Comparing Common Windows Terms with Mac Terms
Computers seem to run on jargon. Many of the buzzwords and common terms used to work with Macs are exactly the same as those used for Windows: files, users, log on, log out, open, close, shut down, help, and most networking and Internet terms. Terms used to describe the graphical interface are mostly the same, too: menu, check box, dialog box, radio button, dragging, clicking, and double-clicking.
But some terms are different between the Mac and Windows PC. The following table provides the equivalent terms or types of programs for each platform.
|Windows||Mac OS X|
|Control Panel||System Preferences|
|Exit (Alt+FX)||Quit (Command+Q)|
|My Documents||Documents folder|
|My Music||Music folder|
|My Pictures||Pictures folder|
|Recycle Bin||Trash Can|
|Hourglass cursor (busy signal)||Spinning beach ball (busy signal)|
|Windows Explorer||Finder window|
|Windows Update||Software Update|