| Introduction > Working with SMS > Keyboard control

Keyboard control

Typically, you work with PowerSchool SMS using a mouse-driven pointer while using the keyboard to change information in a field. However, some system users, such as those who enter a lot of information or conduct the same task repeatedly, prefer to use the keyboard as much as possible. These users can make use of the keyboard shortcuts built into the web browser [Table 2].

One of the most useful keys is Tab, which enables you to shift the selection through a page's elements until the desired element is selected [Figure 22].

Figure 22: Selection examples

A Menu highlighting indicates the selection
B A cursor indicates the selection
C Highlighting indicates the selection.
D A rectangle indicates the selection

On the page, the selection typically appears first in the top left, on the topmost control bar choice, such as Quick Search [Figure 6] or in the first field [Figure 22]. From this position, the selection moves each time you press the Tab key, typically down the page and to the right. Press Shift + Tab to move the selection back. For instructions on how to work with the selected control, refer to [Table 2].

Table 2: Keyboard shortcuts

Task with example

Keyboard shortcut

Click a control

Press Tab or Shift + Tab to cycle through buttons and fields until the button is selected.

Press Enter.

Click a link

Press Tab or Shift + Tab to cycle through buttons and fields until the button is selected.

Press Enter.

Click a button

Press Tab or Shift + Tab to cycle through buttons and fields until the button is selected.

Press Enter.

Select a check box

Press Tab until the check box label is selected.

Press the Space bar.

Press Tab to set the choice and move on.

Click an option

Press Tab until the first option in the set is selected.

Press the up or down arrow to select another option.

Press Tab to set the choice and move on.

Select an item from a list

With the field selected, cycle through the choices by pressing the up or down arrow.

- Press Page Down to go to the end of the list, Page Up to the top.

- Press the first letter of a choice to select it. Where more than one choice share the same first letter, press that letter again to cycle through the choices.

Press Tab to set the choice and move to the next field.

Type in a field

Cycle through buttons and fields by pressing Tab or Shift + Tab until the cursor appears in the field.

- If the field contains text, all of it is selected.

Type.

Press Tab to set the text and move on.

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