A major advantage of learning how to work in the Windows environment is that, once basic skills and concepts are learned in one Windows application, one can easily apply the skills and concepts to practically any other Windows-based application.
Some customers are surprised to learn about one of the most important features in Windows: It is possible to launch more than one application in the same session, run them simultaneously, and switch between them instantly. One easy way to demonstrate this is to bring up the Windows Program Manager Task List: Hit the <Ctrl-Esc> key combination, double-click on 'Program Manager', launch any other program by double-clicking on its icon, then hit <Ctrl-Esc> again to see the newly launched application on the Task List. Double-clicking on any application listed in the Task List causes Windows to switch to that application immediately, returning you to exactly the same mode, place, and so forth where you last left the application. If several applications are running at once, you might prefer to cycle through the most recently used applications by holding down the <Alt> key and pressing <Tab> until the desired window is found. Not only does this allow you to switch applications without having to quit one application and re-launch another application, but the transfer of data from one application to another can often be accomplished in merely a few keystrokes, in merely a few seconds!
Note that, in Windows, little distinction is made between printer and plotter output. In fact, printer and plotter options are even accessed via the same 'Printers' Control Panel icon. Although there are a couple of important distinctions you will need to be aware of, unless noted otherwise, references made in this document to printers and printer output also apply to plotters and plotter output.
After Time Line for Windows has built its graphic picture in memory, Windows device driver handles the actual output to printers and plotters. This means that controls over settings such as paper size, orientation, resolution, colors, font substitutions, and how the computer sends graphics data to the printer or plotter device are ultimately controlled by Windows itself, or sometimes even by other third-party software. To take a look at some of the options that can affect printed and plotted output, in the Windows Program Manager, double-click on the Control Panel icon in the group called Main double-click on the Printers icon. If a printer or plotter is not already selected, select one, then click on the Setup button. That was the "long" way to access these Windows controls. Time Line for Windows provides a short-cut to most of these same controls via the File, Printer Setup menu.
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