I'm not sure if this is the best place for this question or if it has been addressed before. I tried searching, but can't seem to narrow down my search terms.
My issue is this: I have to use Windows while at work. For the last 5 years, I've become a sort of Mac power user. By that I mean that I know my way around the system fairly well, and I've learned to take advantage of the little things offered in Mac OS. But now I have to use Windows at work, and I'm going crazy trying to adjust my workflows. I wonder if there are Windows equivalents for the tasks below, or if I will simply have to deal with more limited functionality.
-System-wide special character support. On my Mac, to type § I just hit option-6, or ¶ is option-7. As I work in the legal field, these are characters I use on a daily basis. I know shortcuts for these in Word, but outside of Word, I have to memorize alt codes. Is there another way of dealing with these special characters. Also, if I want accented characters (I type in Spanish and Portuguese as well as English), I can type accents easily without switching keyboards by holding the vowel I want to accent and then hitting the correct number. So é is simply [long hold e]-2. Am I just going to have to switch keyboards in the system and try to remember the layout of Spanish and Portuguese keyboards?
-Working with open files. I regularly move files (e.g. for attachments, to move to a flash drive, etc.) when the file is open. For example, if I have opened up a document from an email attachment, I simply save and drag it from the icon on the title bar to wherever it needs to go (new folder, email, upload onto a website by dragging it to the upload button, etc.) Is there some equivalent on Windows for these tasks? Also, I am infuriated every time I want change a file name or location while the file is open (happens more than you might think). I can't imagine there is a workaround for that because I know it has something to do with how the file system works, but if there is one, I'd like to know.
-Multiple monitors. I know Windows 8 has some fixes for this problem, but I'm stuck on a machine running Windows 7. My laptop has a high DPI screen, but my monitor is fairly low DPI. Windows 7 apparently has only one setting for the size of GUI elements, which means that either my laptop is tiny and my external monitor is reasonable, or my laptop is workable and the elements on my external monitor are huge. Any way around this on Windows 7?
I'm almost at the verge of bringing my Mac to work to work on it and using Citrix to do what I can only do on the network or on Windows. But I would prefer to actually use my work machine for work. Any help?
My issue is this: I have to use Windows while at work. For the last 5 years, I've become a sort of Mac power user. By that I mean that I know my way around the system fairly well, and I've learned to take advantage of the little things offered in Mac OS. But now I have to use Windows at work, and I'm going crazy trying to adjust my workflows. I wonder if there are Windows equivalents for the tasks below, or if I will simply have to deal with more limited functionality.
-System-wide special character support. On my Mac, to type § I just hit option-6, or ¶ is option-7. As I work in the legal field, these are characters I use on a daily basis. I know shortcuts for these in Word, but outside of Word, I have to memorize alt codes. Is there another way of dealing with these special characters. Also, if I want accented characters (I type in Spanish and Portuguese as well as English), I can type accents easily without switching keyboards by holding the vowel I want to accent and then hitting the correct number. So é is simply [long hold e]-2. Am I just going to have to switch keyboards in the system and try to remember the layout of Spanish and Portuguese keyboards?
-Working with open files. I regularly move files (e.g. for attachments, to move to a flash drive, etc.) when the file is open. For example, if I have opened up a document from an email attachment, I simply save and drag it from the icon on the title bar to wherever it needs to go (new folder, email, upload onto a website by dragging it to the upload button, etc.) Is there some equivalent on Windows for these tasks? Also, I am infuriated every time I want change a file name or location while the file is open (happens more than you might think). I can't imagine there is a workaround for that because I know it has something to do with how the file system works, but if there is one, I'd like to know.
-Multiple monitors. I know Windows 8 has some fixes for this problem, but I'm stuck on a machine running Windows 7. My laptop has a high DPI screen, but my monitor is fairly low DPI. Windows 7 apparently has only one setting for the size of GUI elements, which means that either my laptop is tiny and my external monitor is reasonable, or my laptop is workable and the elements on my external monitor are huge. Any way around this on Windows 7?
I'm almost at the verge of bringing my Mac to work to work on it and using Citrix to do what I can only do on the network or on Windows. But I would prefer to actually use my work machine for work. Any help?