By changing the settings in the View Menu on Microsoft Internet Explorer and reconfiguring the Internet settings in the Control Panel, browser may choose a variety of font sizes, style and font color of their choice. Knowing this procedure will development the skills in browsing the computer. This may also help people who want to personalize their computer and people who have reading problems in terms of font color, style and font size. This procedure applies only Microsoft Windows Explorer 

Materials Needed:

- Internet connection
- Microsoft Window 98 Standard Edition and Second Edition
- Windows NT
- Windows XP
- Microsoft Internet Explorer version 1 to 5.

Step 1

To reconfigure the Internet settings in the Control Panel, go to Start Menu, open the Control Panel, Internet option and select Accessibility. On the Accessibility option check on 'Ignore font sizes specified on Web Page' or the rest of the option format to change the setting and press Ok.

Step 2

To change the font style, go to Start Menu, open the Control Panel, Internet Option and select Fonts. On the Font option, user may choose their desired font style for Web page font and for Plain text font. After choosing the intended style, press the OK button.

Step 3

To change the font color, go to Start Menu, open the Control Panel, Internet Option and select Colors. On the Color option, uncheck the 'Use Window colors' and start selecting the desired color for text and background color.

Step 4

To change the Font size of a web page by using the Internet Explorer, go to 'Start Menu', 'all programs' and open 'Internet Explorer'. Click on the View Menu button on the upper side of the screen. In keyboard action, to open the View Menu is by pressing the command 'Alt + v'.

Step 5

On the drop down menu option, highlight and select 'Text size' and choose the font size that you like. The Font sizes are categorized from very small to largest.

Step 6

Double click on the selected size or simply highlight the size and press enter. User may notice the changes of the Fonts in the page, find the size of your choice and you may continue to browse the Internet.

Step 7

If user wants to restore the web page format, go to Internet Option and open 'Accessibility' On the Accessibility option uncheck the 'Ignore font sizes specified on Web Page' or the rest of the option format to change the setting and press Ok. After completing the procedure, the web page will restore on its default settings.

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One of the main reasons why some files are hidden by Windows is that a user may unknowingly modify or delete them and this may prove catastrophic for the Operating System (OS). There are times when these files actually need to be accessed, such as when troubleshooting or when removing malicious software from your computer, since these harmful programs use hidden files to make them hard to detect and remove.

Materials Needed:

- Computer
- Windows OS

Step 1

The steps will vary according to the type of Operating System you have installed in your computer.

Step 2

For Windows Vista users, make sure that all programs are closed before you begin. Go and click on the 'Start' button and move to 'Control Panel'. The window that appears will depend on the type of view you have set. If set to Control Panel Home View, access the link 'Appearance and Personalization'. Once there, select 'Show Hidden Files or Folders'. In the Hidden Files and Folders window, select the button marked as 'Show hidden files and folders'. If your system is set to the 'Classic View', just select 'Folder Options', go to 'View', and select the button marked as 'Show hidden files and folders' in the Hidden Files and Folders window. Remove the check marks beside both 'Hide extensions for known file types' and 'Hide protected Operating System files'. Click on 'Apply' and then 'OK'.

Step 3

For users of Windows XP, go to the Control Panel. In the Control Panel window, select 'Folder Options'. On the window that opens, select 'View'. Find 'Advance' settings. From here, click on 'Show hidden files and folders' and remove the 'Hide protected Operating System files' mark as well as 'Hide protected Operating System files'. Click on 'OK' to show these hidden files and folders.

Step 4

For Windows 98, make sure that all programs are closed and go to the desktop. Go to My Computer, then to 'View', and proceed to 'Folder Options'. On the window that will appear, select 'View'. Look for 'Show all files' and click on it. Click on the 'Apply' button and then 'OK'.

Step 5

After these different steps (depending on your Operating System), you will now be able to see the hidden files and folders in your computer. Just remember that changing some of the files, especially system files, can cause significant changes in the way your computer behaves. Thus, it should be done with care.

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The hard drive is considered as the storage center of a computer. All of your files, folders, programs, and even the Operating System are saved in the hard disk. When the hard drive is totally erased, these programs will be erased with it too. However, some people choose to erase a hard drive because they may simply want to renew or reformat their computer or they want to get rid of a hard-headed malware. 

Materials Needed:

- External storage media (e.g. CDs
- DVDs
- flash disks
- or card)
- hard drive
- computer
- device drivers of everything in your CPU
- Operating System installation CD

Step 1

Check if you already have backup copies of all the files saved in the hard drive. If not, better make back up copies of your files first before proceeding to the next step. You can do this by burning a copy of your files in CDs or DVDs or by simply making copies in flash disks or media cards.

Step 2

Does your computer have a system recovery disk? If yes, proceed to the next step. If not, proceed to Step 5.

Step 3

Place the system recovery disk in the applicable drive. This special disk will help you to easily format and reinstall the Operating System.

Step 4

Follow the on-screen instructions from the disk. This will lead you to erasing the hard drive and may also help you to re-install the necessary applications after formatting.

Step 5

Use the DOS command prompt to format or erase the hard drive. Do this by opening the command link prompt. You can do this by clicking the 'Start' button and choosing the 'Run' option. Type the 'cmd' command in the open field and press 'Enter' or click 'OK'.

Step 6

The window for Command Line will open. Type 'format c: /u' or 'format c: /q'. The 'c:' here is the drive you want to erase. Meanwhile, the '/u' means unconditional format and the '/q' means quick format. The unconditional format is considered more secured than the quick format.

Step 7

Insert the installation CD of the Operating System after formatting the hard disk. You will be guided with the on-screen instructions on installing the Operating System.

Step 8

Formatting the hard drive may not totally erase its contents. Most computers are set to store copies of files in a hard drive. These copies may not be deleted even when formatting the hard drive. If you want to totally erase the hard drive, you need to use a special program called disk wipes for that. Some free disk wipes you can use are the Disk Redactor, Free Disk Wipe, QuickWiper, and R-Wipe & Clean.

Step 9

Some bits of data in a hard drive may still be recovered even after using a good disk wipe application. There are some IT professionals who can do this. If you do not want this to happen, the only way you can do is to physically destroy the hard drive.

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BIOS is also known as the Basic Input Output System and is stored in the motherboard, specifically in a memory chip. BIOS tells the computer to do several basic functions like keyboard control and booting. It is also used to detect and configure hardware attached to the CPU such as its floppy dive, optical drive, CPU, memory, and hard drive. Modern computers contain BIOS. It is also used to access computer systems regardless of whether the computer is running on Linux, UNIX, Windows Vista, or Windows XP. It functions outside of the environment of the Operating System since it is a part of the motherboard.

Materials Needed:

- Computer Motherboard
- Operating System
- keyboard
- mouse
- CPU

Step 1

Turn on the computer or reboot it if it is already on.

Step 2

Wait for a message saying 'Entering Set-up' after a few seconds once you have turned it on. The message may vary from PC to PC and you may also need to enter a key or a combination of keys to be able to enter BIOS. Usually, a function key such as F10 is used to be able to access it, but that still varies among computers. Sometimes, it may even be the DEL key or ESC key.

Step 3

Press the key or combination of keys instructed by the message to access BIOS. You may need to press it a number of times but do not press on it too many times and do not press it down because it may cause an error in the system or cause it to lock-up. In the event that happens, you may restart the PC and try once more.

Step 4

If a logo screen comes on such as one with Dell or HP instead of the display for the startup process, then you can check with the manufacturer of the PC or refer to the manual for instructions to turn that screen off in order to show the startup information.

Step 5

Before changing anything in BIOS, it is best to take note of all original settings so you can refer to it later if the PC needs to be reset.

Step 6

There are specific keys needed to be pressed depending on the brand of the computer. You can watch out for the info on the screen before the computer starts to enter BIOS or check with the manufacturer.

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The Universal Serial Bus (USB) is an extremely popular computer hardware interface introduced sometime in 1995 to provide computer users with a way of attaching secondary hardware devices that capitalize on the Plug-and-Play functionality of the Operating System. By 1997, almost every new computer system that rolled out of the assembly line was equipped with a USB port which was already supported as early as the Microsoft Windows 98 Operating System platform and has since then replaced all other connectivity standards. One USB port allows for the connection of literally hundreds of interchangeable devices like keyboards, modems, joysticks, mouse pointing devices, printers, external storage, digital cameras, and scanners among others. The presence of the USB port boosted the popularity of Plug-and-Play and has been closely associated with the term hot swappable which referenced devices that can be connected and disconnected without requiring the computer system to be turned off or rebooted.

Materials Needed:

- Computer with USB port
- Microsoft Windows XP Operating System
- motherboard documentation

Step 1

In some instances, in order to prevent unauthorized copying of data to USB-based storage devices, the USB port is disabled intentionally. To enable the USB port, click on the 'Start' button and right click on the 'My Computer' option.

Step 2

Choose the 'Manage' option from the context menu to open the Computer Management window. Click on the 'System Tools' category on the left panel. This will display all connected devices of the computer system at the right panel.

Step 3

Click on the '+' sign beside the Universal Serial Bus controllers option to expand it. Right click on the USB Root hub and select 'Enable'.

Step 4

Click on the 'File' menu and select 'Exit' to close the Computer Management window. Reboot the computer system to make sure the changes take effect.

Step 5

An alternative method for the Microsoft Windows environment is to click on the 'Start' button and select the 'Control Panel' option.

Step 6

Click on the 'Performance and Maintenance' category and select the 'System' option. This will open the System Properties window.

Step 7

Choose the 'Hardware' tab and click the 'Device Manage' button. In the Device Manager window, expand the option for the Universal Serial Bus category.

Step 8

Select the USB Root hub entry and click on the 'Enable' icon on the toolbar at the upper part of the Device Manager window. Click on the 'File' menu and select 'Exit'.

Step 9

To enable the USB port from the Windows Registry, click on the 'Start' button and select the 'Run' option.

Step 10

Type regedit in the Open box and click on the 'OK' button to bring up the Registry Editor window.

Step 11

Expand the SYSTEM category under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE. Click on the '+' beside CurrentControlSet and choose Services.

Step 12

Click the UsbStor option. This should display a list of registry keys in the right pane window. Double click on the 'Start' key and replace its value with 3. Make sure that Hexadecimal is selected.

Step 13

Click on the 'OK' button. Exit the Registry Editor to complete the process of enabling the USB port.

Step 14

A more direct method is to reboot the computer system and enter the BIOS setting configuration window. Refer to the motherboard’s documentation to identify how to access the BIOS settings and enable the USB port.

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