OFF98: Shortcut Keys May Not Be Available (186971)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Excel 98 Macintosh Edition
  • Microsoft Word 98 Macintosh Edition
  • Microsoft PowerPoint 98 Macintosh Edition
This article was previously published under Q186971

SYMPTOMS

When a dialog box is open in one of the Microsoft Office 98 Macintosh Edition programs, shortcut keys may not work. For example, pressing COMMAND+C to copy, pressing COMMAND+V to paste, or pressing COMMAND+X to cut selected text does not work.

CAUSE

This problem may occur when one of the following conditions is true:

  • The keys are shortcut keys that are assigned to other commands in the dialog box. -or-

  • The shortcut keys are not available at all in the dialog box.

WORKAROUND

In some cases, you can work around this problem by using the appropriate command on the Edit menu. However, the Edit menu commands may not be available in all dialog boxes. To see an example of a dialog box in which the commands are not available, follow these steps:

  1. Start Microsoft Excel 98.
  2. On the Tools menu, click Preferences.
  3. Click the General tab.
  4. Select the name in the User Name box.
  5. On the menu bar, click Edit.

    Note that all the menu commands are unavailable (dimmed).
  6. Select the user name again. Press COMMAND+C. Move the insertion point to the Default File Location box. Press COMMAND+V.

    Note that nothing is pasted in the Default File Location box.
There are some dialog boxes in which you cannot use the shortcut keys that are in the "Symptoms" section in this article. However, you can use the Edit menu commands. For example, to use the Copy and Paste commands in a dialog box, follow these steps:

  1. Start Microsoft Excel 98.
  2. On the File menu, click Page Setup.
  3. Click the Sheet tab. In the Print Area box, type test. Select "test." Press COMMAND+C. Move the insertion point to the "Rows to repeat at top" box. Press COMMAND+V.

    "Test" is not pasted into the "Rows to repeat at top" box.
  4. Select "test" in the Print Area box.
  5. On the Edit menu, click Copy.
  6. Move the insertion point to the "Rows to repeat at top" box.
  7. On the Edit menu, click Paste.
This pastes "test" into the "Rows to repeat at top" box.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article.

MORE INFORMATION

When a dialog box first appears, there is no indication of which keys you can use as shortcut keys. However, if you hold the COMMAND key down for a few seconds, the labels for the commands in the dialog box appear with an underlined letter. The shortcut key combination for the command is the COMMAND key and the underlined letter

REFERENCES

For more information about shortcut keys, click Contents And Index on the Excel Help menu (or on the Balloon Help menu if you are using a version of the Macintosh operating system earlier than 8.0), click the Index button in Microsoft Excel Help, type the following text

shortcut keys

and then click Show Topics. Select the "Use shortcut keys in Microsoft Excel" topic, and click Go To. If you are unable to find the information you need, ask the Office Assistant.

For more information about shortcut keys, click Contents And Index on the Word Help menu (or on the Balloon Help menu if you are using a version of the Macintosh operating system earlier than 8.0), click the Index button in Microsoft Word Help, type the following text

shortcut keys, using

and then click Show Topics. Select the "shortcut keys" topic, and click Go To. If you are unable to find the information you need, ask the Office Assistant.

For more information about shortcut keys, click Contents And Index on the PowerPoint Help menu (or on the Balloon Help menu if you are using a version of the Macintosh operating system earlier than 8.0), click the Index button in Microsoft PowerPoint Help, type the following text

shortcut keys

and then click Show Topics. Select the "Use keyboard shortcuts" topic, and click Go To. If you are unable to find the information you need, ask the Office Assistant.
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:11/13/2003
Keywords:kbbug kbnofix KB186971
©2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.