In our today’s lesson of Windows Tutorial, you will learn about “Accessibility Options” of Windows. Accessibility Options are especially designed for peoples with disabilities to use their computer more conveniently. Accessibility Options make it easier to see, hear and personalized computer more easily. In Windows 7, under Control Panel, Ease of Access Center provides a one centralized place to locate accessibility settings and programs to make your computer easier to use. There are a lot of customization options available under Accessibility Options, but today we will learn about Sticky Keys.
Sticky Keys are designed for people who have difficulty holding down two or more keys at a time. Like, to use many key board shortcut keys, a user requires holding down a key combination, like to open Print command from key board, user have to press Control + P combination. Sticky Keys allows you to press one key in a time, instead of pressing them simultaneously.
Let’s see, how to enable and use sticky keys. To Turn on Sticky Key feature, you need to click on, Start button, and then click on Control Panel. If you are opening Control Panel for the very first time, then you will see all the options under Control Panel, in Category View. I will advise you to change the view to “Large Icons”, so it will easier for you to find the different options. Now, click on “Ease of Access Center” icon. By default, the Control Panel shows all the items in Link style, so you only need to click once on an item to open it.
Under Ease of Access Center, you will find a lot of customization options including, Narrator, On Screen Key board, Magnifier extra. Under “Explore all settings”, click on “Make the key board easier to use”. Here you can customize much different kind of options like, Mouse Key, Sticky Keys, Filter Keys and Toggle Keys. Now, make a check mark on “Turn on Sticky Keys”, and apply the changes.
After applying the changes, you will immediately see a new Sticky Key icon in the “Notification Area”. If the icon is hidden under the arrow, then you can drag and drop the icon to make it visible permanently. The four squares in the icon are indicating different key strokes. The top icon is for Shift Key, and if you press the Shift Key from the key board once, then it will get filled with black color, and you will also listen to a sound, notifying you about Shift key is being pressed. The bottom left icon is for Control Key. The center icon is for Start button, and the bottom right icon is for Alt key.
Let’s learn how to use Sticky key? To explain you in detail, first I open WordPad. If for any reason, a person who is using the computer is unable to press two keys at once, then he can use Sticky Key. For instance, if I want to capitalize the first character of a word, then I don’t need to hold down the shift key. I will press the shift key once, and the shift icon in the Sticky Key will get highlighted. Now, I will press an alphabet from the key board, and it will automatically get capitalized, and the shift within from the Sticky Key will get turn off. Now, whenever I need to use the shift key, I don’t have to hold it. I can press the Shift Key once, and Sticky Key will remember it, and then I will press the additional key that I need to use along with.
You can do the same for the Control key. If you frequently use key board shortcut keys from the key board, and you have difficulties pressing two keys at once, then you can use the Sticky Key for the Control Key as well. For instance, to save the document, I need to press Control + S key. So, to do this, I will press the Control key once, and bottom left icon in the Sticky key will get highlighted. Now, I will press the S, from the key board, and save document command will get executed.
If you also frequently use the key board shortcut for Windows command, then Sticky Key can useful for you. For instance, to open the Run command, you have to press Windows Key + R. But as the Sticky Key is turned on, you don’t have to press both keys at once. Press the Windows Key once, and then press R from the key board, and Run dialog box will get open.
The last modifier key is ALTER key. As I had discussed in my previous lesson of WordPad, that you can activate and use the Menu bar commands, using the Alter Key from the key board. For instance, to open the File menu, you can press ALT+F key combination. So, to use the same command, while the Sticky Key is on, you don’t have to press both key simultaneously. Press the Alter key once from your key board, and then press the F key, and this will open the File menu. So, you see that how Sticky Key can make it easier for the people, who have difficulties pressing two key at once.
There is one more option in the Sticky Key, which is locking a key. For instance, sometimes what you need is to hold a modifier key for some time. Like, to select multiple files within from a folder, you have to hold the Control Key, and then left click from your mouse to select non continuous files. If you have difficulty holding a key and pressing the mouse button at the same time, then you can lock a modifier key, using the Sticky Key option.
To lock a modifier key, press that key twice. For instance, to lock the Control Key, press the Control Key two times from your key board. This will lock down the Control Key, and now you can select multiple files easily. After you have finished working, press the Control Key again, to unlock it.
You can do the same for the Window Key, Alter Key, and Shift Key. As an example, I want to continuously select multiple files, and then I don’t have to hold the Shift Key. I can lock down the Shift key, by pressing it twice, and can execute the next command.
There are a few more settings that you can consider while using Sticky Key. To configure those settings, open the Ease of Access Center through Control Panel, and then click on “Make the key board easier to use”. Now, click on the “Setup Sticky Keys” link. The first option is to Turn On or Off the Sticky Key. The second option, under the Key board Shortcut section is, “Turn on Sticky Keys when SHIFT is press five times”.
For instance, while working if you need to turn on the Sticky Key, then you don’t have to come along a long way to turn on the Sticky Key. You can easily turn them on by pressing the SHIFT key five times from your key board.
You can also configure that either Windows gives you a warning message while turning on the Sticky Key, or turn it on, silently. You can also configure that either you want to listen a sound, while Sticky Key is turning on or off.
As, I have previously explained you that how you can lock down a modifier key by pressing it twice. If you do not want to lock down a modifier key, either accidently or intentionally, then you can turn off this feature. Now, Windows will not lock a modifier key, even if you press it twice.
“Turn off Sticky Keys when two keys are pressed at once” option is checked by default. It means that if the Sticky Keys are turned on, and you still press the two keys at once, like CONTROL S, at once, then Windows will turn off the Sticky Keys. If you want Sticky Keys to run always, even you press two keys at once, then you can uncheck this option.
As we were working with Sticky Keys, you may have heard different sounds. Those sounds are indication about the Sticky Key behavior. Like you will hear different sounds, while you press a modifier key once, twice, or thrice.
So, this was all about Sticky Keys. In our next lesson, we will learn about more Accessibility Options. Till then, keep practicing and have a nice day.
Comments
Post a Comment