Date: Mon, 29 Dec 1997 18:58:29 GMT Server: Apache/1.2.4 lock_local/0.1 Last-Modified: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 07:04:38 GMT ETag: "1b497c-5ecf-33153206" Content-Length: 24271 Accept-Ranges: bytes Connection: close Content-Type: text/html X-Pad: avoid browser bug
Applied Computer Technologies, Inc.
Advanced Technology Computer Systems, Peripherals, & Services
For more information about Windows® 95, visit Microsoft Support Online.
What is so new about the Windows® 95 operating system?
Windows® 95 is different from DOS operating systems that shipped on older computers, in that, it controls your hardware and software within the graphical user interface with protected-mode drivers. These protected-mode drivers are different than drivers found in a DOS operating system, in that, protected-mode drivers load within the graphical user interface (GUI). This feature is unlike DOS that uses a CONFIG.SYS and an AUTOEXEC.BAT to load the real-mode drivers for your system's peripherals.
In older computer systems, you could control Windows through the SYSTEM.INI and the WIN.INI. Within Windows® 95, there are several user interfaces you can use to control not only Windows, but the peripherals for your computer.
In Windows® 95, the Registry is a unified storage repository for application and data configurations. The Registry holds protected-mode driver information and Plug-and-Play information for your system's components and applications. If you purchased an off-the-shelf version of Windows® 95 as an upgrade for Windows 3.1, then Windows 95 used INI files, such as the WIN.INI and SYSTEM.INI, to build the Registry. Your system will still have the older CONFIG.SYS and AUTOEXEC.BAT files to load real-mode drivers; however, these files are not essential to run your Windows® 95 operating system.
Every version of Windows® 95 includes a Registry editor. This editor can be used to change the functionality of Windows 95 and other Windows related applications. Although it is possible to use the Registry editor to repair a problem with Windows® 95, using the Registry editor is extremely complicated, and not recommended for most ACT customers. Neither ACT or Microsoft support editing the Registry.
Within Windows® 95, you can control your hardware and peripherals through the Device Manager. To access the Device Manager, right-click on the My Computer icon, and then choose Properties from the pull-down menu. Now, click on the Device Manager tab. You can also access the Device Manager through the Windows 95 Control Panel. Click on the System icon, and then click on the Device Manager tab.
Once you access the Device Manager, you can view and control the properties for your system's devices. Click to highlight the device from the list of hardware, and then click on the Properties button. You can control the driver, Direct Memory Address (DMA), and Input/Output (I/O) address for most of your computers hardware.
Often, you may find it essential to change the display settings for your computer. To access the Windows® 95 Display settings, right click on an empty area on the Windows® 95 Desktop, and then choose Properties from the menu. Now, you can click on the Background, Screen Saver, Appearance, and Settings tabs to control the settings your computer's display features. To change the settings for the color palette, desktop area, and/or the font size, click on the Settings tab. You can use the slide bar and the pull-down menus to make the adjustments to fit your needs. You can also change the driver for your system's display adapter, or choose the appropriate monitor selection for your computer by clicking on the Change Display Type... button.
Within Windows® 95, you can use the Explorer to control the files and folders in your computer. The Windows Explorer is similar to the Program Manager found in Windows 3.x. To access the Explorer, click on the Start button, and then choose Programs from the menu. Now choose Windows Explorer from the expanded menu.
Through the Windows Explorer, you can drag and drop files and applications. Through the various selections on the taskbar (File, Edit, Tools, View, Help), you can control applications, map drives, and even get additional help on using Windows® 95. Although you can move and remove programs through the Windows Explorer, we recommend that you use caution before you make any changes to the system. Windows uses file sharing for many of its applications. If you delete or move a file that is shared with another application, then you run the risk of damaging the other application.
Follow this procedure to install a printer driver that is included with Windows® 95:
If your printer included a driver disk, then follow this procedure:
If your printer is not listed in the "Add Printer Wizard" screen and you did not receive a printer driver diskette, then your printer may emulate another printer. Consult the documentation that came with your printer for more information on which printer to select.
You can follow this procedure to create a new folder in Windows 95:
There two different ways for you to install an application in Windows® 95. Follow this procedure to add a new program using the Windows® 95 Add/Remove Programs utility:
Please note, you can always safely remove any application you installed through the Add/Remove Programs utility. The programs that you added through this utility are listed in the dialog box at the bottom section of the Install/Uninstall tab.
Another way to install an application in Windows® 95 is through the Run... line on the Windows Start Menu. Simply, click on the Start button, and choose Run... from the menu. Now, enter the command line to install the application. If you do not know the command line, you can click on the Browse... button to search for the appropriate executable.
As you add applications to your computer, you may want to quickly access the application through the Windows® 95 Desktop. You can create shortcuts on your Windows® 95 Desktop that will allow you to double-click on the icon to begin application. To create an application shortcut, right-click on an empty area on the Windows 95 Desktop, and then choose New from the menu. Click on Shortcut from the expanded menu; you should see the Create Shortcut screen. Enter the command line for the application in the dialog box. If you do not know the name of the executable, you can click on the Browse... button to locate the appropriate file.
Within Windows® 95, you can access documents that have been recently accessed through the Documents menu. At a certain point, you may want to clear this menu. You can follow this procedure to clear this menu:
Depending on which computer system you own and the capabilities of your monitor, you can control energy-saver features of the monitor in Windows® 95. To adjust these features in Windows® 95, right-click on an empty area on the Windows® 95 Desktop, and then choose Properties from the menu. Now, click on the Screen Saver tab. You can enable and disable these features through this screen. Additionally, you can use the up and down arrows to set the amount of time to enable the energy saving features.
Often modem sounds will disappear after you upgrade to Windows® 95. To regain this feature, follow this procedure:
If the speaker icon is not on the Taskbar, follow this procedure:
You can also use the following AT commands to adjust the modem's volume:
Use the following commands in HyperTerminal to adjust the modem volume:
You can also use 1 or 2 for intermediate ranges.
Rather than using the COPY command in a DOS session, access the My Computer icon. Click the right mouse button on the disk drive that contains the diskette you want to copy and then choose the Copy Disk... option from the menu that appears. Select the appropriate drives in the Copy From: and Copy To: boxes and press the Start button.
Note: You can also access the Copy Disk... option from the Explorer utility.
To format a disk in Windows® 95, access the My Computer icon. Click the right mouse button on the drive that contains the media you want to format and choose the Format... option. Select the format parameters that you want to use and choose Start.
Note: You can also access the Format... option from the Explorer utility.
To add a shortcut to the Start menu, right-click on an unoccupied area of the Taskbar and choose the Properties option from the menu that appears. Select Add from the Start Menu Programs tab and follow the on-screen instructions.
You can clear the contents of the Documents folder by right-clicking on an unoccupied area of the Taskbar. Choose the Properties option and then select the Start Menu Programs tab. From the Documents Menu option box, click on Clear and the contents of this folder will be removed.
Although a number of different ways exist to change the desktop's appearance, the easiest way to change the wallpaper is to:
To access the Program Manager Groups, click the right mouse button on the Start button. Choose Open and then double-click on the Programs Group.
These steps will open the \WINDOWS\Start Menu\Programs window and allow access to all of the software similar to Windows 3.x's Program Manager.
If the Protected Mode Device drivers fully support the hardware in your system, these files are no longer needed. However, if Windows® 95 cannot recognize some of the devices in your system, you may need to continue using an AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS file.
Unfortunately, the Windows® 95 version of the MS Backup software is not backwards compatible with previous versions.
Consider the following procedure to launch an MS-DOS program from Windows® 95:
To access the Windows® 95 volume controls, launch the Multimedia Mixer utility with the following procedure:
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Changes last made on: February 27th, 1997