Working in Microsoft Windows Environment: Week 4-5

Windows Environment

The Windows environment is the onscreen work area provided by Windows, analogous to a physical desktop, and the operating system's core extension points. Learn how to leverage the desktop, taskbar, notification area, control panels, help, and user account control for your app
 
Desktop
The desktop is the user's work area for their programs. It's not a way to promote awareness of your
program or its brand. Don't abuse it!  



Taskbar
The taskbar is the access point for programs displayed on the desktop. With the new Windows 7 taskbar features, users can give commands, access resources, and view program status directly from the taskbar. 

Notification Area
The notification area provides notifications and status. Well-designed programs use the notification area appropriately, without being annoying or distracting. 

Control Panels
Use control panel items to help users configure system-level features and perform related tasks. Programs that have a user interface should be configured directly from their UI instead. 

Help
Use Help as a secondary mechanism to help users complete and better understand tasks—the primary mechanism being the UI itself. Apply these guidelines to make the content truly helpful and easy to find.

Desktop

The desktop is the user's work area for their programs. It's not a way to promote awareness of your program or its brand. Don't abuse it!
The desktop is the onscreen work area provided by Microsoft Windows, analogous to a physical desktop. It consists of a work area and taskbar. The work area may span multiple monitors.

A typical Windows desktop.
The active monitor is the monitor where the active program is running. The default monitor is the one with the Start menu, taskbar, and notification area.

Design concepts

The Windows desktop has the following program access points:

• Work area. The onscreen area where users can perform their work, as well as store programs, documents, and their shortcuts. While technically the desktop includes the taskbar, in most contexts it refers just to the work area.
• Start button. The access point for all programs and special Windows places (Documents, Pictures, Music, Games, Computer, Control Panel), with "most recently used" lists for quick access to recently used programs and documents.
• Quick Launch. Removed from Windows 7. A direct access point for programs selected by the user.
• Taskbar. The access point for running programs that have desktop presence. While technically the taskbar spans the entire bar from the Start button to the notification area, in most contexts taskbar refers to the area in between, containing the taskbar buttons. This area is sometimes referred to as the taskband.
• Deskbands. Not recommended. Minimized functional, long-running programs, such as the Language Bar. Programs that minimize to deskbands don't display taskbar buttons when minimized.
• Notification area. A short-term source for notifications and status, as well as an access point for system- and program-related features that have no presence on the desktop.

Taskbar

The taskbar is the access point for programs displayed on the desktop. With the new Windows 7 taskbar features, users can give commands, access resources, and view program status directly from the taskbar.

The taskbar is the access point for programs displayed on the desktop, even if the program is minimized. Such programs are said to have desktop presence. With the taskbar, users can view the open primary windows and certain secondary windows on the desktop, and can quickly switch between them.

			The Microsoft Windows taskbar. The controls on the taskbar are referred to as taskbar buttons. When a program creates a primary window (or a secondary window with certain characteristics), Windows adds a taskbar button for that window and removes it when that window closes. Programs designed for Windows 7 can take advantage of these new taskbar button features: Jump Lists provide quick access to frequently used destinations (like files, folders, and links) and commands through a context menu accessible from the program's taskbar button and Start menu item—even if the program isn't currently running. Thumbnail toolbars provide quick access to frequently used commands for a particular window. Thumbnail toolbars appear in the taskbar button's thumbnail. Overlay icons show change of status on the program's taskbar button icon. Progress bars show progress for long-running tasks on the program's taskbar button. Sub-window taskbar buttons allow users to use taskbar button thumbnails to switch directly to window tabs, project windows, multiple-document interface (MDI) child windows, and secondary windows. Pinned taskbar buttons allow users to pin program buttons to the taskbar to provide quick access to programs even when they aren't running. Technically, the taskbar spans the entire bar from the Start button to the notification area; more commonly, however, the taskbar refers only to the area containing the taskbar buttons. For multiple monitor configurations, only one monitor has a taskbar, and that monitor is the default monitor. Note: Guidelines related to desktop, notification area, and window management are presented in separate articles. Notification Area The notification area provides notifications and status. Well-designed programs use the notification area appropriately, without being annoying or distracting. The notification area is a portion of the taskbar that provides a temporary source for notifications and status. It can also be used to display icons for system and program features that have no presence on the desktop. Items in the notification area are referred to as notification area icons, or simply icons if the context of the notification area is already clearly established. The notification area. To give users control of their desktop in Windows 7, not all notification area icons are displayed by default. Rather, icons are displayed in the notification area overflow unless promoted to the notification area by the user. The notification area overflow. Note: Guidelines related to the taskbar, notifications , and balloons are presented in separate articles. Control Panels Use control panel items to help users configure system-level features and perform related tasks. Programs that have a user interface should be configured directly from their UI instead. With Control Panel in Microsoft Windows, users can configure system-level features and perform related tasks. Examples of system-level feature configuration include hardware and software setup and configuration, security, system maintenance, and user account management. The term Control Panel refers to the entire Windows Control Panel feature. Individual control panels are referred to as control panel items. A control panel item is considered top-level when it is directly accessible from the control panel home page or a category page. A typical control panel item. The control panel home page is the main entry point for all control panel items. It lists the items by their category, along with the most common tasks. It is displayed when users click Control Panel in the Start menu. A control panel category page lists the items within a single category, along with the most common tasks. It is displayed when users click a category name on the home page. Control panel items are implemented using task flows or property sheets. For Windows Vista and later, task flows are the preferred user interface (UI). Developers: To learn how to create control panel items, see Control Panel Items. Note: Guidelines related to property sheets are presented in a separate article. Help Use Help as a secondary mechanism to help users complete and better understand tasks—the primary mechanism being the UI itself. Apply these guidelines to make the content truly helpful and easy to find. A Help system is composed of various types of content designed to assist users when they are unable to complete a task, want to understand a concept in more detail, or need more technical details than are available in the UI. In this article, we refer to Help as secondary to UI. The UI is primary because that is where users first try to solve their problems. They consult the Help system only if they can't accomplish their task with the UI. The Windows Help and Support home page, available from the Start menu. Note: Guidelines related to style and tone are presented in a separate article.