Commander is a utility which allows you to assign or change the command key settings of almost any menu on your Macintosh. The settings are saved to disk so they don't need to be re-programmed each time the application is used.
Installation:
Commander is an INIT file and to install it you copy the file to your System Folder and re-boot your Macintosh.
Using Commander:
Commander sits quietly in the background until you invoke it. To invoke Commander hold down the Command key (propeller/cloverleaf/whatever) and pull down a menu. The cursor will change to the Command key symbol. Now choose any menu item and release the mouse button. Commander will present you with a dialog containing an image of the menu from which you selected the item. The item you selected will be hilited.
To change the command key setting for the hilited item you must hold down the command key and type the new setting. The new setting will appear in the menu's image in the dialog box. To remove a command key from the hilited item, press the delete key. If for any reason Commander is unable to change the command key setting for the hilited item you will hear a beep and the item will be unchanged. If you hear a beep but the item DOES change, it means that Commander was able to change the setting but could not save it to disk (in which case the change will not be permanent).
You may also change other items in the same menu without starting over - simply use the mouse or the up and down arrow keys to select another item.
Once you are satisfied with your changes, click the OK button or press return. You may also click Cancel or type command-period if you decide that you don't want the changes made to the menu.
Caveats
Commander will not work with all menus in all applications. Specifically, Microsoft Word menus can not be changed at all. The Apple (desk accessory) menu will not work either although the "About..." item in the Apple menu can usually be changed. Most "Window" menus (menus which display a dynamic list of the currently open windows) can not be changed as well.
Although Commander tries to determine if it can work properly with a given menu it doesn't always decide correctly. Specifically, beware of menus containing items that appear and/or disappear (items that are stationary but whose text changes aren't usually a problem).
Aside from those cases almost any menu can be easily reprogrammed using Commander. Happy editing!
