
Using Windows Media Player to play DVDs
Playing video files with Windows Media Player
Playing recorded TV programs with Windows Media Player
37. Downloading and playing videos from the Web
Looking for videos on the Web
Viewing videos on YouTube
Viewing and downloading videos from Google video
Downloading videos from the iTunes store
38. Making your own digital home movies
Configuring your system for video editing
Choosing a video editing program
Working with Windows Movie Maker
Burning your movie to DVD.
19. Connecting to the Internet, at home and on the road
Different types of connection
Setting up a new connection
Sharing an Internet connection
Connecting to a public WiFi hotspot
20. Sending and receiving email
Setting up your email account
Understanding the Windows Mail window
Protecting against spam, phishing scams, and viruses
Using address book to manage your contacts
21. Surfing the Web with Internet Explorer
Using Internet Explorer 7
Internet security with IE7
Searching for people and businesses
How to find the best prices online
Booking travel reservations online
24. Buying and selling in eBay online auctions
How does an eBay auction work?
eBay bidding, step-by-step
Buy it quick with buy it now
More than auctions : eBay express, eBay stores, and Half.com
Protecting yourself against fraudulent sellers
eBay selling, step-by-step
25. Exploring blogs and podcasts
Welcome to the blogosphere
Reading, and commenting on, blogs
Tracking your blogs with feed reader software
Blogs on the radio : listing to podcasts
26. Social networking with MySpace
Browsing MySpace profiles
Creating your own MySpace profile
27. Creating your own Web page
Building a Web page at a home page community
Using page-building software
Uploading your pages to a Web host
28. Exploring other cool and useful Websites
News, sports, and weather
Photos, clip art, and other images
Classified and local shopping
IV. Using computer software
13. Installing new software
Installing software from the Internet
14. The suite spot : working with Microsoft Works and Microsoft Office
Different versions of Works
Introducing Microsoft Office
15. Letters, memos, and more : working with Microsoft Word
Exploring the Word interface
16. Crunching numbers : working with Microsoft Excel
Understanding spreadsheets
Inserting and deleting rows and columns
Using formulas and functions
Formatting your spreadsheet
17. Presenting yourself : working with Microsoft PowerPoint
Understanding Microsoft PowerPoint
Creating a new presentation
Applying slide animations
18. Banking and beyond : working with Microsoft Money and Quicken
Managing your money with Microsoft Money
Quick and easy banking with Quicken
III. Upgrading and maintaining your system
8. Adding new hardware and devices to your system
Adding new external hardware
Adding new internal hardware
Connecting portable devices to your PC
9. Setting up a home network
Setting up a wired or wireless network
Configuring Windows for your new network
Setting up wireless security
Sharing files and folders across the network
Sharing a printer across your network
Sharing an Internet connection
10. Performing routine maintenance
Free up disk space by deleting unnecessary files
Make you hard disk run better by defragmenting
Perform a hard disk checkup with ScanDisk
Keep you hardware in tip-top condition
Backing up your important data with Windows backup
11. Dealing with common problems
How to troubleshoot computer problems
What to do when Windows freezes
Dealing with a major crash
Undoing the damage with system restore
12. Protecting your PC from viruses, spam, and other online nuisances
Safeguarding your system from computer viruses
Defending against computer attacks
Shielding your children from inappropriate content.
How this book is organized
Which version of Windows?
Conventions used in this book
Let me know what you think
1. Understanding desktop PCs
What your computer can, and can't, do
Getting to know your personal computer system
2. Understanding notebook PCs
Notebooks PCs : pros and cons
Key elements of a notebook PC
Different types of notebook PCs
Special considerations for using a notebook PC
3. Setting up your new computer system
Turning it on and setting it up
4. Getting to know Windows Vista
Introducing Windows Vista
Working your way around the desktop
Important Windows operations
Using the start menu, and switching programs
All the other things in Windows
Shutting down Windows, and your computer
5. Using Windows XP on older computers
Before Vista : previous versions of windows
Getting to know Windows XP
Upgrading from Windows XP to Windows Vista
Getting to know the Windows control panel
Changing the look of your desktop in Windows Vista
Changing the look of your desktop in Windows XP
Changing the way the start menu works
Resetting the time and date
Setting up additional users
7. Working with files, folders, and disks
Understanding files and folders
Viewing folders and files
Renaming files and folders
Working with compressed folders
Copying files to another computer
Backing up your important files.
