The Control Panel can be accessed from your Start Menu. You will also notice it listed in other windows, like the preview pane of the My Computer window. Once the Control Panel is open you will notice that the layout of the overall window is similar to the My Computer window with the helpful options in the preview pane.

 

Preview Pane Control Panel options:

 

Switch to Classic View	Will change the layout of the Control Panel to the classic view. This will group all the icons together in one window and will display the comments in an extra column.
Windows Update	Re-directs you to the Windows Update website.
Help and Support	Opens the Help and Support Centre
Other Control Panel Options	The location for 3rd party program setting icons, such as Java, QuickTime, or NVIDIA. This option is only available when in Category View. In Classic View the icons which are shown are listed with the default Control Panel icons.

 

 

In this lesson we will discuss how to use the Control Panel and all of the features buried deep inside of it. In the default category view, the Control Panel displays several categories. They are:

 

            Appearance and Themes

            Network and Internet Connections

            Add or Remove Programs

            Sounds, Speech, and Audio Devices

            Performance and Maintenance

            Printers and Other Hardware

            User Accounts

            Date, Time, Language, and Regional Options

            Accessibility Options

            Security Centre

 

 

 

When you click on a category icon you will be taken into a sub-window with more options. In this new window there are many helpful areas to assist you. For example, the Preview Pane area, Pick a Task area, or Pick a Control Panel icon area, are all available to help you find what you’re looking for. For the remainder of this lesson we will be focusing on the control panel icons and going into the details of each option.