Windows Basics — Small Group Class, Bring Your Own Laptop

Six hours, split over two 3-hour sessions a week apart — either Saturday mornings or weeknight evenings — in a deliberately small group. You bring your own laptop. By the end you’ll know where your files go, how to find them again, how to tell a real email from a fake one, and what all those buttons along the bottom of the screen are for.

This is deliberately small. In a group this size there’s time to stop, back up and go through something a second time when it hasn’t landed — which is the part most computer classes skip.

What you get for $300

• Two 3-hour sessions, a week apart, on Saturday mornings or weeknight evenings. Six hours in one sitting is too much for anyone learning something new; splitting it means the first session has time to settle before the second builds on it.
• A deliberately small group. Small enough that nobody gets left behind.
• A printed workbook written for this class, in plain English, with screenshots. Yours to keep and write on.
• Thirty days of follow-up. After the class you can call or email with questions about anything covered, at no extra cost.
• One free 30-minute remote check-in in that month, if something needs looking at on the screen rather than explaining over the phone.

Session one — getting comfortable

The screen, explained

The desktop, the taskbar, the Start menu and the system tray — what each one is for and why things appear there.

Mouse, touchpad and clicking

Left click, right click, double click, and what the right-click menu is actually offering you. Touchpad gestures for laptop users.

Windows that behave

Minimise, maximise and close without losing anything. Putting two windows side by side. Finding a window that’s vanished.

Files and folders

Where things actually go when you save them. Documents, Downloads and Pictures, and why a file you downloaded isn’t where you expected. Making folders that make sense to you. Renaming, moving and deleting safely.

Finding things again

Using Search properly, so you never have to hunt through folders hoping.

Making the computer easier to use

Bigger text, a mouse pointer you can actually see, screen brightness and night light. Small settings that make a large difference.

Session two — doing real things, safely

The internet without the guesswork

The address bar versus the search box — the single most common source of confusion. Tabs, bookmarks, and closing the twenty windows that have piled up.

Email that works

Sending, replying, and the difference between reply and reply-all. Attachments in both directions. Clearing out a mailbox that has got away from you.

Passwords

Why using the same one everywhere is the actual problem, what a password manager does, and how to set one up so you stop writing them on paper.

Spotting a scam

The fake virus pop-up. The phone call claiming to be Microsoft. The urgent email from your bank. What they look like, why they work, and exactly what to do when one appears — including what to do if you already clicked.

Updates and Windows 11

Why updates matter, how to let them happen without fear, and where Windows 10 stands now that its security updates end on 13 October 2026. We’ll check whether your own laptop can move to Windows 11 and what your options are if it can’t.

Not losing your photos and documents

What a backup actually is, why one copy on the same computer isn’t one, and setting up something that runs without you remembering to do it.

Printing, scanning and PDFs

Getting the printer to cooperate. Scanning a document using just your phone. Opening and saving PDFs.

What to bring

Your laptop and its charger. If you use a tablet or phone as well, bring it. Your email password if you know it — and if you don’t, that’s one of the things we’ll sort out. Something to write with. Nothing else.

How to join

A date is set once enough seats are spoken for — the list is what makes it happen. Call (941) 424-8081, message on WhatsApp or email balbuquerque@bratechsystems.com and you’ll be told the date before it goes anywhere public.

Tell me which suits you better when you join the list — Saturday mornings or weeknight evenings — and the class that fills first is the one that runs.

Payment is a 50% deposit to hold your seat, with the balance due on the first session. If the class doesn’t run, the deposit is returned in full.

Common Questions

What does the $300 include?

Both 3-hour sessions, a printed workbook to keep, thirty days of follow-up support by phone and email, and one free 30-minute remote check-in during that month. There is nothing further to buy.

Why is it split into two sessions?

Six hours in one day is too long to absorb anything new. A week between sessions lets the first half settle, and you arrive at the second with real questions from having used it at home.

Do the classes only run on Saturdays?

No. The same six hours runs either as two Saturday mornings or two weeknight evenings, a week apart. Tell me which works better when you join the list.

What if I fall behind?

In a group this small there’s room to stop and go over something again. And the thirty days of follow-up afterwards exist precisely for the things that only make sense once you’re back at your own kitchen table.

Do I need Windows 11, or is Windows 10 fine?

Either is fine — bring what you have. Both are covered, including how to tell which one you’re running and what to do about Windows 10 security updates ending on 13 October 2026.

Can you run this class at my community’s clubhouse?

Often, yes. If you have a room and a few neighbours who’d come, that’s usually the easiest way to get a class running. Get in touch and we’ll look at it.

Is one-to-one better for me?

If you want to go entirely at your own pace, or the things you need are specific to your own setup, then yes — one-to-one at home is $85 an hour with a two-hour minimum and can be arranged sooner.