On April 3rd, the Technology Committee decided to make some changes to Desktop and Start Menu on public stations. The Desktop has seen some minor changes over the years, but this is the first time the Technology Committee discussed all of its contents at one time. The changes will occur on Windows 10 public stations that allow full internet access and will be completed Sunday, June 16th after libraries are closed. Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 public stations will not be reconfigured as they continue to be replaced by newer computers.
Changes to the Desktop
- Calculator will be added.
- Resources for Job Seekers website shortcut will be added. This collection of resources for local job seekers is maintained by the Workforce Development Specialist at SCLS, Mark Jochem. The shortcut will be labeled “Job Resources.”
- Internet Explorer will be removed. Internet Explorer will still be available on the computer, but will only be accessible from the Start Menu. The committee decided that Internet Explorer is rarely used and should not be taking up space on the Desktop. That said, it is a good idea to keep it available from the Start Menu in case a certain website does not display properly with Chrome or Edge.
- Windows Media Player will be removed. VLC is the more versatile and popular media player. Windows Media Player will remain installed on the PCs, so that any file that requires it will still open.
- Computer will be renamed to "This PC." "This PC" is the default name for this shortcut on Windows 10 PCs.
- My Documents will be renamed to “Documents.”
- My Pictures will be renamed to “Pictures.”
- My Videos will be removed. This folder is rarely used. The "Videos" folder can still be accessed by opening “This PC” on the Desktop.
- My Music will be removed. This folder is rarely used. The "Music" folder can still be accessed by opening "This PC" on the Desktop.
- Google Earth will be removed from the Desktop and uninstalled. The committee decided that this program is rarely used. Google Earth can still be loaded from the Chrome web browser.
New Start Menu
The Start Menu will be simplified to only include shortcuts to the web browsers and to the Microsoft Office programs. Other applications, like iTunes and VLC, will be removed from the Start Menu because frequent updates would break the shortcuts.
Comments