(Approx. 601 words)

Moving on to Vista – Part 13
Written by Neil Stahfest, Librarian, Tacoma Area PC User Group, WA
www.tapcug.org
ncstahfest(at)msn.com

This article has been obtained from APCUG with the author’s permission for publication by APCUG member groups; all other uses require the permission of the author (see e-mail address above).

The chances are the first peripheral device you purchased for your computer was a printer.  You may have even received a “free” printer when you purchased your computer.  Vista makes it easier than ever to connect a new printer to your computer than ever before.  The Plug-and-Play feature really works (unless, like me,  you have an old laser printer that Windows Vista does not support.  :-(  ).

So you connect your printer, follow the Printer Wizard's directions, it works and you're happy.  But wait.  Have you examined your printer to discover all of its functions?   Did you know that many modern printers, even the inexpensive models, can print on both sides of the paper, print sideways on the paper (called landscape mode), print in gray scale as well as in color and allows you to control print quality (to save ink when you don't need high quality print).  Here's how to find out what you can do and manage it.

Create or open a document using your favorite word processing program or WordPad.  At the top of your screen, click on “File” and then scroll down to “Printer Settings” and click again.  When the “Printer Setup” window opens, click on the “Properties” button.  At this point what you see depends largely on your individual printer.  

In the case of my HP printer, I see a window with tab labeled “Paper/Quality”, “Finishing”, “Effects”, “Basics”, “Color” and “Services”.  Selecting the appropriate tab allows me to select print quality (Normal, Draft, Enhanced, etc.), Portrait or Landscape mode , page order, color,  single or two sided paper printing and many other options.  In the case of my HP printer, when I select two sided paper printer, the printer prints on one side of the paper and then an on-screen message shows me how to reinsert the printed sheet in the paper tray to print of the other side.  These print options are actually determined by the printer, not Windows.  Windows just provides the means to control the printers features. 

Windows frequently provides more than one way to do the same thing.  Desktop icons provide a shortcut to run programs listed in the Start Menu.  You can easily create new desktop icons my opening the the Programs section of the Start Menu, Selecting a program, right clicking on it and drag it to a blank area on your desktop.  When you release the right mouse button a short menu appears with the option to “Create Shortcuts Here” .  Select it, and left-click once to create the icon.  You can rename this icon to anything you wish.

If you right-click on a desktop icon, one of the menu option is “Properties”.  Select Properties and left-click once.   Under the “Shortcut” tab notice the entry line labeled “Shortcut key”.  It probably contains the entry “None”.  By selecting a suitable key (letter or number), you can create a key combination shortcut to your program.  It's a convenient way to access frequently used programs, spreadsheets and documents.

Before we leave this menu, notice the button labeled “Change Icon”.  When you left-click on this button you'll see an array of icons that you can use to substitute for your default icon.  Pick an icon, click on the “Okay” button and  then click on “Okay” again.  Your new icon will appear on the desktop.