Basic Skills Overview of the Desktop

Basic Skills

This chapter introduces you to the basic skills that you need to work with your desktop.

I.1.1. Mouse Skills

Even if you are very familiar with mouse devices, you should still familiarize yourself with the use of the mouse in the desktop.

I.1.1.1. Mouse Button Conventions

All the instructions in this manual are for the following types of mouse devices:

  • Devices that are configured for right-hand users.
  • Three button devices. If you have a two-button mouse device, then you press the two buttons simultaneously to simulate the effect of a middle mouse button.
The mouse button conventions used in this manual are as follows:

Mouse Button Definition
Left mouse button The button on the left side of a mouse device configured for normal right-hand use.
Middle mouse button The middle button of a mouse device configured for normal right-hand use.
Right mouse button The button on the right side of a mouse device configured for normal right-hand use.

To reverse the handedness of your mouse device, choose Applications ▸ Desktop Preferences  ▸ Mouse, then select the options that you require. If you do reverse the handedness of your mouse device, then you must reverse the mouse button conventions used in this manual.

I.1.1.2. Mouse Actions

When you use your mouse with the desktop, the following mouse conventions apply.

Mouse Button Definition
Left mouse button Use to perform the following actions:
  • Select text.
  • Choose items.
  • Drag items.
Middle mouse button Use to perform the following actions:
  • Paste text.
  • Move items.
  • Open a menu if a menu applies.
Right mouse button Opens a menu for the selected object, if a menu applies.

For example, if you want to copy text then perform the following steps:

  1. Select the text with the left mouse button.
  2. Move the mouse pointer to the location where you want to copy the text.
  3. Click on the middle mouse button.

You can also right-click on the desktop background to open the Desktop Background menu.

I.1.1.3. Mouse Action Terminology

The conventions used in this manual to describe actions that you take with the mouse are as follows:

Action Definition
Click Press and release the left mouse button, without moving the mouse.
Click-and-hold Press and do not release the left mouse button.
Left-click Same as click. Left-click clarifies the action when there might be confusion with right-click.
Middle-click Press and release the middle mouse button, without moving the mouse.
Right-click Press and release the right mouse button, without moving the mouse.
Double-click Press and release the left mouse button twice in rapid succession without moving the mouse.
Drag Click-and-hold a mouse button, then move an object. For example, you can drag a window or an icon. In the desktop, the left and middle mouse buttons can perform drag actions.
Drag-and-drop Click-and-hold a mouse button, then move an object. For example, you can drag-and-drop a window or an icon. Release the mouse button to place the object in a new location.
Grab Point to an item that you can move, and click-and-hold on the mouse button. For example, you can grab the titlebar of a window, then drag the window to a new location.

I.1.1.4. Mouse Pointers

As you use the mouse, the appearance of the mouse pointer can change. The appearance of the pointer can provide feedback about a particular operation, location, or state. The following table lists and describes some of the mouse pointers in the desktop.

Pointer Associated Action Description
Point to an item, choose a menu item Normal pointer. The pointer that appears during normal use of the mouse.
Drag-and-drop Move pointer. Indicates that when you drop the object, the object is moved from the old location to the new location.
Drag-and-drop Copy pointer. Indicates that when you drop the object, a copy of the object is created where you drop the object.
Drag-and-drop Link pointer. Indicates that when you drop the object, a link to the object is created where you drop the object.
Drag-and-drop Ask pointer. Indicates that when you drop the object, a menu opens. You can choose to move or copy the object, or to create a link to the object.
Drag-and-drop Not available pointer. Indicates that you can not drop the object at the current location.
Move panel object Move panel object pointer. Indicates that you have selected a panel object to move.
Resize window horizontally Horizontal resize pointer. Indicates that you have selected a vertical window border to resize the window horizontally.
Resize window vertically Vertical resize pointer. Indicates that you have selected a horizontal window border to resize the window vertically.
Resize window horizontally and vertically Corner resize pointer. Indicates that you have selected a corner of a window border to resize the window horizontally and vertically.
Resize window pane or resize table column Window pane or table column resize pointer. Indicates that you have selected a column in a table to resize.

I.1.2. Keyboard Skills

This section provides information on how to use the keyboard to work with the desktop.

For almost every task that you can perform with the mouse, you can use the keyboard to perform the same task. A shortcut key is a series of one or more keystrokes that provides a quick way to perform a task.

You can use shortcut keys to work with the desktop and to work with interface items such as panels and windows. You can also use shortcut keys in applications. To customize your shortcut keys, choose Applications ▸ Desktop Preferences ▸ Keyboard Shortcuts. For more information, see Section II.9.5 ― Customizing Shortcut Keys.

You can also customize the desktop to use keyboard accessibility features. For more information, see Chapter II.11 ― Using the Accessibility Preference Tools.

The following sections describe the shortcut keys that you can use.

I.1.2.1. Desktop Shortcut Keys

Desktop shortcut keys enable you to use the keyboard to perform desktop tasks. The following table lists some desktop shortcut keys:

Default shortcut key Function
Alt+F1 Opens the GNOME Menu.
Alt+F2 Displays the Run Program dialog.
Print Screen Takes a screenshot.
Alt+Print Screen Takes a screenshot of the window that has focus.
Ctrl+Alt+right arrow Switches to the workspace to the right of the current workspace.
Ctrl+Alt+left arrow Switches to the workspace to the left of the current workspace.
Ctrl+Alt+up arrow Switches to the workspace above the current workspace.
Ctrl+Alt+down arrow Switches to the workspace below the current workspace.
Ctrl+Alt+d Minimizes all windows and gives focus to the desktop background.

I.1.2.2. Window Shortcut Keys

Window shortcut keys enable you to use the keyboard to perform window tasks. The following table lists some window shortcut keys:

Default shortcut key Function
Alt+Tab Switches between windows. Release the keys to select a window.
Alt+Esc Switches between windows in reverse order. Release the keys to select a window.
Alt+spacebar Opens the Window Menu.
Arrow keys Moves the focus between items in a menu.
Return Chooses a menu item.
Esc Closes an open menu.
Ctrl+Alt+right arrow Switches to the workspace to the right of the current workspace.
Ctrl+Alt+left arrow Switches to the workspace to the left of the current workspace.
Ctrl+Alt+up arrow Switches to the workspace above the current workspace.

Ctrl+Alt+down arrow

 Switches to the workspace below the current workspace.
Ctrl+Alt+d Minimizes all windows and gives focus to the desktop background.

I.1.2.3. Panel Shortcut Keys

Panel shortcut keys enable you to use the keyboard to perform panel tasks. The following table lists some panel shortcut keys:

Default shortcut key Function
Ctrl+Alt+Tab Switches the focus between the panels and the desktop background.
Ctrl+F10 Opens the popup menu for the selected panel.
Tab Switches the focus between objects on a panel.
Return Chooses the selected panel object or menu item.
Shift+F10 Opens the popup menu for the selected panel object.
Arrow keys Moves the focus between items in a menu. Also moves the focus between interface items in an applet.
Esc Closes an open menu.
F10 Opens the Applications menu on the Menu Panel, if the Menu Panel is selected.

I.1.2.4. Application Shortcut Keys

Application shortcut keys enable you to perform application tasks. You can use shortcut keys to perform application tasks more quickly than if you use a mouse. The following table lists some application shortcut keys:

Shortcut Key Command
Ctrl+N New
Ctrl+X Cut
Ctrl+C Copy
Ctrl+V Paste
Ctrl+Z Undo
Ctrl+S Save
Ctrl+Q Quit

I.1.2.5. Access Keys

An access key is an underlined letter in a menu or dialog that you can use to perform an action.

On a menubar, the access key for each menu is underlined. To open a menu, press Alt, then press the access key. In the menu, the access key for each menu item is underlined. To choose a menu item, press the access key for the menu item. The following table shows example access keys from the Text Editor application:

Access Key Function
Alt+F Opens the File menu.
N Chooses the New item on the File menu.

You can also use access keys to access elements in a dialog. In a dialog, one letter in most dialog elements is underlined. To access a particular dialog element, press Alt, then press the access key. The following table shows an example access key from the Preferences dialog in Text Editor application:

Access Key Function
Alt+U Gives focus to the Use default theme font check box.

You can use also other keys to navigate within a window or dialog.

Key Function
Tab Moves the focus from element to element in a window or dialog.
Arrow keys

Perform the following actions:

  • On a menubar, moves the focus from one menu to the next menu. In an open menu, moves the focus from one menu item to the next menu item.
  • Moves the focus from one option to the next option to make your selection, for example, within a group of radio buttons in a dialog.
  • Changes the value that a spin box displays.

I.1.3. Using Windows and Dialogs

This section provides information on how to use windows and dialogs.

I.1.3.1. To Resize Panes in Windows

Some windows contain more than one pane. A pane is a subdivision of a window. For example, the Nautilus window contains a side pane and a view pane. A window that contains panes has a resize handle on the edge between the panes. To resize the pane, grab the resize handle, then drag the edge to the size you require.

I.1.3.2. Using Tables

Some windows contain information that is organized in a table. This section describes how to work with tables.

To change the width of a column, drag one of the vertical edges of the column.

In some tables, you can sort the information by a particular column. To sort information in a table, click on the heading on top of the column by which you want to sort the information. An up arrow is displayed in the column heading by which the table is sorted. The following figure shows the up arrow.

To reverse the sort order, click on the column heading again. The up arrow changes to a down arrow. The down arrow indicates that the information in the column is sorted in reverse order.

In some tables, you can select multiple items. The following table describes how to select items in tables.

Task Action
Select an item Click on the item.
Select a group of contiguous items Press and hold Shift. Click on the first item in the group, then click on the last item in the group.
Select multiple items Press and hold Ctrl. Click on the items that you want to select.
Basic Skills Overview of the Desktop