Welcome to your workstation and the world of visual processing!
Once your workstation is up and running, you can begin learning about the environment in which you'll be working. The Desktop User's Guide will help you do just that. Turn to this guide to:
get step-by-step instructions for completing essential tasks, such as printing files, finding files, and running applications
learn techniques and shortcuts that will make you a more efficient workstation user
This guide also serves as a reference—a place to look when you need to know what a particular command does or on which menu it appears.
If you have not yet set up your workstation, see your owner's guide for instructions.
When you log into your system for the first time, a collection of windows and icons appears on your screen by default. The collection of windows and icons is called a desk. The default desk, or working desk, contains:
the desktop and the icons that appear on it
the toolchests
the Icon Catalog
the console window
Below, you see a description of each of these items.
The screen background is called the desktop. It's a place for you to set frequently used icons so you have quick and easy access to them. In this way, the desktop is similar to an actual office desk. For example, sitting on your desk, you might have a telephone, a container of pens and pencils, and a stack of folders or notebooks related to the projects on which you're currently working, Other, less frequently used items are stashed away in desk drawers.
By default, several icons are placed on the desktop: a folder icon representing your home directory, a dumpster icon, several application icons, and an icon for each peripheral you have installed.
The stack of toolchests is similar to a phone book. It provides a listing of most all system functions and programs. Move the cursor over a label on a toolchest; then press the left or right mouse button to pop up a menu.
The Icon Catalog has a blue background and a row of tabs along the bottom edge of the window. It shows collections of applications and tools that are available on your system. You can
browse through the icons to see what applications are available
run applications by double-clicking their icons
find icons you want to use; then drag them onto the desktop or onto a shelf so they are easily accessible
create your own collection of icons.
For example, suppose you use a combination of programs to create and edit movies. You can create a new page; then place icons for these tools onto that page.
Each collection is stored on a separate page. If you want to create your own collection of icons, you can add pages to the Icon Catalog.
The small box next to the toolchests is the console window. (It looks like a small box because it has been minimized.) Many of the error messages that the system generates appear in this window. Open it to its full size by clicking on it with the left mouse button. You can type IRIX commands in this window.
To get started, you need to know a few basic techniques for using the mouse and working with icons.
To select an icon, place the cursor over the icon; then click the left mouse button. Icons turn yellow when they are selected.
To select several icons, press the < Shift> key while selecting the icons or press the left mouse button and drag the mouse.
All icons touched by the box you create are selected.
To open an icon, place the cursor over the icon; then double-click the left mouse button.
When you open an application icon, you run the application; when you open a folder icon, you open a window that shows the contents of that directory.
To drag and drop icons, place the cursor on an icon, then press the left mouse button and move the mouse.
Release the mouse button to drop the icon. Application and folder icons turn blue when they are ready to accept an icon. A drop pocket also turns blue when it is ready to accept an icon. This drag-and-drop technique lets you move icons from one directory to another, launch applications with a particular file, and place icons in drop pockets.
To display a pop-up menu that contains commands from the Selected menu, place the cursor over a window or on the desktop background; then press the right mouse button.
Most of the windows that appear on your screen have standard fixtures. Figure 1-1 shows a window and labels some of the common fixtures.
You can use the fixtures labeled in Figure 1-1 to manipulate windows in a variety of ways.
 | Note: Occasionally, you see a window that's missing these fixtures. Such a window is called a borderless window. |
The title bar allows you to move, raise, and lower windows.
Place the cursor in the title bar; then press the left mouse button and drag to move the window.
Place the cursor in the title bar; then click the left mouse button to raise the window to the top of the stack of windows.
Place the cursor in the title bar; then press the <Ctrl> key and left mouse button simultaneously to lower the window to the bottom of the stack of windows.
The Window menu button lets you access the Window menu and provides a shortcut for closing windows.
Place the cursor over the button and press the left mouse button to see the Window menu.
Double-click the button with the left mouse button to close the window.
You click the Minimize button with the left mouse button to turn the window into a small, square icon. This doesn't close the window or stop any of the programs that are running. It turns it into an icon that takes up less screen space.
You click the Maximize button with the left mouse button to make the window as large as it can be. Some windows become as large as the screen; others change only slightly. If a window doesn't change or becomes smaller when you click the Maximize button, the window was already at its largest size. To restore a maximized window to its original size, click the Maximize button again.
You use the border in conjunction with the mouse buttons and keyboard keys to manipulate the window in a variety of ways:
Place the cursor on the border; then press the right mouse button to open the Window menu.
Place the cursor on the border. When you see a resize cursor, drag the mouse to resize the window.
Place the cursor on the border; then press the middle mouse button and drag to move the window.
Place the cursor on the border; then press the left mouse button to raise the window.
Place the cursor on the border; then press the <Ctrl> key and left mouse button simultaneously to lower the window.
You will see windows with scroll bars along the left or right and top or bottom edge. These indicate that the window is too small to display all of its contents. Use the scroll bar to view hidden portions of the window.
A drop pocket is the small square into which you can drop icons. Here are several ways in which you can use drop pockets:
Drag a folder icon and place it into the drop pocket on an Icon View window.
The window displays the contents of that folder.
Drag a file or application icon and place it in the drop pocket on an Icon View window.
The window displays the contents of the directory in which that icon is stored. For example, suppose you drag the IRIS Showcase icon into the drop pocket. The window displays the contents of the /usr/sbin directory.
Drag an IRIS Showcase icon and drop it into a drop pocket on the Search tool to specify the type of files you want to find—in this case, IRIS Showcase files.
You can also drag icons out of the drop pocket and place them onto the desktop, onto a shelf, or into the Icon Catalog.
The icon finder field shows the full pathname of the directory whose icon or contents are displayed in the window. You can type a new name in this field to display the contents of a different directory.
The path bar lets you move from one directory to another, without typing. It contains a small button representing each directory in the pathname. See Figure 1-2.
The Recycle button keeps a list of names you have specified in a type-in field. For example, place the cursor over the Recycle button on an Icon View window; then press the left mouse button to see a list of directories whose contents you have previously displayed in the window. Choose an item from this list and the window changes to display the contents of that directory.
Your workstation includes many bundled software tools. Most of these tools have icons that appear on the desktop or on a page in the Icon Catalog .
Here are a few examples of the tools and their capabilities:
Create and edit text files using jot and IRIS Showcase .
Create interactive presentations that include 3D models, audio, video, and 2D graphics using IRIS Showcase .
Browse the Web using Netscape ; create HTML files using WebMagic; publish files on the Web using OutBox.
Touch up images using the ImageVision tools.
Keep track of the time and date using a clock and calendar program.
Listen to compact discs or DAT tapes using CD Manager and DAT Manager .
Create and edit audio files using Sound Editor or Sound Track .
Create and watch movies using Movie Player and Movie Maker .
You can also open the Icon Catalog by selecting “Icon Catalog” from the Find toolchest.
The Audio Control Panel lets you adjust the audio parameters such as the volume and sampling rates of audio coming into your system. Use it to set up and control microphones, CD players, and other audio devices connected to your workstation.
See the Help in the Audio Control Panel for information on using the panel.
You can also open the Audio Control Panel by selecting “Control Audio” from the Desktop toolchest, or by double-clicking the apanel icon on the Media Tools page of the Icon Catalog.
You can use the System and Desktop Sounds panel to turn system sounds on or off.
Identifying yourself as a user—logging in—is the first step you take to begin using your workstation. Creating your own login account is the second step. Initially, you can log in using one of the default login accounts. See “Using Existing Login Accounts” to learn why you should limit your use of these accounts; see “Why Create a Login Account?” to learn about the benefits of having your own login account.
If you didn't create an account when you first booted up your system, see “Creating a User Login Account” in the Personal System Administration Guide to learn how to create your account.
To log in to an account, select an icon, then click the Login button. If the account has a password, type in the account password.
To log out of an account:
Choose “Log Out” from the Desktop toolchest.
A notifier appears asking if you really want to log out.
Click the Yes button in the notifier to confirm that you want to log out.
To register your system, fill out and return the On-Line Registration form. To open the form, double-click the Register&Win icon on your desktop. If the icon doesn't appear on your desktop, you can access it from the WhatsNew page in the Icon Catalog by selecting “WhatsNew” from the Find toolchest.
| Note: The information you provide will only be used by Silicon Graphics® and/or the reseller who sold you your system. |
Access online help and online documentation from the Help toolchest.
Choose “Info Search” and the documentation search tool appears. This lets you access and search all documentation on the system, including online books, help, man pages, and release notes.
Choose “How Do I” and a listing of common high-level tasks appears. How Do I tells you which application you need to use to accomplish a particular task, and also lets you launch the application from the help card.
Additionally, each application provides a Help button or Help menu so that you can get help on the particular application.
Choose “Online Books” and the IRIS InSight Document Library appears.
Once IRIS InSight is open, you can type in a word or phrase and quickly find and open the books that contain the information you need. See the Help in IRIS InSight for instructions.
Choose “How Do I” from the Help toolchest, and a listing of common high-level tasks appears. How Do I tells you which application you need to use to accomplish a task, and also lets you launch the application from the help card.
Additionally, each application provides a Help button or Help menu so that you can get help on a particular application.
You can also open an overview description of some icons by selecting the icon and selecting “What Is This?” from the Selected menu in an Icon View, Icon Catalog, or toolchest.
Some style conventions make the information in this guide easy to access and understand. This list tells you what they are.
References to other documents are in italics.
References to other chapters and sections within this guide are in “quotation marks.”
Names of buttons are in italics.
Names of keys on the keyboard are in Courier bold font and are surrounded by angled brackets. For example, “press the <Enter> key.”
Names of menu choices are in “quotation marks.”
Numbered sentences are sequential steps you follow to complete a task. Sentences that follow a step and are preceded with a box are substeps; they describe in detail how to accomplish the step. Once you're familiar with the procedure, you probably won't need to refer to the substeps.
Links to other sections are colored blue and links to glossary definitions are underlined.
To learn how to access your workstation—log in, log out, and shut off the power — see Chapter 2, “Accessing Your System.”
To learn how to find, run, and install applications, see Chapter 3, “Using Applications.”
To learn how to work with files and directories, see Chapter 4, “Creating, Editing, and Saving Your Work.”
To learn how to print files and customize printer settings, see Chapter 5, “Printing,”
To learn how to find and organize icons, see Chapter 6, “Managing Icons.”
To learn how to organize windows into desks, see Chapter 7, “Using Desks.”
To learn how to move, resize, and close windows, see Chapter 8, “Managing Windows.”
To learn how to copy files across a network or to tape, and to set and change permission settings, see Chapter 9, “Sharing and Protecting Files.”
For information on setting up and changing your working environment, see Chapter 11, “Customizing the Desktop.”
To learn how to use utilities such as a clock or calendar, see Chapter 12, “Using System Utilities.”
For information on a particular menu, command, or button, see Chapter 13, “Reference.”
For information on using the text editor jot, see Appendix B, “jot.”
To learn how to manage your workstation, see the Personal System Administration Guide. It describes how to use the System Manager tools to maintain your workstation and shell commands to augment the System Manager's capabilities.
For information on your workstation, see the owner's guide that came with your workstation.