Toshiba Satellite C50b User Guide

							91Mobile Computing
Traveling tips
Always use the battery pack supplied as an accessory or 
an equivalent battery pack specified in the User's 
Manual. Other battery packs have different voltage and 
terminal polarities. Use of non-conforming battery packs 
could generate smoke or cause fire or rupture, possibly 
resulting in serious injury.
After repeated use, the batteries will finally lose their ability 
to hold a charge and you will need to replace them. Under 
certain applicable laws and regulations, it may be illegal to 
dispose of old batteries by placing them in the trash.
Please be kind to our shared environment. Check with your 
local government authority for details regarding where to 
recycle old batteries or how to dispose of them properly. 
In addition, Toshiba’s recycling initiatives include recycling 
programs, events and consumer promotions. For details, 
please visit toshiba.com/recycle.
Toshiba is dedicated to preserving the environment by 
sponsoring 
Call2Recycle™, a program of the 
Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation. For more 
information and for free drop-off locations, visit 
http://www.call2recycle.org/locator/ or call 1-800-822-8837.
Notice regarding CR coin cell batteries, applicable to 
California, U.S.A. only:
Perchlorate Material - special handling may apply. See 
http://www.dtsc.ca.gov/hazardouswaste/perchlorate/
Traveling tips
The environmental precautions listed in “Selecting a place to 
work” on page 30, also apply while traveling.
❖Never leave your computer on a sunny ledge or in a 
place where it could get wet or covered in dust.
❖Always travel with the computer in a carrying case. 
Toshiba offers a choice of carrying cases for the 
computer. They all provide plenty of extra space for 
manuals, power cords, and compact discs. Contact your 
authorized Toshiba representative for more information 
or visit Toshiba’s Web site at accessories.toshiba.com. 
						

							92Mobile Computing
Traveling tips
TECHNICAL NOTE: When traveling by air, you may be 
required to pass your computer through airport security 
equipment. The X-ray equipment will not harm your 
computer.
Before using your computer aboard an aircraft, make 
sure the Wireless antenna is OFF (Airplane mode is ON) if 
your computer has wireless LAN capability.
To enable or disable wireless communication, use the 
F12 key. For more information see “TOSHIBA Function 
Keys” on page 143.
NOTE
NOTE 
						

							93
Chapter 4
Exploring Your 
Computer’s Features
In this chapter, you will explore some of the special features 
of your computer.
Exploring the Start screen
The Start screen is the launching pad for everything you can 
do in the Windows® operating system, providing new and 
easy ways to access everything from your favorite apps and 
Web sites to your contacts and other important information.
When you move your pointer to the upper-right corner of the 
screen or swipe in from the right edge, a list of Windows
® 
charms will slide out from the right. These Windows® charms 
perform various commands, including basics tasks like 
turning off the power and advanced PC settings.
You can go to the Start screen by clicking or touching the 
Start charm, see “Charms” on page 94. You can also use 
the 
Windows® key ( ) on your keyboard or on the LCD 
screen to go to the Start screen or to toggle back to the 
Desktop screen. For detailed information, please refer to the 
Windows
® Help and Support.
By clicking on or touching the 
Desktop tile from the Start 
screen, you will find the Windows® settings and features you 
are most familiar with. 
						

							94Exploring Your Computer’s Features
Exploring the Start screen
For detailed information on the new functionality, refer to the 
Windows® Help and Support.
   
 
 
(Sample Image) Windows® Start screen
Charms
Use the Windows® charms to start apps, find documents, 
set up system components, and perform most other 
computing tasks. 
By moving your pointer to the upper-right corner of the 
screen or swiping in from the right edge of your screen, you 
will find a list of charms: 
Search, Share, Start, Devices 
and 
Settings.
You may also access the 
Power and Search icons in the 
upper-right corner of the Start screen.
Search—This charm allows you to search for most anything 
you need to locate on your computer. It can help you find 
apps, documents, photos, and your favorite music.
Share—This charm allows you to share music and photos 
with your favorite social Web sites.
Start—This charm allows you to view all of the available 
apps downloaded to your system.
Devices—This charm allows you to manage your hardware 
devices.
Settings—This charm allows you to manage your system 
settings.
App tiles
Power icon
Search icon
Apps
page icon 
						

							95Exploring Your Computer’s Features
Exploring the desktop
Tiles
Tiles can be accessed and launched from the Start screen. 
Typical Start screen tiles are the Desktop tile and Mail tile, as 
well as tiles representing all other applications downloaded 
to your system.
Exploring the desktop
You can use its features to start applications, find 
documents, set up system components, and perform most 
other computing tasks.
HINT: The illustrated examples in this guide may appear 
slightly different from the screens displayed by your 
system. The differences are not significant and do not 
indicate any change in the functionality of your system.
Finding your way around the desktop
Your computer’s desktop includes several standard features: 
icons, taskbar, notification area, notifications, and 
background pattern.
   
 
 
 
(Sample Image) Windows® Desktop screen
Ta s k b a r Icons
Notification area
Notifications 
						

							96Exploring Your Computer’s Features
Exploring the desktop
Icons
An icon represents a folder, file, or program that can be 
quickly activated by double-clicking or touching the icon.
You can create a new desktop icon for any folder, file, or 
program by dragging the element’s icon from its location in a 
window to the desktop area.
You may see various icons displayed on your system 
desktop, for example:
Recycle Bin—Holds files you have deleted. You may be able 
to retrieve these files until you empty the Recycle Bin.
❖TECHNICAL NOTE: If you delete a large number of 
files or very large files from the internal storage drive, 
there may be insufficient space available in the 
Recycle Bin to hold these files. In this case, 
Windows
® will prompt you to either permanently 
delete the file(s) or cancel the deletion.
❖If you delete a file (of any size) from an external 
media or flash media, it does not go into the 
Recycle Bin. The file is permanently deleted.
❖Permanently deleted files cannot be recovered 
from the Recycle Bin. 
For more information on the Recycle Bin, see Windows
® 
online Help.
If you place the pointer over an icon, a popup description 
of the file contents appears.
Your desktop may contain other icons depending on your 
configuration. See Windows
® online Help for more specific 
information on each icon and how to use it, or see “Help file” 
on page 144.
Ta s k b a r
Each time you open a program, a button associated with 
that program appears on the taskbar. With some programs, 
a button appears on the taskbar for each document or 
window you open. You can use these buttons to quickly 
switch between the programs or windows.
To make a program or window the currently active one, click 
or touch the associated taskbar button.
NOTE 
						

							97Exploring Your Computer’s Features
Windows® Store
Notification area
The notification area displays icons of tasks or programs that 
run continuously in the background and displays 
notifications. To learn more about each task, position the 
pointer over the icon for a few moments and a short 
description of the task appears.
Typical tasks in the notification area are Current time, Power 
usage mode, network connectivity status, and speaker 
volume.
To activate a specific task, click or touch the appropriate 
notification area icon.
Notifications
There are many types of notifications you can employ to help 
you with the many tasks you perform every day.
User experience notifications can be set for toast, tile, 
badge, and raw notifications.
Toast notifications—Designed for time-sensitive delivery 
of personalized content, such as an instant message from a 
friend.
Tile notifications—Used by applications that are not 
currently running with an at-a-glance characteristic, giving 
you a quick preview of the subject line of your latest email or 
the current weather conditions.
Badge notifications—A specialized type of tile notification 
(shown on the Start screen tile) using glyphs to indicate the 
number of applications that have updates available or the 
status of a running application.
Raw notifications—These run a background task on behalf 
of an application while that application is not running in order 
to make available the latest content, such as an online 
newspaper.
Windows® Store
Although many applications will be pre-installed or built-in to 
your computer, you will also have the ability to download 
many other applications with a touch or the click of your 
mouse.
While in the Desktop screen, locate the 
Windows® Store 
( ) icon in the taskbar. 
						

							98Exploring Your Computer’s Features
Setting up for communications
In the Windows® Store you can search for and browse 
thousands of apps, all grouped into easy to find categories.
Setting up for communications
To connect to the Internet you need:
❖A browser or communications program 
❖An Internet Service Provider (ISP) or online service if you 
plan to use the Internet 
❖A way to connect to the ISP (for example 
Wi-Fi
®/broadband connection, etc.)
Connect to the Internet
Wireless connectivity and some features may require you 
to purchase additional software, external hardware or 
services. Availability of public wireless LAN access points 
may be limited.
Follow the steps below to set up your Wireless connection.
1Move your pointer to the upper-right corner of the screen 
or swipe in from the right edge. When the Windows
® 
charms appear, click the 
Settings ( ) charm.
2Click or touch the 
Wi-Fi () icon.
The Networks screen appears.
3Select your network.
4Click or touch 
Connect.
5Enter the network security key (if applicable).
6Click or touch 
Next.
Your computer should then be connected.
To enable or disable wireless communication, use the 
F12 key. For more information see “TOSHIBA Function 
Keys” on page 143.
When Airplane mode is OFF, the wireless indicator light 
 will be lit.
NOTE
NOTE
NOTE 
						

							99Exploring Your Computer’s Features
Exploring audio features
For help with common Wi-Fi® networking problems, see 
“Wireless networking problems” on page 132.
Connecting your computer to a network
You can connect your computer to a network to increase its 
capabilities and functionality. 
Accessing a network
For specific information about connecting to the network, 
consult your network administrator. Many hotels, airports, 
and offices offer Wi-Fi
® access.
Exploring audio features
You can use your computer to record sounds using the 
computer’s internal microphones (available on certain 
models) or an optional external microphone. You can listen 
to sound files or audio CDs using the built-in speakers, 
headphones, or external speakers.
Recording sounds
You may record sounds using the computer’s internal 
microphones (available on certain models) or by connecting 
an optional external microphone.
Using a microphone
1If you want to use an external microphone, connect it to 
the computer.
2From the Start screen begin typing 
Sound Recorder 
and click or touch your selection. If you are in the 
Desktop, press the 
Windows® ( ) key to display the 
Start screen. Click or touch the 
Search ( ) icon at the 
upper-right corner of the screen and, in the Search field, 
type 
Sound Recorder.
 
(Sample Image) Sound Recorder screen
3Click or touch the Start Recording button.
4Speak normally into the microphone. 
Start Recording/Stop Recording button 
						

							100Exploring Your Computer’s Features
Exploring audio features
5When you have finished recording, click or touch the 
Stop Recording button.
The 
Save As dialog box appears.
6To save the file, type a file name, and then click or touch 
Save.
Using external speakers or headphones
Your computer is equipped with a full stereo sound system 
with internal speakers. Instead of using the internal 
speakers, you can connect headphones or a pair of external 
stereo speakers.
Before putting on headphones to listen, turn the volume 
down. Do not set the volume too high when using 
headphones. Continuous exposure to loud sound can 
harm your hearing.
TECHNICAL NOTE: When using amplified speakers, use 
speakers that require an external power source. Other 
types of speakers will be inadequate to produce sound 
from the computer.
To play back sound files through external speakers or 
headphones:
1Locate the headphone jack on the computer.
2Using any necessary adapters, plug the cable from the 
headphones or external speakers into the headphone 
jack. 
The headphone jack requires a 16-ohm stereo mini 
connector.
To adjust the volume:
❖For external speakers, use the volume controls on each 
speaker.
❖For headphones, use the computer’s volume control.