Comments on: Primer on Macintosh OS X keyboard shortcuts

By: Scott Haneda

Scott Haneda — Sun, 11 May 2008 10:11:37 +0000

@gerry, you git the nail on the head with the menu bar issues. This is a hotly debated issue amongst switchers. It does go back to the oldest of Macintosh days though. It is just different, once you get used to it, it is not too bad. Thanks for writing in.

By: gerry

gerry — Sat, 10 May 2008 02:07:56 +0000

Great site. I have sent several here.

I have used macs for a few years, but never studied them in a systematic way.
So just working thru your prior posts on the finder menus was a good process. I never noticed the alias option before. Good work.

Here are a few “switcher” issues it has taken me surprisingly long to get right.

Getting used to the detached top main menu. I still look to the top of an app window to see its main menu - tho spending hours a day on M$ op sys does not help

The key which acts like PC backspace. I seldom seem to need a backspace (or maybe i do not notice it because it works like i expect). Instead I most frequently seem to need the forward deleted so

So had I started on macs would i be needing the forward delete so much

By: Scott Haneda

Scott Haneda — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 21:21:17 +0000

@Antonio, no, we have not covered wireless cards as of yet. Those are pretty custom items at this point. We will talk about them in general in the future, but it will more than likely be some time down the road.

By: Antonio

Antonio — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 20:09:43 +0000

Scott,
Did you post anything about ExpressCard?
if not, any idea where I can get info?
Antonio

By: Scott Haneda

Scott Haneda — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 03:01:32 +0000

@Brett, right you are. I did my best to show you the basics in the post above, they may not have translated well in all browsers. In my tests they did though.

I did a quick search, and found this, later tonight, I will make up my own that is a little more explanatory and put it into the article, thanks for the suggestion.

By: Brett

Brett — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 02:55:53 +0000

It’s interesting that as a prospective new Mac user, I find there is talk here on and on the Apple website about shift, control, option and command keys and their symbols, BUT … nowhere are the symbols shown linked to the words. So,that weird elongated backward Z looking thingy is command, option or what, for example?

By: Scott Haneda

Scott Haneda — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 01:26:00 +0000

@Fred, The site is supported by love
Really, there are ads, as of yet, they do nothing for us. We started this as a way to help people, plain and simple. You can read a little about the history of it here.

I have a long history in this field, in part, I can now just pass a link onto a client, rather than typing up a long email. I happen to have a small ISP of my own, so setting up the server, email server, site etc, was something I just knew how to do, and saved a bit on the costs of that.

All in all, we are here to make computing easier and less frustrating to users. If it pays for itself in hosting costs, I will be plenty happy.

By: Scott Haneda

Scott Haneda — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 00:21:54 +0000

@Jim, thanks for pointing out the increase font size shortcut. It is something we will cover in more detail, how it works, how to reset it, etc. Safari has a lot more to it than I figured. What was once going to be a 5 part series, is turning into much more. In the end, I think it is good, most people probably spend the most time in a browser.

By: MacLitigator » Blog Archive » Switch Hitter Help

MacLitigator » Blog Archive » Switch Hitter Help — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 17:16:14 +0000

[…] users take for granted. A visit to the site confirms that it shows some promise, including this handy primer on keyboard shortcuts…. A topic always of interest to […]

By: Fred Tuttle

Fred Tuttle — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 03:57:42 +0000

I have used MACs for about 14 years and OS10.4 for about 2 years.
I still have a lot to learn.
How do you support yourself? Just by adds?
Good luck with this activity.
Fred
P.S. I learned about this site from MacNorth Computer Club.

By: Jim Hamm

Jim Hamm — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 22:45:16 +0000

Hi Scott. First, many thanks for your fine tutorials on OS X. I’ve been using a Mac now for about 10 months and am still learning. Your tutorials have sure helped. One tip that I use all the time on a website is to tap the + key while pressing the command key to increase the size of the font for easier reading… I’m ready for your next post, so get busy ……Thanks again….Jim

By: Scott Haneda

Scott Haneda — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 22:42:53 +0000

Off to the right of each field should say “name, “e-mail”, and “URI”, are you not seeing those? If you do not see them, please let us know what browser you are using so we can look into it.

Actually, since you mentioned “URI”, that would imply you can in fact see those labels on the fields. URI is just another way to say website address. Name and email should be visible and understood. Can you please clarify your problem so we can look into it?

By: Leaving comments

Leaving comments — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 20:31:49 +0000

In your “Leave a comment” area, you have/provide three fill in the blanks, I know this is a very basic procedure, but I am not sure what goes where. could you please modify your site instructions to perhaps include a “sample” of what is to be inputed into the blank areas. ie, is the first blank for title?, the second our E-mail (so &so @mac.com etc, and the third URI stands for what?

By: Scott Haneda

Scott Haneda — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 13:45:11 +0000

@Michael, Thanks for the clarification on modifier keys and operation keys. As I am sure you are noticing, I am a bit all over the board on how I refer to things. At times, I want to say URL, then I tend to lean on calling it a “web address”.

Moving forward, I am trying to establish some naming conventions. In the beginning, I try to refer to things in plain English, and follow that up with the real name in parentheses.

As we get deeper into the site, I can abandon the simple plain English terms in favor of more accurate terms.

If you are a reader, this is why it is so very important to start at the beginning of the site, and work your way forward to the current posts. If you do not, there is a chance you will get a little lost in the terminology.

By: Michael

Michael — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 16:30:42 +0000

Consider using the words “modifier key/s” when referring to the shift/command/option/control operations.

From your tutorial above: “…then press the letter “Q” on your keyboard.”

The problem has been that many people will press the modifier then PRESS the operation key and (usually) get a toggle. Press then click is the rule.

Good site, I’m placing it on my Bookmarks Bar and will forward to other OS-X users.

Cordially - Michael

By: Dan Mosqueda

Dan Mosqueda — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 17:27:46 +0000

On my MacBook Air there are new ways of right clicking by simply using 2 fingers it will generate a “right-click”. Of course when I use my other laptop, a ThinkPad, I find myself using the 2 finger trick to right click and it doesn’t work!

By: Scott Haneda

Scott Haneda — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 02:22:41 +0000

@tom, thanks, we have made the correction.

By: tom lopes

tom lopes — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 18:37:22 +0000

“A final note of clarification. In most cases, a modern two-button mouse will have the right mouse button set to perform a command-click.”

That’s Control-click, not Command-click.