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Typically you'll start ArcGIS Explorer by clicking its shortcut icon on your Desktop. This shortcut may have been added to your machine by your system administrator or by the act of installing the software. You can also access the application by clicking the Windows Start button and locating ArcGIS Explorer in the ArcGIS folder.

When ArcGIS Explorer starts in its unmodified state, you'll see the Ribbon at the top of the application, the Contents window at the left, a map of the world in the main display area, and a heads-up display at the bottom of the main display showing the current position and altitude of the observation point. In the Ribbon, you'll see buttons and other controls with which you can interact. As you move your mouse over the controls, you'll see tooltips appear that describe each control. In some cases, you can press F1 to get more help about individual controls. To see the entire help system, click the Help button at the far right of the Ribbon.

##### Notes

Some shortcut icons on the Desktop may start the application with different maps or different application configurations that have been set up for you. These shortcuts start ArcGIS Explorer on the command line, specifying the name of a map, using the syntax:
`/open <filename>`
or the name of an application configuration using the syntax>:
`/appconfig <filename>`

Learn more about Application Configurations