To Mouse or Not To Mouse

By Laura Noble

Are you scared of a little mouse?

A mouse can be scary to touch and will often runaway from you just when you finally think that you have it positioned.

SOLUTION: USE KEYSTROKES!! Now, did you think I was referring to a little tiny rodent? No, I am referring to a computer mouse. Some people are actually as intimidated and frightened by a computer mouse as they are by the four-legged version.

If you are one of those "mousephobics," why not try using keystroke shortcuts instead of that dastardly mouse? Not only are keystrokes better for you ergonomically but they allow you to have full control of your actions. No more of that mouse taking a leap across the page and you wondering where the heck it went to.

This is not to say that you should toss your mouse out the window. The mouse, in many instances, is still the most expedient method to complete many functions. For once, be in control of your computer. You have choices! Use them!

Here are some common keystroke shortcuts that work in most Windows packages!

ACTION	SHORTCUT
Editing
Undo Action	Ctrl + Z
Bold Text	Ctrl + B
Copy text to Clipboard	Ctrl + C
Cut or move text to Clipboard	Ctrl + X
Find Display Box	Ctrl + F
Italics Text	Ctrl + I
Paste text from Clipboard	Ctrl + V
Redo Action	Ctrl + Y
Spell Check	F7
Thesaurus	Shift + F7
Underline Text	Ctrl + U
Undo	Ctrl + Z
Delete Next Word	Ctrl + DEL
Selecting Text
Entire Document	Ctrl + A
Extend Selection	Shift + Arrow
From Insertion Point to End of Document	Ctrl + Shift + End
From Insertion Point to End of Line	Shift + End
Moving Around
Beginning of Document	Ctrl + Home
Beginning of Line	Home
End of Document	Ctrl + End
End of Line	End
Go To	Ctrl + G
Next Line	Down Arrow
Next Word	Right Arrow
Filing
Open	Ctrl + O
Print	Ctrl + P
Save	Ctrl + S
Toggle Between 2 Open Documents	Ctrl + F6 or Ctrl + TAB
Toggle Between 2 Open Software Programs	ALT + TAB
Display "Start" Menu	Ctrl + Esc
Display Shortcut Menu	Shift + F10
Help	F1

If these "actions" are foreign to you, keep using that mouse or consider software training to help expand your computer knowledge.

Remember that computing success is only a few mouse clicks or keystrokes away.

Laura Noble is the owner of Noble Software Solutions. She can be contacted at 519-680-2689 or by e-mail at lnoble@noblesoftwaresolutions.com. www.noblesoftwaresolutions.com

Published in Networking Today, October 1999.