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DADDY BOB'S COMPUTER Q & A
April 5, 2009
Q.
Why is it that on some computers a double
click is required to select or activate an
item while on others, only a single click is
needed?
A.
This all depends on the computer settings.
By default, all existing versions of
Windows, including Windows 7 not yet
released, are installed with a setting that
requires a single click to select an item,
and a double click to activate it. When this
setting is active, the cursor is by default
a slanted pointing arrow.
This
setting can be changed so that just hovering
over an item selects it, and a single click
activates it. When this setting is active,
the cursor changes to a hand with a pointing
index finger when placed over an item.
To change
this setting, open any non-system folder and
click on Tools, then Folder Options. Note
that if you are using Vista and there is no
menu displayed with the Tools option by
default you may have to press the ALT key to
temporarily display the menu. (See ** below
to make this permanent) This dialog will
appear.
This is
from Vista but XP is very similar but
without the "How do I change folder options"
at the bottom. In the bottom section you can
choose to use a single click or double click
to open an item. If you choose the single
click, then pointing will select. If you
choose double click, then a single click
will select. Also, if you choose single
click, you have an additional choice of when
to underline the selected item.
The
cursor that will be used, either the
pointing arrow or the pointing index finger,
is displayed to indicate your choice.
Clicking the Restore Defaults button resets
all the choices in this dialog to the way
they were when Windows was installed.
There are
a few exceptions to the one or two click
settings. Items in the Start menu or in the
Quick Launch toolbar for example, are always
single click to activate with the pointing
arrow cursor even if you have selected the
double click option above.
Also,
some items as in the Computer Management
dialog (right click Computer then select
Manage) are always double click to activate
even if you have chosen the single click
option above.
There are
advantages and disadvantages to each setting
and if you are used to the default double
click setting, it will take a little to get
used to the single click method. Many
people, including myself, prefer the single
click method. For one reason it makes
selecting items in Windows the same as in
most browsers where everything is single
click selected and the cursor is a pointing
index finger.
**
To have the menu displayed without pressing
the ALT key in Vista, open Computer, click
on Organize, then Layout, and select Menu
Bar. When this is selected, the menu bar
will always be displayed in the folder
dialog. |
