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lngo
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Q: Working without a mouse

Hello,

one of my reasons to buy a MB Pro and not a MacMini or a MacPro was to work 'offroad', means without a mouse. As a switcher from windows, im used to work only with shortcuts and so on. Please, lets collect some tipps and tricks, here are some of my problems:

1.) Moving Files.
In Windows i used CTRL-X and CTRL-V to move Files from one folder to the other.
How can i drag'n'drop objects in the finder without using the touchpad/mouse

2.) Choose "OK", "Cancel" or similar in alert messages
Its answered to me, however it takes some time to find this answer: System Controls, Keyboard & Mouse, Keyboard Shortcuts, Full Keyboard Access => All controls

3.) Right-Click
Ctrl-Click works. 141 results for "right click keyboard" and i still have no answer...

4.) Dock
like question 2 its already answered:
Cmd-F3

to be continued

+And please, be serious. No Windows vs Mac Fights, no 'this is weird'. i really want answers ;-)+

Macbook pro, Mac OS X (10.5.2)

Posted on May 5, 2008 6:58 AM

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lngo

Q: Working without a mouse

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  • by Arthur Hochner,

    Arthur Hochner Arthur Hochner Jun 28, 2008 6:45 AM in response to lngo
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jun 28, 2008 6:45 AM in response to lngo
    I have a similar concern. I'd like to use the keyboard to move from one button in a dialog box to another - e.g., from "OK" to "Cancel" or in iTunes from "Keep File" to "Move to Trash". On a Windows PC, it's easy, but I can't figure out how to do it on my iMac, without using the mouse.

  • by gumsie,

    gumsie gumsie Jun 28, 2008 6:50 AM in response to Arthur Hochner
    Level 4 (2,174 points)
    Jun 28, 2008 6:50 AM in response to Arthur Hochner
    The cancel command is usually done by pressing 'escape'.

  • by gumsie,

    gumsie gumsie Jun 28, 2008 6:55 AM in response to lngo
    Level 4 (2,174 points)
    Jun 28, 2008 6:55 AM in response to lngo
    Control-X will work everywhere but in the Finder. Because the interface is drag and drop based you have two options;
    First, (I know you want to get away from the mouse, but....), command click will move and not copy things.
    Second you will have to copy and then go back and delete the original item.

    Other than that. A third party option may be what you need.

  • by Malcolm Rayfield,

    Malcolm Rayfield Malcolm Rayfield Jun 28, 2008 7:04 AM in response to Arthur Hochner
    Level 7 (28,085 points)
    Jun 28, 2008 7:04 AM in response to Arthur Hochner
    I have a similar concern. I'd like to use the keyboard to move from one button in a dialog box to another - e.g., from "OK" to "Cancel" or in iTunes from "Keep File" to "Move to Trash". On a Windows PC, it's easy, but I can't figure out how to do it on my iMac, without using the mouse.

    At the bottom of the "Keyboard Shortcuts" tab of "Keyboard & Mouse" system preferences, set "Full keyboard access" to "All controls". You can then use Tab or Shift-Tab to move the blue outline to different buttons in dialog boxes. Space will activate the button with the blue outline. (Return or Enter will activate the solid blue button.)

  • by Barney-15E,

    Barney-15E Barney-15E Jun 28, 2008 7:12 AM in response to lngo
    Level 9 (50,881 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jun 28, 2008 7:12 AM in response to lngo
    Arthur, see his 2) above. Set it on and tab to the button, hit space bar to activate.
    Esc = Cancel, Return = Default button, cmd+first letter of button usually works (depends on app), regardless of Full keyboard access settings. If the keyboard shortcut is already defined, it will perform its defined function depending on the type of dialog.

    As for 1) there is not Cut functionality in the Finder. You can only copy, paste, delete original. Drag and drop is the way the finder works, since it is faster than keyboarding. You might try PathFinder (I don't know anything about it, but it is suggested a lot).
    Take a look at Quicksilver. Among about a billion other things you can do with it, you can select items in the finder and move them to other locations.

    3) Ctrl-click is "right"-click. That is the answer.

    Menus and Dropdown menu buttons>Use full keyboard access to select; space to open/arrows to select; or, start typing a command name and it will open and select. Same method to select individual menu items in normal menus.