LITMIR.BIZ

      Senior Acquisitions Editor: Ken Brown

      Development Editor: Tom Cirtin

      Technical Editor: Vlad Falon

      Production Editor: Dassi Zeidel

      Copy Editor: Linda Recktenwald

      Editorial Manager: Mary Beth Wakefield

      Production Manager: Kathleen Wisor

      Associate Publisher: Jim Minatel

      Supervising Producer: Rich Graves

      Book Designers: Judy Fung and Bill Gibson

      Proofreader: Kim Wimpsett

      Indexer: Ted Laux

      Project Coordinator, Cover: Brent Savage

      Cover Designer: Wiley

      Cover Image: ©Getty Images, Inc./Jeremy Woodhouse

      Copyright © 2015 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana

      Published simultaneously in Canada

      ISBN: 978-1-118-99170-1 (ebk.)

      ISBN: 978-1-118-99350-7 (ebk.)

      No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except as permitted under Sections 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior written permission of the Publisher, or authorization through payment of the appropriate per-copy fee to the Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, (978) 750-8400, fax (978) 646-8600. Requests to the Publisher for permission should be addressed to the Permissions Department, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030, (201) 748-6011, fax (201) 748-6008, or online at http://www.wiley.com/go/permissions.

      Limit of Liability/Disclaimer of Warranty: The publisher and the author make no representations or warranties with respect to the accuracy or completeness of the contents of this work and specifically disclaim all warranties, including without limitation warranties of fitness for a particular purpose. No warranty may be created or extended by sales or promotional materials. The advice and strategies contained herein may not be suitable for every situation. This work is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services. If professional assistance is required, the services of a competent professional person should be sought. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for damages arising herefrom. The fact that an organization or Web site is referred to in this work as a citation and/or a potential source of further information does not mean that the author or the publisher endorses the information the organization or Web site may provide or recommendations it may make. Further, readers should be aware that Internet Web sites listed in this work may have changed or disappeared between when this work was written and when it is read.

      For general information on our other products and services or to obtain technical support, please contact our Customer Care Department within the U.S. at (877) 762-2974, outside the U.S. at (317) 572-3993 or fax (317) 572-4002.

      Wiley publishes in a variety of print and electronic formats and by print-on-demand. Some material included with standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand. If this book refers to media such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com. For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com.

      Library of Congress Control Number: 2015936339

      TRADEMARKS: Wiley and the Sybex logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of John Wiley & Sons, Inc. and/or its affiliates, in the United States and other countries, and may not be used without written permission. IC3 is a registered trademark of Certiport, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book.

      About the Author

      Ciprian Adrian Rusen is a recognized Windows Consumer Expert – Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP). He has published several books about Windows and Microsoft Office, and he's also a very active tech blogger at http://www.7tutorials.com.

      On his website you can find many tutorials about Windows 7, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10. He and his team of editors also publish how-to guides about other Microsoft products like Windows Phone and Xbox One. If you would like to keep up to date with the latest Microsoft consumer products, you should subscribe to his blog.

      Introduction

      Welcome to the IC3 Internet and Computing Core Certification Computing Fundamentals Study Guide for the IC3 Digital Literacy Certification. The purpose of this book is to help you prepare for the Computing Fundamentals certification exam, which covers subjects needed for a good basic understanding of computing, including knowledge and use of computer hardware, software, and operating systems.

      The book contains all of the information you need to pass the Computing Fundamentals exam. It also includes notes and warnings from the author to help reduce issues you may be experiencing in your own environment. By studying for and passing this exam, you will gain insight that will make you more valuable in your current position and will make you more likely to be recognized.

      In the remainder of this introduction, we will look at some of the facts about the exam, give some commonsense tips for taking the exam, and review the process for registering for the exam.

      Individuals seeking IC3 certification are required to take and pass all three IC3 exams: Computing Fundamentals, Key Applications, and Living Online. Here are some facts about them:

      Here are some general tips for improving the odds of passing your certification exam: