Using the Keyboard
- 3 minutes to read
The ExpressBars Suite allows an end-user to use the keyboard when navigating toolbars and toolbar items. This topic contains a table describing all the available keys and key combinations. Refer to the Accessing Ribbon UI and Bar Elements topic to learn about the design-time keyboard access to bar elements.
Key combinations can be applied when a form’s toolbar is active (except for the F10 and Alt keys, which activate the first item control on the main menu).
Keys | Description |
|---|---|
F10, Alt | Closes all open popup menus and submenus, and focuses the main menu. An end-user can use the F10 key, if a bar manager’s UseF10ForMenu property is set to True. |
|
Accelerator Keys | If an item control’s caption includes an ampersand (&), pressing the key combination that consists of the Alt key and the letter following the ampersand executes the item control’s functionality. For instance, if &File is an item control’s caption, an end-user can press Alt+F to emulate a click event. |
Ctrl+Tab | Focuses the next toolbar control. |
Tab | Focuses the item control to the right of the current item control on the toolbar. In the instance of a vertical toolbar, submenu or popup menu, it focuses the item control below the current item control. |
Left Arrow | Focuses the item control to the left of the current item control on a toolbar (if the layout is not vertical). |
Right Arrow | Focuses the item control to the right of the current item control on a horizontal toolbar. If a dropdown button or a subitem located on a toolbar with a vertical layout is currently focused, emulates its click event. |
Shift+Tab | Focuses the item control to the left of the current item control on a toolbar. In the instance of a vertical toolbar, submenu or popup menu, it focuses the item control above the current one. |
Home | Focuses the first item control on a toolbar, submenu or popup menu. |
End | Focuses the last item control on a toolbar, submenu or popup menu. |
Up Arrow | If the current item control is located on a vertical toolbar, in a submenu or popup menu, focuses the item control above the current one. |
Down Arrow | If the current item control is located on a vertical toolbar, in a submenu or popup menu, focuses the item control under the current one. If a dropdown button or a subitem located on a horizontal toolbar is currently focused, emulates its click event. |
Esc | Removes focus from item controls and toolbars. If a popup menu or submenu is open, it is closed. |
Enter | Emulates a click event of the focused item control. |
You can assign a shortcut to a bar item to allow end-users to click/activate it using the keyboard. Use the bar item’s ShortCut property to accomplish this. To include shortcuts to bar item hints, set a bar manager’s ShowShortCutInHint property to True.