This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Searching Is Simple with Start
As I mentioned in Chapter 1, Vista offers many places to search for data. Computer disks are so vast these days and so many programs and data files can appear on them that Vista offers you the opportunity to search for whatever it is that you need at the time from many places throughout Vista.
One of the most useful search boxes to appear in Vista is always ready at the bottom of your Start menu. Just display the Start menu and start typing when you want to search for something because Vista always puts your cursor in the search box until you move it to select a program or select another Start menu option. The reason a search box appears on the Start menu is twofold:
- The Start menu is so easy and fast to access that it provides an easy on-ramp to searching for anything on your computer.
- If you're unsure of the name of a program you want to run, or if a program is not listed on your Start menu (it's rare, but it does happen), you can begin typing the first few letters of the program and let Vista locate the program for you. When the result appears in the list, you can select the program to run it.
The Start menu changes from its normal list of programs to your search results as you enter a search term. Figure 3.4 shows a search for Microsoft Access, a database program included with some versions of Microsoft Office. Instead of drilling down into the menus for Microsoft Access, you can type the letters in Access and as soon as the program appears, you can select it with your mouse or keyboard.
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Figure 3.4 You don't have to locate a program within the Start menu if you know the first few letters of the program's name.