Commission Projects: Advising Technology Education Center (ATECH)
The Magic “Right Click” Button
Contributed by Mike Leonard, Penn State University
for the
Advising Technology Education Center (ATECH)
Did you ever wonder what that "other" button is doing on your PC mouse ... the one on the right side? Have you ever used it? If not, you're missing out on a great productivity tool—and it's been there under your finger all this time.
When clicked in most Windows programs, the right button on a mouse will display a context-sensitive menu. What appears on the pop-up menu depends on which program you're using and what part of the screen you click on. For example, put your cursor anywhere in the white box on this screen and click the right button on your mouse. You'll see a long list of things you can do right from this this menu (like "Print," "Select all," "Add to favorites," etc.)
Now put your cursor on the scroll bar at the right side of the screen and right-click again. This time you'll see a different menu, one that you can use to page forward and backward or go directly to the top or bottom of the Web page.
The table below provides just a few more examples of the kinds of items that appear on these "right-click" menus in a variety of commonly used Windows programs. Through experience, you'll find many more menus with different items on each menu. With a little practice to remind yourself to "right click" whenever you can, you'll be able to speed up many common and repetitive tasks that you perform each day on your PC.
| In Eudora ... |
| Click here ... |
to do this ... |
| In an e-mail message you've received |
Reply to, forward, delete, or transfer the message to a folder |
| On the title bar |
Write a new message, check for e-mail, set options |
| In an e-mail message that you're composing |
Insert a recipient, attach a file, check spelling |
| In Internet Explorer ... |
| Click here ... |
to do this ... |
| Open space on a Web page |
Page forward or backward, print, or add to favorites |
| Scrollbar |
Page up or down, go to top or bottom of the page |
| A graphic |
Save, print, or copy the graphic; make it your Windows wallpaper |
| In Microsoft Excel ... |
| Click here ... |
to do this ... |
| Any cell |
Cut, copy, paste, format, insert comment |
| Column heading |
Format cells, change column width |
| Sheet tab |
Rename, move, or copy sheets |
| Chart |
Format chart area, change chart options |
| In Microsoft PowerPoint ... |
| Click here ... |
to do this ... |
| Blank area on a slide |
Change the slide layout, color scheme, or background |
| Text block |
Change the font and bullets; paste text |
| Slide show |
Go to next or previous slide, blank out the screen |
| Slide sorter view |
Cut, copy, and paste slides |
| In Microsoft Word ... |
| Click here ... |
to do this ... |
| Highlighted text |
Cut, copy, change the font, add a bullet |
| Graphic |
Cut, copy, paste, edit |
| Misspelled word |
Add it to the dictionary or select an alternative word |
| Text box frame |
Change the borders, shading, and format |
| Title bar |
Maximize, minimize, or close the program window |
| In Windows ... |
| Click here ... |
to do this ... |
| Desktop |
Set properties (screen saver, wallpaper, colors, etc.), create a shortcut |
| Desktop shortcut (icon) |
Open the program, delete or rename the icon |
| Taskbar |
Show the desktop, change the toolbars, cascade all active windows |
| Time (on taskbar) |
Adjust the PC system date and/or time |
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Revised June 17, 2004
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