 The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group Learn Windows 95 Gloria Simos gsimos@melbpc.org.au |
I used the Easy Tutor "Learn Windows 95" CD-ROM training course one year
after having installed Windows 95 on my PC. When I first installed Win 95 a friend gave me another Win 95
course on a CD-ROM which proved to be a complete waste of time. It consisted of a pair of talking heads
extolling the virtues of the system and presenting only an overview of the features. It was not my idea of a
training course.
The Easy Tutor version is a different kettle of fish. It doesn't contain any talking heads and it takes you
far beyond the overview stage. I was surprised to find it included a brief demo of registry editing. I would
have appreciated it much more a year ago when I really needed it. Even now, it still managed to teach me some
things about Win 95 that I didn't know. It won't turn you into a super-user, but if you are just starting
with Win 95 it will get you over that initial hump in the learning curve.
Expect to spend half a day with this CD-ROM, if, as well as doing the practical activities, you occasionally
swap into Win 95 on your PC, rather than confining yourself to the set activities in the pseudo Win 95 on the
CD-ROM. It is priced at the level of a three-hour course with an instructor, but with some added advantages.
You can do the topics at your own pace and, if necessary, re-do them if they don't sink in, without the rest
of the class knowing, and other family members can do it for free, provided of course, it is used on a single
PC.
Get a head start on learning Win 95
You do not need to have Win 95 on your PC as long as you have Windows 3.1 and 4 MB RAM. You can run the
course directly from the CD-ROM.
Course description
Easy Tutor contains ten groups of topics as shown in Figure 1 below.
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Using the "How to" option, each topic starts with an explanation of the
function. You can sit back and allow the system to "demo" (with voice-over) but if you use the "try it"
option and follow the voice instructions you get brownie points in the form of a tick next to the item. Of
course you can both "demo" and "try it" for maximum effect.
Often the description of the function includes multiple methods of doing a task but the "demo" and "try it"
show one only. This is where, if you have Win 95 on your PC, you can swap over to your version of Win 95 to
try out the other methods.
Other buttons provide access to Windows 3.1 equivalent tasks and a detailed glossary.
The "Concept" option was a disappointment. It is supposed to "help you understand the benefits of what you
have learned." Unfortunately it is little more than a showcase for someone's cartoon graphics. The kids might
like it but having tried a few examples I found their "animated storyboard" irritating.
After you have completed one or more modules you can return to the initial screen to test yourself on what
you have learnt. If you have been using the "demo" option then the system doesn't have a record of your
progress so the questions are at random. Questions are asked in sets of ten and the system pats you on the
back even if you get two out ten right.
Try these two
- What is the largest file size that the MS-DOS editor will open?
- How do you start Program Manager under Windows 95?
Conclusion
This training CD-ROM would be appropriate for a person who has already used Windows 3.1 and plans to or has just upgraded to Win 95. It is not suited to users who are starting their Windows experience, from scratch with Win 95.
Reprinted from the July 1997 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
