Browsing the Web and Your Computer

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Browsing the Web and Your Files with One Program

Why use different programs to browse the Web, your hard disk, and a network? Microsoft® Windows® 98 operating system provides a single place where you can browse anything! That's right, you can switch back and forth between Web pages, files and folders on your computer, network drives, and pages on a corporate intranet . . . all from the same browser! The buttons on the toolbar change to match the content that you are viewing, and you always have access to Back and Forward buttons so you can get back to where you started.

How does it work? If you're surfing the Web and you decide you want to look at a folder on your hard disk, just type the path in the Address bar. Or, if you are looking at files in My Computer and you want to check out a Web page, type the address in the Address bar. Try it!

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Going Back has Never Been Easier

We've all been there. While surfing the Web, you click a seemingly endless number of links to find a specific page, then you decide you want to go back. So you click the Back button . . . how many times? Five, ten, maybe even twenty times you click that button while you painfully watch and wait for each page to appear in your browser.

Fortunately, Microsoft® Windows® 98 operating system introduces a new feature that saves you many clicks and even more time. See the small arrow just to the right of the Back button? Click it. You'll see a list of pages you've viewed-then you can just click the one you want. You can also display this list by right-clicking the Back button.

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Adding Favorites with One Keystroke

Want to quickly add a Web page to your Favorites folder so you can come back to it later? Just press CTRL+D. The page is automatically added to your Favorites list without any further input from you.

Typing Too Much

Tired of typing in long, cryptic Web addresses? Is "WWW" not on your list of most efficient typing patterns? No need to worry. With Microsoft® Windows® 98 operating system, typing Web addresses is a breeze. Use the following tips to save time and finger power while you surf the Web.

  • Type the domain of an address, such as Microsoft and then press CTRL+ENTER. Internet Explorer automatically wraps "https://www....com" around what you typed.

  • Even easier, just type the domain of an address, and then press ENTER. Internet Explorer tries to find the site by using the various extensions. If it can't find a site with the domain you typed and the .com extension, it looks for the domain with the .edu extension. If this is not successful, it looks for the domain you typed with the .org extension.

  • If you need to edit an address, you can use CTRL+LEFT ARROW and CTRL+RIGHT ARROW to easily move between different parts of the address separated by periods.

  • When you start to type an address you've been to before, the new AutoComplete feature completes the address for you.

Using Favorites for More than Just Websites

The Favorites menu makes it easy to find your favorite Web sites. Now, with Microsoft® Windows® 98 operating system, you can also add folders to your Favorites list, keeping your most-used files and folders just a click away. Here's how:

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  1. In My Computer or Windows Explorer, open the folder you want to add to your Favorites list.

  2. On the Favorites menu, click Add to Favorites.

Now you can easily open the folder from the Favorites menu anywhere on your computer, even if you're on a Web page.

Organizing Favorites by Dragging and Dropping

Do you want to rearrange your Favorites list? It's easy with Microsoft® Windows® 98 operating system. Use the following tips to organize favorites by dragging and dropping with your mouse.

  • First, open the Favorites menu, or click the Favorites button on the toolbar to open the Favorites bar. Then, point to a link you want to move and drag it to a different place in the list. Try it out!

  • To put a link into a folder in your Favorites list, just drag the link to the folder and wait for the folder list to open. Then you can drop the link where you want it.

  • You can add folders to your Favorites list by clicking the Favorites menu, and then clicking Organize Favorites.

  • Want to remove a link from the list? Just right-click the link, and then click Delete.

Moving Toolbars Around the Browser

Need more space in your browser window? You can move your toolbar, Links bar, and Address bar to create more room or a custom look. For example, try putting your Address bar and Links bar on the same line. Or drag your toolbar up to the menu bar! You can even put all of the toolbars on the same line if you want. Here's how:

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Show me how it works:

  1. Point your mouse at the vertical bar on the left side of the toolbar you want to move.

  2. When the cursor changes to a double-headed arrow, press and hold down the mouse button, and then drag the toolbar to where you want it. You can move it left, right, up, or down.

Sending a Web Page in E-mail

If you find a Web page that you want to share with your friends, you can send it to them in e-mail as long as you have an e-mail account, that is! Here's how:

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  1. Open the Web page you want to send.

  2. On the File menu, point to Send.

  3. If your friend's e-mail program supports HTML, click Page by Email to send the entire page in an e-mail message. This way your friend won't have to connect to the Internet to see the page. Otherwise, click Link by Email to send a link to the page in e-mail.

  4. Type the address you want to send the page to, and then click Send on the toolbar.