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The mouse, love it or hate it?

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Chuckle, I just read the newsletter on the alt/tab power tool. My question to that article. How many people actualy know what the alt/tab function is?
Me, I hate the mouse. I consider it the next worst invention next to ties. So, I know alot of the hot key combinations. But, alas. I know, most people can’t function without their mouse.
What’s funny is, when they see me at a keyboard using hot keys. They are usualy going, how the hell did you do that. I can usualy get any fucntion done quicker also cause I know the hot keys and pretty quick on the keyboard.
So, my question. I’ve had tech people look at me and wonder how I did things when I use hot keys. With alt/tab being one of the functions they didn’t know.
How many people here on TechRepublic know the hot keys? And how many are mouse lovers. The ones that know the hot keys, share your wisdom please. Lol, lets teach the mouse lovers all the things they are missing. Or, when their precious mouse dies. How they can still function without the mouse.
My list of favorit hot key combinations:
alt/tab – switch between applications
alt/cntrl – switch between tabs in an application
windows key/E – Bring up windows explorer
windows key/F – Bring up the find file dialog
cntrl/c – Even mouse lovers know this one – copy
cntrl/v – Even mouse lovers know this one – paiste
cntrl/z – Some mouse lovers know this one – undo
windows key – bring up the dialog for the programs, settings, documents and crap like that.
alt/letter – windows application is open, it will do the function of what ever letter in tool bar is underlined.
right hand windows key – Im not sure what this key is called, its on the bottom right of your keyboard. Second from the end. But, its the same as right click on a mouse.
enter – no chit, if the application or function is highlighted. Same thing as the left click.
tab key – this works in windows explorer for moving around in conjunction with the arrow keys. Just look for what is highlighted to see where your at.

There is life out there without the mouse, honest.

droolin

Topic

Mouse is better because…

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

it has virtually no learning curve. It is also OS-independent. Oh, and I almost forgot the most important one — it is easier to use.

Sure, there are some shortcuts that are useful; however, there is no way I am going to ditch my mouse.

My favorite keyboard shortcut (other than the ol’ cut and paste) is for the web browser. Type in the name of the website you want to visit (such as “techrepublic”) and then hit “Ctrl + Enter” to add the “http://www.” and “.com” automatically.

Other than that, I’ll keep my mouse.

bah, talk about misbegotten shortcuts..

In reply to Mouse is better because…

type techrepublic into the address bar [ if you don’t have TR bookmarked ] and hit ENTER. any real browser will add the http:// and .com automatically. :p

You read my mind

In reply to bah, talk about misbegotten shortcuts..

I have used 3 browsers with no problem finding my techrepublic. I don’t bother bookmarking it anymore because my computers KNOW how to find it. 😉

Slower

In reply to You read my mind

Yeah, but that is slower (at least in my experience) because the browser has to figure out what you want.

By hitting “Ctrl + Enter,” it responds instantly.

Don’t know about that

In reply to Slower

Maybe I just don’t see the difference. Mine seems just as fast.

So the IE 7 beta is not a real browser then

In reply to bah, talk about misbegotten shortcuts..

The subject line says it all… One more thing to improve on.

yes, and . . .

In reply to Mouse is better because…

“Ctrl+enter” is a great one–Add to that “shift+ctrl+enter” for .org addresses.

Both – really

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

When I am on my Unix system, last think I want to use for development is a mouse. I am not talking about Linux or any of the X-Windows stuff, but pure development in Unix. I set up my own shortcuts and everything is great.

However, when I work in a Windows environment, like MS Office, Outlook, etc then I use my mouse. Shortcuts are ok, but just not as effective in a Window environment.

I think the keyboard is faster

In reply to Both – really

It’s probably because I do know the hot keys better, but I would be willing to go head to head with anyone that use’s the mouse. Normal mouse document, excel document, shoot…. a common application that we both know.
I just feel if your hands never leave the keyboard to get stuff done, that you are going to be more productive.
By the way, I never knew that shortcut for the browser. Thats a new one that I can definatly seeing me use. Thanks.

What your post’s are telling me is that Im a dinasour. Lol, thats ok. I started out in cobol, and have many years in it. Lol, so that gives you an idea of how old of a dinasour I really am.

Dan

naw, not a dinosaur..

In reply to I think the keyboard is faster

all to many of us here love our keyboard hotkeys.
[ all except for them mac people, they don’t know what using a mouse is, because apple screwed them out of a real mouse. 😉 ]

Unix people too

In reply to naw, not a dinosaur..

I love my keyboard. I am more productive with it. I find Windows frustrating and the mouse too. However, I have found that I am more productive and efficitent in some applications by using the mouse rather than the keyboard. Though I will tell you others have “yelled” at me to stop using the keyboard so they can see what I am doing. 🙂

That wasn’t the case Jaqui

In reply to naw, not a dinosaur..

Apple HAD to do that with the mouse because they KNEW that their users would get too confused if they had TWO buttons they had to remember. ;\

this job is my first exp with the mac

In reply to That wasn’t the case Jaqui

I know nothing about the mac except that it runs off a bsd unix os. I have no experience with the mac other then that, and then i only know that cause Im writting shell scripts for their mac server.

drool

I’d have to say the keyboard

In reply to I think the keyboard is faster

Before I worked in MIS, I was in the table games department at my casino. We used Oasis Pitboss Software in that department. Mostly I believe it is based off MS Access. But when I entered player ratings, it was much easier to just tab through the different ratings and switch between our applications for player tracking. I cut our time to enter points by more than half.

PS-I think you may have made a mistake on the original post. ctrl-tab would be to switch between tabs on an application(such as 2 excel documents).

your right

In reply to I’d have to say the keyboard

sorry

MC

In reply to I think the keyboard is faster

I agree with you. I use hot keys whenever I know them. I do think it is quicker to keep your hands in one area. But I also find the mouse aggravates my wrist and finger, and mouse-intensive tasks become quite painful. I’ll concede that learning many new tasks is quicker with the mouse for many users.

Situational mousing

In reply to I think the keyboard is faster

When browsing, I usually use the mouse. Some developers seem to go out of their way to make it difficult to navigate without one, even in pure HTML. If the page uses Flash or Java, forget it; most of these pages don’t even allow you to bypass the animation without a mouse.

In a production environment that requires typing (Word, Excel, software development, etc.), the hotkeys are the way to go. Some of the universal formatting combinations are Ctrl-B (bold), Ctrl-U (underscore), Ctrl-I (italic), Ctrl-L (left justify), Ctrl-R (right justify), Ctrl-E (center), and Ctrl-J (full justification).

These commands work equally well in all word processors I have used, including MS Word, OpenOffice, AbiWord, WordPerfect, WordPad, and probably many others. I also use the Alt-menu combination extensively; the hardest part of switching programs has always been learning the new menu tree.

Edit: Type, post, proofread…

Where ever your hand is at the time is fastest

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

If I have to take my hand off the mouse to do a keystroke, it isn’t much of a shortcut.

Same the other way around.

I use a lot of the keyboard shortcuts, all the time. But only a fool would make an absolute statement that one is better than the other in all cases.

All depends on what your doing.

Agreed

In reply to Where ever your hand is at the time is fastest

It is so annoying when I have to take my hand off the keyboard to use the mouse.

Now that I can agree with

In reply to Where ever your hand is at the time is fastest

Depends on what you are doing is very true. It also depends on what you are comfortable with. Most of the time I type a lot faster than the computer can keep up with (~80-90 wpm). So, that makes me use the keyboard a lot. Shortcuts are just as quick as long as I am familiar with them. The mouse is much harder for me. You have to find the right spot to click, then click it, then find the next correct spot, etc. You know how many times I click the wrong thing?????? ugh!

for certain things the mouse is the quicker route for me. So, like you said, it all depends.

Faster than your computer??

In reply to Now that I can agree with

You type faster than your computer can keep up with? Are you using an underclocked original 4.7MHz IBM PC or something? Even at your claimed typing speed, there are tens of millions of clock cycles between each key press in a modern PC. Get real, would you?

Yes – you CAN type faster than the computer

In reply to Faster than your computer??

I have had complaints from 2 secretaries using a particular PC which had a USB keyboard (since replaced by a PS2 one). The PC’s about 3 years old and so has USB 1 interfaces whereas the keyboard was USB 2. The secretaries would type so fast that the USB 1 interface couldn’t keep up and would lock up the PC. Yes, the PC can do zillions of instructions per second but the crucial point is the interface between keybaord and PC, not the PC itself. Maybe it’s a good thing that we (most of us, anyway) still use the QWERTY keyboard which was designed to slow typists down. Here I must give credit to Microsoft for providing support for the Dvorak keyboard designed to maximise typing speed and ease.

Thanks Foggit

In reply to Yes – you CAN type faster than the computer

I appreciate your explanation. I really do type that fast. I learned to type years ago on manual typewriters and my first jobs required very quick typing (secretarial work). When I entered the IT field from College, I could already type 55 to 60 wpm accurately. Over time, working on Unix boxes my typing increased.

My keyboard doesn’t lock up on me, but it does try to catch up. I have to remember to wait. My laptops don’t have that problem. They keep up just fine.

and what about

In reply to Thanks Foggit

when you’re flying through your tasks using all keyboard shortcuts…you often have to wait for the program to catch up.

depends on what I am doing

In reply to and what about

if I am waiting on one program, I switch to another task. I usually am working on two or three tasks anyway. And yes, it annoys me when I have to wait for the application to catch up to me.

I am still learning how to tweak things to get the most performance. On the software that I write for my clients, I do performance test to ensure I have it optimized for their usage. I work at it.

All I was ever trying to say is that when I have to use the mouse it slows me down in some areas. In other areas, it is a benefit to me.

Agree……[Print screen]

In reply to Where ever your hand is at the time is fastest

There is no absolute decision. It is application specific as well as personal preference. I am a fluent keyboard shortcut user, I don’t even use the mouse to select my programs in the Windows menu because I have such an extensive list it’s much easier to key to the one I want.

Plus I make a lot of macros in our most used program here – Excel. And of course, each one has a keyboard shortcut. I pretty much do 90% of my work using keyboard only.

But, since I’m a gamer too, I use the mouse more than the keyboard at home. My husband is fluent mouser. He’s a “hunt & peck” typist and a relative computer newbie. He knows CTL-C, V but that’s about it. So everything pretty much falls on the poor mouse which has deep worn spots where his fingers and palm rest.

FYI (for those who don’t know): PRINT SCREEN is still functional…it copies the screen shot to the clipboard.

Alt+PrintScreen

In reply to Agree……[Print screen]

PrintScreen captures the entire screen. Use Alt+PrintScreen to capture the screen shot of ONLY the active window.

edited: for clarity

Thanks for the clarification

In reply to Alt+PrintScreen

didn’t know about ALT+PrintScreen
🙂
Tink

What about ?

In reply to Agree……[Print screen]

Many of us know about but thanks for reminding us anyway. How many know that copies an image of just the current window to the clipboard?

[i]Did you really mean to title this post like that. Ooookay!!! Not… :^0

In reply to Where ever your hand is at the time is fastest

quite the terminology I would have chosen but then I’m not you.

[b]Dawg[/b] ]:)

got everyone talking didnt it?

In reply to [i]Did you really mean to title this post like that. Ooookay!!! Not… :^0

lol

Yes it did

In reply to got everyone talking didnt it?

but I did over half expect it to spin off in an off-topic direction. ]:)

Of course I did Dawg

In reply to [i]Did you really mean to title this post like that. Ooookay!!! Not… :^0

I was hoping the title alone would be enough to bring GG out of the woodwork she has been hiding in.

But of course, if she didn’t catch it, I knew you or Mae would be showing up soon enough…. ;\

Man, TR really needs to get me my angel emoticon! 😀

100% agreed – Wordprocessing & Graphics

In reply to Where ever your hand is at the time is fastest

While using Word, one thing that’s really irritating is using the mouse to select text that goes beyond the current window – the text scrolls by so fast that you can’t help overshooting and then undershooting when you try to undo the overshoot; in Word I use with the cursor keys for easy accurate text selection, B for Bold, I for italic etc. In other words, during Word processing, I tend to stick with the keyboard. On the other hand, how do you adjust a Bezier curve using the keyboard – or draw any sophisticated shape for that matter? i.e. use a mouse where it’s the better interface and use the keyboard where it’s better. Message to “droolin” – bring back DOS, all is forgiven!

Make up your own hot keys

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

Most keyboards that have programmable keylist can chain them together. Pick your longest and most often opening and finding files routine and chain them up. The very first PC’s were just terminals on top of rolling cabinets with the processor and memory in the top drawers and the hard drives in the bottom. Some even had intechangeable platters. Wow 5 Megabyte, minus the boot track (128K) that was hot then. 1978. The HP terminal had a thermal printer in the top of the display. They all had IEEE 488 Buss with serial and parallel ports and external SCSI interface. The terminal hard a programmable keyboard that allowed up to 16 functions in a chain, and 24 different keys. What I want to know is where did the simplest and most used key for information hounds is the PRINT SCREEN go to??

Firefox Mouse-Free Browsing

In reply to Make up your own hot keys

Firefox offers a find-as-you-type function that will allow you to just type the text of links, then press enter to activate them.

I never thought I’d be able to browse without the mouse. It’s made browsing a heck of a lot more enjoyable, esp since I use a laptop most of the time….

lol, on that note

In reply to Firefox Mouse-Free Browsing

I just reinstalled the toolbar that google offers so that I could spell check(can’t spell worth twit). Anyone know of the hot key to kick in the spell check? And I tried F7, thats not it.

droolin

Prefer the keyboard

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I adept at using keyboard shortcuts that are necessary to do my work. I could developed it because of my days of DOS and SCO UNIX, where I relied on the keyboard.

I use the mouse, [b]ONLY[/b] if I have to use it, or if I have been spoiled by the mouse for certain functions. I consider an application to be well designed and implemented, if all the MAJOR functions can be performed without having to use a mouse.

Using a mouse streches our hands a little too much. This has caused me to have terrible pains in my shoulders. I have undergone physical therapy to releive the pain. The only thing that seems to work for me is switching the mouse from my natural (right hand) to left-hand often. This way I can rest my right shoulder.

But I can not imagine a desktop without a mouse. At certain times, it is just too convenient for use (and I end up hurting my shoulders more).

Both as well…..

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I have to admit, i do love the keyboard shortcuts. I use alt-tab all the time for fast program switching. And of course, ctrl-F, X, C, V.

Although I know alot of keyboard commands, i would still rather use the mouse, easier.

But i suppose, if i didnt have the mouse, i could get by and get used to it over time. Right now, i kinda have to think about the keyboard commands. I get them mixed up some times, but if thats all i had, i could do it.

Rather stick with the user friendly mouse though….

I like both. KB is great when the mouse dies !

In reply to Both as well…..

Hi,

I do use some shortcuts alongside the mouse.
Using both methods (when appropriate) is the most efficient within M$Windows and XWindows and CLI’s.

But I am really glad to know shortkeys when my wireless mouse dies and i do not have charged batteries at hand.

my 0.02 clicks

I am of the opinion

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

that you can love your mouse..but you shouldn’t LOVE your mouse. JD, please keep that in mind, you’re deviant enough as it is..

Both, actually

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I’ve found which I’m using usually depends on which muscles in my hands are the most tired. And during long periods of troubleshooting and fire-extinguishing, I’ve caught myself with one hand on the keyboard firing off the shortcuts I know, and the other hand on the mouse, doing the rest. I assume that’s a skill I acquired from Grand Theft Auto and Halflife.

Keyboard lovers

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

If you really love using shortcuts and hotkeys go pickup a logitech G15 keyboard.

16 programmable extra keys with 3 different modes. Also capable of profile creation for different applications (totaling 54 programmable keys PER PROFILE !!!!).

It may take some time to program the keys but its very much worth it.

the only reason I havent done that

In reply to Keyboard lovers

I have a logtech remote keyboard where I can program the keys, but they want you to run the software in the background for them to work i thought. I hate having stuff running in the background. I bog down this machine enough as it is, and get ticked off. My fault, nobody else’s. But, I have a tendacy to be selective what I run 24/7.
Or am I wrong?????? If so, I appoligise.

drool

You are correct

In reply to the only reason I havent done that

There is software that runs in the background. It hasnt slowed my system down one bit. Even when running graphic intense games like Call of Duty 2, Quake 4, Doom 3, or Counter Strike Source, without shutting down the antivirus and spyware scanners, it doesnt slow my system down.

It is a gaming system though and I dont know a standard desktop will handle with it though. I never looked to see how much resources its actually taking since I havent had a problem.

If it is taking up alot of resources, it wont be anything an extra gig of ram cant fix. 🙂

maybe its cause I have bad eyes

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I do have bad eyes, and I have problems alot of times finding where the pointer is. And I get frustrated because of it. So, my keyboard abilities may have risen out of that. I can easily tell where I am at, and if in doubt – ctrl/home or ctrl/end to get back to the very beginning where I know where I am.
Probably a big reason I like the keyboard alot, my eyes never leave the screen to find the mouse. Just a thought.

Love ctrl+home & ctrl+end

In reply to maybe its cause I have bad eyes

.

I forgot the 5 pm hot key, the out the door one

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

alt/4
alt/4
alt/4
alt/4
windows, tab, key to restart.

gone

How does the 5 pm hot key work?

In reply to I forgot the 5 pm hot key, the out the door one

Maybe you should use
alt/F4
alt/F4
alt/F4
alt/F4

What I can’t figure out is the windows, tab key to restart. Can you clarify?

By the way, if you are using a keyboard without the “windows” key, substitute ctrl/esc. I long ago learned that the last operation of the day was to do ctrl/esc, u and then shut the door and leave.

/Geo

uggg, I screwed this one up

In reply to How does the 5 pm hot key work?

Your right, its just the windows and arrow key. I appolgise. I was thinking of windows explorer with the tab.
I appolgise.

dan

I prefer..

In reply to I forgot the 5 pm hot key, the out the door one

the rocker switch on the back of the case for that key.
one little click of the switch and walk out the door. ]:)

CTRL+Left Shift+ESC

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

This is my favorite one. I see people all the time press CTRL ATL DEL and then click on Task Manager. Save some steps and press CTRL+Left Shift+ESC.

On a side note, mouses / mices are ok, though I only use where needed.

CTRL+ESC

In reply to CTRL+Left Shift+ESC

Absolutely mandatory for road warriors without a WIN key. Or is there a laptop sub for the WIN key that I’m not aware of.

Postnote keycuts

In reply to CTRL+Left Shift+ESC

This particular shortcut I didn’t know about – ooooh thanks!

Personally I prefer the mouse, out of shear ease, except after having my wireless mouse crap out on me about 20 minutes ago and having to sync it with the receiver simultaneously after I’d reset it like, I dunno, 100 times, I have a new found preference to using shortcuts.

True is the fact that certain xml websites aren’t easily navigated by keyboard alone.

keyboard!

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

most people hate mice because they have to move hand from keyboard to use it. I’d suggest for desktops a keyboard that is like laptop keyboards, with touch pad in center and mouse buttons under two thumbs. these cost about 50$ or so. there is a natural (split kb) version and a mini version.

there used to be a wireless version but cancelled.

currently only adesso makes these that I know of, I use their WKB-120. Microcenter sells them, or get online. Curiously Frys does not sell them.

Even tho this will speed up mouse, I still find kb faster for many things.

I do heavy manipulation of images. after highlighting images, I can quickly hit alt- keys to access menu and rotate the image or group of image, to resize, to paste into sub-albums, etc. WAY faster via kb.

One thing that ticks me off is programs that start and don’t have the focus sent to 1st input field, so you then have to click.

then others have wrong tab order. I have one web form that in middle of form, tab order puts cursor on URL then onto next field. Apparently lack of QC or user testing?

YES!! Touchpad a winner.

In reply to keyboard!

I’ve used the Adesso PCK-308T for years which is the ergo design with the touchpad in the center. There is a newer multi-media model available.

We’ve recently purchased a similar keyboard by Micro Innovations with the touchpad under the arrow keys.

Both get rave reviews by our users.

don’t like on right

In reply to YES!! Touchpad a winner.

if pad on right, then you have to move your hands from keys to use mouse pad. but it does still elim the mouse which takes up alot of room.

I also find that ‘mouse wiggle’, movement caused when you move your hand to the mouse or you click, causes it to move off where you want to click alot. and touch pad better for drawing.

I don’t like the irritating fact that if you tap too hard it clicks on mouse and takes it as a mouse click rather than a move the mouse command.

usually not a problem tho.

How about F7?

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

to operate the spell checker, then maybe you wouldn’t have spelt ‘paste’ wrong! 😉

lol, yea ok

In reply to How about F7?

I do need to use the f7 more. I try to, because I know I am a terible speller. But, its not always the case.

droolin

ALT+F4?

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I haven’t read much of the thread, don’t have time, so forgive me if I’m being repetitious.
ALT+F4 closes the foreground app until you run out of apps, then brings up the shut down/restart dialog. Very handy. And none of my customers knew it before I showed them.

Most important Windows Hot Key

In reply to ALT+F4?

None has talk about most important windows hot key: Ctrl+Alt+Del. 🙂 It’s a joke, but my opinion is use the keyboard when it’s easiest but there are causes when I prefer the mouse.

I think you’ll find that this is a contentious issue

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

Those of us who worked IT in the Pre Windows days are comfortable with using Keyboard short cuts and those who entered IT after Windows 95 expect a Mouse to be there to do the job which they think that can do faster with mainly because they don’t have to remember any of the Keyboard Shortcuts.

Other than the MS 3 Finger Salute I very much doubt that too many of the newer generations of IT Pros even know that Keyboard Shortcuts actually exist.

Personally I’ve fallen into [b]Bad Habits[/b] and use a mouse mainly because I got sick & tired of trying to explain to end users why I was using Keyboard Shortcuts and how they worked. But when the mouse driver breaks I still can navigate around the system on the Keyboard and generally I get the system fixed.

Personally I find them much faster as you always have your hands on the keyboard and when I’m using a NB I tend to ignore the Touch Pad and stick with Keyboard Shortcuts unless of course there is one of those dreaded [b]End Users[/b] around or I’m working on one of their NB’s. I just find the Touch Pads clumsy and most of the time overly sensitive for my liking.

Col

I have to admit

In reply to I think you’ll find that this is a contentious issue

I make fun of people that use the mouse, but the bottom line is. Which ever way a person feels most comfortable is going to be the fastest way for them to get the job done. If they spend so much time trying to remember keyboard shortcuts, when they could have just done 2 clicks of the mouse. Its a waste of time. But, if they have some down time. And want to learn other ways, that’s a different matter.
So, like I said. Which ever is most comfortable for a person is really the best way.

droolin

touch pads

In reply to I think you’ll find that this is a contentious issue

yuk. I hate the things. Too sensitive, always in the way, especially when I am typing. I hate it because I sometimes hit it and then have to fix what I was typing. They slow me way down.

I don’t mind the mouse for some stuff, but the keyboard is where I am most comfortable. Now if I could only get the computer makers to stop putting track balls in the middle of the keys.

The ones that I really hated where the old IBM’s

In reply to touch pads

That horrible little Joystick in the middle of the keyboard drove me nuts. [b]YUK![/b] 🙂

I was constantly stabbing myself with the thing not at all pleasant.

There was one other person who you brought to mind with your post he was a real [b]Live Wire[/b] who constantly generated massive static charges on his body. He would regally [b]Zap[/b] people just by reaching out to shake their hand not a great way to introduce yourself particularly when you are a salesperson. But his high Static Levels played absolute havoc with the NB that I supplied him well several of them actually. His current one is a Clevo D400E and I had to teach him Keyboard Shortcuts to use it correctly as the touch pad would jump all over the screen whenever he came close to it. Not my idea of fun that one. 😉

Being from the [b]Earthmoving Crowd[/b] he was defiantly not one to mess around as they just want something to work without needing to change their habits. If he had of waited a couple of more months I could have sold him a Tablet than he wouldn’t have even needed to have opened it. 😀

Col ]:)

ooooooh – I am shuddering now

In reply to The ones that I really hated where the old IBM’s

that is not a pretty picture you described. I have known one or two individuals like that, but we just figured the computers took a dislike to them. Remember the movie Jurassic Park where they are at the dig site and everytime he gets near the computer it stopped working and got static?? Talk about scarry.

I like the idea of a Tablet, but do you think it would have worked for him/her? I mean even with a stylus for writing on the tablet he would have had static issues….

Haven’t you never looked it up in Windows help?

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/keys_general.mspx?mfr=true

Don’t forget cntr/x

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

Add cntr/X to the list for “Cut” and because I do a lot of Excel work I also create a little macro set against a key stroke like cntr/Q for “Paste Special values only” and then when I want to cut or copy and paste from one spreadsheet to another without maintaining the cell linkage all I have to do is mark and then cntr/C (or X) then move to the second spreadsheet and position the cursor then ctrl/Q and hey presto, copied without links and without the mouse to.

never knew about the cntrl/q

In reply to Don’t forget cntr/x

have to try that one

drool

Views – The mouse, love it or hate it

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

Yup, i’m agree with you that there is life without mouse. But to be honest many IT Tech. also start using mouse by the passage of time. For myself i love to use keyboard and always tell end users to use shortcut keys to work smart. But some poeple feel more comfortable with mouse than keyboard. I got this experience now and i’m using both Keyboard and mouse combination specially to select alternates files/objects. It works better.

Although u can use PC without mouse but not without keyboard. Mouse is option but keyboard is compulsary for IT Tech. people. Use keyboard and mouse to get maximum output and performance.

WIN + L

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

A favorite of mine (I’m a keyboard junkie) is the windows key + L to lock my workstation when I walk away from it. Also handy is WIN + M (or WIN + D) to minimize all windows and reveal the desktop.

The reason I think the keyboard is faster (iff you know the shortcut) is your hands stay in one place.

Win + L

In reply to WIN + L

I didn’t know about windows + L and Windows + M, but if I can remember them, I will probably use them in the future. Win + L is really handy to prevent unauthorized use of your computer when you go away for a period of time.

Mouse Love it, haye it

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I will admit some hot keys are quicker. BUT like a lot of people as they get older, the short term memory goes. So I would never remember the hot keys.

SO I LOVE THE MOUSE!!!

Application key

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

Don’t forget the Application Key(left of the right CTRL). Same as right clicking in most apps.

is that what that is called?

In reply to Application key

I knew about that key, and use it all the time. But I never knew what it was called.

drool

I sorely miss it…

In reply to Application key

…on my laptop. I need this key more than the WIN(dows) key.

EVERYONE is forgetting the SINGLE most important WINDOWS

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

EVERYONE is forgetting the SINGLE most important WINDOWS keyboard keystroke.

[ctrl]+[alt]+[del]

Couldn’t make it through the day without it! 😀

[ctrl]+[alt]+[del]

In reply to EVERYONE is forgetting the SINGLE most important WINDOWS

For sure!

wrong

In reply to EVERYONE is forgetting the SINGLE most important WINDOWS

take a look to my comments (Title: Most important Windows Hot Key (55 of 71)) 🙂

right

In reply to wrong

If I agree with you, it MUST be right? ;\

I admit, I did not read every post.

Finals week! 😀

OK you’r right :-)

In reply to right

I try hardly to have title in such a manner to make people to read it but I must try harder 🙁

Wasn’t a reflection on your post or title

In reply to OK you’r right :-)

Just that I have actually been busy lately and so didn’t have time to play catch up. 😀

No preference really

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I just use both, whichever is more convenient at the time. Also using a combo of both kinda gives you the [best of] both worlds.

Windows Key + M

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

Minimizes all the windows I have open in one swell foop.

While browsing in MSIE the backspace key takes one back to the previous page viewed. Shift + Backspace goes forward one page.

Explorer resize columns

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

Windows explorer (detail view)
Press + will auto resize all of the columns so all filenames etc are visible.

ahh heck. Summaries are everywhere.

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;301583

http://www.computerhope.com/shortcut.htm

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1047729,00.asp

http://www.helpwithpcs.com/tipsandtricks/keyboard_shortcuts_windows_xp.htm

I’ve had it occur a few times when a clients PC will boot into windows but without a working mouse – and a workmate is faced with the “impossible” and reluctantly decided the last resort is the only one – reinstall windows. I’ve arrived just in time and “repaired” windows & the “faulty” mouse using only keyboard shortcuts to get around.

I must admit it’s frustrating standing behind someone waiting to do something on their PC and they do stuff the slow way – with a mouse. It’s like being stuck behind a slow driver in the overtaking lane. 😛

The mouse is faster

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

… if you don’t know the keyboard shortcuts. I know since I started using Linux and Unix, I’ve found it’s faster to use the keyboard most of the time. Even when using Windows, I always keep at least one command prompt open. Even with the relatively weak DOS prompt, there are some things you can do just do faster from the DOS prompt.

Fastest way to get to a network share is to hit the Windows key, then R to reach the “Run…” prompt, then start typing in the share name. Of course, this presumes you know at least the name of the file server. As you start typing, the Run prompt will start showing you resources that start with what you’ve typed so far. Frequently, you can use the arrow key to select what you want before you’ve typed half of it.

That compares to finding and clicking “My Network Places”, clicking “Entire Network”, clicking “Microsoft Windows Network”, finding and clicking the domain name, searching for the name of the file server, etc.

The funny thing is that I’ll find the right network share almost immediately, but anyone watching thinks I’m doing it the hard way…

I also remember making someone very happy a few years ago when I showed her how she could completely shut down Windows very quickly just by repeatedly pressing Alt+F4. Made rebooting much faster.

Other pointing devices

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

pad,
trackball,
light pen,
mouse pen.

Frankly, I’d like to have a combination lightpen/mousepen. That way I could point of on the screen, or doodle on the desk surface.

It’s a mix

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

For TR, I love the mouse. For work I hate the mouse.
Everything in our system is hot-keyed, the mouse only TABS through fields.

For surfing, I love the mouse, for working in most graphics programs I use a mouse, except some the most common commands as noted in the original post,
I use a lot of right click menus too.

So while I used to be a mouse driven guy, after rebiulding a gazillion Win95 nd 98 workstations with no mouse, you get used to keyboarding as an alternative. But now I am finding many apps are quicker on the keyboard, but I stil use the mouse.

I guess I’m, about 40/60 keyboard to mouse.

I love the mouse

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I love the mouse. I feel confortable using a mouse. I haven?t to look at the keyboard and use two two hands to select the keys. I can undo, select, erase, move, clear and so on. I know how to use hot keys too, but I prefer using a mouse. Mouse is fast, precise… Image a person that have only one hand and not all the fingers… This is not my case, so thanks God!

I prefer my trackball mouse

In reply to I love the mouse

because I AM a person with an unstable right hand due to an injury that almost cost me my right arm.

And also on the note of those with disabilities, what about the programs that allow a paraplegic to use a computer with a ‘blow stick’ or voice?

F keys

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

In the 80’s I was going to make a bumper sticker that said: “Honk if you know your F keys” and “I love my mouse”. Didn’t get around to it.

Hot keys not always available?

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I realy like both, ever since the right-click menus came out in full force.

But I swear sometimes that there is no hot-key options for some things.

Sometimes when you tab around gui screens using the spacebar to turn on/off bullet selections, the tab will skip over some of the choices, so you are forced to use the mouse.

This lack of hot-keys was especially painful when this one server of mine kept losing the KVM mouse — I didn’t have a USB mouse I could get to at the time, so I managed to tab/enter my way into the accessories menu and turned on the mouse-key feature. Mouse-keys is better than nothing, but lordy is it tedious!

The mouse, Love it or Hate it.

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

These two I use all the time, but mostly use the mouse, since I have a trackball and can get around quite quickly.

cntrl/c – Even mouse lovers know this one – copy
cntrl/v – Even mouse lovers know this one – paiste

I also use Control X fairly frequently. It all depends on what is quicker to use.

Use of keyboard

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

Use both but will use keyboard over mouse any day.
Try
Windows Key/D Go to desktop
Alt+PrtScn – capture current open Window

I find it funny when people can’t use the tab key to move from one text box to another and they pick up the mouse each time they need to move to the next box.

Awkward, not awful

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

If the mouse were easy and natural, we wouldn’t all be talking about keyboard shortcuts.
The mouse can’t be the best way to do stuff. The best way hasn’t been invented yet.
Sometimes I feel like my mouse is a bunch of straws taped together with a blob of bubble gum on the end.
My favorite shortcut: F4, the “Do-the-last-thing-again” key.
-Format something, select something sorta like it, hit F4. You just formatted the second thing like the first thing.
-Type something, hit F4. You just typed it again.

Want MS Office links?

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

Here are some links, a bit dated but still highly useful, for *tons* of MS Office

shortcut combinations. I have found these to be invaluable; I have learned some

of them but refer often for shortcuts I don’t need all the time.

Word shortcuts:
http://www.microsoft.com/enable/products/keyboard/keyboardresults.asp?Product=8

Excel shortcuts:
http://www.microsoft.com/enable/products/keyboard/keyboardresults.asp?Product=12

Access shortcuts:
http://www.microsoft.com/enable/products/keyboard/keyboardresults.asp?Product=14

Outlook shortcuts:
http://www.microsoft.com/enable/products/keyboard/keyboardresults.asp?Product=10

Speaking of helpfull things

In reply to Want MS Office links?

F1, the help key. I still use that when need be, even if I am always redirected to Microsofts website.

The following works every time in Win 95

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

and after a small delay in Win 98.

To shut down your computer:

Tab then Enter then “u” then Enter and your computer shuts down.

With Win 95 this shut down the computer much faster than you could with a mouse.

With Windows Tetris, I can get a new game going much faster than the mouse with:

Alt + upwards arrow + Enter and the game gets going.

When I used to check out computers at garage sales, and there was no mouse, I could usually do everything I needed to find out about the computer using just keys.

On my first computer — a Kaypro 2 with C/PM — I could whiz through a word processing document MUCH faster than would ever be possible with a mouse.

No doubt there were just as many keyboard shortcuts in DOS.

I met a guy who trained girls to use computers. The keyboard-only ones could move a lot faster than the mouse users.

Absolutely hate the mouse

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I used the computer and shortcuts pre-windows. Used the keyboard shortcuts then and use them now. Other’s are amazed how fast things can be done with the keyboard.

Two of the favorites along with those already mentioned.
Alt F4 – closes any program window
Alt & Left arrow key – go back to last explorer window

Alt + Left Arrow.

In reply to Absolutely hate the mouse

…oh gosh I love that while browsing the net. So useful when the cursor is in an input field and BACKSPACE can’t be used.

oh, I just found the windows key on my wifes laptop

In reply to Alt + Left Arrow.

Lol, sorry I’ve never been able to find this bloody key. One of the reasons I tend to shy away from laptops, roflmao. Unfamiluar with the keyboard.

droolin
….Im going to regret this post, I can tell

I admit it, I work for idiots now and again

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I used to work for this guy who ran SCO Unix OS 3 on a laptop (this was during the Win98 days, when I think SCO System 7 was current).

Made a big stinkin deal about using the keyboard and not the mouse (didn’t have a driver for the onboard mouse pad & buttons anyway).

After my first session of this, I went out and bought a mouse for each of my PCs, including a couple DOS boxes I still had.

Finger Mouse, my perference

In reply to The mouse, love it or hate it?

I personally love the finger mouse. No mouse pad needed and very quick. Bought mine at Wal-Mart a few years ago, and perfer it over all others. I can sit back in my nice, comfortable, leather chair and get all my navigation done with an object no larger than a small ball. I also use DragonSpeak and IBM Voice, since I am NO typist.

Just me, but it works!

[Author]

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