Apple IIgs - Manual (Page 46)

Page 46 of 84 II gs
Printed: Thursday, July 25, 2002 12:14:50 PM
Clock
You already had some exposure to the Clock option when you learned how to change the date and
time. You can also use this option to change the date format from month first to day first or
year first and to change the way time is displayed from the AM/PM format to the 24-hour format.
Options
Display Language and Keyboard Layout
The Display Language and Keyboard Layout options let you customize the character set and
keyboard layouts for a variety of international keyboards or for the Dvorak keyboard. The
Dvorak keyboard layout is an arrangement of keys designed to increase typing speed and
efficiency by locating the keys used most often in the home row. The Dvorak keyboard is also
called the American Simplified Keyboard.
Keyboard Buffering
The keyboard buffer is a special part of RAM where keystrokes are stored when the computer is
busy and can't deal with them immediately. The buffer can keep track of up to 256 keystrokes.
(After that, keystrokes are ignored.) This lets you type a series of instructions to the
computer while the computer is doing something else, like saving a document on a disk. If you
find this feature getting you into trouble (if you find yourself typing instructions that you
later repent), you can turn off the keyboard buffer by using the Keyboard Buffering option.
Repeat Speed
When you hold down a key instead of pressing and releasing it, the key repeats, like
thissssssssss. You can change the speed at which keys repeat by using the Repeat Speed option.
Press Right Arrow to make keys repeat faster; Left Arrow to make keys repeat slower.
Repeat Delay
You can use the Repeat Delay option to change the amount of time it takes from the time you
press and hold down a key until it starts repeating.
Double Click
Double clicking means pressing and releasing the mouse button twice in rapid succession. It's a
shortcut you'll learn about when you use mouse-based applications. The application interprets
your two clicks as a double-click only if the two clicks are done within a certain time
interval. You can change the time interval by using the Double Click option.
Cursor Flash
In many applications, the cursor flashes to distinguish it from other characters on the screen.
You can speed up or slow down the interval between flashes by using the Cursor Flash option.
Advanced features
The next few features are somewhat esoteric, but if you think they might be useful, give them a
try.
Shift Caps/Lowercase
Ordinarily, when you push Caps Lock down, everything you type is capitalized; to get lowercase