Keyboard shortcut manager

  • Thread starter Thread starter Daniel Prince
  • Start date Start date
D

Daniel Prince

I like to use my keyboard as much as possible rather than using the
mouse so I have assigned keyboard shortcuts to several of the
programs I use the most. Sometimes my keyboard shortcuts stop
working and sometimes keyboard shortcuts become unavailable for use.

I just discovered that one cause is when program upgrades change the
shortcut.lnk file. I have also had instances where I uninstalled a
program with a keyboard shortcut and could not reuse that shortcut
even though the shortcut.lnk file was deleted.

I have looked around in the registry and I can not find where it
stores keyboard shortcuts. I want a programs that will show me all
the keyboard shortcuts in use and allow me to edit or delete them.
Does any such program exist? Thank you in advance for all replies.
 
I like to use my keyboard as much as possible rather than using the
mouse so I have assigned keyboard shortcuts to several of the
programs I use the most. Sometimes my keyboard shortcuts stop
working and sometimes keyboard shortcuts become unavailable for use.

I just discovered that one cause is when program upgrades change the
shortcut.lnk file. I have also had instances where I uninstalled a
program with a keyboard shortcut and could not reuse that shortcut
even though the shortcut.lnk file was deleted.

I have looked around in the registry and I can not find where it
stores keyboard shortcuts. I want a programs that will show me all
the keyboard shortcuts in use and allow me to edit or delete them.
Does any such program exist? Thank you in advance for all replies.
Click to expand...

My experience is that using the shortcut key property of Windows' .lnk
files has always been unreliable. The shortcut keys are not in the
registry at all but stored in the shortcut.lnk file itself. You would
have to write a small program to parse all your .lnk files to manage
those keys as you describe.

I've been using Copernic's WinKey utility for the same purpose forever
without a problem. Last version is 2.8 I think. Search for a download
location. There are others that do the same thing and more but WinKey
has always worked fine for me.
 
charles said:
I've been using Copernic's WinKey utility for the same purpose forever
without a problem. Last version is 2.8 I think. Search for a download
location. There are others that do the same thing and more but WinKey
has always worked fine for me.
Click to expand...

Better hurry.
The publisher has withdrawn this utility, and it's been pulled from
Download.com. I was able to download it just now off the PC World site.

I'm convinced that most computer programs are written by people who
can't type for other people who can't type. This is especially true of
word processing programs.

"Shortcuts" indeed!
Hrummmph!

Richard
 
My experience is that using the shortcut key property of Windows' .lnk
files has always been unreliable. The shortcut keys are not in the
registry at all but stored in the shortcut.lnk file itself. You would
have to write a small program to parse all your .lnk files to manage
those keys as you describe.

I've been using Copernic's WinKey utility for the same purpose forever
without a problem. Last version is 2.8 I think. Search for a download
location. There are others that do the same thing and more but WinKey
has always worked fine for me.
Click to expand...

http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,5506,00.asp
 
charles said:
The shortcut keys are not in the
registry at all but stored in the shortcut.lnk file itself.
Click to expand...

I do not think that can be true because if a shortcut.lnk file with
a keyboard shortcut is deleted or moved the keyboard shortcut can
not be used for another program. There must be a place in Windows
XP where it stores the fact that on my machine, Alt-Control-U is
associated with BOOKSH~1.LNK (Bookshelf 1996-97) in the directory:

D:\Documents and Settings\Daniel\Start Menu\Programs\Microsoft
Reference
 
Richard said:
Better hurry.
The publisher has withdrawn this utility, and it's been pulled from
Download.com. I was able to download it just now off the PC World
site.
Click to expand...

from copernic website:
"As of July 14, 2005, Copernic will discontinue the distribution of WinKey.
This will allow us to concentrate our efforts on the development of new
innovative products that will sustain our role as a leader in the
information management solutions industry."
"Thank you for your comprehension and your support."
 
Daniel said:
I like to use my keyboard as much as possible rather than using the
mouse so I have assigned keyboard shortcuts to several of the
programs I use the most. Sometimes my keyboard shortcuts stop
working and sometimes keyboard shortcuts become unavailable for use.

I just discovered that one cause is when program upgrades change the
shortcut.lnk file. I have also had instances where I uninstalled a
program with a keyboard shortcut and could not reuse that shortcut
even though the shortcut.lnk file was deleted.

I have looked around in the registry and I can not find where it
stores keyboard shortcuts. I want a programs that will show me all
the keyboard shortcuts in use and allow me to edit or delete them.
Does any such program exist? Thank you in advance for all replies.
Click to expand...

Instead of using keyboard shortcuts, why not use abbreviations? They are
much easier to remember. I have used Tray Command Line for a long time
(4.61, freeware if you can find it), but TCL has gone shareware. Tonight I
downloaded SlickRun and it really DOES look slick. You can define aliases
for any program / file you want to run, and you can type them in - SlickRun
will auto-complete the alias for you, so you'll probably have to type in two
or three characters at most.

http://www.bayden.com/SlickRun/
 
Daniel said:
I like to use my keyboard as much as possible rather than using the
mouse so I have assigned keyboard shortcuts to several of the
programs I use the most. Sometimes my keyboard shortcuts stop
working and sometimes keyboard shortcuts become unavailable for use.

I just discovered that one cause is when program upgrades change the
shortcut.lnk file. I have also had instances where I uninstalled a
program with a keyboard shortcut and could not reuse that shortcut
even though the shortcut.lnk file was deleted.

I have looked around in the registry and I can not find where it
stores keyboard shortcuts. I want a programs that will show me all
the keyboard shortcuts in use and allow me to edit or delete them.
Does any such program exist? Thank you in advance for all replies.
Click to expand...

When I set up a shortcut to use a keystroke combination, I change the
name of the shortcut to reflect that I have done so. For instance,
"Explorer" becomes "Explorer Ctrl-Alt-E". As for a program that does
what you wish, try Shortcut Key Explorer v1.00:

http://www.rjlsoftware.com/software/utility/shortcutkeys/

Works for me.
 
Il Wed, 3 Aug 2005 22:27:31 -0500, spoon2001 ha scritto:
Instead of using keyboard shortcuts, why not use abbreviations? They are
much easier to remember. I have used Tray Command Line for a long time
(4.61, freeware if you can find it), but TCL has gone shareware. Tonight I
downloaded SlickRun and it really DOES look slick. You can define aliases
for any program / file you want to run, and you can type them in - SlickRun
will auto-complete the alias for you, so you'll probably have to type in two
or three characters at most.
Click to expand...
http://www.bayden.com/SlickRun/
Click to expand...

I've been using it since some months and I find it wonderful.
Now I've also found that it can monitor the free RAM and display it near
the date with this variable: %fm%.
Handy.
 
When I set up a shortcut to use a keystroke combination, I
change the name of the shortcut to reflect that I have done
so. For instance, "Explorer" becomes "Explorer Ctrl-Alt-E".
As for a program that does what you wish, try Shortcut Key
Explorer v1.00:

http://www.rjlsoftware.com/software/utility/shortcutkeys/

Works for me.
Click to expand...
Yes, it seems to work but ... A version "anything.zero"
syndrome. Or, one can hope, a "Work in Progress."

Problems:
- Incorrectly displays certain key combos, e.g., Alt+Shift+4
becomes "4", Ctrl+Shift+S as "S".
- Incorrect display of Shortcut Name - stops the first period
in a name. E.g., MS Word 7.0 as "MS Word 7".

Missing (would be nice to have) ability to save the display as a
text. Or, at least, copy to clipboard.


J
 
Yes, it seems to work but ... A version "anything.zero"
syndrome. Or, one can hope, a "Work in Progress."

Problems:
- Incorrectly displays certain key combos, e.g., Alt+Shift+4
becomes "4", Ctrl+Shift+S as "S".
Click to expand...

In my version of Windows (ME), the only possible keystroke combination
allowed for a shortcut is of the "control-alt" variety. There's the
reason you're experiencing this.
- Incorrect display of Shortcut Name - stops the first period
in a name. E.g., MS Word 7.0 as "MS Word 7".
Click to expand...

I never put periods in the names of shortcuts, so I never noticed this.
Missing (would be nice to have) ability to save the display as a
text. Or, at least, copy to clipboard.
Click to expand...

I emailed the authors a while back with a few recommendations and got a
fast reply. You might give that a try.
 
In my version of Windows (ME), the only possible keystroke
combination allowed for a shortcut is of the "control-alt"
variety. There's the reason you're experiencing this.


I never put periods in the names of shortcuts, so I never
noticed this.


I emailed the authors a while back with a few
recommendations and got a fast reply. You might give that a
try.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I will email them.

FWIW: as far as I can tell, any combo with Shift won't display
correctly. Ditto for Alt+Ctrl+[a function key], i.e.,
Alt+Ctrl+F12 as "F12".

J
 
FWIW: as far as I can tell, any combo with Shift won't display
correctly. Ditto for Alt+Ctrl+[a function key], i.e.,
Alt+Ctrl+F12 as "F12".
Click to expand...

I have eight keyboard shortcuts with Ctrl+Shift that do not display
correctly.
 
On Thu 04 Aug 2005 10:04:45, John Corliss wrote:
When I set up a shortcut to use a keystroke combination, I
change the name of the shortcut to reflect that I have done so.
For instance, "Explorer" becomes "Explorer Ctrl-Alt-E". As for a
program that does what you wish, try Shortcut Key Explorer
v1.00:

http://www.rjlsoftware.com/software/utility/shortcutkeys/

Works for me.
Click to expand...

I ca not get this Shortcutkeys application to list all my shortcut
keys. It shows only three of them but I have about 50 shortcut keys
defined and working. That is an amazing mismatch! :-(

So I use Hotkey Detective v2.1 to list my shortcut keys. I got it
from PC Mag but they have started charging for their former freeware.
Someone might know a source for it.
 
(e-mail address removed)>

I ca not get this Shortcutkeys application to list all my shortcut
keys. It shows only three of them but I have about 50 shortcut keys
defined and working. That is an amazing mismatch! :-(
Click to expand...

Some people might find the following program useful to *display
information* about their shortcuts. Not all that useful in setting
them up, though. (It has a HotKey tabular listing, but if you click on
it, it just launches the Windows "Properties" dialog box for the
shortcut.)
ShortcutsMan v1.00
Copyright (c) 2004 Nir Sofer
Web site: http://nirsoft.mirrorz.com



Description
===========

ShortcutsMan displays the details about all shortcuts that you have on
your desktop and under your start menu. Broken shortcuts (shortcuts that
point to file that doesn't exist) are automatically painted with pink
color. You select one or more shortcuts, and then delete them, resolve
them or save the shortcut's details to HTML/Text/XML file.
...
License
=======

This utility is released as freeware for personal and non-commercial use.
You are allowed to freely distribute this utility via floppy disk,
CD-ROM, Internet, or in any other way, as long as you don't charge
anything for this. If you distribute this utility, you must include all
files in the distribution package, without any modification !
Click to expand...

C'ya,

Ben
 
Some people might find the following program useful to
*display information* about their shortcuts. Not all that
useful in setting them up, though. (It has a HotKey tabular
listing, but if you click on it, it just launches the
Windows "Properties" dialog box for the shortcut.)
Click to expand...

A good one, thanks. And _much_ faster than the other
recommedation.
NB: Ignores .PIF's. :(

J
 
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