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Click-N-Type Overview Overview Click-N-Type is a virtual keyboard designed for anyone with a disability that prevents him or her from typing on a physical computer keyboard. As long as the person can control a mouse, trackball or other pointing device, he or she can send keystrokes to virtually any Windows application or DOS application that can run within a DOS window. Click-N-Type is a 32 bit application that requires Windows 95 or later. There are other virtual keyboards around but you’ll find Click-N-Type the easiest to use for getting text into those uncooperative places like browser “Address:” fields, Email “To:” addresses, Email “Subject:” fields, dialog boxes like “Open” and “Save As...”, and many other problematic applications. Try them all. You’ll see they all work fine while typing into Notepad or WordPad, but when you attempt to do some real work, you’ll get really annoyed really fast. Click-N-Type was designed with ease of use foremost in mind. Oh yes, it’s FREE. If you need it, you can have it. I’ve seen too many people trying to make money off the disabled. Table of Topics:
Installing & Uninstalling Installing after Download If you have downloaded CNTzip.exe, run it to start the installation: • Click the Next button on the Welcome screen to begin the actual installation. • After accepting the defaults, you will find Click-N-Type on you “Start | Programs” menu. Proceed to the Getting Started section. Note: You no longer need CNTzip.exe. It may be safely be deleted. Note to those well versed in program installations Since CNTzip.exe now installs Click-N-Type using the Windows Installer, you may keep this file around someplace if you like, but it is not needed. Should you suspect Click-N-Type has become somehow corrupted, you may run CNTzip.exe again to “Repair” your installation. Note to System Administrators Any non-administrator user who uses Click-N-Type and will need to perform any of the following functions, will need to have both “Modify” and “Write” access to the folder you installed Click-N-Type to. • Add or remove words in the Word Prediction List. • Use the Commonly used Words feature. • Save Macro Snapshot (.mss) files. • Change Language Configuration. Changing the Word List requires Write access to “Words.txt” and the Modify for the ability to create and delete “Words.tmp”. The Commonly used Words feature requires Write access to “Cwords.txt”. Saving Macro Snapshots requires Write and Modify to create and change “.mss” files. Changing Language Configurations requires Write access to the “CurrentLC” file. If people tampering with files is a problem, all other files in the folder may be write protected. ------------------------------------- Installing from Floppy Disks Installing from floppy discs is no longer supported. -------------------------------------- Uninstalling Although you may use Window’s “Control Panel | Add/Remove Programs”, you will find it easier to smoothly remove Click-N-Type from your system by following the steps below: • Run Click-N-Type if not already running. • Click the “Options” menu, followed by the “Uninstall Click-N-Type...” option. • The “Uninstall Click-N-Type” applet will pop up. • This applet gives you total control over how you want to uninstall Click-N-Type, but the first check box is all you need to be concerned with. The first check box simply asks if you intend to reinstall a newer version of Click-N-Type after this program removal process. The check box states “I intend to reinstall another version of Click-N-Type afterwards.” Defaults for all other options will be set based on this first check box. • If this statement is true, leave the box checked. • If you chose this option, and you are using Customized Key-Caps, Customized Key Codes, non-English Translated Menus and Messages, Word Prediction and Completion or User Designed Keyboards you may receive warnings later in the removal process about not being able to completely remove the application. This is normal and expected, and is so when you reinstall you newer version of Click-N-Type you will continue to use those special features. • If you want to get rid of Click-N-Type forever, uncheck this box. • Click the “Remove Click-N-Type from my system” button. • When prompted again about completely removing Click-N-Type, Click the “Yes” button. Note: If you intend to reinstall a newer version of Click-N-Type later, it is always simplest to install it to the same folder the old version was in. Note: If you don’t want the “Uninstall Click-N-Type...” option to be available to the user, place a file with the name “NoRemove.txt” in the Click-N-Type install folder. The contents of this file does not matter.
Getting Started Getting Started After installing Click-N-Type, you’ll be able to access it, like any other program, from your “Start | Programs | Click-N-Type | Click-N-Type” menu. Once you start the program, you’ll most likely want to setup at least one of the options by clicking the “Options” menu item. You’ll probably want to chose “Place a Shortcut on the Desktop” so the next time you want to run Click-N-Type, you’ll be able to just double-click its icon on your Desktop. You’ll notice the first time you run Click-N-Type, some of the keys are cropped a bit close on top. This is an attempt to keep the Click-N-Type profile as low as possible, so you have room to work, while trying not to make you squint too much on higher resolution screens. You may or may not like this size, especially if you’re running your monitor at a higher resolution, but for now just leave it. You can resize the Click-N-Type keyboard at any time, to fit your taste. For now since we’re just playing, let’s just move our Click-N-Type keyboard somewhere near the bottom of the screen. • Move the mouse pointer so it’s over the blue Click-N-Type title bar. • Click and hold the left mouse button, while dragging the frame of the window to a position near the bottom of the screen. Be careful not to cover your Taskbar as you do so. • Release the mouse button, and the Click-N-Type keyboard will move to where you want it. To demonstrate Normal Typing lets start up you’re favorite Word Processor. Or if you want, we could just start the Notepad program by clicking “Start | Programs | Accessories | Notepad”. Move it somewhere near the top of the screen, by dragging its title bar, just as we did for the Click-N-Type window. While the Notepad window has focus (its title bar is blue), notice where the Insertion Pointer (the blinking vertical bar “|” is. This is where your Type-in will go. Since we just started a new Notepad session, the Insertion Pointer will be at the top of a new empty document. However in the future, you can set the Insertion Point by just clicking where you want to start inserting characters. Now lets type something like “This is COOL.” into the file. Note that, just like a real keyboard, all letters of the alphabet are normally lowercase. So, lets depress the {bmct bm1.bmp} (Shift) key, then click on the <T> key, and click the {bmct bm1.bmp} key again to release it before typing anything else. click <H>, <I>, <S> followed by the <Space> key. Notice the characters appearing in the Notepad window. If you make a mistake, at any point, just click the {bmct bm2.bmp} (Backspace) key to erase a character. Continue with <I>, <S>, <Space>, {bmct bm1.bmp}, <C>, <O>, <O>, <L>, release {bmct bm1.bmp} and click <.> to end the sentence. Now lets save our masterpiece. Go to the Notepad window and click “File | Save As...”. You will be presented with a dialog box, currently pointing to your Desktop. You can change this if you like, but it’s good enough for now, and we’ll delete the file later anyway. The important thing to notice is the File Name of “Untitled” completely selected in blue. This indicates that anything you type into this field, at this point, will completely replace that selected text. Note: You may have to move the dialog box up slightly to see the “File name:” field. Lets be really creative and call this file “Test”. On your Click-N-Type keyboard, click {bmct bm1.bmp}, <T>, release {bmct bm1.bmp}, followed by <E>, <S>, <T>. Now you can either click “Save” on the dialog box, or click <Enter> on your Click-N-Type keyboard. The file “Test.txt” will be saved to your Desktop. You can now close the Notepad window, and minimize Click-N-Type. Note: Since the little [_] at the upper right of the Click-N-Type window is small and hard to hit, and since you will be minimizing Click-N-Type quite often, a “Minimize” menu item has been provided to do the same thing. You will see your “Test.txt” file on your Desktop. Double-click it to display it again, right-click and delete it, or whatever you want. This exercise is done. Speed Improvement Tip {bmc bm3.bmp} In many cases, like our masterpiece above, you will want to capitalize a single character, such as the first letter of the first word in a sentence. To capitalize the “T” in the word “This” above, we depressed the {bmct bm1.bmp} key, clicked the <T> key and then released the {bmct bm1.bmp} key to continue typing in lowercase. Rather than making these three clicks, we could have used the Right-Click-Shift shortcut instead. So, we could have typed the word “This” by doing the following: Right-Click <T>, then Left-Click <H>, <I> and <S>. Speed Improvement Tip {bmc bm3.bmp} Manny international keyboards make use or the <AltGr> key. This is the <Right-Alt> key, and is the same as depressing the <Alt> and <Ctrl> key simultaneously while striking another key. For example, in order to type the “#” on the French (Belgian) keyboard, you would have to click <Alt> then <Ctrl> then <3> and then release both <Alt> and <Ctrl> in order to continue typing. Rather than making all these clicks, you can just do a Right-Click on the <Alt> key. This will depress or release both the <Alt> and <Ctrl> keys simultaneously, simulating the <AltGr> key.
Tips and Tricks The following are a set of assorted tips, speed improvement tricks and general shortcuts. Each item is fully explained it the section to which it pertains. Right-Click-Shift In many cases you will want to capitalize a single character, such as the first letter of the first word in a sentence. Rather than making several clicks, to depress and release the {bmct bm1.bmp} key, you can simply Right-Click the key to capitalize that letter. For more information on Shifting and Unshifting, see the Getting Started section. AltGr International key Manny international keyboards make use or the <AltGr> key. This is the <Right-Alt> key, and is the same as depressing the <Alt> and <Ctrl> key simultaneously while striking another key. For example, in order to type the “#” on the French (Belgian) keyboard, you would have to click <Alt> then <Ctrl> then <3> and then release both <Alt> and <Ctrl> in order to continue typing. Rather than making all these clicks, you can just do a Right-Click on the <Alt> key. This will depress or release both the <Alt> and <Ctrl> keys simultaneously, simulating the <AltGr> key. For more information about the <Alt> and <Ctrl> keys, see the Getting Started section. MS Word AltGr problems While using some international keyboards with some versions of MS Word, you may have difficulty typing some characters that require the <AltGr> key. This is a result of the <AltGr> equivalence with <Alt>+<Ctrl> mentioned above. This is a problem with some MS Word keyboard Shortcuts. In the Microsoft Guidelines for Keyboard User Interface Design Users and programmers are instructed, when creating shortcuts, to “Avoid CTRL+ALT combinations because the system interprets this combination in some language versions as an ALTGR key, which generates alphanumeric characters.” So naturally, the first thing MS Word does is break this rule. Click here to see Microsoft’s solution for removing their errant shortcuts from Word. Middle-Click Macro Expansion If you have a three button or a Wheel Mouse, you may Middle-Click on a key to send its Macro to the target, rather than depressing and releasing the <Alt> key. Note that tapping the wheel of a Wheel Mouse is the same as Middle-Clicking a three button mouse. For more information about Macros, see the Macros section of this document. The Macro key The Macro key may also be placed on User Defined layouts. When visible on a User Designed Keyboard, it replaces the Alt to generate Macros. This frees up <Alt>+<any-key> to perform normal functions. If the Macro key exists on your keyboard layout, you should use it to generate the text of your Macros rather than the Alt key. Clicking in Scan Mode Releasing the mouse button, or switch, is what is actually sensed as a “click” while in Scan Mode, so it may be easier for some people to depress the button early, and release it at the correct moment. For more information about Scan Mode, see the Scan Mode section of this document. Repeated Keys in Scan Mode To type the same key two or more times in a row. After typing the first key, simply click again before the scanning process restarts. You may multiple click like this for as many keys as you want to repeat. The time you are given before the scanning process restarts is adjustable as a Scan Mode Setting above. For more information about Scan Mode, see the Scan Mode section of this document. Double-Right-Click in Scan Mode If you make a mistake and type an unintended character, you don’t have to scan the {bmct bm2.bmp} key to erase the last character. Simply Double-Right-Click to send the <Backspace> key. For more information about Scan Mode, see the Scan Mode section of this document. Single Click Word Completion The default for completing a word in the Word Prediction list is to double click it. This makes it easy to add and remove words. However, it may be significantly easier for some users to simply Single-Click the word they want. To set this mode, set the Prediction | Single Click Word Prediction option. Go to the Word Prediction and Completion section to learn more about word completion. Aborting Word Prediction While clicking keys that are not intended to be part of any word, the word prediction process will still be active. To reset Word Prediction, without typing a <Space> or other non-word character, you may Right-Click on the Word Prediction list. Go to the Word Prediction and Completion section to learn more about word completion. Learning New Words shortcut You may avoid the menu system when adding new words to the Word Prediction list. When there is a word in the buffer, simply Right-Click on the Buffer button and select Learn Word from Buffer. Go to the Word Prediction and Completion section to learn more about word completion. AutoHide During normal typing, you may move the mouse pointer off the keyboard for a second to make the Click-N-Type keyboard drop to the bottom of your screen, out of your way. When you want the keyboard back, simply move the mouse to the bottom of your screen and retrieve it. This AutoHide action is not the default. Enable this feature by checking the Drop and Hide when not in use option in the Program Preferences... section. System Hooks conflicts We are unable to test Click-N-Type with every program ever written. In order to provide an easier interface, Click-N-Type uses low level hooks into operating systems such as Window NT4(Sp3), 2000, XP and newer. There is nothing to stop other software, especially assistive software, from using these hooks also. If these hooks are used incorrectly, problems and/or conflicts could arise. If you suspect such a conflict you should try the following steps first, to see if it solves the problem. • Try starting Click-N-Type before the other software. • Try starting the other software before Click-N-Type. • See if the other software can run in a simpler mode. • If all else fails, disable the Use System Hooks option in the Set Program Preferences applet. Click-N-Type will operate exactly the way it runs on Win-95, Win-98 and Win-ME systems and will not attempt to compete for resources that other software may have claimed for its own.
Changing Size & Position Repositioning No matter how a virtual keyboard is designed the fact remains “It takes space on you screen.” If the Click-N-Type keyboard is setup to always stay on top, chances are it will, at some point, cover the area you want to see or type into. So, chances are you’ll be moving the Click-N-Type window around a lot. Technically, the field you type into does not have to be visible while you use the Click-N-Type keyboard, but it’s always nice to see what you’re typing. You may move the Click-N-Type keyboard to any position on, or even off, the screen by following the instructions below: • Move the mouse pointer so it’s over the blue Click-N-Type title bar. • Click and hold the left mouse button, while dragging the frame of the window to a new position. • Release the mouse button, and the Click-N-Type keyboard will move to where you want it. As an added convenience, whenever your mouse pointer leaves the Click-N-Type keyboard for more than a second, the Click-N-Type window swings down and out of your way. The keyboard will hide at the bottom of the screen, nearly out of view. If you your mouse pointer to the small sliver that’s still showing, it will return to its original position. Resizing Depending on the size and resolution of you monitor, and your personal taste, you will probably want to change the size of the Click-N-Type keyboard. You will probably only do this once or twice until you’re pleased with the configuration. These dimensions will be remembered the next time you run Click-N-Type. To change the size of the Click-N-Type keyboard, or for that matter any other window, move the cursor to one edge or corner of the window click, hold and drag. Width - Move the cursor to either the left or right edge of the window until it turns into a East-West double-arrow. Click and hold while dragging the frame of that edge. When the mouse button is released, the keyboard will be resized to your new dimensions. A minimum width is enforced however. Height - Move the cursor to either the top or bottom edge of the window until it turns into a North-South double-arrow. Click and hold while dragging the frame of that edge. When the mouse button is released, the keyboard will be resized to your new dimensions. A minimum height is enforced however. Both Width & Height - Move the cursor to any corner of the window until it turns into a NE-SW or NW-SE double-arrow. Click and hold while dragging the frame of both edges. When the mouse button is released, the keyboard will be resized to your new dimensions. A minimum width and height is enforced however.
Setting Options Options The Options menu is your primary tool for setting program and keyboard functionality and appearance. You will most likely set these options the way you like them once, and rarely access this menu again. However, since the majority of Click-N-Type capabilities are controlled here, you should familiarize yourself with these settings. Program Preferences... Keyboard Preferences... Restore Default Size Keyboard > User Designed Keyboards > AutoClick > Scan Mode > Uninstall Click-N-Type...
Options | Program Preferences... Program Preferences... Brings up the “Set Program Preferences” applet. You can set the following program characteristics from this window to control the way Click-N-Type behaves: Drop and Hide when not in use - The Click-N-Type keyboard has the ability to drop to the bottom of your screen and hide itself, out of your way, whenever you are not actively clicking keys. When you need the keyboard to be visible again, simply move the mouse pointer to the bottom of the screen where a small sliver of the top of the keyboard may be seen. The default for this feature is off. Minimize when not in use - This option is similar to the Drop and Hide option above, except the keyboard will become Minimized rather than dropping to the bottom of the screen. You will have to click the Taskbar icon to restore Click-N-Type and focus will shift back and forth between programs. Only Title Bar shows when not in use - This option is similar to the Drop and Hide option above, except the keyboard will “Rollup” to show only its Title Bar when the mouse moves away. Passing the mouse pointer over the Title Bar or clicking the tray icon will restore the keyboard. Place a Shortcut on the Desktop - Places a shortcut to Click-N-Type on your Desktop. You will be able to start Click-N-Type by double-clicking on this Shortcut rather than having to go through the “Start | Programs | Click-N-Type | Click-N-Type” rout. Start the keyboard at Boot Up - Causes Click-N-Type to automatically start every time you start your computer. This is done by placing a Shortcut in your Startup Program Group. Start Minimized on the Taskbar - When Click-N-Type starts, it will first appear Minimized on your Taskbar. This is useful if you are starting Click-N-Type at system start up, but don’t want to have it up front, in your face, until you ask for it. In System Tray when Minimized - Normally whenever you Minimize Click-N-Type, it will be accessible from the Taskbar like any other minimized window. If you want it to take up even less space, you can set this option. Whenever Click-N-Type is Minimized, its icon only will appear in the System Tray area of the Taskbar. You may restore the Click-N-Type keyboard by clicking this icon. Launch an Application at Startup - Whenever Click-N-Type starts, you may choose to start a program such as your favorite Word Processor, or even a document you commonly work on. Simply check this option and a dialog window opens, pointing you to all the shortcuts on your Start Menu. To choose a shortcut to an application, simply navigate to the Start Menu shortcut that starts the application, and click “Open”. More advanced users may want to change the “Files of Type:” drop-down choice to “All Files”, and navigate to an executable program or document. In either case, your choice will be opened whenever Click-N-Type is started. Note: your current choice is displayed as a Tool-Tip as you move the mouse over this item. To change your choice, uncheck this option and re-check it. You will be again prompted to find an application. [X] Button Minimizes the keyboard - Normally when you click the [X] button at the upper-right of your window, Click-N-Type closes as any other window. If you want the keyboard again, you have to relaunch it. If this option is checked, the [X] button simply minimizes the keyboard to the Taskbar or System Tray, where it is easily accessible with a single click. To close Click-N-Type you must use the File menu and choose Exit. Always keep the keyboard On Top - Causes the Click-N-Type window to always stay on top of any other window you have open. In this way the Click-N-Type keyboard is always visible and accessible. If you uncheck this option, you will have to resize and position both Click-N-Type and other windows you’re working with so Click-N-Type is visible and accessible. If you don’t, you’ll have to go down to the Taskbar and re-activate Click-N-Type every time you want to type a key. Word Prediction available - Currently an English Word Prediction word list is provided at the Click-N-Type web site, and several Language Packs include word lists for the given language. If you are using Click-N-Type with a language that doesn’t have a word list currently available, and/or just don’t want to have the Prediction menu item visible, you may want this option unchecked. Use System Hooks We are unable to test Click-N-Type with every program ever written. In order to provide an easier interface, Click-N-Type uses low level hooks into operating systems such as Window NT4(Sp3), 2000, XP and newer. There is nothing to stop other software, especially assistive software, from using these hooks also. If these hooks are used incorrectly, problems and/or conflicts could arise. If you suspect such a conflict you should try the following steps first, to see if it solves the problem. • Try starting Click-N-Type before the other software. • Try starting the other software before Click-N-Type. • See if the other software can run in a simpler mode. • If all else fails, disable the Use System Hooks option in the Set Program Preferences applet. Click-N-Type will operate exactly the way it runs on Win-95, Win-98 and Win-ME systems and will not attempt to compete for resources that other software may have claimed for its own.
Options | Keyboard Preferences... Keyboard Preferences... Brings up the “Set Keyboard Preferences” applet. You can set the following keyboard characteristics from this window to control the way the Click-N-Type keyboard behaves: Capital and small letters shown on keyboard - When this option is checked, the characters on your keys are Case Sensitive, in that they appear in lowercase unless the {bmct bm1.bmp} key is depressed. All alphabetic keys switch from uppercase to lowercase and back again each time the {bmct bm1.bmp} key is toggled. Identify Keys when Mouse Moves Over them - This option can serve more than one purpose. If it is checked, the key faces change color to yellow as the mouse pointer passes over them. Furthermore, if Typing Sounds is set to one of the “Speech” options, The key is spoken as you pass over it, rather than after you click it. Shift, Ctrl and Alt stay Down until released - If this option is selected, the {bmct bm1.bmp}, Ctrl and Alt keys stay down when depressed. It is frequently convenient to do things like capitalize only the first letter of a sentence, without going back to release the {bmct bm1.bmp} key. Also, you may only want the Alt key down long enough to expand one Macro. When this option is cleared, the {bmct bm1.bmp}, Ctrl and Alt keys only stay down until the next key is struck. Non-Printing Character Strings Allowed - This option allows you to insert non-printing keys into the Buffer and Macros, in the form of Meta Keys. There are two components to Meta Keys. First the %, ^ and + characters modify the next character or Meta Key. % = <Alt>, ^ = <Ctrl> and + = <Shift>. For example, ^c generates <Ctrl>+<c>. Second, keywords like UP, DOWN, INS, etc.. can be enclosed in {}s. Example, {UP} generates the Up-Arrow key, {F1} generates the F1 key, %{F4} generates <Alt>+<F4>. Click here for a list of available Meta Key Keywords. The double rule is used to generate reserved characters: %% = "%", ^^ = "^", ++ = "+", {{ = "{". Note: a stand-alone "}" is not reserved so a single } = "}". To simplify using Meta Key Keywords, the Keywords themselves will be stored in the buffer when you’re in this mode. For example, typing the {bmct bm4.bmp} key into the buffer will generate {TAB}. Use Custom Key Colors - Under normal conditions, the background color of keys is set by your system color scheme, keys that need to be highlighted are shown in yellow, keys turn red when activated by AutoClick, and are shown in green while displaying macros. The Buffer background is a light blue to be easy on the eyes. By checking this option, you bring up a window allowing you to over-ride all these background colors with your own choices. Allow Sending Keys to Desktop - By default, Click-N-Type never allows the Desktop or the Taskbar to become the Target window. This is to prevent you from accidentally losing the intended target by unintentionally giving focus to one of these objects. However, more sophisticated users periodically want to send keystrokes to any object, just like the physical keyboard can. Turning on this option will cause Click-N-Type to not discriminate against the Desktop or Taskbar. Typing Sounds This group allows you to choose the kind of audible feedback you’d like when you click on keys: None - No sounds are heard as you type on the Click-N-Type keyboard. Typewriter - When this option is checked, you will hear a typewriter sound every time a key is struck. You will also hear a typewriter like carriage shifting sound whenever the {bmct bm1.bmp}, <Ctrl> or <Alt> key is depressed or released. Speech - This option is available if you have downloaded and installed the Speech Package from the http://CNT.LakeFolks.com web site. As each key is struck it is spoken to you in a male voice. These spoken keys are configured for the standard English (United States) Keyboard. You may also create your own Spoken Keys by following the guidelines in the Customized Spoken Keys section. Alternate Speech - This option is available if you have downloaded and installed the Alternate-Speech Package from the http://CNT.LakeFolks.com web site. As each key is struck it is spoken to you in a female voice. You may also create your own Spoken Keys by following the guidelines in the Customized Spoken Keys section. Speak All Text when sent from strings - If any of the above Typewriter, Speech or Alternate Speech options are selected, checking this item causes all text sent from Click-N-Type to be sounded out. For example, with one of the Speech options selected, sending a Macro on the <A> key would normally cause the words “Macro” and “A” to be heard, before the macro text is sent. With Speak All Text when sent from strings checked, each character is “spoken” as it is sent. The same rules apply to characters sent from the Buffer and Word Completion. Please note that this option slows down the output of text strings because each character must be spoken. This also gives you more opportunity to click in random places while the text is being sent. Doing so, can and will cause random results, so once a string of text is started, you should refrain from clicking until it has completed. Function Keys Placement This group allows you to chose one of two ways the Function Keys can be displayed when requested by the F1-F12 button. Replace 2 rows - If this option is checked, the first two rows of the normal keyboard will be replaced with the function keys when the F1-F12 button. Under other keys - If this option is selected the Function Keys will be displayed below all other keys on the keyboard. The height of the keyboard is expanded accordingly, every time the F1-F12 button is clicked. Keyboard Transparency This slider allows users of Windows-2000 or higher to make the keyboard translucent. By sliding this control to the left, you increase the transparency of the Click-N-Type window. The major advantage is that even though the Click-N-Type window may be covering something, you can still see through it. Affects Word Prediction window also - If this box is checked, the transparency you select for the main Click-N-Type keyboard also applies to the Word Prediction window when it is visible.
Options | Restore Default Size Restore Default Size - Resets the keyboard size to its initial size. For Standard keyboards, this is the minimum width and height at which key faces can be displayed at their normal size and resolution. For User Designed Keyboards, this is whatever you determined the Default size to be at design time.
Options | Keyboard > Keyboard > Allows you to choose a keyboard layout from the items listed below. Normal Keyboard - When this option is checked, the alphabetic key layout is simply in alphabetic order. The letters A through M on the first row and N through Z on the next. You get to chose one keyboard from Normal Keyboard, Speed Keyboard, or Custom Alphabet. Speed Keyboard - When this option is checked, the alphabetic key layout becomes based on the frequency of letter usage in the English language. The most frequent letters are near the center and progressively lesser used keys located on either side, expanding outward toward the left and right. This scheme keeps your mouse movement to a minimum, and speeds up typing once you learn the new (and what may appear strange) layout. You get to chose one keyboard from Normal Keyboard, Speed Keyboard, or Custom Alphabet. Custom Alphabet - When this option is checked, the alphabetic key layout is the custom design that you last created using the “Customize Alphabet...” option. When you first select this option, your layout will be the same as the Normal Keyboard. Each time you select this option, you are reminded to use the “Customize Alphabet...” option if you whish modify your layout. As with the other layouts, your choice to use the Custom Alphabet will be remembered, so the next time you start Click-N-Type you will have this layout by default. You get to chose one keyboard from Normal Keyboard, Speed Keyboard, or Custom Alphabet. Customize Alphabet... - Invoking this option is the way you build the alphabetic keys used when you select the Custom Alphabet option. You are presented with a form you can use to design the layout of the two alphabetic rows of your keyboard. By following the on-screen instructions, you can arrange the keys any way you like. You may also use the Font... button to change the font and/or font attributes (Point size, Bold and Italic) of the alphabet characters displayed on your keys. After designing your layout, just click the Ok button and your new layout will take effect. If at any point you want to start over with program defaults, just click the Reset button. You may also abort this layout design process, at any time, by clicking the Cancel button. Take note, that while you may set you font size, you will always be able to resize the keyboard to a point where the font size you selected will not fit on keys that small. In such a case, your choice of font size and any Bold attribute is will, by necessity, be ignored and you alphabet displayed in 8 point non-bolded font.
Options | User Designed Keyboards > User Designed Keyboards > Aside from the standard Normal Keyboard, Speed Keyboard and Custom Alphabet layouts, Click-N-Type can support user designed keyboards created using the CNTDesigner Keyboard Designer add-on from Polital Enterprises Inc.. You can download the CNTDesigner Keyboard Designer from the http://www.Polital.com/cntd web site. Even if you don’t download the CNTDesigner Keyboard Designer, a QWERTY keyboard layout designed with this software is included with Click-N-Type for your convenience. Select a User Keyboard... This command presents you with an “Open” dialog box you can use to select any keyboard configuration file created by the CNTDesigner Keyboard Designer, from any folder on your system. All valid keyboard configuration files will have the “.cfg” file extension. Select the configuration file you want and click the “Open” button. For speed of access, this command is duplicated on the File menu. Run Keyboard Designer... This command starts the CNTDesigner Keyboard Designer provided it has been installed on your system. Click-N-Type minimizes itself and the Keyboard Designer starts. See the Help file for the Keyboard Designer for instructions on creating and editing keyboards. Once a keyboard layout has been completed, it becomes available to Click-N-Type via the Select a User Keyboard... menu command. Note: If the CNTDesigner Keyboard Designer has not been installed, you are given instructions on how to download and install it.
Options | AutoClick > AutoClick > This option gives you access to the following sub-items that give users who do not have the ability to physically click on a key, the ability to operate Click-N-Type. AutoClick Enable - When you first set this option, you are reminded that you can set the delay time to your needs by using the AutoClick Delay... option below. The AutoClick feature is then enabled. This means that whenever you cause the mouse pointer to dwell over a key for a predetermined period of time, a “Mouse Click” is simulated without actually clicking the physical mouse. As the mouse pointer is moved over each key, its background turns yellow. The mouse click event itself is signaled to you by the key flashing red. You may also use AutoClick in the Word Prediction window. You may scroll the word list up or down by placing the mouse pointer over one of the “Hot Scroll” buttons, above and below the list. To select a word for completion, simply dwell over it, in the same way you AutoClick keys. Note: A Windows problem requires “physical” clicks to be ignored while in AutoClick mode. AutoClick Delay... - Invoking this option is the way you set the amount of time you need to have your mouse pointer dwell over a key, before several events occur. You will be given control of three sliders. • The first allows you to change this delay time before the first “Click Event” is generated. This can be adjusted from 0.1 to 5.00 seconds, in increments of 0.01 seconds. • The second slider sets the Repeat Delay time. This is the time you have to keep the mouse over the same key, before it repeats. This may be adjusted from 0.1 seconds to 64 seconds, or infinity when the slider is all the way to the right. Infinity is displayed as [----].. • The third slider effectively sets the repeat rate of subsequent generated clicks. Similarly, this time may be adjusted from 0.1 seconds to 64 seconds, or infinity when the slider is all the way to the right. Infinity is displayed as [----]. When you click the Ok button, your keyboard will be in AutoClick Enable mode, using the delay times you selected. If you change your mind and don’t want to set or change any delay times, just click the Cancel button.
Options | Scan Mode > Scan Mode > Scan Mode is designed for anyone who lacks the ability to move the mouse pointer with any pointing device. You may use Click-N-Type to type, if you have access to at least one mouse, or trackball, button or a switch wired to parallel such a button. Scan Mode Enable - See the Scan Mode and Scan Mode Settings sections for details. This option is used to enter and exit Scan Mode. Recapture Mouse - If your helper has released the mouse to rearrange things on the desktop or perform other functions, this command will recapture the mouse so you may begin typing again. This is the same as holding the right mouse button down, for 6 seconds while over the main keyboard, but faster. Scan Mode Settings... - This command brings up an applet where you can customize the Scanning Keyboard Parameters. See the Scan Mode Settings sections for details.
Options | Uninstall Click-N-Type... Uninstall Click-N-Type... Please see Uninstall in the Installing & Uninstalling section.
The File menu File menu - The File menu gives you fast access to Language Configurations, standard and User Designed Keyboards. Configurations... Click-N-Type allows you to install one or more Language Pack. Each Language pack comes with at least two “Configurations.” For example, the French Language Pack comes with at least 3 configurations. “French”, “CNT Default” and “French - Default menus”. The “French” configuration emulates the standard French keyboard and displays French menus and messages. The “CNT Default” Configuration is the standard English Click-N-Type keyboard. The “French - Default menus” Configuration is a French keyboard with menus and messages in English. Note: If you have no Language Configurations installed, you will not see this option. Select a User Keyboard... This command presents you with an “Open” dialog box you can use to select any keyboard configuration file created by the CNTDesigner Keyboard Designer, from any folder on your system. All valid keyboard configuration files will have the “.cfg” file extension. Select the configuration file you want and click the “Open” button. Notice that this is the same command that’s accessible from the Options > User Designed Keyboards menu. The command has been duplicated here for ease of access. Edit Language Configurations... If you want more then the standard Configurations provided with standard Language Packs, You can download and install the LC-Configure program from the http://CNT.LakeFolks.com Click-N-Type site. With this language configuration editor, you can mix and match features from Language Packs and/or create Language Configuration Groups and Configurations. For example, you may chose to define a Configuration that uses the French keyboard, Spanish menus and messages, Dutch Word Prediction and your own custom made Speech files. Note: If you have not installed the LC-Configure program, you will not see this option. Recently accessed keyboards - The six (6) most recently used keyboard layouts are kept on the File menu. The standard keyboards look like <Normal Keyboard>, <Speed Keyboard> and <Custom Alphabet>. User Designed Keyboards have the name of the keyboard configuration file, such as QWERTY.cfg. To change to a keyboard layout you have used previously, simply select it from this list. Exit - Closes the window and exits the Click-N-Type program.
Normal Typing Fundamentals of Normal Operation To select a window you want to type to, just Click on the location in the target window where you want your characters to be typed. This will set the Insertion Point, and you should see the blinking Insertion Pointer (the “|”) at that point. This causes the window you’ve chosen to have focus, and be the Foreground window. It is here that input typed on the real keyboard would go. And, this is where Click-N-Type will attempt to send the keys you click using the Click-N-Type virtual keyboard. With both the Click-N-Type virtual keyboard and your Insertion Point visible, make sure the Buffer button is not depressed. You type by clicking a key on the Click-N-Type keyboard. Click-N-Type sends that key to the window that has focus. During normal typing, you may move the mouse pointer off the keyboard for a second to make the Click-N-Type keyboard drop to the bottom of your screen, out of your way. When you want the keyboard back, simply move the mouse to the bottom of your screen and retrieve it. This AutoHide action is not the default behavior. To enable automatic hiding, check the Drop and Hide when not in use option in the Program Preferences... section. Note: If you have the AutoClick Option set, you simply need to cause the mouse cursor to dwell over a key for a predetermined time in order to simulate a mouse click on that key. See AutoClick in the Options section of this document. With that description behind us, it should be mentioned that we’ve described the way things are supposed to always work. That is to say, it’s the way everything would work if many applications, including many of Microsoft’s own, didn’t break the rules. That’s why we need Buffered Modes.
Function Keys Function Keys extended keyboard Function Keys are accessible through the “F1-F12” button. When you click the “F1-F12” button, the top two (2) rows of the Click-N-Type keyboard are replaced with the following extra keys: F1 through F12, the Left, Right, Up and Down Arrow keys, the <Ins>, <Home>, <End>, <PgUp>, <PgDn> and <Snap>. The button face then changes to “A-Z” so when you click the “A-Z” button again, the Click-N-Type keys are restored to their original state with all normal keys. These Function Keys generate no text, but rather are used to control various things that either have special meaning to the application or Windows. The Arrow keys can be used for various things including directing the position of the Insertion Pointer one space or line at a time. The <Ins>, <Home>, <End>, <PgUp> and <PgDn> keys have meaning to most Word Processors. The <Snap> key is normally used to put a Bit Map (Picture) of a window on the System Clipboard for pasting into another application. On some keyboards, this is called the “Print Screen” key.
Standard Buffered Mode The need for Buffered Mode While Buffered Mode is always accessible, you will find that it is needed much less, on Windows NT(Sp3)+, Win-2000 and Win-XP systems than on Win-95, Win-98 or Win-ME. With that in mind, you may or may not need to read the following comments. -- If the world was perfect and all programs behaved as the Windows designers intended, you could just start Click-N-Type, pick an application to type at. That is, click on the field you wanted to type to and begin clicking on Click-N-Type keys in Normal Typing mode. But, alas the world is not a perfect place and programmers, attempting to be clever, have found all kinds of ways to complicate a simple concept. There are a number of reasons why simply sending Click-N-Type keyboard clicks to some applications can fail. These reasons are discussed in detail in the Issues section of this document. Luckily, all you need to know is that if you attempt to type normally into some field, and the characters go somewhere else, go nowhere, of foul up in some other way, you need to use Buffered Mode. Your first choice should be the simplest and most straight forward Standard Buffered Mode. Although we have yet to find a situation where Standard Buffered Mode totally fails to produce correct results, I would never be so presumptuous as to proclaim “No program will ever fail using this technique.” As a fallback in such a situation, Buffer to Clipboard Mode is available should you ever need it. Standard Buffered Mode Step 1) The first thing to do is locate the field you want to type into. If you can’t see the field behind the Click-N-Type keyboard, just move the mouse pointer off the keyboard for a second to send the keyboard to the bottom of the screen. If you want the keyboard back just move the pointer to the small sliver of the Click-N-Type window that’s still showing at the bottom of your screen. If the target field does not currently have any text in it, just proceed to Step 2. Step 1.a) If all the text is completely selected (highlighted in blue) just proceed to Step 2. Otherwise, click and hold the left mouse button while dragging the mouse pointer across the entire text. Your goal is to select all the existing text so it can be deleted. Release the left mouse button. While holding the mouse pointer over the selected text, right-click and chose “Delete” from the Drop-down menu. Step 2) If the Click-N-Type keyboard isn’t handy, get it back either by moving it manually, or by moving the mouse pointer to its small sliver at the bottom of the screen. Click to depress the Buffer button. This causes any keys clicked, on the Click-N-Type keyboard, to be buffered into the light blue box to the right. Step 3) Use the Click-N-Type keyboard to “type” the text into the buffer. Remember if the field you are sending to, is the kind that requires one or more <Enter> keys after the text, such as an Internet address in your browser, make sure to put that <Enter> key in the buffer. Notice, you may see lines wrap because the box is small, but they will appear as single lines when sent to the target application, unless you’ve actually “typed” an <Enter> key. Note: Since the buffer can be made so small as to only display 2 lines, it may be difficult to read, or even appear empty, if you typed two <Enter> keys in a row. The box has two Scroll Arrows on the right that become darker if the buffer contains more text than is being displayed, but this can be hard to spot. Hence, whenever the buffer contains any data at all, the Buffer button’s name turns red. Step 4) Now it’s time to send the buffered text to the correct field in the target application. Again make sure the receiving field is visible. The simplest way to do this is to move the mouse pointer off the keyboard for a second. Click-N-Type will drop to the bottom of your screen. You cannot Minimize Click-N-Type yet since that would cause it to lose focus too early. Locate the mouse pointer over the target field and left-click. The Click-N-Type keyboard will become Minimized and a 8 tenths of a second later your text will appear. That’s all there is to it. A small pain, but not too bad. If you missed your target, no problem. The text remains in the buffer until you release the Buffer button. So, just restore the Click-N-Type keyboard by clicking its icon (on the Taskbar) to make it regain focus, and repeat Step 4. There is no need to retype the text. ------------ Hint: There are several situations where Step 3 can result in you buffer being appended to the beginning or end of pre-existing text already placed in the target field by the application. In these cases, you may want to try one or two more tricks before resorting to Buffer to Clipboard Mode. Trick 1) Reactivate the Click-N-Type keyboard. Then rather than single-clicking on the target field, double-click it instead. This can cause the entire field to be selected causing the pre-existing text to be replaced by your buffer. Trick 2) Reactivate the Click-N-Type keyboard. Then rather than clicking in the target field, click anywhere on the target window that does not have an object (the Title Bar for example). The pre-existing text may be completely replaced by your buffer. If neither trick works, they’ve beat us and we’re stuck with Buffer to Clipboard Mode. ------------ Note: The next time you get the Click-N-Type keyboard back, you’ll probably want to again use Normal Typing Mode. At that point you’ll want to release the Buffer button to clear the buffer. This will avoid the confusion of having the contents of the buffer sent somewhere by mistake the next time Click-N-Type loses focus.
Buffer to Clipboard Mode The need for Buffer to Clipboard Mode While Buffered Mode is always accessible, you will find that it is needed much less, on Windows NT(Sp3)+, Win-2000 and Win-XP systems than on Win-95, Win-98 or Win-ME. With that in mind, you may or may not need to read the following comments. -- Thus far we’ve only found one WordPerfect Dialog Box that actually fails using Standard Buffered Mode. The problem is a “Save As...” box that will not let you clear the “File name:” field. Whenever you do, it gets filled in again with “*.wpd” as soon as the box loses focus. I’m sure this is not the only such case, so Buffer to Clipboard Mode is available should you need it. Actually this WordPerfect situation can be handled using a modified approach to Standard Buffered Mode as described in Issue C1 in the Issues section, but since that solution uses an idiosyncrasy of the application, we’ll just describe the broader solution here. In short, Buffered to Clipboard Mode just puts the text you’ve created in Standard Buffered Mode on the system Clipboard. From there you can “Paste” it anywhere you want. The main problem with Buffer to Clipboard Mode is that most single-line input boxes, like the “Address:” field of you Internet browser, will not accept an <Enter> pasted from the Clipboard. This forces you to physically hit the <Enter> key on the real keyboard. The purpose of this program is to relieve the user from having to use any part of the real keyboard, hence this is a considerable drawback. Nevertheless, the option is made available here. Buffered to Clipboard Mode Step 1) If the Click-N-Type keyboard isn’t handy, get it back. Restore it from the Taskbar if necessary. Click to depress the Buffer button. This causes any future keys clicked on the Click-N-Type keyboard to be buffered into the light blue box to the right. Step 2) Use the Click-N-Type keyboard to type the text into the buffer. Notice, you may see lines wrap because the box is small, but they will appear as single lines when “pasted” to the target application, unless you’ve actually “typed” an <Enter> key. Note: Since the buffer can be made so small as to only display 2 lines, it may be difficult to read, or even appear empty, if you typed two <Enter> keys in a row. The box has two Scroll Arrows on the right that become darker if the buffer contains more text than is being displayed, but this can be hard to spot. Hence, whenever the buffer contains any data at all, the Buffer button’s text turns red. Step 3) Now it’s time to get the buffered text to the correct field in the target application. Release the Buffer button to put the buffered text on the system Clipboard. Step 4) Again make sure the receiving field is visible. If you have to move the Click-N-Type keyboard, do so either by moving it manually or by Minimizing the Click-N-Type window. If the target field is still empty or completely selected, continue with Step 5. Step 4.a) Click and hold the left mouse button while dragging the mouse pointer across the entire text. Your goal is to select all the existing text so it can be overwritten. Step 5) Locate the mouse pointer over the receiving field and right-click. Chose “Paste” from the drop-down menu, and your text will appear in the receiving field. Step 6) Remember if the field you are pasting to, is the kind of single line box that requires an <Enter> key after the text, such as an Internet address in your browser, you’re plum out of luck at this point. You’ll just have to find some way to get that physical <Enter> key hit. Sorry. Blame Microsoft and/or the Browser folks for not giving you a “Go” button or something.
Macros Macro Fundamentals Macros are user defined text strings that may be assigned to any key on the Click-N-Type keyboard. By using Macros you can type entire words, phrases, or multiple lines of text with only one or two mouse clicks. There is a 255 character limit however, on the amount of text that can be stored in any given Macro. • The first step in defining a Macro is to place the desired text into the text buffer. You do this just like you would if you were preparing to use Buffered Mode. Simply depress the Buffer button and use the Click-N-Type keyboard to type in the text you want to define. • Next choose if you want the text to be associated with a normal or <Shift>ed key, by depressing the {bmct bm1.bmp} key or leaving it up. • Next chose Store a Macro using Buffer... from the Macros menu. Any keys that already have Macros associated with them will be highlighted in green. The mouse pointer will also take on a different look to remind you that you’re about to associate a string of text with a key. • Next chose a Key from the Standard or Function keys, and click it. That’s all there is to it. From now on, whenever you have the Alt key depressed and click on the key you just selected, the text of your Macro will be generated and sent to your target. Notice also, that whenever the Alt key is down and your mouse pointer hovers above a key that contains a Macro, an abbreviated version of the Macro’s text is displayed as a visual cue, to indicate that Macro text will be generated. The Macro key may also be placed on User Defined layouts. When visible on a User Designed Keyboard, it replaces the Alt to generate Macros. This frees up <Alt>+<any-key> to perform normal functions. If the Macro key exists on your keyboard layout, you should use it to generate the text of your Macros rather than the Alt key. Removing a Macro from an existing key is very similar. Simply leave the buffer empty and follow the last three steps above, to store “nothing” to an existing Macro key. Also note, that if at any point you change you mind and decide you don’t really want to define a Macro, just select Macros | Store a Macro using Buffer... again to abort the process. Additional Macro Functions In addition to the Store a Macro using Buffer... command, there are two other items below the Macros menu. Store Macro Cue... - Normally, whenever you pass your mouse pointer over a key that has a Macro associated with it, while the <Alt> key is depressed, the contents of the Macro is displayed as a cue to help you remember what macro you stored on what key. By storing a special message in the buffer and using the “Macros | Store Macro Cue...” command, you may assign that message to any existing macro. When the mouse passes over the assigned key, you will see the your special “Cue” rather than the actual text of the macro. Display Macros in Buffer... - This command is useful in determining what keys have macro text associated with them. After invoking the command, the currently defined Macro keys will be highlighted in green. When you click on one of these keys its associated text is displayed in the buffer. If the text is large, you may have to scroll up and/or down to see it all. When done examining your existing Macros, simply use the Macros | Display Macros in Buffer... command again to return to normal. [Releasing the Buffer button if depressed, will also both clear the Buffer and exit Macro Display mode.] Clear all Macros... - After answering Yes to a confirmation question, all macro text will be disassociated from any and all existing Macro keys. Editing existing Macros Suppose you already have text associated the Macro for some key and you’d like to change one or two characters. You don’t have to type it all back in and re-store it. All you need to do is: • Enter Macro Display mode with “Macros | Display Macros in Buffer...”. • Click a Green Key do display the Macro you want to edit. • Exit Macro Display mode by unchecking the “Macros | Display Macros in Buffer...” • Click inside the text where you want to make the change(s) and use the Click-N-Type keyboard to make those changes. • Use the “Macros | Store a Macro using Buffer...” menu item as before, to replace the existing Macro with the new text. Saving and Restoring Macro definitions At times you may whish to have different sets of macros available, depending on the current project you’re working on. This can be accomplished by writing and reloading your current macro definitions as Macro Snapshot (.mss) files. Save Macros As... - This brings up a dialog box that allows you to save your current macros to a Macro Snapshot file. Load Macros... - This brings up a dialog box that allows you to find and load one or your previously written Macro Snapshot file. Recently accessed Macro Snapshots - The four (4) most recently read or written Macro Snapshot files are kept on the Macros menu. To load a set of macro definitions you have used previously, simply select it from this list. Speed Improvement Tip {bmc bm3.bmp} If you have a three button or a Wheel Mouse, you may Middle-Click on a key to send its Macro to the target, rather than depressing and releasing the <Alt> key. Note that tapping the wheel of a Wheel Mouse is the same as Middle-Clicking a three button mouse.
Scan Mode Scan Mode Scan Mode is designed for anyone who lacks the ability to move the mouse pointer with any pointing device. You may use Click-N-Type to type, if you have access to at least one mouse, or trackball, button or a switch wired to parallel such a button. On Windows NT4(Sp3), 2000, XP or newer, any key on the main keyboard may be substituted for the left mouse button, and any key to the right of the <Enter> key, including the <Enter> key, may be used in place of the right mouse button. Initial Setup There are several ways to get your receiving application, such as a word processor, and Click-N-Type running, so you can begin typing. For example, if you always type to the same application when you boot your computer, you could set the Start the keyboard at Boot Up and the Start an Application at Startup options in the Program Preferences... dialog, from the Setting Options section, and just start typing. Chances are however, you will need a Helper to start both the receiving application and Click-N-Type. The following steps are intended for use by the Helper. • Start Click-N-Type but do not yet enable Scan Mode. • Start the receiving application, open any file that is to be worked on and click where the text will be typed. • From the Click-N-Type menu, chose “Options | Scan Mode | Scan Mode Enable”. You will receive a message telling you that the mouse pointer must be over the Click-N-Type keyboard when in Scan Mode and that the mouse is about to be captured. You will be informed that in order to escape this mode, hit the <Esc> key or hold the right mouse button down for more than 6 seconds. You may release and capture the mouse at any time using this method, or you may use the “Options | Scan Mode | Recapture Mouse” Menu command. • At this point the user may begin to use Click-N-Type in Scan Mode. • You may want to review a quick overview of the differences in Scan Mode behavior based on the operating system you’re using by reading the Mouse Capture on Different Systems section. If you are later asked to change things or perform system functions, you will need to regain control of the mouse. As instructed earlier, you should: For Windows 95, 98 or ME: • Perform any click operation to cause Click-N-Type to regain focus. • Hit the <Esc> key on the physical keyboard or hold down the right mouse button for 6 seconds. • When informed that the mouse is free, click “Ok”. • When you are ready to give control back to the user, click anywhere on the Click-N-Type keyboard, and then hit the <Esc> key. When informed that the mouse is about to be re-captured, click “Ok”. You may also use the “Options | Scan Mode | Recapture Mouse” menu command. For Windows NT4(Sp3), 2000, XP or newer: • Hit the <Esc> key on the physical keyboard or hold down the right mouse button for 6 seconds. • When informed that the mouse is free, click “Ok”. • When you are ready to give control back to the user, click anywhere on the Click-N-Type keyboard, and then hit the <Esc> key. When informed that the mouse is about to be re-captured, click “Ok”. You may also use the “Options | Scan Mode | Recapture Mouse” menu command. Remember that Scan Mode operation may be customized using “Options | Scan Mode | Scan Mode Settings...” outlined in the Scan Mode Settings section below. User Scan Mode Operation Scan Made works with any keyboard layout, although some layouts may be more efficient than others. A Scanning.cfg User Designed Keyboard is supplied with your Click-N-Type installation. This keyboard is designed to maximize your typing speed for the English language. You are encouraged to size the keyboard to the smallest size comfortable to work with. This makes the scanning take less time without increasing the Scanning Speed. Also, as with anything new, you are strongly encouraged to practice. Once you become familiar with the task and the keyboard everything will get easier. The keyboard is always divided into 6 overlapping sectors. A red rectangle constantly moves to encompass one sector followed by another. When the key you are looking for is within the rectangle, you Click. Note: Releasing the mouse button, or switch, is what is actually sensed, so it may be easier for some people to depress the button early, and release it at the correct moment. • Sector scanning stops, and a line starts scanning vertically from the top of the rectangle to its bottom. Click when the line is over the key you’re looking for. • Vertical scanning stops, and a line starts scanning from left to right. Click when the line is over the correct key. The key will be acted upon as if you clicked on it. That’s all there is to it. Repeated Keys In the course of everyday typing, it is often common to type the same character two or more times in a row. Some examples are the double characters in words like “Mississippi”, the two spaces before a new sentence or even a line of “-“s or “*”s. You don’t need to go through the complete scanning process for each multiple key you want to type. • After typing the first key, simply click again before the scanning process restarts. You may multiple click like this for as many keys as you want to repeat. • You may wish to have your Helper adjust this “Repeated Keys Delay”, according to the speed you are able to multiple click, using “Options | Scan Mode | Scan Mode Settings...” outlined in the Scan Mode Settings section below. Word Prediction while Scanning If you have Word Prediction turned on and a possible list of words is detected, the Word Prediction window is displayed as explained in the Word Prediction and Completion section below. Whenever the Word Prediction window is visible, it is treated similar to a 7th sector. After the last sector on the main keyboard is scanned, a red line appears in the Word Prediction window. If you want to select a word from the list, click now. • The line starts moving down the list. • If it moves over the word you want, click to select that word to complete the word you’re typing.. • If the word you’re looking for is not visible, you can scroll the list by waiting until the scan line is over the “Hot Scroll Down” button, below the list. The list will start scrolling down. When the word you’re looking for is visible, click to stop scrolling. • The scan line will start moving again. Click when the line is over the word you want. • If you scrolled too far, you can click to stop scrolling. Then click when the line is over the “Hot Scroll Up” button, above the list. The list will scroll up until you click again to stop it, or the top of the list is reached. Aborting a Scan The process of scanning from one keyboard sector to the next continues forever. Once you click to select a sector or the Word Prediction window, you may find you have made a mistake and would like abort and start over. Click-N-Type gives you two possible options. • You may simply wait for the predetermined number of passes to complete. The default number of passes is set to 2, but may be modified with “Options | Scan Mode | Scan Mode Settings...” outlined in the Scan Mode Settings section below. Your Helper may also turn this feature off completely if you wish. • If you have access to the Right-Mouse button, you may simply click it. Again your Helper can disable this feature with “Options | Scan Mode | Scan Mode Settings...” outlined in the Scan Mode Settings section below. It is highly recommended that at least one of the aborting mechanisms be left enabled. If not, you will have no way of aborting a mistake. You will have to complete typing a key you did not mean to, and then use the {bmct bm2.bmp} key do delete it. Ease of use Tip {bmc bm3.bmp} Releasing the mouse button, or switch, is what is actually sensed, so it may be easier for some people to depress the button early, and release it at the correct moment. Speed Tip {bmc bm3.bmp} To type the same key two or more times in a row. After typing the first key, simply click again before the scanning process restarts. You may multiple click like this for as many keys as you want to repeat. The t |
