With Windows 8.1 first, but especially with Windows 10, Microsoft has covered the gap that Windows 7 has with Apple's Mac OS, greatly improving the usability of the PC with the touchpad on laptops and has also added several very comfortable key combinations and to know. In this article, in addition to discovering all the ways to perform basic PC operations with Windows 10 using the mouse, we also see how to configure and use gestures on the touchpad as if you were using a touchscreen and then also what are buttons and keys on the the most important keyboard to have fast shortcuts whose correct use really distinguishes novice users from expert users who help you not waste time in everyday work .
You can use the touchpad on Windows 10 laptops with quick touches and gestures
Going in the settings of Windows 10 (updated with Creators Update), in the Devices section, we go to configure the Touchpad .
In this section of settings you can find the options to activate and deactivate the touchpad, to deactivate it if you connect the mouse to the laptop and decide the speed of the cursor.
At the bottom of the same screen you can activate or deactivate the touches, in order to click the touchpad and learn which gestures can be used.
In particular, it is possible:
- Touch with a finger to click with the left button
- Two-finger tap to right click
- Double tap and then move your finger to select multiple items.
- Press on the right corner of the touchpad to press the right button.
- Swipe up or down with two fingers.
- Movements with three fingers, touch and then also dragging them above, below right or left.
- Movements and gestures with four fingers, choosing what to do with a touch and with the movements up, down, right and left.
Through a program to download and install you can make sure that you go to disable the touchpad automatically while writing.
If you use the mouse, however, the configuration options in Windows 10 are still in the Control Panel as in previous versions.
The guide to improve mouse sensitivity and pointer accuracy is therefore worthwhile .
From the mouse options you can enlarge and enlarge the mouse pointer, change the speed of the double click and also adjust the more fluid scrolling with the mouse wheel.
Always valid are the tricks with the mouse and different ways of clicking that I mentioned a few years ago.
Do not forget one of the best tricks to better use Windows, to shake a window with the mouse to minimize all the others in one go.
Windows doesn't foresee gestures to be done with the mouse, probably because nobody would feel the need and because maybe they wouldn't be too practical.
Those who want to try, however, can configure mouse gestures using some free external programs.
Using Windows 10 with mouse gestures means performing operations and launching applications and programs by drawing particular lines with the pointer.
There are at least three programs that can be used to activate gestures with the mouse in Windows 10 and also in Windows 7 and 8.1:
1) StrokeIt adds many already configured gestures and also allows you to create new ones.
When the program is active, the mouse gesture can be done by holding down the right button and following the movements indicated by the list of predefined gestures.
2) gMote is a portable program that allows you to perform actions on the computer by holding down the right button and moving the mouse in a certain way depending on the configuration made.
3) Just Gestures is another Windows program that allows you to create custom gestures for each normal action such as restarting the computer, starting a specific program, turning up the volume etc.
Finally, you can use Windows 10 at its best also from the computer keyboard, through the keyboard shortcuts.
In another article we have already seen the most important key combinations introduced with Windows 10 among which it is really essential to know:
- Windows + I, to open the PC settings
- Windows + S, to search for files or programs
- Windows + X, to open the secondary Start menu, the one that appears by pressing the right button on the Windows 10 Start button.
- Windows Shift S, is a new combination of Windows 10 to take a screenshot of only one area of the desktop.
- Windows - Tab to switch from one application to another.
Never forget, then, to use the Ctrl + F keys to search for words in a web page or document and to quickly scroll down a web page using the space bar.
READ ALSO: 20 Windows 10 tricks to make it better
