| CREATE A SHORTCUT ICON |
As I was saying in the previous START Menu section; In Windows 7 icons are used to execute (launch/run) a file. So if you execute the game Solitaire from the START Menu for example it is the playing-card icon you click on that actually executes the game (file) called Solitaire. And more precisely, that playing-card icon is only a copy of the original playing-card icon. The original playing-card icon is attached to the actual Solitaire game (file). And this is true for all programs, games and so on that have an icon - Their original icon is attached to their .exe (executable) file. When you pin a file (i.e. a program or game) to the START Menu a Shortcut Icon is created for it by Windows 7.
A Shortcut Icon (or Link) is the copy icon. Its job is to know where the original .exe file (executable file) is on your computer so that when you click or double click on that shortcut icon, depending on where the shortcut icon is (i.e. on the Desktop or START Menu), it knows which .exe file to execute. So the Solitaire playing-card icon pinned to the START Menu is a shortcut icon. It is associated with (linked to) the game file called Solitaire. When you click on that shortcut icon it looks inside the Games folder for a file called Solitaire.exe for example and executes it. That .exe file then sets up the game Solitaire.
With a shortcut icon, such as the Notepad icon, you do not necessarily care where its associated/linked .exe file (program: Notepad.exe) is on the computer. You just click, or double click, on the shortcut icon and its associated/linked .exe file (program: Notepad.exe) is executed (opened/launched). Behind the scenes though the shortcut icon finds out the location of the associated/linked .exe file and then adds that location to its icon settings (Properties). In the case of the START Menu Notepad shortcut icon, it is linked to (associated with) the Notepad.exe program (file) that lives inside the sub-folder called SYSTEM32. When you click on the Notepad shortcut icon it looks inside the SYSTEM32 sub-folder for the program called Notepad.exe and then executes (opens/launches) it.
To get inside the SYSTEM32 sub-folder you start by going inside the root/main folder called COMPUTER. From there you go inside the C:\ Hard Drive sub-folder, which is inside the COMPUTER folder. You then go inside the WINDOWS sub-folder, which is inside the C:\ Hard Drive sub-folder. Finally. You go inside the SYSTEM32 sub-folder, which is inside the WINDOWS sub-folder. So to execute Notepad.exe yourself each time would mean going through four folders and clicking at least nine times (COMPUTER = 1 Click, three Sub-Folders = 6 clicks and Notepad.exe = 2 clicks), whereas to click on the START Menu Notepad shortcut icon to execute Notepad.exe would mean 1 click and not having to go inside any folders.
A Shortcut Icon (Link) does not have to be associated with a particular program (file). It can be associated to a Folder or a File. For example. If you created a sub-folder for your Italian Holiday pictures called Italy 2005, inside the PICTURES folder, you could create a Shortcut Icon (Link) for that sub-folder on the Desktop.
The easiest way to create a shortcut icon that goes on the Desktop is to use the SEND TO sub-menu. Assuming you have created a folder inside the PICTURES
folder (see the Folders and Files section for folder creation) start by placing
the mouse pointer over that folder so that it becomes highlighted, in blue. Then, with the mouse pointer kept still whilst over that folder, click on the
right mouse button to bring up the folder's Options menu (above).
With the Options menu displayed go down its menu-items with the mouse pointer until you reach (highlight) the SEND TO sub-menu (denoted by a black
right-arrow) and then move the mouse pointer rightwards, in a straight line, towards the black arrow. When you reach the black arrow the SEND TO sub-menu
menu-items will appear. All you need to do then is move the mouse pointer down those menu-items until you have the DESKTOP (CREATE SHORTCUT) menu-item
highlighted and then left click on it. If you did everything correctly you should end up with a Shortcut Icon on the desktop that has the same name as
your folder plus the wording: - shortcut.
A desktop shortcut icon, as opposed to a Pinned-To Programs List link (shortcut icon), will always be created with an Arrow on it. In my Windows 7 colour
scheme it is always a blue arrow with a square white background, as above.
Another way to create a shortcut icon is to use the Options menu, menu-item CREATE A SHORTCUT. You do the same as above but instead of using the
SEND TO sub-menu you use the menu-item called CREATE A SHORTCUT on the Options menu itself (Fig 3.2 below). The difference with using CREATE A SHORTCUT
is that it creates the shortcut icon in the same place as your folder (or file). In this example, inside the Pictures folder (Fig 3.3).
Obviously there is no point in having the shortcut icon in the same place as your folder (or file). The whole point of the shortcut icon is to allow you
to get to your original folder (or file) as quickly as possible, in the least amount of clicks. Therefore, you need to move this newly created shortcut
icon. In this next example I will show you how to drag (move) the shortcut icon to the Desktop from the PICTURES folder.
Begin by re-sizing the PICTURES folder if need be (see the Windows section for more
information) so that you can see a part of the Desktop as well as the opened and re-sized (shrunken) PICTURES folder (window). After that click on the
shortcut icon inside the PICTURES folder, but keep the left mouse button clicked (held down). Do not release the left mouse button. Keep it held down
while you then move the mouse pointer away from the PICTURES folder (window) and towards the Desktop.
When the mouse pointer is over the desktop, so no longer over the PICTURES folder (window), you should see a blue arrow appear next to the mouse pointer with the words MOVE TO DESKTOP (Fig 3.4 below). You might have to pause the mouse pointer for a second or two for this to happen but when it does you can let go of the left mouse button. This means the shortcut icon is ready to be placed on the desktop - The shortcut icon will disappear from the PICTURES folder and onto the desktop.
As a final example, I will show you how to move the shortcut icon using the Cut & Paste method (see the
Copy & Paste section for more information). Basically, the function of CUT is just
the same as getting a pair of scissors and cutting out a picture of a shortcut icon and the function of PASTE is just the same as pasting (gluing) that
picture into a scrap book for example.
Create the shortcut icon inside the PICTURES folder as in Figures 3.2 and 3.3 above, using the CREATE A SHORTCUT menu-item on the Options menu from the
Italy2005 folder, and then right click on that created shortcut icon to bring up its own Options menu. From there, move the mouse pointer over the CUT
menu-item so that it is highlighted (Fig 3.5 below) and then left click on CUT. This will make the shortcut icon become faded.
Now move the mouse pointer towards a clear (empty) part of the desktop - It is in this part of the desktop where the shortcut icon will be placed (pasted/glued down), so choose a good part. When you are happy with the mouse pointer's position right click on the desktop to bring up its Options menu (Fig 3.6 below). Highlight the PASTE menu-item, by moving the mouse pointer over it, and then left click on it. This will paste (move/glue down) the shortcut icon onto the desktop, from the PICTURES folder, leaving the shortcut icon in a highlighted state on the desktop (Fig 3.7).
By creating a shortcut icon, on the desktop, for your Holiday Pictures folder (i.e. Italy2005) it means you only have to double click (click twice) on that desktop shortcut icon to view your holiday pictures. Whereas, if you had to go inside the main PICTURES folder and then inside your Holiday Pictures folder (sub-folder) to view your holiday pictures you would be clicking at least four times - START Menu (1 click), PICTURES (1 click) and your Holiday Pictures folder (two clicks). Now imagine your Holiday Pictures folder was buried six sub-folders deep (at least 6 double clicks) versus 1 click on a desktop shortcut icon!
The examples in this section apply equally to creating a shortcut icon for a file. Also. Shortcut Icons can be dragged onto the START Menu, pinned-to the taskbar, dragged from the START Menu to the Desktop and so on. So you could drag the VIDEOS folder (link) from the START Menu onto the Desktop for example or pin a START Menu program to the taskbar. Basically. Experiment by dragging icons from one place to another to see what happens. For example. Drag a Flash Drive's icon from the COMPUTER folder onto the Desktop. And right click on a folder or file to see what options it has available.
Microsoft product screen shot(s) reprinted with permission from Microsoft Corporation. As stated here by the Microsoft Corporation.
