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FEATURE STORY
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Some Like It Hot!
Are keyboard combinations quicker than
the mouse? They can be -- if you know how to use them
By Donald H. Kelley
If you spend a lot of time preparing documents on a computer, work
faster and eliminate some frustrations by using "hotkeys" or "shortcut
keys" -- simple keyboard combinations.
The hotkeys for Macintosh and Windows computers are different, so for
the purposes of this article, we'll focus on the Windows operating
system and the Internet Explorer browser. For a nicely categorized list
of Mac keyboard shortcuts, see http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=75459.
Why Hotkeys?
It's amazing how many mouse moves and clicks we make working on a
computer. The mouse is a wonderful invention, but sometimes not the best
option. Just ask the word processing professionals in your office if
they find it more efficient to keep their hands on the keyboard -- and
off the mouse -- as much as possible. Many of them will say, "yes."
Hotkeys also take some repetitive stress off your mouse-clicking hand.
Using Hotkeys
So how can you use hotkeys?
To copy and paste a graphic or a block of text:
Mark the graphic or text you want to copy. With most Microsoft Windows
software, you can highlight a graphic or text block by placing the
cursor at the beginning of the block with the mouse. Then, hold down the
left mouse button and move the cursor over the block.
Alternatively, you can select a block following the cursor location by
pressing the control and shift keys and moving the cursor with the arrow
keys.
You also can use the keyboard to select all the text on your screen by
pressing the control and "A" keys.
Copying and pasting is the next step.
Windows programs, including those in Windows Office, allow you to
initiate cut, copy and paste functions with the right mouse button.
Rather than pressing the right mouse to bring up the "Cut/Copy/Paste"
menu, you may find it easier to press the control and insert keys to
copy the marked block to the clipboard or to move the cursor to the
insertion point with the mouse (or the keyboard arrows) and press the
shift and insert keys to paste the selected text.
These keyboard combinations may be performed with the right hand only
(or with the left hand on the right-hand side of the keyboard.) To do
the same thing with your left hand, hit the control and "C" keys to copy
(or the control and "X" keys to cut) and control and "V" keys to paste.
These moves work in any Windows-based program and in forms on many Web
sites.
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(continuation of article)
The Logo Key
Consider adding the oft-neglected Windows logo key at the lower
left-hand corner of your keyboard to your bag of tricks. This orphan key
possesses special powers. Hitting it makes the Windows Start menu pop
up. Say you are typing in Word and want to open another program.
Pressing the Windows logo key is easier than using your mouse, moving
the cursor to the Start menu and left clicking.
Similarly, if you want to look for something in Windows Explorer without
interrupting your work, just press the Windows logo and "E" keys to open
Windows Explorer on top of your existing work. You can also use these
keys to open the File Search window, if you want to look for a
particular file.
Want to return to the Windows desktop (say, to open another program)
while working in a program in Windows XP? No need to minimize all the
open windows to see the desktop. You can eliminate this annoyance by
just hitting the Windows logo and "M" keys. The active programs go to
the taskbar, and your desktop appears. (In Windows Vista, it appears on
the dialog box that you open with the Alt and Tab keys.)
Menu Commands
When you next open your favorite Windows application, check out this
feature: At the top menu bar, the text describing each menu item has one
letter underlined. For example, in Word, the "o" in Format and the "E"
in Edit are underlined. These are called "access keys." The beauty of
these keys is that you don't have to remember which ones to press. Just
use the Alt key to make the underlined menu text character appear.
Pressing the underlined letter when you hold down the Alt key gives you
quick access to the desired pulldown menu. Those menus also have
underlined letters for access keys. For example, to make the "Font" menu
appear, bring up the "Format" menu with the Alt and "o" keys and
continue to hold down the Alt and "F" keys.
Of course, with the mouse, you don't have to remember anything, but
clearly, hotkeys have their benefits. As I write this text in Word, to
get a word count, I merely press the Alt and "T" keys (for "Tools") and
then the "W" key (for "Word Count.") It's quicker than clicking on
"Tools" with the mouse and then clicking on "Word Count."
Yet another Windows key function is the menu key at the lower right-hand
side of your keyboard. It performs the same operation as clicking the
right button on your mouse. The Windows key brings up a menu of editing
functions related to the program you are using. Press the escape key to
get rid of the menu. While this menu appears, just press the key for any
underlined letter to bring up that function.
Other Windows Stuff
And that's not all! Pressing the control and "F" keys brings up the
"Find/Replace/Go To" dialog box in Windows Office applications. Pressing
the control and "Z" keys undoes the last action performed. If you open a
Web page with annoying background sounds, just hit the escape key to
silence them.
In Word, pressing the control and end keys carries you to the bottom of
the page and pressing the control and home keys returns you to the top.
And the same combination of keystrokes takes you to the first and last
slides in a PowerPoint presentation.
Formatting a word or a block of text is easy with Windows Office
programs (not just in Word.) Place your cursor on the desired word, or
mark the text block, and press the control and "I" keys for italics, the
control and "B" for bold or the control and "U" keys for underline.
For a convenient tabulated list of all Windows hotkeys, go to www.helpwithpcs.com/tipsandtricks/keyboard_shortcuts_windows_xp.htm.
You can keep this Web site in you browser (on a tab in Internet Explorer
V. 7) as a quick cheat sheet until you learn the hotkeys that are most
useful for you.
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(continuation of article)
Internet
Explorer
Here are some handy techniques that will facilitate your browsing with
Internet Explorer (for Windows only):
- To go to your default homepage from any Web page, press the
Alt and home keys.
- You can navigate back and forth through a Web site by using the
Alt and right and left arrow keys. These combinations move the screen to
the next and previous Web pages on the Web site you are viewing.
- Moving up and down on a lengthy Web page is easy. The control
end keys take you to the bottom of the page, and control home carries
you back to the top. You can move up and down -- one screen of text at a
time -- with the control and page down keys and the control and page up
keys. This type of page movement is actually quicker and more precise
than using the slider at the right side of the Web page.
- If the print on a Web page is too small for you to see
comfortably, you can zoom in and out in Internet Explorer V. 6 or V. 7
(IE7) by pressing the control key while you scroll up and down with your
mouse. In IE 7, you also can increase text size with the control and
plus keys and decrease it with the control and minus keys.
- Often, when using a browser, you may want to conduct a word
search of the Web page that you are viewing. To open the search box,
simply press the control and "F" keys.
- And rather than hunting for the print menu with your mouse, you
can print the page you are looking at with the control and "P"
keys.
You can find a well-organized list of Internet Explorer hotkeys at www.helpwithpcs.com/tipsandtricks/keyboard_shortcuts_explorer.htm.
Another source, with sophisticated hotkey functions, is "The Keyboard
Lover's Guide to IE7" on the IEBlog at blogs.msdn.com/ie/archive/2006/02/08/527702.aspx.
Bottom Line
With a little experimentation, you will find hotkeys that help you work
more efficiently. Try it. You just might like it!
Trusts & Estates magazine is pleased to present the monthly
Technology Review by Donald H. Kelley -- a respected connoisseur of
software and Internet resources wealth management advisors use to
further their practices.
Kelley is a lawyer living in Highlands Ranch, Colo. and is of counsel
to the law firm of Kelley, Scritsmier & Byrne, P.C. of North Platte,
Neb. He is the co-author of Intuitive Estate Planner Software
(Thomson - West 2007). He has served on the governing boards of the
American Bar Association Real Property, Probate and Trust Section and
the American College of Tax Counsel. He is a past regent and past chair
of the Committee on Technology in the Practice of the American College
of Trust and Estate Counsel.
Trusts & Estates has asked Kelley to provide his unvarnished opinions
on the tech resources available in the practice today. His columns are
edited for readability only. Send feedback and suggestions for articles
directly to him at dhkelley@qwest.net.
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