Installment #3: Making the Keyboard More Fun

By Chuck Jennings

Making the Keyboard More Accessible

Making Your Keys Stick

If you have trouble holding down two keys at once, activate StickyKeys, so you can press the keys separately and still get the same effect. When StickyKeys is on, you can save a document (for instance) by pressing the CTRL key, and then pressing the S key--you needn't press them at the same time. Pressing a second key turns off (or unsticks) the first key. StickyKeys works only with the modifier keys: SHIFT, WINDOWS, CTRL, and ALT.

The ALT key is sticky all the time--to choose a command from a menu bar, you can press and release the ALT key before you press the letter for the command.

To turn on StickyKeys, select the Use StickyKeys check box on the Keyboard tab of the Accessibility Options dialog box. Then, click the Settings button to see five check boxes that define exactly how StickyKeys works:

Use Shortcut : Turns StickyKeys on or off when you press SHIFT five times.

Press Modifier Key Twice To Lock: Lock on a modifier key when you press it twice. Turn off the key by pressing it once again.

Turn StickyKeys Off If Two Keys Are Pressed At Once : If two keys are pressed at once, StickyKeys turns off. To make a modifier key sticky again, StickyKeys must be turned on again by using the shortcut (if the Use Shortcut option is selected) or by displaying the Keyboard tab of the Accessibility Options dialog box and selecting the Use StickyKeys option. This option can be annoying if you ever want to press two keys at the same time.

Make Sounds When Modifier Key Is Pressed: Beeps when a modifier key is struck. This is particularly useful when the previous option is turned on--it lets you know when StickyKeys is turned off.

Show StickyKeys Status On Screen: Displays a small graphic to the left of the time in the notification area of the taskbar.

Filtering Out Extra Keystrokes

If you have trouble typing each letter only once, you may want to turn on FilterKeys--which "filters out" extra keystrokes--rather than spending time editing them out yourself. You can configure FilterKeys to ignore repeated keystrokes repeated too quickly and to slow down the repeat rate (the rate at which a character is repeated when a key is held down).

To turn on FilterKeys, select the Use FilterKeys check box on the Keyboard tab of the Accessibility Options dialog box. Then, click the Settings button to define exactly how FilterKeys works:

Use Shortcut : Turns FilterKeys on or off when you hold down the right SHIFT key for eight seconds.

Ignore Repeated Keystrokes: Ignores keys repeated without a sufficient pause (sometimes called BounceKeys). When you choose this option, click the Settings button next to it, and then define the interval within which repeated keys should be ignored. Getting the right interval is crucial to avoiding frustration, so use the Test Area box to type words with repeated letters to see whether the setting works for you.

Ignore Quick Keystrokes And Slow Down The Repeat Rate: This option enables features called SlowKeys and RepeatKeys. SlowKeys enables you to filter out keys that are pressed only briefly. When SlowKeys is on, you must type more methodically, but Windows ignores keys touched lightly or quickly. RepeatKeys enables you to change the way keys are repeated--normally, if you hold down a key, it repeats at a certain rate after it has been held down for a certain interval. The settings for SlowKeys and RepeatKeys are on the same dialog box. Choose the radio button and click the Settings button next to it to configure them--if holding down a key causes it to repeat; if so, after what interval and at what rate should it repeat; and how long a key should be held down to register.

Beep When Keys Pressed Or Accepted: Tells Windows to beep when a key is pressed, and beep again when a key is accepted.

Show FilterKey Status On Screen: Displays a small graphic to the left of the time on the system tray:

You can double-click the icon to display the Accessibilities Options dialog box and make changes to your settings. When FilterKeys is off, the diagram is removed from the taskbar.

Hearing When a Toggled Key Is Pressed

ToggleKeys is useful if you accidentally press keys that change the behavior of the keyboard. When ToggleKeys is turned on and you press CAPS LOCK, NUM LOCK, or SCROLL LOCK, a tone sounds--a high-pitched tone when you turn CAPS LOCK, NUM LOCK, or SCROLL LOCK on, and a low-pitched tone when you turn it off.

To turn on ToggleKeys, select the Use ToggleKeys option on the Keyboard tab of the Accessibility Options dialog box. Click the Settings button to turn on the Use Shortcut setting, which enables you to turn ToggleKeys on or off by holding down the NUM LOCK key for five seconds