Tag Archives | keyboard

Become a Better Typist with Firefox

Oct/19 in Add-ons Reviews, Most Wanted

http://www.firefoxfacts.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/02/mostwanted.pngNeed to brush up on your typing skills? 

Having both my free time projects and my job very keyboard focused, I have developed a pretty good skill at typing.  Here recently though, I have been looking at a lot of free solutions to help my two nephews get more familiar with typing on a keyboard.  Lets face it, by the time they are grown (unless we finally develop that mind reading technology) typing will become as important as learning how to write.

That is where the Numpad Typing Drills and Addictive Typing Lessons (both add-ons for Firefox) come into play.

Click on the screen shots to get a closer look at each Firefox add-on:

Addictive Typing Lessons  Numpad Typing Drills

So if you want to become a better typist, or you know somebody who you would like to teach, these two add-ons are the perfect (and free) way to get the task done.

+ Pickup Numpad Typing Drills for Firefox

+ Pickup Addictive Typing Lessons for Firefox

Both extensions are great tools in helping even the best typists become better at their craft.  Spruce up on your own typing skills and give both of these add-ons a shot.

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Did You Know About These Firefox Mouse Shortcuts?

Sep/26 in Firefox Support, Usability

computer-mouse Want to make your mouse work for you in Firefox?  There are several handy keyboard and mouse combinations you might want to start memorizing.  For those of us who spend our day with one hand on the mouse and the other on the keyboard – these shortcuts can sometimes be faster than doing things the manual way or with keyboard shortcuts alone.

Shift + Scroll Down = Go Back a Page

Shift + Scroll Up  = Go Forward a Page

Ctrl + Left Click or Middle Click = Open Link in Background Tab

Ctrl + Shift + Left Click = Open Link in Foreground Tab

Shift + Left Click = Open Link in New Window

Alt + Scroll = Scroll Line by Line

Middle Click on Tab = Close a Tab

Double Click on Tab Bar = Tab New

Ctrl + Scroll Up = Text Size Decrease

Ctrl + Scroll Down = Text Size Increase

Know of anymore good ones?  Be sure to leave a comment, and share with the rest of us.  For more keyboard shortcut fun, remember to check out Mission Ctrl? All the Ctrl Key Shortcuts for Firefox,  Firefox’s Navigation Bar Keyboard Combo Cheat Sheet and Ctrl + Shift Your Way Through Firefox.

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Firefox’s Navigation Bar Keyboard Combo Cheat Sheet

Aug/06 in Usability

Keyboard Shortcuts for Windows Users We have covered a lot keyboard shortcuts thus far, but today I wanted to cover some of the default tasks you might want to do.  Replicating the navigation toolbar, here are the tasks and then the tips on how to get them done quicker with a few strokes of the keyboard keys.

Navigation Bar Keyboard Shortcuts

Choose Your OS: Windows | Linux | Mac OS

back Alt + Left Arrow or Backspace = Go Back a Page

forward Alt + Right Arrow or Shift + Backspace = Go Forward a Page

home Alt + Home = Go to your Homepage

reload F5 or Ctrl + R = Reload a Page

stop Esc = Stop a Page from Loading

print Ctrl + P = Bring up the Print Options

downloads Ctrl + J = Launch the Download Window

history Ctrl + H = Open Your History in the Sidebar

bookmarks Ctrl + B = Open Your Bookmarks in the Sidebar

new-tab Ctrl + T = New Tab

new-window Ctrl + N = New Browser Window

cut Ctrl + X = Cut

copy Ctrl + C = Copy

paste Ctrl + V = Paste

There is at least one (and sometimes two) keyboard combinations you can use to get the navigation toolbar tasks done.  Anymore keyboard tips you’d like me to go over as we all become Firefox keyboard ninjas?

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Ctrl + Shift Your Way Through Firefox

Jul/29 in Usability

You asked for it, time and time again.  You told me Mitch, you awesome guy you… (ok, maybe you left out the awesome part, but I forgive you) we want more Firefox keyboard shortcuts.  I beat my keyboard till it was black and blue to find these shortcuts just for you.

Ctrl + Shift + T = Reload Closed Tab

Ctrl + Shift + R = Reload Web Page, Override Cache

Ctrl + Shift + Tab = Go Backwards When Scrolling Through Tabs (right to left)

Ctrl + Shift + G = Find Toolbar searches page backwards (down to up)

Ctrl + Shift + Del = Clear Private Data

Ctrl + Shift + D = Bookmark All Open Tabs

User Submitted Ctrl + Shift Shortcuts

Ctrl+Shift+Enter = Adds .org to the end of an address in the address bar

(thanks to Jian Li)

Ctrl + Shift + B = Organize Bookmarks

Ctrl + Shift + E = Adblockplus addon preferences

Ctrl + Shift + F = Foxmarks Addon settings

Ctrl + Shift + H = Show Browsing History

Ctrl + Shift + J = Firefox Error Console

Ctrl + Shift + L = Open selected links using the Linky addon

Ctrl + Shift + Q = Foxclock addon Zone Picker

Ctrl + Shift + S = Synchronize books using Foxmarks Addon

Ctrl + Shift + V = Show items blockable with the Adblockplus addon

Ctrl + Shift + W = Close the current window

Ctrl + Shift + X = toggle typing direction of current textbox

(thanks to KeyboardJunkie)

Need more?  Check out my previous post on all of the Ctrl key combos and shortcuts.  If you have stumbled upon any Ctrl + Shift keyboard combos I missed out on, drop in a comment and let me know.

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Mission Ctrl? All the Ctrl Key Shortcuts for Firefox

Jun/26 in Usability

mission-control-gemini-v-aug-1965 Welcome to Mission Ctrl.  The task at hand?  Figure out what happens when you push “that button” along with the Ctrl key.  The result?  An awesome cheat sheet of keyboard shortcuts for you to use and enjoy.

Ctrl + 1 through 9 = Quick switch between 9 open tabs

Ctrl + Page Up = Move left through your open tabs

Ctrl + Page Down = Move right through your open tabs

Ctrl + P = Print Screen

Ctrl + O = Open File

Ctrl + I = Open Bookmarks in Sidebar

Continue Reading →

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Navigate via the Numbers

Feb/26 in Usability

If you have a hidden hate for your keyboard’s companion, you know that mouse sitting over there, mocking you with its two buttons and scroll wheel of humility then you might want to look into NumberFox. This addon for Firefox will allow you to navigate links, selections, search boxes and more by typing in the corresponding number.

firefox-numbers

When NumberFox is turned on, the page is filled with numbers corresponding with the links on the page. To choose a link, all you have to do is enter the number into the NumberFox box (in the picture, seen right above the Google logo) and your off to surfing through cyber space. You can also use the up and down keys to cycle through the available links for another way to navigate through your clicking choices.

If the mouse is on your bad list, or you need an alternative this extension is a good way to go.

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Mouseless Browsing with Firefox

Jan/29 in Add-ons Reviews, Usability

Mouseless Web SurfingWho needs a mouse? The real hardcore Firefox users can get it all done with just a few clicks on the keyboard – yo. Oh you didn’t know? Using a mouse with Firefox is so old school now. With the help of the Mouseless Browsing extention for Firefox all you need is a keyboard, a browser and some fingers that are ready for game time!

The major goal of this tool is to make it where you can browse through the Web using the number pad to navigate through links. You would hit “1″ to go to the first link, “2″ to go to the second, and so on and so forth. Here is a little more on the process from the extension developer.

You can configure to use the numpad exclusively for Mouseless Browsing. In that mode you can trigger actions even the focus is on a textfield or selectbox. The output is suppressed. If you not use the exclusive mode then triggering actions by typing ids don’t work if the focus is on a textfield or a selectbox. Entering the id while holding the CTRL-Key triggers the action in any case. You can toggle between the two modes by pressing the num-key twice within 1 sec.

It might take a little ‘bit of time to configure the extension to your liking but once you do I could see anybody using this as an alternative way to browse around any web page. Also be sure to check out the official site for Mouseless Browsing to get some more configuration help and advice.

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Tweak Your Autocomplete in Firefox

Dec/03 in Usability

Ever found yourself thinking that the autocomplete feature of Firefox could use some tweaking? If your wanting to dive deeper into the advanced settings of how it works I might have an extension for you to drop into your own Firefox install.

Autocomplete Manager Options

Autocomplete Manager offers the options you never thought you would ever need to have with the autocomplete feature of Firefox. After installing here are a few of the new perks you will get:

  • matching against bookmark addresses
  • matching against page titles and bookmark names
  • matching anywhere in the address, not just the beginning
  • completing the best match inline
  • temporarily or permanently disabling the suggestion popup
  • excluding local pages and pages containing search results

Want to grab a few more details? Go check out this thread about it over at the Mozillazine.org site for more information.

Now the good? This extension gives you tons of new ways to tweak your autocompleting ways. The bad side of things though, and it has to be said these days – some have said this is a big resource hog. So you might weigh the bad with the good and make the best selection for you.

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Firefox Keyboard Shortcuts to Remember

May/29 in Firefox Support

Keyboard ShortcutsThere are a handful of keyboard shortcuts I always use with Firefox. Maybe I’m just becoming lazier as I get older, before Firefox it doesn’t seem like I ever used keyboard combinations to make my way around a program that often.

I could toss in something there about how Firefox has made me a better person, but that might be going a little overboard. Here are a few keyboard shortcuts that I use on a daily basis.

Ctrl + Shift + T – Use this to pull up a tab that you might have closed by mistake. I always hate closing the wrong tab when I am cleaning up Firefox after doing some heavy duty browsing. This shortcut is a life saver for me in that regard.

Ctrl + T – Use this keyboard combo to open up a new tab. I used to have an icon on the toolbar to do this. That just takes way too much time though. It is much easier for me to hit Ctrl and T to get the new tab I need.

Space Bar – Get to scrolling down the Web page a little faster by hitting the space bar key. No big secret to this one – but it is helpful.

Ctrl + B – Pull your bookmarks up in the sidebar with this wonderful keyboard combo. Helpful for finding that one bookmark that is buried three or four folders deep.

Have any other keyboard combos you think everybody should use?

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Open a Tab You Just Closed

Oct/27 in Usability

Don’t you hate it when you close the wrong tab? They all look the same, how were you suppose to know you closed the one you needed – right? Well, to get a tab back that you just closed out all you need to do is hit the Ctrl + Shift+ T keyboard combination. After that, it pops right back up and you can get back to work.

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