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Welcome to the 'Setting up your new Windows desktop computer' course. In this video, you'll learn how to set up a new Windows computer. The steps will look the same whether you are following along on a brand new computer or a secondhand one that's been reset. Let's get started. If you see the previous owner's Sign In screen, you'll need to delete their account and all the files and data on the computer, so it's safe for you to use as your own computer. To learn how to do this, close this video and go to the 'Resetting your pre-owned Windows desktop computer' course. If you see the Language screen, then you're ready to begin setting up your Windows computer.
The Language screen lets you choose a language. For this demonstration, we are going to select English , so that words appear with Australian spelling. Once highlighted, click 'Continue in English' in the bottom right of the screen to continue. Next, you'll be asked to confirm your region. Scroll the list to find Australia and click on it once to highlight it in blue. Then click Yes to continue setting up. It's safe to tell your computer that you live in Australia. This doesn't give out your home address and it makes sure you get all the right updates and information for Australia. Now, it's time to get connected to the internet using Wi-Fi, so make sure you have your home Wi-Fi name and password ready to go. If you haven't changed them, these details should be written on the bottom of your home router. Look for your home Wi-Fi name in the list of available networks. When you find it, click on it. The box next to connect automatically should have a tick in it. If it doesn't, click the box once to tick it. This makes sure your computer will connect to Wi-Fi every time you turn it on, rather than asking you to put in the password each time. When you're ready, click Connect to continue. A white text box will appear. You need to type your home Wi-Fi password in here. Be careful to enter the password exactly, matching all capital letters and symbols. For security, you won't be able to see the password as you type it, but you can click the eye symbol at the right of the box to check it once you've finished. Click Next. If you've typed the password incorrectly, your computer will ask you to try again. Click Next to connect.
Once your computer is connected to your home Wi-Fi, you'll see the words 'Connected, secured' under the network name. Click Next at the bottom right to continue. Your computer will do some setting up in the background for a moment. The next screen shows the Windows licence agreement. There's a lot of information here, so scroll and read through the terms, and when you're ready, select Accept. You can then give your computer a name. This helps you recognise it when connecting to networks and devices, but for this demonstration, we'll click 'Skip for now'. Your computer may then check for Windows updates, which could take a few moments. Your next step is to create your Microsoft Account, which you'll use to sign in to your computer once it's set up. The account provides free applications and cloud storage, helps protect your data, and comes with a free outlook.com email address. You can scroll the list to learn more. Then click Sign in. You'll now see a sign-in screen. To create an account, look below the text box and click on 'Create one'. The next step is to add an email address. It is possible to use an email address you already have, but we're going to create a brand new one. Click 'Get a new email address'. A text box will appear with part of the email address pre-filled, so you just need to add your username.
A username can be anything you want, but if you use your real name, you can't have a space between your first and last name. Type in a username and click Next to continue. If your username is already being used by someone else, your computer will say you need to try a different name. Once you've finished, click Next. Now comes an important step, creating a strong password. A strong password should have at least eight characters, including letters, numbers, and capitals. Enter a strong password and click Next. Choose a unique password for your Microsoft Account. Don't reuse one from another email or online account. This makes it harder for others to access your personal information. You should also keep a record of your Microsoft Account username and password in a safe place. Now it's time to add some information about you. This is okay to do and helps ensure that only you can use your Microsoft Account. Enter your first and last names into the text boxes. Then click Next. You can confirm your country as Australia and select your date of birth too. Click the Day box. A list of numbers will appear and you can select the one you want. Click the Month box and select the month. Click on Year and type in your year of birth. Then click next at the bottom right of the screen. You'll now be asked to enter a backup contact method to help protect your Microsoft Account.
You can add an email address, but for this demonstration, we'll click the box and choose the 'Add phone number' option. This lets your computer send you a text message with a security code, if it needs to. Click the country code list to scroll and select Australia. Then click on the text box and type in your mobile phone number. Click Next when you're ready to continue. If your computer has a fingerprint scanner, you can set up this security feature here. For this demonstration, however, we'll click 'Skip for now'. Next, your computer wants you to create a PIN. You can't skip this step, so click on Create PIN to start. Using a PIN adds extra security, so choose a six-digit number that's easy for you to remember, but hard for others to guess. Click on the first text box and type in your six-digit PIN. Now press Enter. You'll then need to confirm the PIN in the box below to make sure you know it. Click OK when you're ready. The next screen shows your computer's privacy settings. We'll explain these options in another course, so for now, click the switch next to each setting to switch it off. You may need to scroll down to see the bottom of the page. When you've switched them all off, click Accept.
If you made a backup of your files and applications from another computer, you could click 'Restore from a PC' to copy it to this computer. For this demonstration, however, we'll click 'Set up as a new PC'. Click Next and your computer will do some quick setting up. Depending on your device, you might be asked to provide your details to your computer's manufacturer. You can click Skip. Your computer will now go through a few screens that offer extra features. Some are useful, but you can set them up later. So let's skip over them one by one. First, click the text that says Skip. Click Skip. Then click Skip again. Click 'Not now'. Click Decline Microsoft 365. Click Decline. Click Next. Then click 'Skip for now'. Your computer will let you know it's finishing up. When you see your computer's main screen or desktop and the Start menu, the setup is complete and your Windows computer is ready to use. When you're ready, there are many other great courses to explore on Be Connected.