Sometimes, we technology olds talk about computers like everyone knows how to use them. We talk about equipment that no one's heard of, make references to procedures that no one understands, and then get frustrated when no one understands what we say and post stupid memes about "the TikTok generation" on social media. The fact is, if you've been brought up around smartphones and tablets, you probably won't understand computers. And that's fine. Even us old people had to be taught how computers work, so let's have a crash course in some barebones basics of computer operation.
Please note, this guide is written about Microsoft Windows, but all of these principles apply to Linux and MacOS, too.
Hardware & software
In general, hardware refers to the parts of the computer you can touch. The mouse, the keyboard, the USB devices, the console, and the expansion boards are all hardware. Software refers to the programs that the computer runs. Microsoft Word, The Sims, FL Studio, COMDLG.OCX, and Windows are all software. In simple words, the monitor is hardware, but anything the monitor shows you is software.
Desktop vs. Laptop
These terms relate to the computer's portability. A desktop (sometimes called a PC, short for "personal computer") is a computer that is designed to be stationary. Desktops require too many components and too many independent power sources to be considered portable. The computer shown at the top of this page is a desktop computer.
A laptop is a portable computer that folds on a hinge. Typically, the hinge will lock the two halves of the laptop together to prevent accidental damage to the screen or the keyboard, but not always. The upper half of the laptop contains the flatpanel monitor, while the lower half contains the keyboard and the computer console. Unlike a desktop PC, laptops do not need to be plugged into mains power in order to work; though they are like smartphones in that their internal batteries require occasional charging. Unlike tablets and certain Chromebooks, laptop computers usually do not have touch-reactive screens. Using your finger or a stylus to tap on a laptop screen will not produce any result. The trackpad is used to move the cursor around the screen, like a mouse would in a desktop computer. More of mice and monitors later.
Computer components
Console.
Sometimes called the "tower", as it tends to be vertically-oriented, the console is the computer. Everything that makes the computer what it is, is contained within the console. This is usually a hard disk, memory, video chipsets, audio chipsets, network cards, USB ports, and SD card ports. All of these are connected to a large printed circuit board called the "motherboard", either by having been soldered in place by the computer manufacturer or attached to an expansion slot. Consoles have at least one removeable side panel so additional parts can be put onto the motherboard as needed, or maintenance can be conducted on the existing parts. This can be done without specialist tools, usually requiring nothing more complex than a Philips screwdriver. The console is powered by a cord that runs between its A/C adapter and a wall outlet; without this cord, the computer will not turn on.
Monitor.
The most basic of the computer's parts, the monitor is analogous to your phone's screen. Most monitors, however, do not have touch-sensitivity, and thus cannot be operated by physically tapping on things you see on it. In order to interact with the graphics shown on the monitor, we will use a Keyboard and a Mouse. This isn't a rule, obviously—some monitors do act like phone screens. Most don't. Unlike a phone screen, monitors tend not to have built-in cameras or microphones. In the earlier days of computers, around about 1995, monitors would sometimes have speakers built into them, but this fell out of favour pretty quickly with the advent of flatpanel monitors, with most operators preferring to supply their own, higher-quality speakers. The monitor plugs into the back of the computer console, either into the blue or green analogue port or the flat HDMI port. The screen image in the example photo is simulated (as in, someone used Photoshop to scale a screenshot of the Windows 10 desktop onto the blank screen); monitors must be connected to the console and a power outlet in order to display an image.
Keyboard.
The most easily-recognisable part of a computer, the keyboard has even been made compatible with phones and tablets. Keyboards allow the computer operator enter text and give commands to the software. Many computer programs have keyboard shortcuts for complex actions that would otherwise require the mouse, like holding down SHIFT while pressing the arrow keys to select text and holding CTRL then tapping Z to undo a recent action. Keyboard shortcuts are different depending on the software you're using. The keyboard plugs into the back of the console, into either the round PS/2 port or the flat USB type A port. (PS/2 ports were named after the IBM PS/2 computer that introduced that port type in the early '90s. Computers built after 2013 will not have them.)
Mouse.
This is the name given to the pointing device we will use to move the cursor around the screen. Mice designed for use on Windows have two buttons and a wheel; the wheel is used chiefly for scrolling through pages of text and other content, while the buttons are used to interact with the content. The Left mouse button is the "clicker", performing the same action as when you tap on the phone screen. The Right mouse button will bring up menus to interact with the content in advanced ways, being approximately the same as tap-holding on a phone screen. The wheel is also capable of clicking; in web browsers, Wheel-clicking (or "center-clicking") is a fast way of opening a link in a new tab. Mice also plug into either a PS/2 or USB port. Mice and keyboards do not require their own power sources, as they draw power directly off the computer.
Speakers.
Most computers have no means of making sound on their own, requiring the operator to supply a set of speakers. Computer speakers can be as simple as a single, monaural speaker or as complex as a home-theatre system. Speakers plug into analogue LINE OUT ports on the back of the computer, typically labelled with an icon that looks like a trumpet bell with sound waves coming from it.
There are various other components that connect to computers, but these are the most common.
Common operations
Copying to the Clipboard
To Copy means to select an item, such as text or files, and "copy" that data to the clipboard. The Clipboard is the name for the holding area in Windows PCs where data are kept until they are pasted into another program or are overwritten by a different Copy operation. Windows PCs are only capable of storing 1 Copy operation on the Clipboard at a time. Shutting down the computer or performing a "Cut/Paste" operation will clear the Clipboard.
Try this. Open the Windows start menu, either by left-clicking on the Windows icon or pressing the Windows Key on your keyboard, then type "Notepad" and open the application by that name. Now, type some text with the keyboard into the text field. Left-click and hold, then drag the cursor over the text to select it, now hold CTRL and press C on the keyboard. This has copied the selected text to the Clipboard. It won't look like anything has happened, but it has, honest.
Pasting from the Clipboard
To Paste means to take data currently stored on the Clipboard and place them into a different program. The most common uses of Copying and Pasting are quickly inputting large blocks of text in several different files, and backing up files from one location to another.
Try this. Open the start menu again and type "Wordpad", then open the application by that name. Wordpad is a word processing program, somewhat like LibreOffice Writer or Google Docs. Notepad, on the other hand, is not a word processor; it has more in common with an old typewriter. Now, in Wordpad, hold CTRL and press V. This has pasted the text you copied from Notepad into Wordpad! Handy, isn't it? Don't close Wordpad yet, we're going to need it.
Cutting and Pasting
To "Cut" is similar to copying, except that it deletes the data from the source file when pasted.
Try this. Press CTRL+S in Wordpad to save your file. Since the file hasn't been saved before, the Save As... prompt will come up, giving you a choice of where to save the file and what to save it as. Give the file any name at all, but save it to your Desktop. There is a button on the left side of the window that says "Desktop"; click on it to move the Save operation to the desktop. Give the file a name and click "OK" or press Enter on your keyboard to save the file. Close Wordpad and go to your desktop. Highlight the file you just made by left-clicking on it, now press CTRL+X to cut the file onto the clipboard. Open your Documents folder and press CTRL+V to move the Wordpad file from the Desktop into the Documents folder. Going back to the desktop, you can see that the file isn't there anymore—that's because it's been moved to Documents. You can move any file from anywhere to anywhere else on your computer or removeable file storage using this method.
Making a new folder
"Folders" are areas of computer storage where the operator can store files in an organised manner. You can think of folders like drawers in your bureau; one drawer is for underwear, another is for teeshirts, the top-left one is a catch-all drawer, things like that. There is no limit to how many folders a computer can have on it.
Try this. Go to your desktop and click the right mouse button anywhere that is not on a file. Under the menu that comes up, open the "New" subheading and select "Folder". The new folder that appears will be called "New Folder" by default, but you can name it now. If you accidentally click off of New Folder before you can name it, right-click on the new folder and select "Rename", then give the folder a name. Names can be anything, except Windows will not permit you to use any of its reserved characters. These are \ / : * ? " > < and |.