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By Matthew Latterell (mlattere@oregon.uoregon.edu)
A recent Dagwood comic strip poked fun at the "timesaving features" of personal computers. Dagwood tells Blondie he just finished two hours of work on their new home computer. How long would it have taken without the computer? Blondie asks. Dagwood delivers the punch line: "30 minutes."
While the joke is an old one, for many of us it can still ring true. One way to increase computing efficiency is to simplify access to frequently used files and programs. In addition to using the built-in shortcuts most Windows and Macintosh systems provide, you can customize shortcuts to your particular needs. Here are some tips to get you started:
The Windows 95/98 Start Menu provides several levels of shortcuts to documents and programs. For example,
For easier access, many applications (such as Microsoft Office and Corel WordPerfect) allow you to place shortcuts on a level above the existing Start Menu choices.
Adding shortcuts to the Start Menu. The easiest way to add shortcuts to the Start Menu is to drag the item you want to "shortcut" over the Start Menu icon and release the mouse button. This places the shortcut above the Programs option. For example, if you want to move the shortcut to your Dial-Up Networking connections off the desktop, you can drag it to the open "Start Menu" folder and release the mouse button. When you're done, drag the original shortcut to the Recycle Bin.
Modifying the Programs menu. If you want to add to the Programs menu, you'll still need to open the Start Menu by right clicking it once and choosing "Open." The folder that opens won't show every item in the Start Menu (only "Programs" and any shortcuts found above Programs in the Start Menu can be modified). Double click the Programs folder to display all folders and shortcuts under the Programs option. These can then be renamed, deleted, or reorganized. Any changes you make will be immediately available through the Start Menu.
Creating shortcuts. To create a shortcut,
The new shortcut will appear next to the real icon with the words "Shortcut to" in front of the original name. This shortcut can then be added to the Start Menu by dragging it to the open Start Menu or Programs folder. You can also place it on the main Windows 95/98 desktop by dragging it there. If you're using Microsoft Office and have the Office toolbar on the screen, try adding a shortcut to a program or document on the Office toolbar by dragging it over the toolbar and releasing the mouse button.
Windows 98 and Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.01's Windows Desktop Update add more shortcut options through enhancements to the Windows taskbar. Other programs, like Corel's WordPerfect Suite, also have toolbars that can accommodate additional shortcuts.
Since the release of OS 7.5, the Apple Menu has automatically provided a handy list of utilities and shortcuts to "Recent Applications," "Recent Documents," and "Recent Servers." These built-in shortcuts offer quick access to the report you wrote last night or the database you accessed yesterday. This is a vast improvement over the multi-step process of opening a succession of folders to find the file you want.
Built-in Aliases. The Apple Menu is actually a folder inside the Mac System Folder. The majority of items listed in the Apple Menu are "aliases" to a real program or document stored on the hard drive. Aliases are simply shortcuts to the actual item, a road map that the Mac OS can follow to find and open the program or document.
The "Apple Menu Items" folder also contains a set of utilities such as a calculator, a notepad and a "find file" program, as well as other folders or aliases to folders found on your hard drive. Items like "Recent Applications," "Recent Documents," and "Control Panels" are especially useful because they expand to display what's inside the folders.
Creating your own aliases. The flexibility of the Apple Menu makes it possible to add your own aliases to specific files and folders.
To create an alias, find the icon of the real item, click on it once and press the Command and M keys (or select "Make Alias" from the File menu). An alias of the file will appear next to the real item. Aliases are always italicized and usually have the word "alias" in the name (e.g., an alias of the folder "Excel Documents" would be "Excel Documents alias"). To add this new alias icon to the Apple Menu Items, move it to the "Apple Menu Items" folder inside the System Folder.
Organizing the Apple Menu. You can also rearrange the items inside the Apple Menu Items folder. I usually create a folder named "Toys" or "Utilities" and stick most of the default applications like Calculator and Stickies inside it to get them out of the way and shorten the Apple Menu. Of course, aliases can be created and placed anywhere, including the desktop. If going to the Apple Menu Items is one step too many, put the alias for your most used applications or document folder right on the desktop.