Chapter 2. The Desktop and Start Menu
When you turn on a Windows XP computer for the first time, you may think that you’re simply seeing the traditional Windows startup process as redesigned by a West Coast graphic designer.
Yes, it starts up slightly faster—that’s one of the most heavily advertised new features of Windows XP—but otherwise, turning on a PC shows little more than a newfangled version of the progress bar you may know and love from earlier editions of Windows.
If it’s a new computer, you may also receive a big hello from the company that sold it to you.
Then, if you’ve just performed a clean installation of Windows XP (see Appendix A), or if it’s a brand-new PC, you may now be treated to a series of blue “Welcome to Microsoft Windows” setup screens. This Setup Wizard guides you through setting up an Internet account, activating your copy of Windows (Section A-3), setting up accounts for different people who will be sharing this computer (Chapter 16), and so on. Appendix A has a complete description of this process.
After that basic startup business is taken care of, however, you may be in for a series of surprises.
Logging On
What happens next depends on whether you’re the PC’s sole proprietor or share it with other people in an office, school, or household.
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