
Windows 98 Installation & Configuration Handbook


- 3 -
Selecting Windows 98 Components
by Rob Tidrow
Adding and Removing Windows Components
Chapter 2 walked you through installing Windows 98 using the Windows 98 Setup
program. During this installation, you had an opportunity to select the type of installation
you wanted and to choose several components that were to be installed under Windows
98. If you upgraded from Windows 95, however, your old system settings were maintained,
and you didn't have an opportunity to change or add to the Components list. If you
want to add additional components or remove some, you can use the Add/Remove Programs
applet.
To use the Add/Remove Programs applet to install or remove Windows components,
do the following:
- 1. Choose Start, Settings, Control Panel, and double-click
the Add/Remove Programs icon. The Add/Remove Programs Properties dialog box appears.
2. Select the Windows Setup tab (see Figure 3.1). Components are divided into
12 categories (see the following section, "Reviewing Windows Components").
Check marks indicate entire categories that are installed on your system. Shaded
check marks indicate that only part of the category's Components list is installed.
A clear check box shows categories in which no components are installed.
FIG. 3.1 Use the Windows
Setup tab to install or remove Windows components.
- 3. Select a component category, such as Accessories, and click Details.
A dialog box with individual components under that category appears (see Figure 3.2).
If a component includes subcomponents, such as the Screen Savers component, the Details
button becomes available. Click it to customize which subcomponents you want to install.
Click OK.
FIG. 3.2 You can select
individual components from this dialog box.
TIP: To install all the components of a category, click the category's
check box until an unshaded check mark appears. Conversely, clear the check box to
uninstall all components of a category.
- 4. Select or clear check boxes next to those components you want to install
or remove. You can see the space requirements for each component on the right side
of the Components list.
5. Click OK. The Windows Setup tab appears.
6. Continue adding or removing components.
7. Click OK. You'll be prompted to insert the Windows 98 Setup CD-ROM or floppy
disks.
Windows installs or uninstalls components as specified. Depending on the component
you select, you might be prompted to restart Windows before you can start using the
component.
Reviewing Windows Components
The Windows Components list is broken down into 12 categories. The following list
includes the required hard disk space to install all the components for that category
on your computer:
Accessibility (4.9MB)
Accessories (17.6MB)
Broadcast Data Services (0.8MB)
Communications (11.8MB)
Desktop Themes (30.5MB)
Internet Tools (15.5MB)
Microsoft Outlook Express (5.4MB)
Multilanguage Support (12.1MB)
Multimedia (14.4MB)
Online Services (1.2MB)
System Tools (8.2MB)
WebTV for Windows
NOTE: The hard disk requirements in the preceding list are based
on the latest available software at the time of this writing. The final version of
Windows 98 might have different components and sizes. Check the Windows Setup tab
on your system for actual components and hard disk requirements.
Each of these categories with their hard disk space requirements is explained
in detail in the following sections.
Accessibility (4.9MB)
Windows 98 includes several utilities that enable users who have hearing, movement,
or vision impairments to use Windows 98 more easily. These utilities include keyboard-,
sound-, display-, and mouse-behavior modifications, such as high-contrast color schemes,
StickyKeys, and SoundSentry. It also includes the Magnifier tool, Accessibility Wizard,
and high-visibility cursors. By default, Windows 98 installs the Accessibility options,
which you can access from the Accessibility Options icon in the Control Panel (see
Figure 3.3).
FIG. 3.3 By default, the
Accessibility item is installed.
Table 3.1 lists and briefly describes the utilities available when you install
the Accessibility options.
Table 3.1 Accessibility Options
Type of Option |
Option |
Description |
Keyboard |
|
Control the way in which the keyboard operates. |
|
StickyKeys |
Enables you to use the Ctrl, Shift, and Alt keys by pressing one key at a time, instead
of holding down both at the same time. |
|
FilterKeys |
Instructs Windows 98 to ignore brief or repeated keystrokes. You also can slow down
the repeat rate of keystrokes. |
|
ToggleKeys |
Assigns a sound to beep when you press Caps Lock, Num Lock, or Scroll Lock. |
Sound |
|
Display visual cues when your computer generates a sound. |
|
SoundSentry |
Instructs Windows 98 to display visual warnings when your system makes a sound. Some
of these actions include flashing the active caption bar or desktop when a sound
occurs. |
|
ShowSounds |
Configures your applications to display captions for the speech and sound they make. |
Display |
|
Controls how your monitor displays information. |
|
High Contrast |
Directs Windows 98 to use colors and fonts that are easy to read, such as white on
black, black on white, or a custom combination that you provide. |
Mouse |
|
Replaces the mouse with keyboard actions. |
|
MouseKeys |
Enables you to control the pointer by using the numeric keypad on your keyboard.
You also can change the pointer speed and choose to use MouseKeys with Num Lock on
or off. |
General Settings |
|
Configure Accessibility options. |
|
Automatic Reset |
Turns off Accessibility features if they are idle for a specific amount of time.
The default is 5 minutes. |
|
Notification |
Prompts you when an Accessibility feature is turned on or off. |
|
SerialKeys |
Enables you to access keyboard and mouse features by using alternative input devices,
such as head pointers and eye-gaze systems. |
Accessibility Wizard |
|
Walks you through configuring vision, hearing, and mobility settings. |
Magnifier |
|
Enlarges sections of the screen to make text and images easier to see. |
Accessories (17.6MB)
Windows accessories include the Calculator, screen savers, games, wallpaper, and
other add-ons. In Windows 98, some of the accessories are improved and have been
replaced by other applications. WordPad, for example, is a more powerful word processor
that replaces Microsoft Write, which was available in Windows 3.x. The Windows Scripting
Host is a new applet that enables you to write scripts to automate Windows tasks.
The following lists summarizes each of the accessories components:
- Calculator (0.2MB). Enables you to perform calculations.
Installed by default.
- Desktop Wallpaper (0.7MB). Includes background pictures for your Windows
desktop.
- Document Templates (0.4MB). Enables you to easily create
new documents for your most common programs. You can see these file types after you
install Windows 98 and right-click the Windows desktop. From the context-sensitive
menu, choose New and the file type you want to create. Installed by default.
- Games (0.6MB). Entertainment for your entire family! Includes Minesweeper,
Hearts, and FreeCell games.
- Imaging. Provides the Kodak Image Viewer, ActiveX Controls, and
TWAIN support (for scanning). You can use Imaging for viewing faxes.
- Mouse Pointers (0.4MB). Installs easy-to-see pointers for your mouse (see
Figure 3.4).
FIG. 3.4 You can select
the type of pointers that your mouse uses by choosing different schemes in the Mouse
Properties dialog box.
- Paint (2.5MB). Replaces Windows 3.x's Paintbrush application. Paint is
used to create, modify, or view bitmap graphics.
- Quick View (4.7MB). Displays a preview of a document without opening it
in its native application. On CD-ROM only.
- Screen Savers (1.1MB). Includes several screen savers, including Flying
Windows and OpenGL screen savers, which display three-dimensional objects on your
screen.
- Windows Scripting Host (1.2B). Provides a script editor that supports
JavaScript and Visual Basic Scripting (VBScript) that you can use to write your own
scripts to automate Windows tasks.
- WordPad (1.7MB). An accessory in Windows worth using. WordPad replaces
Windows Write, which came bundled with Windows 3.x, and is a full-featured, OLE 2.0-compliant
word processor. You can create and edit documents in WordPad. It reads and saves
files in the Microsoft Word DOC format by default. WordPad can read Word
6.x and 7 DOC files, Windows Write (WRI), Word 97, Unicode text
files, rich text format (RTF), and text files (TXT).
Broadcast Data Services (0.8MB)
Broadcast Data Services installs the Announcement Listener, Webcast Client, and
TV enhancements, which enable you to receive broadcast television signals on your
PC.
Communications (11.8MB)
The Communications components include options for connecting to other computers
through the Internet, online services, direct modem-to-modem connections, and serial
and parallel cable connections.
The options available follow:
- Dial-Up Networking (1.2MB). Enables you to connect to other computers
and to the Internet by using your modem.
- Dial-Up Server (0.1MB). Turns your PC into a dial-up server, enabling
you or others to connect to it to upload or download files.
- Direct Cable Connection (0.5MB). Enables you to connect to another computer
by using the parallel or serial ports and a cable (see Figure 3.5).
FIG. 3.5 Use Direct Cable
Connection when you don't have a LAN set up but need to share files between two PCs.
- HyperTerminal (0.8MB). Replaces Terminal in Windows 3.x and is a full-featured
communications package that enables you to connect to other computers and online
services. HyperTerminal is a superior product if you need a general communications
package.
- Microsoft Chat 2.0 (4.5MB). Enables you to chat with other users over
the Internet or over a LAN that has a chat server.
- Microsoft NetMeeting (4.7MB). Enables you to call people over the Internet
or LAN and conduct online conferences (see Figure 3.6). You can share files, mark
up an electronic whiteboard, share applications, and talk to someone.
FIG. 3.6 You can use NetMeeting
to conduct online conferences.
- Phone Dialer (0.2MB). Enables you to use your computer to dial a phone
number by using your modem. After your computer dials, you can pick up the receiver
and start talking (assuming that someone picks up on the other end).
- Virtual Private Networking (0.1MB). Enables you to set up virtual private
network (VPN) support to have a secure connection to an intranet across the Internet
or other public networks.
Desktop Themes (30.5MB)
Desktop themes are collections of files that help dress up your Windows environment.
These collections are based on themes and include full-color wallpaper bitmaps, icons,
sounds, and mouse pointers. Some of these themes were available as an add-on package
(Microsoft Plus!) under Windows 95.
The following is a list of the desktop themes available: Baseball (2.6MB)
Dangerous Creatures (1.5MB)
Inside Your Computer (1.6MB)
Jungle (2.1MB)
Leonardo da Vinci (2.3MB)
More Windows (0.8MB)
Mystery (1.9MB)
Nature (1.8MB)
Science (1.4MB)
Space (2.2MB)
Sports (1.6MB)
The 60s USA (1.5MB)
The Golden Era (1.6MB)
Travel (1.5MB)
Underwater (2.7MB)
Windows 98 (1.6MB)
To use the desktop themes, you also need to install the Desktop Themes support
utility (2.4MB), as shown in Figure 3.7.
FIG. 3.7 The Desktop Themes
support utility enables you to configure desktop themes, such as the Baseball theme.
Internet Tools (15.5MB)
The Internet Tools category includes a set of Internet components new to Windows
98. Among other tasks, you can use these tools to create HTML documents (Web pages),
view Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML) content, and publish Web pages
to a Web server.
The following list describes each of the components in the Internet Tools category:
- Microsoft FrontPad (2.8MB). A stripped-down version of Microsoft Frontpage,
FrontPad enables you to create and edit HTML pages.
- Microsoft FrontPage Express (4.4MB). An HTML page editor.
- Microsoft VRML 2.0 Viewer (3.7MB). Enables you to view VRML images and
environments. VRML is a language that is used to create virtual reality environments
on the Internet.
- Microsoft Wallet (1.0MB). An application that stores credit-card information
you use to purchase items over the Internet.
- Personal Web Server (0.2MB). Provides a Web server you can set up on your
Windows 98 computer.
- Real Audio Player 4.0 (2.5MB). Enables you to play Real Audio streaming
video, audio, and animation files that you receive across the Internet.
- Web Publishing Wizard (1.1MB). Enables you to upload Web server content
to a Web server.
- Web-Based Enterprise Mgmt (0.2MB). Enables system administrators to conduct
remote tracking and system administration of your system.
Microsoft Outlook Express (5.4MB)
Outlook Express is an email program, newsgroup reader, and contact manager (see
Figure 3.8). You can use Outlook Express to send and retrieve Internet email, as
well as participate in Internet newsgroup discussions. You'll learn more about Outlook
Express in Chapter 21, "Configuring Outlook Express."
FIG. 3.8 Use Outlook Express
for your messaging needs.
Multilanguage Support (12.1MB)
Windows 98 provides support for multiple languages. To write documents in different
languages, select the Multilanguage Support component and select from the following
options:
- Baltic Language Support (2.4MB). Includes support for Estonian,
Latvian, and Lithuanian languages.
- Central European Language Support (2.6MB). Includes support for Albanian,
Czech, Croatian, Hungarian, Polish, Romanian, Slovak, and Slovenian languages.
- Cyrillic Language Support (2.5MB). Includes support for Bulgarian, Belarussian,
Russian, Serbian, and Ukrainian languages.
- Greek Language Support (2.4MB). Includes support for the Greek language.
- Turkish Language Support (2.3MB). Includes support for the Turkish language.
Multimedia (14.4MB)
The Multimedia component includes programs for playing sound, animation (including
Macromedia Shockwave and Flash files), and video. You also can get support for Digital
Versatile Discs (DVD) players. To select the Multimedia components to install,
you must have a multimedia-compliant computer, such as one with a CD-ROM and sound
card installed. The following list summarizes each component:
- Audio Compression (0.2MB). Compresses audio for playback
or recording on your computer.
- CD Player (0.2MB). Enables you to play audio CDs on your computer's CD-ROM
drive.
- DVD Player (0.3MB). Enables you to play DVD movies on your PC.
- Macromedia Shockwave Director (1.7MB). Enables you to play Macromedia
Director animation files. You can find many of these file types on the Internet.
- Macromedia Shockwave Flash (0.2MB). Enables you to play Macromedia Flash
files, many of which can be downloaded from the Internet.
- Media Player (0.3MB). Plays audio and video clips (see Figure 3.9). Media
Player plays the following file formats: Video for Windows (AVI), Wave (WAV),
MIDI (MID and RMI), and CD Audio. Installed by default.
FIG. 3.9 In Media Player,
you can play back that cool Video for Windows video clip that you've been dying to
watch.
- Microsoft NetShow Player 2.0 (4.0MB). Enables you to view NetShow streaming
multimedia files across the Internet or LAN.
- Multimedia Sound Schemes (6.5MB). Provides different sound schemes
you can associate with different Windows 98 events, such as starting Windows 98 or
maximizing a window.
- Sample Sounds (0.6MB). Provides sample sounds you can use to play back
on your system or assign to Windows events.
- Sound Recorder (0.2MB). Enables you to record and play sounds on your
PC if you have a sound card and microphone. Installed by default.
- Video Compression (0.5MB). Compresses video for multimedia playback or
recording on your computer.
- Volume Control (0.2MB). Enables you to adjust the volume
of the sound from your sound card (see Figure 3.10). Installed by default if Windows
98 detects a sound card.
FIG. 3.10 You can adjust
the volume of your speakers by using the Volume Control utility.
Online Services (1.2MB)
The Online Services category installs the software you need to connect to various
online services. Through these services, you can send email, connect to newsgroups,
and navigate the Internet.
The online services from which you can choose include the following:
- America Online (0.2MB)
- AT&T WorldNet Service (0.2MB)
- CompuServe (0.1MB)
- Prodigy Internet (0.8MB)
- The Microsoft Network (0.1MB)
System Tools (8.2MB)
The System Tools category provides utilities you can use to maintain your system,
view Clipboard contents, convert your system to a FAT32 file system, perform other
system tasks, and compress your disks.
The following summarizes each utility:
- Backup (5.1MB). Enables you to back up and restore backed-up files from
your hard drive to tape, floppy disks, or hard drives. It also can back up files
to a network drive.
- Character Map (0.1MB). Inserts symbols and characters into your documents.
- Clipboard Viewer (0.1MB). Displays the Clipboard's contents.
- Disk Compression Tools (2.2MB). Compress your disks using DriveSpace after
Windows 98 is installed. Enable you to pack more files onto your hard disk. Installed
by default.
- Drive Converter (0.4MB). Enables you to convert your FAT16 file system
to the FAT32 file system to improve performance and yield more usable space on a
large hard drive.
- Group Policies (0.1MB). Enables you to set up group system policies.
- Net Watcher (0.2MB). Enables you to monitor your network server and connections.
Installed by default.
- System Monitor (0.2MB). Enables you to monitor your system performance.
Not to be confused with the System Resource Meter.
- System Resource Meter (0.1MB). Although this option is not selected by
default, you might want to install it. It's a helpful utility that lets you view
system-resource levels, including Graphics Device Interface (GDI) and user
resources. As you work, the Resource Meter appears on the far left side of the Windows
taskbar. To see the System Meter in more detail, double-click the meter to display
the screen shown in Figure 3.11.
FIG. 3.11 Use the Resource
Meter to see how your system resources are being used by Windows 98.
- WinPopup (0.1MB). On a network, enables you to send and receive pop-up
messages to and from other users.
WebTV for Windows
WebTV for Windows enables you to subscribe to content that is broadcast over LANs,
direct-broadcast satellites, and local TV stations. To use WebTV, you need to have
a video card that supports TV reception. See Chapter 17, "Configuring PC TV
Devices," for more information. l


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