Australian PC World - Top 10 tips for mouse and keyboard

Top 10 tips for mouse and keyboard

Tip
There are dozens of keyboard and mouse manoeuvres that get you around Windows fast. Here are my faves. If I've missed any good ones, let me know. We'll publish the best in a future issue.
1. The old switcheroo. If you work with more than one application at a time, pressing <Alt>-<Tab> is a quick way to get back to the last application you used. To cycle through all running apps, hold down the <Alt> key and press <Tab> repeatedly until the icon for the application you want is selected. If you're still pressing <Alt> and change your mind midstream, press <Esc>, then let go of the keys. Finally, in most applications that display multiple windows within the main program window (except Microsoft Word), <Ctrl>-<Tab> and <Ctrl>-<Shift>-<Tab> cycle you through the open document windows.
2. The max factor. You can maximise any window (application or document) by double-clicking its title bar. Doing the same to a maximised application's title bar restores it to its previous state.
3. Other hidden clickables. When it comes to mousing around, the general rule is to single-click buttons and double-click icons. (The control menu icon in Windows 3.x applications is an exception -- double-clicking it closes the window.) But sometimes the best approach is to click in a completely empty area. Click the empty area of a scroll bar to scroll one screen at a time. In Windows 3.x, press <Alt> as you double-click a blank area in a Program Manager group to create a new Program Item, and double-click the desktop to see the Task List, a tool for arranging windows and icons and closing programs. In Win 95 and NT 4.0, right-click the desktop or the empty area of a folder window to see a menu for arranging icons, creating new folders and files, or modifying properties. Right-click a blank area of the Taskbar to arrange windows (or even unarrange them) or to set Taskbar preferences.
4. Menu magic. To access menus from the keyboard, hold down <Alt> as you press the underlined letter in the menu name. Then press the underlined letter of the command you want to execute. If a menu item has no underlined letters (such as in Windows 95's Start menu), press the first letter of the menu item. If multiple menu items share the same underlined or initial letter, press it repeatedly until the item you want is highlighted; then press <Enter>. In dialogue boxes, pressing <Alt> plus an underlined letter moves you to the option or executes a command button (the kind with the 3D look). Don't forget that <Ctrl>-<Esc> displays the Start menu in Windows 95 and NT 4.0 and the Task List in Windows 3.x.

Execute menu commands from the keyboard by pressing <Alt> plus the underlined letter, or by using the combinations on the right

5. Dialogue dance. In almost any dialogue box, you can press <Tab> to move among available options. Each time you press it, the next option is highlighted. (Press <Shift>-<Tab> to reverse the direction.) If a dialogue box has tabs along the top, press <Ctrl>-<Tab> to switch among them. If an option button (radio button) is highlighted, use the arrow keys to move to the next, or press the space bar to toggle a check box or execute a command button. Press <Alt> plus a down arrow to open a drop-down list, then press the first letter of the option you want. Pressing <Enter> activates the button with the heavy black outline. Press <Esc> to cancel the whole dialogue box.
6. Text tricks. Keyboard shortcuts can also help you get around text screens, and a surprising number of e-mail packages, word processors, utilities, and other programs use these same shortcuts. Hold down <Ctrl> as you press the left or right arrow key to move the cursor one word at a time. Press <Home> or <End> to move to the beginning or end of a line. Press <Page Up> or <Page Down> to scroll one screenful. Press <Ctrl>-<Home> or <Ctrl>-<End> to move to the top or bottom of a document.
7. Selection city. In almost all Windows applications, <Shift> means select. Hold down <Shift> while pressing the arrow keys to select characters as you move the cursor. To add to the selection one word at a time, hold down <Ctrl>-<Shift> as you press the left or right arrow key. Click one spot in your text, then press <Shift> as you click another to select all the text in between. To select multiple, contiguous items in a list, click the first item, then hold down <Shift> as you click the last item. To select multiple, noncontiguous items, press <Ctrl> as you click each one.
8. Edit tricks. Once you've selected an object, you're ready to act on it. Although I still like the old Windows shortcuts for cutting (<Shift>-<Delete>), copying (<Ctrl>-<Insert>), pasting (<Shift>-<Insert>), and undoing (<Alt>-<Backspace>), these days more applications use the shortcuts that originated with the Macintosh: <Ctrl>-x for cut, <Ctrl>-c for copy, <Ctrl>-v for paste, and <Ctrl>-z for undo.
9. File fundamentals. Many but not all applications -- the shocking exceptions include Notepad, Cardfile, Write, and Help -- follow these timeworn keyboard shortcuts: <Ctrl>-n creates a new file, <Ctrl>-o opens a file, <Ctrl>-p prints, and <Ctrl>-s saves a file. Though it's less common, many applications use <Ctrl>-f for displaying a Find or Search dialogue box. Pressing <Alt>-<F4> closes (exits) nearly any application window. Many document windows can be closed with <Ctrl>-<F4>, although programs ported from the Macintosh sometimes use <Ctrl>-w.
10. Cry for help. When all else fails, press <F1> for online help.
- Scott Dunn

Category: Win95, Windows 3.x
Issue: Feb 1998
Pages: 163-164