Gateway 400 series User Manual

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Customizing
Yo u r  C o m p u t e r
This chapter provides information about customizing your 
computer by changing settings in Windows. Read this 
chapter to learn how to:

Change screen and display settings

Change the background and screen saver

Adjust the touchpad settings

Add, change, and switch user accounts 

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Adjusting the screen and desktop 
settings
Adjusting the color depth and screen area are two of the most basic display 
settings you may need to change. You can also adjust settings such as the screen 
background and screen saver.
Adjusting the color depth
Color depth is the number of colors your screen displays. Various image types 
require various color depths for optimum appearance. For example, simple color 
drawings may appear adequately in...

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3Click the Settings tab.
4Click the arrow button to open the Color quality list, then click the color 
depth you want.
5To save your changes, click OK, then click Ye s.
Adjusting the screen resolution
You can increase the screen resolution to fit more icons on your desktop, or 
you can decrease the resolution to make reading the display easier. The higher 
the resolution, the smaller individual components of the screen (such as icons 
and menu...

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To adjust the screen resolution:
1Click Start, then click Control Panel. The Control Panel w i n d o w  o p e n s .  I f  y o u r  
Control Panel is in Category View, click 
Appearance and Themes.
2Click/Double-click the Display icon. The Display Properties dialog box opens.
3Click the Settings tab.
4Drag the Screen resolution slider to the size you prefer.
5To save your changes, click OK, then click Ye s.
Help and 
SupportFor more information...

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Changing the colors on your Windows 
desktop
You can change the colors of Windows desktop items, such as the background 
color and dialog box title bars.
To change desktop colors:
1Click Start, then click Control Panel. The Control Panel w i n d o w  o p e n s .  I f  y o u r  
Control Panel is in Category View, click 
Appearance and Themes.
2Click/Double-click the Display icon. The Display Properties dialog box opens.
3Click the Appearance tab. 

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4Click the arrow button to open the Color scheme list, click the color scheme 
you want, then click 
OK. The new colors appear on your desktop.
- OR -
If you want to create a new color scheme as part of a desktop theme:
aClick Advanced. The Advanced Appearance dialog box opens.
bClick the arrow button to open the Item list, then click the item you 
want to change.
cChange the color or font settings for the item.
dClick OK, then click the Themes...

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3Click the Desktop tab.
4Click a background picture in the Background list.
- OR -
Click 
Browse to select a background picture from another location.
5If you want the picture you chose to cover the entire screen, click the arrow 
button to open the 
Position list, then click Stretch or Tile.
6If the picture you chose does not cover the entire screen and you did not 
choose to stretch or tile the image in Step 5, you can change the solid color...

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Selecting a screen saver
You can use a screen saver to keep others from viewing your display while you 
are away from your computer. Windows supplies a variety of screen savers that 
you can choose from, and many more are available from the Internet and as 
commercial products.
To select a screen saver:
1Click Start, then click Control Panel. The Control Panel w i n d o w  o p e n s .  I f  y o u r  
Control Panel is in Category View, click...

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4Click the arrow button to open the Screen Saver list, then click the screen 
saver you want. Windows previews the screen saver.
5If you want to customize the screen saver, click Settings, then make your 
changes
. If the Settings button is not available, you cannot customize the 
screen saver you selected.
6If you want to display the Welcome (Login) screen whenever you exit the 
screen saver, click the 
On resume, display Welcome screen check...