DIALOG BOX

What is a DIALOG BOX?

A small window which appears on the computer screen that either requires that you perform an
action, select an option, or provides you with information.

Ex.

Dialog boxes ask you questions like, "Do you want to save this document?" or "Are you
sure that you want to exit this program?"

TABS

Parts of a DIALOG BOX

COMMAND
BUTTONS
LIST
BOX

DROP-
DOWN
LIST BOX

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 SPIN
BUTTON
S
CHECK
BOX

CHECK
BOX

UNDERLINED LETTERS – Press ALT and the

underline letter in a field name to quickly jump to a
field.

OPTION /
RADIO
BUTTONS

TEXT
BOX

TRACK BAR
CONTROL

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 -You click OK to execute the command with the settings you’ve made

-Cancel to forget the whole thing.

-Some dialog boxes have Apply buttons that you click to apply any changes
you’ve made without closing the dialog box. You can then view the changes
you’ve made and make more changes if you’ll like.

How to use the Dialog Box components:

• TABS - click the tabs to show ‘pages’ of a dialog box.

• FIELDS - all dialog boxes have fields where you type text to select options.
• Underlined LETTERS - press ALT and the underlined letter in a field name to quickly
jump to that field.
• TEXT BOX - you type information such as a filename or program name in text boxes.
• DROP-DOWN LIST BOXES - it appears when you click the down-arrow button in a text
field.
• OK and Cancel Buttons - the two most common buttons which can be on a dialog box.
• Apply Button - some have this button to apply any changes you made without closing
the dialog box
• CHECK BOX - a toggle switch that you set on or off by clicking it with the mouse.
• SPIN BOX - used to scroll through a list of values or items.

• Selecting Options - you open a

menu, then click an option on the
menu to select it, just as you did
when working with the Start
Menu.

• Toggling an Option (.)- Options with check

marks are toggled options. If checked, it is on.
You toggle an option by clicking it with the
mouse.

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 • Choosing bulleted items (•) -
Options with bullets are part of
groups, and only one item in a
group can be on at a time. The
current selection in the group is
marked with a bullet.

Running a program:

• Browse through the folder hierarchy of your computer’s filing system until you locate the
program you want to start.
• Create special icons on the desktop called shortcuts that you can double-click to start a
program.
• Simply double-click a document or program you want to work with.
• Click Start button, click RUN… then type a program or application name in the open
textbox to launch, then press Enter key or click the Ok button.

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ICT 2010