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can mac do this? windows xp can........

B

bob2131

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jul 27, 2008
853
0
windows xp...
Alt activates focus on the menu. press the key corresponding to the underlined letter in the menu item that you wish to activate.

so you dont have to navigate to menu bar with mouse........nice.


can mac do this?

(basically the less mouse usage the better)
 
Yes! Mac can do short-cuts as well :)

For the most, you press the apple-key + the letter, instead of windows Alt+letter. Ex in word and most apps, you press apple+S for save document... and so on ...

If you go to the menu with the mouse and click - you will see the short-cut-keys (if any) next to the commands...
 
ZballZ said:
Yes! Mac can do short-cuts as well :)

For the most, you press the apple-key + the letter, instead of windows Alt+letter. Ex in word and most apps, you press apple+S for save document... and so on ...

If you go to the menu with the mouse and click - you will see the short-cut-keys (if any) next to the commands...
Click to expand...

no.......you dont get me..........
 
iwuzbord said:
yes if u press control f2, your focus will go to the menu bar.
Click to expand...

reallly?.........control & F2........thats kind of a long way to stretch your fingers..........and then plus another key for the destination.........


thanks, ill check it tonight.
 
TEG said:
Yes. It is an optional feature you can turn on under System Preferences->Accessibility

TEG
Click to expand...

there is no system preferences>accessibility options

ive tried pressing fn and f2 (im on macbook)

i press these 2 keys and nothing happens.

and i also dont think some of you guys are understanding what i am asking.

for example....say if i was using a windows xp keyboard now....i would press alt and on the top menu bar, not the internet browser bar, the windows top bar menu, specific letters on each menu option would be underlined, usually the first letter of word, and so if i press alt and e, the edit menu would open up and i can navigate to any option in the pop out menu and select.....all without using the mouse..........just by using shortcuts and arrow keys and enter......

is this possible on the mac???

neonblue2 said:
You can edit keyboard shortcuts in System Preferences > Keyboard and Mouse > Keyboard Shortcuts.
Click to expand...

i see fn and f2 checked but nothing happens.....

iwuzbord said:
yes if u press control f2, your focus will go to the menu bar.
Click to expand...

when i press control and f2.....only the brightness level changes.....just like if i never even pressed control and just pressed f2

when i booted up the macook for the first time....it asked me which keyboard something/style i wanted to use.....america or uk.....i chose uk.....

will this be an issue?? what does this mean??
can i change it?
 
If you're on a laptop you'll need to press fn+ctrl+f2, since otherwise the f2 button is by default mapped to display brightness. You can of course change this in System Preferences by choosing 'use all f1, f2, etc. as standard function keys'. If you choose this then you'll need to hit fn + function key to access the special functions (brightness, volume, etc.)
 
if youre on a MacBook the F keys are designated to Hardware settings. press fn+control+F2 to move focus to the menu bar. to change the F keys to software features tick "Use all F1, F2, etc. keys as standard function keys" in Keyboard preferences.

to change the shortcut go to Keyboard Shortcuts preferences and double click on "^F2" as shown in the image below and change it to somthing you prefer… maybe the "option+Z"? (has to be a key combo).

screencapture1copygk6.jpg


EDIT: sorry gauchogolfer i pretty much typed the same thing but it took time to upload the image.
 
NOTE:richthomas beat me to it and posted before i did. i took too long. he he. sry about that


gauchogolfer said:
If you're on a laptop you'll need to press fn+ctrl+f2, since otherwise the f2 button is by default mapped to display brightness. You can of course change this in System Preferences by choosing 'use all f1, f2, etc. as standard function keys'. If you choose this then you'll need to hit fn + function key to access the special functions (brightness, volume, etc.)
Click to expand...

this answers your question completely.
you can change the function at any time, and find what best suits you.
and since you chose the uk keyboard your options may be different.
i dont think so though
 

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gauchogolfer said:
If you're on a laptop you'll need to press fn+ctrl+f2, since otherwise the f2 button is by default mapped to display brightness. You can of course change this in System Preferences by choosing 'use all f1, f2, etc. as standard function keys'. If you choose this then you'll need to hit fn + function key to access the special functions (brightness, volume, etc.)
Click to expand...

yes thats what i mean....thankyou thankyou......but......
ok say if i press fn ctrl f2.......the apple sign menur gets highlighted.....
cant i highlight say the file menu? ok.....so say i highlight the apple sign menu......then cant i just jump to the 'go' menu? instead of going through the menus one by one.......oh i got it.....then you just press fn and the first letter of the menu item..............

its ok.....but one too many button being pressed, and overly stretching of fingers for hitting f2.........and you have to go to the apple sign menu??? and then to another menu......can you just go to the menu you want without going to the apple sign menu first?

sorry......
 
bob2131 said:
…
ok say if i press fn ctrl f2.......the apple sign menur gets highlighted.....
cant i highlight say the file menu? …
Click to expand...

yeh its a bit of a round-about way. i would say most users dont use this. just use keyboard shortcuts… WAY EASIER! and Mac OS X's keyboard shortcuts are WAY EASIER to learn and remember than Windows's shortcuts.

here is a guide for the special key symbols. your UK keyboard might already have some of these symbols on the keyboard but the US one doesnt.
 
bob2131 said:
windows xp...
Alt activates focus on the menu. press the key corresponding to the underlined letter in the menu item that you wish to activate.

so you dont have to navigate to menu bar with mouse........nice.


can mac do this?

(basically the less mouse usage the better)
Click to expand...

Good god, that's been around since Windows 3.1 (or earlier). Alt key combinations used to be the only way to navigate efficiently. Closest thing to a UI standard in Windows apps from day one.
 
richthomas said:
if youre on a MacBook the F keys are designated to Hardware settings. press fn+control+F2 to move focus to the menu bar. to change the F keys to software features tick "Use all F1, F2, etc. keys as standard function keys" in Keyboard preferences.

to change the shortcut go to Keyboard Shortcuts preferences and double click on "^F2" as shown in the image below and change it to somthing you prefer… maybe the "option+Z"? (has to be a key combo).

screencapture1copygk6.jpg


EDIT: sorry gauchogolfer i pretty much typed the same thing but it took time to upload the image.
Click to expand...

ok thankyou.....oh so i can change the shortcut?,,,,,nice........

richthomas said:
yeh its a bit of a round-about way. i would say most users dont use this. just use keyboard shortcuts… WAY EASIER! and Mac OS X's keyboard shortcuts are WAY EASIER to learn and remember than Windows's shortcuts.

here is a guide for the special key symbols. your UK keyboard might already have some of these symbols on the keyboard but the US one doesnt.
Click to expand...

most users dont use this....cause using the mouse is second nature and easier.....but alot of things dont have dedicated shortcuts.....and alot of applications we use.....we have to go to the menus and find the right option......this technique is a god send......

and this IS a keyboard shortcut......

regards

JohnNotBeatle said:
Good god, that's been around since Windows 3.1 (or earlier). Alt key combinations used to be the only way to navigate efficiently. Closest thing to a UI standard in Windows apps from day one.
Click to expand...

lol
i only discovered and learnt it on windows a year ago.....it was like a revelation......

used to be the only way to navigate efficiently? used to be? it still is isnt it?

UI standard? whats that?
 
richthomas said:
yeh its a bit of a round-about way. i would say most users dont use this. just use keyboard shortcuts… WAY EASIER! and Mac OS X's keyboard shortcuts are WAY EASIER to learn and remember than Windows's shortcuts.

here is a guide for the special key symbols. your UK keyboard might already have some of these symbols on the keyboard but the US one doesnt.
Click to expand...

so i HAVE to go to the apple sign menu first???

richthomas said:
TRUE! but i meant skip highlighting and opening the menu in the first place and just use the keyboard shortcut next to the menu option.
Click to expand...

oh yeah i get ya.....yeah i do that to.....but some of the apps today!!! soooo many options.......sometimes you need to just browse and go through them....only when you are gonna be using a certain option regularly, is there a need to learn the proper short cut for it.
 
bob2131: I know exactly what you mean. I've been wondering menu shortcuts have not been implemented in OS X. In XP, I can access the Help menu if one key combination. In OS X, I have to access the Apple menu first, then use the arrow key to navigate to the Help menu. When it comes to shortcut keys, I personally think Windows does a better job.
 
The problem is, when you switch, you can't keep expecting OS X to do everything the same as Windows. As you explore, you'll find there are lots of things XP does better, and lots of things OS X does better. I personally hate navigating like that, so it's useless to me, but for someone else, like you, it's something you'll miss dearly. Everyone chooses their OS and computers based on what makes them the most efficient. This is the way it is, I'm afraid.
 
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