How to use Windows Mouse Keys

I wonder sometimes if I get ahead of myself. A lot of times I don’t mention things that I think are very basic, simply because I’m so used to them. A case in point: the built-in Windows accessibility options. I frequently mention Mouse Keys, for example, but I’ve never posted on how to set it up, simply because I assume the keyboard user already knows, or has already looked it up in the Accessibility Options.  [EDIT: I have indeed posted the instructions before, but will leave this post up because it's more  to the point.]  However, it shows up in my stats often enough that maybe I’ve been too hasty. So, here are some Mouse Keys pointers.

1. Activate Mouse Keys = left Alt, left Shift, NumLock. (NOTE: you may want to activate the Sticky Keys feature first, if you haven’t already.)

2. Press Alt S, then Alt M.

3. Press Alt S to go into the configuration.

4. Use the underlined keyboard shortcuts to adjust the speed and acceleration of the cursor via the arrow keys.

5. One of the most important settings is whether you use Mouse Keys with NumLock on or off.

A. If you use Mouse Keys with NumLock on to control the mouse cursor, you will not be able to use the numeric keypad to enter numbers. In this setting, turning NumLock off lets you use the keypad to move the blinking cursor.

B. If you use Mouse Keys with NumLock off to control the mouse cursor, you will not be able to use the keypad to control the blinking cursor. In this setting, turning NumLock on will allow you to use the numeric keypad to enter numbers.

6. Use Tab or the shortcuts to press OK, then Apply, then OK.

Cursor movement is pretty self-explanatory — it corresponds to the arrows on the keys. Number keys without arrows correspond to diagonal directions, relative to their placement on the keypad.

Left click = 5

Right-click = -5

Return to left click mode = /

Double-click = +

Drag = 0, then a direction key

Drop = .

Scroll = Page Down/Up (or Space for down)

Click Firefox links with the apostrophe ‘ and Dragon

The auto scrolling bookmarklet prompted me to write this post, but the fix I’m going to describe applies to Firefox globally as well. I said earlier that the bookmarklet’s number key speed shortcuts conflicted with Mouseless Browsing, but even if you’re not using Mouseless Browsing, it also conflicts with the accessibility.typeaheadfind settings in Firefox’s about:config. So, if you say or type a number to finely adjust the speed (you can also, it turns out, just press the + or – as long as you’re not using Mouse Keys), your speed will adjust, but Firefox will focus on where that number appears. Therefore, chances are good you’ll lose your place in whatever you’re reading.

However, there is a way to access links reliably without either typeaheadfind or Mouseless Browsing turned on. Just press or say apostrophe. This will temporarily turn on the accessibility.typeaheadfind.linksonly setting, and you can say or type your link word, then press Enter. However, you may still wish to go into about:config and turn off the timeout setting if you’re a keyboard user and type slowly.

Compared to having the setting enabled automatically, this is a slightly clumsier process, especially if you have a keyboard on which the ‘ is a shifted key. It would be somewhat more bearable for Dragon users, though, especially if you could create an add-on command. Here is my Vocola command, taken from my list of Firefox commands:

[Click] Link <_anything> = “‘” $1 {Enter};

That was a basic clicking link, but if you want to account for opening a link in a new tab, here is the command:

[Open] Link <_anything> new tab = “‘” $1 {Ctrl+Enter};

Now you should be able to keep your place while you scroll. Also, you might want to use this command anyway, because even though Dragon will occasionally click a Firefox link for you, Dragon itself does not have a way to open a new tab when it clicks something.

Switching between windows

Awhile back I was reading that some Dragon users were having trouble with the “switch to next/previous window” command. There’s a workaround, with fewer syllables even: “press Alt-Esc.” (I am properly caffeinated this morning; there are no slips of the tongue this time.)

Vocal and keyboard autoscrolling in Firefox: Woohoo!

I’m still a little peeved at Nuance for breaking their middle click command, and likewise a little bit puzzled at the Mozilla developers for making such a useful function as auto scroll exclusive to the mouse. A lot of people who can’t use the mouse — be they Dragon users or keyboard-only users or both — don’t feel like writing their own voice commands or AutoHotKey assignments or what have you. Not for what is supposed to be a basic native Firefox function, at least. What about that standard that says all functions should be accessible from the keyboard, huh? While computer users with disabilities do have to take more responsibility for finding things out themselves, it baffles me that programmers can’t even meet us halfway sometimes. The more function you have built into a program, the safer you feel, because — well, what if your add-ons stop being developed or something? You get the idea.

However, after much frustrated googling, I am just elated. Whether you are a Dragon user or keyboard user, you can now auto scroll any page without using a mouse command. Tim Harper, a.k.a. Tim the Enchanter, has written a bookmarklet that does just that — loads a JavaScript for auto scrolling into any page you’re on. All you have to do is go to his page, and save the humongous Autoscroll link into your Bookmarks Toolbar using the mouse commands (for Dragon), but that’s the only time, I promise. (The toolbar method is mainly for Dragon users because Mozilla hasn’t made the toolbar itself keyboard accessible.)

If you are a keyboard user, you need to use Mouse Keys (sorry, tabbing to the link doesn’t seem to work, or least I can’t see it being highlighted) to right-click over the link, and choose “Bookmarks Menu” for the location. That’s more efficient because it makes your keyboard shortcut more fluid: Alt-B-A. Done. (Of course, you might have to press A more than once if you have bookmarks that start with the same letter. For efficiency in selecting, it might be a good idea to de-clutter your menu, either by deleting old bookmarks or putting them into a folder.)

Tim lists the shortcuts for increasing the speed on his page, but please note — since we’re probably all using Mouseless Browsing, the number key shortcuts will conflict. (However, we can by all means still access links and fields via Mouseless Browsing with no problem.) Stick with the Control-Shift-+ or Control-Shift– shortcuts, and you’ll be fine. If the default speed is too slow for you, you can edit the script to adjust it. To do this:

1. Go to Organize Bookmarks under the Bookmarks menu (Ctrl-Shift-B).

2. Choose either Bookmarks Menu or Bookmarks Toolbar, depending on where you put the bookmarklet. Then, highlight Autoscroll from the results side.

3. Look at the Location field. Instead of seeing a web address, you will see the script itself. With either voice or keyboard, go to the Location field and press Control-C.

4. Open Notepad. Press Control-V. You will see the script in full.

5. On the 2nd line, look for ss_speed=1. Once you find it, change 1 to about 3; that’s middling at least. Then, select and copy the document via Control-A Control C, and go back to your Bookmark Organizer.

6. Go into the Location field again if you’re not still there. Press Control-V. This will paste the adjusted script.

7. Now, whenever you say “Autoscroll” or execute the keyboard shortcut, the page will scroll at the speed you want.

Tim’s script can be found here. Enjoy!

Microsoft Office 2007 and the perks of assistive technology

I’m using someone else’s computer to learn Office 2007, because I don’t have it myself and public computers aren’t very accessible to me at the moment. However, I need to learn it for the sake of future employment. Friend graciously let me put Dragon on, so as to get the full idea. I don’t know that I’d spend the money for Office myself as I can get by with Jarte Plus and (to a less-reliable and more RAM-intensive extent) OpenOffice, but — dare I say it? — I like this program. Before you start doubting my sanity, let me say this for balance — I only like it because, having no mouse, I don’t have to touch the counter-intuitive, plasticky interface. So maybe that’s not true liking. Gratitude at squeaking by, perhaps?

I’m unsure whether to start with the good tweaks or bad first impressions, so I’ll give you a summary of what I did and elaborate from there.

Step 1: Say “start Command Browser” and choose Microsoft Word 2007 from the list. It’s easier if you uncheck Include Global, because it pares down the list. Study this list.

Step 2: Press F1 (there is no voice command for Help, perhaps in concordance with the tiny help button’s exile to the far right corner of the screen), and enter “hide ribbon.” Pressing Control-F1 hides the ribbon. There is no verbal command for this either, but you can certainly say the keypresses. Once you hide the ribbon, you get a great deal of your screen back. For me, I also regained my concentration, because I can’t take that much visual noise.

Step 3 (optional): Go online and search for a list of TRUE Word keyboard shortcuts (i.e. the ones that use Ctrl and Alt and function keys), then print what you find. The same goes for the other Office programs.

I just favor the traditional keyboard shortcuts, because they’re more compressed and become automatic; I have a quick memory. I would only use the F10 keytips (pressing F10 toggles the ribbon and keys to open various options) if you need to assist a mouse user with finding something in the Ribbon, which I will have to do if employed. But I prefer old-school for myself.

Now for some of the perks of being an assistive technology user:

• If you use Dragon, and study the Command Browser well, everything you do is invisible. You don’t need to know where Microsoft hid the line spacing options, or what have you, so you don’t have to guess at the counterintuitive menus. Thus, you don’t need the ribbon. All you have to do is say the command. As far as dictation, accuracy is the same and speed isn’t noticeably slower (but I suspect Jarte is infinitesimally faster).

• Once you’ve memorized the keyboard shortcuts from whatever list you find, your actions are likewise invisible. And I have to say, things become more convenient in some ways than they used to be. I absolutely love the keyboard shortcut for double spacing, for example — Control-2. I don’t think that was available in previous versions.

I could get used to this, though it’s not worth spending the money if I have a semi-decent alternative in Jarte; I’ve already put the work into Vocola commands.

The Exterminator: Keyboard Shortcuts

I haven’t touched an external mouse in two years. One reason for this is keyboard shortcuts. (The other is a SmartNAV and dwell clicking freeware, which I will review shortly.) Keyboard shortcuts are so much quicker than a standard mouse.

Keyboard shortcuts (Alt [letter] or Ctrl [letter]) vary by application, so it’s impossible to give a comprehensive list. I’m going to focus on general navigation.

To open a program from the Start menu (Windows XP, or Vista in classic mode):

• Windows key
• the first letter of the program’s name, repeated if necessary until that program is highlighted. If repeated, Enter. If not repeated, program opens automatically.

To select and open an item, e.g. in Control Panel or the Desktop:

• Press the first letter of the item’s name, repeated if necessary, then Enter.

To right-click an item:

• Once you have highlighted it, press the menu key — the one with the picture of the mouse cursor on it. This will bring up the context menu for that item (“open with,” “properties,” etc.) In Microsoft Word or Open Office.org Writer, this is a shortcut to commonly used formatting options and or the spellcheck.

To expand a “plus sign box,” e.g. in Device Manager or Regedit:

• Once you have highlighted it either with the arrow keys or tabbing over to it, press the right arrow. To collapse, press the left arrow.

To click a checkbox:

• Use tab or arrow keys until you’re over the box
• press Space to check, again to uncheck

For those times when the tab, menu, and enter keys don’t work, and you can’t use a standard mouse, Mouse Keys can be useful. Shortcut: left-hand Shift, left-hand Alt, Numlock. If you’re using mouseless browsing and don’t want to mess with the numbers on the keypad, select “use Mouse Keys when Numlock is off.” This way you can switch between Mouse Keys and mouseless without altering anything.

Another occasionally useful tool is “snap to,” found in the Mouse option of the Control Panel. This will position your cursor over the default choice in a dialog box, e.g. “Yes” in Save Changes in Microsoft Word.