NVDA: Desktop Navigation

What is a desktop?

The desktop is the main interface of a computer. When a computer starts up, it’s the first place you go. You can navigate to other places on your computer from the desktop.

Navigating the desktop

Most people have lots of icons on their desktop. Icons are a quick option to open a program or a file that you use regularly. You can navigate using the first letter of the program or file you want to open. If you wanted to open a file called Weather, type w and you will cycle through anything on the desktop that starts with a w.

To try out first letter navigation on your desktop, use Windows key + d to go to your desktop, then start pressing a letter and listen to what’s there. Use alt + tab to get back to this page.

How many icons start with r on your desktop? Remember you need to use Windows key + d to go to the desktop, and alt + tab to come back to this page.

Did you find at least one, called Rubbish Bin? That’s on most computers.

Start menu

Another quick way to start a program is to use the Windows key to open the start menu. Type in the name of the program and check through the search results using the arrow keys to find the program you are looking for, then press Enter to open the program.

Can you open a Word document using the start menu? Remember to come back here once you’ve done it using alt + tab. Read on to the next paragraph if you need some clues or you can have a go now.

To open the start menu, press the Windows key, then type Word. If Word isn’t the first search result, use the down arrow until you hear Word, then press Enter.

Have you got a Word document open? You’re already prepared for an upcoming activity! Now you can activate the link below to go on to the next page about web browser navigation.