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TICKET ARCHIVE -> Hotkeys / Keyboard Word, PS & General

jameskachan - Nov 29, 2006 - 6:02 pm

Ive used windows forever, and just got a macbook pro 17in laptop. While i love it in many ways, there are many natural things to use the keyboard for that just dont work on MAC (that i can figure out at least)
It is very frustrating. Im looking for workarounds/options on the following:


MS OFFICE WORD:

For instance,in word, on a pc, when typing something that is misspelled it underlines the word after hitting the space key just like it does in mac, however, a simple press of the back left arrow key followed by the "windows right click keyboard key" brings up the options for correcting the word, which can be obtained by just using the down and up arrow keys and "enter" to apply them. (This is the same list that one would get in mac if they first moused over the word, and then ctrl clicked]

In mac, the only way to do this seems to be with the mouse/trackpad:

-Is there ANY WAY to get a key on the keyboard to perform like it does in windows? Having to use the track pad or a mouse is cumbersome and takes so much longer than by just pressing keys on the keyboard.

Adobe Photoshop CS2:

In PS on PC, one click on the blending options of a layer would leave it active, so that one could then use the arrow keys on the keyboard [up/down] to toggle though the different blending modes to see the different effects. On mac, it doesnt work like this, and requires constant clicking and selecting manually to view how the different modes would effect the image

Is there anyway around this?


General MAC software:

In a program, like word for example. If you close without saving, it warns you and lists three options [save, dont save cancel] with "save" being selected by default.

However, why can you not just use the keyboard arrow keys, or Tab or SOMETHING/ANYTHING to select the other options?

Again, the trackpad/mouse must be used to choose another option ie: "dont save" whereas in windows you can just use arrow keys, and then hit "enter".

I live by hotkeys and I always use them to close programs apple + W works fine, but with hands on the keyboard already, why then move to the mouse? - Is there anyway around this?



The mouse is important, however it's use takes exceptionally longer to perform a task than someone who knows how to use a keyboard well.

I am a university student majoring in photography and was told that mac is great, so i got one when i needed a laptop, however it is minor things such as these and more that most wouldnt care about which put HUGE blocks in my workflow and really frustrates me.

spending $3000+ and basic things like this dont work? you know.

I havent goten any answers elsewhere, if someone could provide them, or at least some options, Id REALLY be thankful. Im even open to software that will remap the keyboard, anything!


all the best.

James Kachan
416.460.8170
jameskachan.com
james@jameskachan.com

LovesMacs - Nov 29, 2006 - 6:26 pm

Hello James,

Congratulations on our new MacBook Pro! I talk with Windows "Switchers" all the time so I understand your concerns.

One of the neatest features on a Mac is being able to create Keyboard Shortcuts for each application that you use. Or, you can use the keyboard shortcuts already assigned.

Now... to create your own:
Mac Help
Index

Creating keyboard shortcuts for applications
You can assign your own keyboard shortcuts to menu commands in any Mac OS X application or in the Finder. This may be useful if, for example, one of the "global" shortcuts, which works the same in most applications, is used by one application for a different purpose. In this case, you can assign it a different key combination.

Note: You can create keyboard shortcuts only for existing menu commands. You cannot define keyboard shortcuts for general purpose tasks such as opening an application or switching between applications.

Choose Apple menu > System Preferences and click Keyboard & Mouse. Then click Keyboard Shortcuts.
Click the Add (+) button.
Choose an application from the Application pop-up menu. If you want to set the same key combination for a menu command that appears in many applications, choose All Applications.
If the application you want to select does not appear in the list, choose Other and locate the application using the Open dialog. Some applications may not allow you to set keyboard shortcuts.

Type the menu command for which you want to set a keyboard shortcut in the Menu Title field.
You must type the command exactly as it appears in the application menu, including ellipses and any other punctuation. (An ellipsis is a special character that looks like three periods. To type an ellipsis, you can press Option-semicolon (. Or use the Character Palette. It may be difficult to tell whether the command is written in the menu with a real ellipsis or with three periods, so if one does not work, try the other.)

Click in the Keyboard Shortcut field and press the key combination that you want to assign to the menu command, and then click Add.
You cannot use each type of key (for example, a letter key) more than once in a key combination.

Quit the application for which you added or changed a keyboard shortcut.
Restart the application to see the keyboard shortcut in the application's menu.
If you assign a keyboard shortcut that already exists for another command or another application, your new shortcut won't work. Find the menu command that's using it and reassign the keyboard shortcut for that item.

To remove a customized shortcut, click the Delete (–) button.

If you want to return all the shortcuts to their original key combinations, click Restore Defaults.

See also
shortcut lists
shortcuts
Open this for me
Keyboard & Mouse preferences


Now, to use pre-assigned shortcuts... let me give you an example.

Open Text Edit, it's in your Applications folder. You will probably use this application often so when you launch it, look for the icon to bounce in the Dock, click once on the icon, then click, "Keep In Dock".. that way you have easy access to it. Just like the Windows XP Tool/Taskbar. Now, type a word in Text Edit. Now highlight it. Now presss Command + Shift + : <-- that is a colon... hard to see here. You should have a prompt to correct any spelling errors. Now if you want to change the font, select a word or Command + A to select All, then click Command + T. That will prompt the Font Manager.

Now, another way to understand how keyboard shortcuts work on a Mac is to go to System Preferences which is in your Applications folder. In the Applications folder look for, "Keyboard & Mouse". When that window opens,
click the Keyboard Shortcuts button. If you want to change the keyboard shorcut that is already pre-assigned, double click the shortcut and hold down the new keys. Also, in any application on a Mac, look up at the top of your Desktop and you'll see "Help" ... click that and a Help Viewer will open for that particular application.

I hope I've helped a little bit. It takes time to understand the differences between the Mac and Windows user interface and environments, but once you gain some confidence, you will love it. Here's a great link for Windows Switchers to Macs: http://www.apple.com/support/switch101/

if you need further assistance, don't hesitate to post back and thanks for choosing Macosx.com.

Enjoy your new Mac... I'm pea green with envy... I want MacBookPro too :-)

Carolyn