What are icons Name any two icons?


The Computer desktop consists of various types of graphical icons when clicked redirect or opens the respected software or applications or programs. The icon which appears on desktop of computer or laptop is a shortcut which is used to access the software or programs. There are different types of icons in computer system presented on the desktop can be accessed easily using any pointing devices.

What are Icons on a Computer? 

Icons represent objects or programs on your hard drive on your computer screen. You can see all the icons on Windows if you open the folder on your desktop.

Apple introduced Macintosh in 1984, and we have seen files in icons on computers.

Within the folders, we see all the icons of the files.

You can find a trash can icon in the recycle bin or Macintosh in Windows. Icons are visual representations of specific things in our computers in real life.

A blue “e” screen, for example, represents the Internet Explorer program.

The icon that looks like a piece of paper is a text document.

You can move the file to a different location on your hard drive by clicking and dragging it.

By double-clicking on the application, you open it. GUIs (graphical user interfaces) rely on icons as a fundamental element.

Users can quickly enter text for completing any task with this user-friendly computing platform.

Icons are any applications, folders, or identities of a person on a computer. Would you ever drag the YouTube icon to open it?

The icon of YouTube is red, so you didn’t because you knew it. For this reason, any image associated with the application is called an icon.

Icons that are seen on the desktop like apps, programs, folders, and files if we know it is a graphical user interface stored on PC. 

Desktop icons can provide direct data access to the computer as our computer system can understand only digital machine language and are capable of storing data and information in digital format.

The Digital data and information inside computer system cannot be seen therefore computer communicates with  users through GUI [Graphical User Interface] with the help of desktop icons.

The desktop concept was launched by Apple in Macintosh in 1984 before this computer was worked by Command Line Interface (CLI). 

All computer guidelines and predetermination were given by command, for command keyboards are used.

MS-DOS operating system and Apple DOS were popular at that time. 

In 1985 Microsoft was launched GUI-based Windows 1.0; after that computer world was changed, users were easily compared to the icons for communication.   

 Icons can be divided or classified into three categories.

System Icon: The system icon is an icon that comes with a computer, laptop, or phone when we buy it.

Like we but a mobile, some applications come along with like camera, calculator, and other apps that software that comes with the system.

And that cannot be deleted, which is known as System Icon. If your mobile has a calculator app, you did not delete it. This icon is called System Icon.

Application icon: Application is those which come after installation on our device. They are known as Application Icon.

We download the share it app and install it; after that icon, we see this is known as the application icon.

Shortcut icon: A shortcut icon is that computer icon. There is one arrow, and they are known as Shortcut Icon.

Types of Icons in Computer With Image

Types of Icon in Computer

What are the Common Icons in Operating System?

Icons are classified into 5 different categories:
  • System Icons
  • Shortcut Icons
  • Program/Folder/Docs Icon
  • Start Button & Search icon 
  • Taskbar Icon

When we install any operating system, some icons come with it by default.

Some of the common icons are seen on desktop are My computer, My Document, Recycle bin, Control panel, Network, etc. 

My Computer Icon: With the help of this icon, we access the data which data are inside the computer.

we can access all drives like (C, D, E) and a peripheral device like Pen drive, CD/DVD, Computer download file, Document file, Music file, picture, Videos, etc. by just double clicking My Computer icons.

Data stored in these files are real computer data, and we do not delete all this data. 

My Document Icon: If we save any file or data on our computer, this data is saved by default on the document folder; with the help of my documents icons, we reach the save data file. 

Recycle Bin Icon: This icon reaches where the files are deleted from the computer or deleted from the computer then stored in the recycle bin folder. 

This is also called a dustbin. If we delete any necessary file we want, we take it from the recycle bin folder by retrieving it.

If we’re going to delete fie permanently, we want to press shift + delete, so the file is deleted. 

Control Panel Icon: It is known by its name icon to reach the primary setting of the computer. 

To access and manage basic and advanced computer setting control panel are used extensively. The Administrative tool, Time, User Account, Security, and Windows Update and be changed according to the requirement.

Network Icon: With the help of the Network icon connected with the computer network group, network hard drive, shared folder, shared printer, server, and other information can be easily used and utilized.

Short icon: The shortcut icon looks very simple, but a small icon in the right corner indicates it is not an original icon.

This is a shortcut; most people think the shortcut icon is an authentic icon. 

Program, folder, and Document icon: Shortcuts create many of the original program and system icons and folders on the desktop.

The original icon has a slight difference that there is no icon under it, and by deleting this file original file does not delete. 

Start button icon: Where all the programs and applications were displayed on the computer, there is an option of the shutdown, restart, and log off on the start menu it generates on the start button. 

Taskbar icon: At the bottom of the desktop, there is one strip called taskbar when any program runs that is shown on the taskbar, and when we minimize a program is also shown on the taskbar. We can also pin some popular programs on the taskbar.

Quick Launch bar icon: On the right side of the taskbar near the watch, there is a set of the icon, which is known as the quick launch icon on that there is a program that runs in the background in which there are antivirus program, graphic program, volume icon, network icon are present.

5 Different types of ICON in Computer System

System Icon: On the screen of the desktop left side, display the system icon automatically created by the operating system.

It has different functions we know about it.

My computer icon: It is situated on the upper left side of the windows when you click it, windows explorer was opened there are related resources like hard disk drive partition, My documents, Music folder, picture folder, network folder, shared folder, etc. 

My document icon: When you open this icon, they show saved documents by default. Any file we saved didn’t give the location. 

My network place: If your computer is connected with any network, then you see the workgroup of every server and computer. You know the computer name if it is connected with a media drive network. 

Internet Explorer: With the default, Microsoft explorer was present by default internet explorer, which earlier was known as Microsoft edge, used for internet surfing. 

Recycle Bin: Recycle bin is the most crucial icon. If any file or folder that we delete from the computer, then that file or folder you found at the recycle bin.

List of Computer Icons and their Functions?

System Icons: When we install any operating system, some icons come with it by default. These icons were seen on our desktop screen like my computer, my document, Recycle bin, Control panel, network, etc. 

Short icon: The shortcut icon looks very simple, but a small icon in the right corner indicates it is not an original icon. This is a shortcut; most people think the shortcut icon is authentic. 

Program, Folder, and Document icon: Shortcuts create many of the original program and system icons and folders on the desktop.

The original icon has a small difference in that there is no icon under it, and by deleting this file original file does not delete. 

Start button icon: Where all the programs and applications were displayed on the computer, there is an option of the shutdown, restart, and log off on the start menu it generates on the start button. 

Taskbar icon: At the bottom of the desktop, there is one strip called taskbar when any program runs that is shown on the taskbar, and when we minimize a program is also shown on the taskbar. And we pin some programs on the taskbar.

Types of Icons in Windows

  • System Icon
  • Program Icon
  • Shortcut Icon
Related Articles

What are the Uses of Computer ICONs?

Icons are used to identify which type of file and folder inside it; we open my computer icon, we know what is inside in it likewise all are the icon is easy to understand which file or folder inside in it.

Examples of ICONs

Icons like My computer, My document, Recycle Bin, Control Panel, network, Microsoft Edge, etc. 

Frequently Asked Questions [FAQs]

My Computer, Documents, Control Panel and Recycle Bin

Icons are presented on computer / Laptop desktop.

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