KeyboardAccess for IE
By Amit Schreiber
How To Use KeyboardAccess
Activation:
- Keypad "+" button or F12 - number the elements on the page and bring up
the "Choose Element" dialog box.
Usage:
- Enter - Go to entered link number.
- Esc - Undo link numbering and close dialog box.
- Alt + Up Arrow - Scroll browser up.
- Alt + Down Arrow - Scroll browser down.
Tips:
- Click the KeyboardAccess activation button when you already know which link you want to browse to, not earlier. That way the "Choose Link" dialog won't hide the web page while you're looking at it.
- Hands positioning: The most useful way to use KeyboardAccess is to light up the NumLock and keep the right hand on
the keypad. The thumb of your right hand can be on the Down Arrow button so you can scroll
down easily. The left hand should stay near the left Alt and Tab buttons, because that's the
most useful place to put it if you're going to use Windows with the keyboard.
- KeyboardAccess should be fired after you already browsed the page and when you know which element you wish
to click or focus on.
- To open a link in a new window, you can either click ALT+N or click TAB once and then hit the space bar to
check the checkbox.
General browsing tips with Microsoft Internet Explorer
Note: The following are not related to KeyboardAccess, and are just helpful if you want to
browse without the mouse.
- Alt + Left Arrow or Backspace - like pressing the "Back" button.
- Alt + Left Arrow - like pressing the "Forward" button.
- Alt + D - Go to address bar.
- Ctrl + F4 - Bring up most used links in address bar.
- Up Arrow - Scroll up in current page (if doesn't work, click Tab and try again).
- Down Arrow - Scroll down in current page (if doesn't work, click Tab and try again).
To Do
- Add numbering to more items (combo-boxes, for example) so it will be possible to focus on
them with KeyboardAccess.
- Instead of the "New Window" check-box, allow showing the element's context menu (in case
of a link the "Open In New Window" will be one of the options in the menu).
- Add configuration editor (once the configuration parameters are clear).
Thanks
Thanks to all the friends who helped me out by giving their comments about KeyboardAccess and helping in making
it useful. Also for offering the name (you know who you are :).
Thanks to Nullsoft, the good people who provided the installer for this little software and allowed me
to create a great looking installation without breaking the law.
Known Bugs and Their Workarounds
Bug:
When the user interface is showing pressing ALT+F4 closes it without removing the element numbering.
Workaround:
Close the window with ESC, or ALT+C (cancel), or by tabbing your way to the Cancel button and hitting the
space bar.
Bug:
When inside an form element, like an edit box, clicking "+" will add it to the text in the edit
box.
Workaround:
When in a form hitting Enter will usually submit it. To move around between from elements use TAB. In the
case of forms, KeyboardAccess is useful only to focus on a field.
License
Copyright © 2002, 2003 Amit Schreiber Click here to send an email
KeyboardAccess for IE is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
KeyboardAccess for IE is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details. You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with KeyboardAccess for IE; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307 USA
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