ur an idiot ....... damn - too late!!! you already solved it ....
that means you not an idiot ;-)
vista is realy misleading ... it looks enough like XP for you to think things are going to be pretty much the same ....
but they are not.....
my first tip would be .... always view windows full screen
the top bar ...(organise, views .......)
is context sensitive .... but more importantly ... the best options tend to be off screen (you'll just see >>)
max the window to make searching for clues easier.
second .... go to your local library ... or tolerant bookshop and spend 10 mins with vista for dummies ... or similar ....
finally ... get used to the help system ... it's quite good
might save you a few hours looking for the administrator account!!