> Thank you for clearing this up. Both you and Peter make an excellent case > for the attributes Windows held over the Mac. But having used both platforms > from 1990 forward, I have to say that the ease of working with the Mac > negated any shortcuts Windows may have offered -- FOR ME.
I don't think either of us are actually recommending Windows. Little subtle hints in my phrasing... like "toxic swamp" and "rotting tentacles"... should have clued you in on that. We're just pointing out that there are some good features in it that Apple would have done well to pay attention to. > Besides, even today after 20 years of Mac training and use, I routinely > lapse on what I'm doing and use the wrong key combo, sometimes resulting in > catastrophe. That's basically the point we're getting at. Apple's keyboard support is much more complex and harder to learn than Microsoft's, because this just doesn't happen on Windows. As for the mouse, remembering what the right and left buttons do is no different than remembering what click and control-click do... because the right button and control-click both have the same function. And on OS X, I wish I could disable control-click and click-and-hold and just use my right mouse button all the time. > One quick anecdote has to do with my taking a computer literacy test > for a job. It tested my ability to operate Microsoft applications under > Windows 98 within a time limit. The thing was, over and over it kept asking > me to do complex tasks with keystrokes. Well, first, someone else's badly designed test isn't Microsoft's fault (much as I enjoy blaming Microsoft for everything)... but here's a quick run-through. It's not complete, but it's enough to get the job done on any compliant app: The four most important ones are the same as on the Mac, except tab cycles through ALL controls. Not just input fields. Tab - Select next control. Cursor keys - Select element (radio button, menu item, etc). Space - Activate current control. Return - Activate default control. Escape - "undo" control (cancel, close menu, etc). Plus: Alt (tap, as a normal key) - Switch to the menu bar. Alt-X (where X is any letter) - Bring up the menu starting with X. Alt-space - Bring up the window control menu (close, move, resize, etc). Alt-Tab - Select next window. Up until Windows 9x, that's about all you needed to know. Windows-9x added a bunch of extra ones for the task bar, like control-escape to bring up the Start menu. > Mac seems to continually add that kind of functionality. Users asked for an > automatic dump to trash combo, they got it. In fact, OSX has more key > commands than I know what to with, even if I cared to use them. And *that* is the problem. -- Compact Macs is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/>. Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> Compact Macs list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/compact.shtml> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:[email protected]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive:<http://www.mail-archive.com/compact.macs%40mail.maclaunch.com/> --------------------------------------------------------------- iPod Accessories for Less at 1-800-iPOD.COM Fast Delivery, Low Price, Good Deal www.1800ipod.com ---------------------------------------------------------------
