If I only have a plug in keyboard for a tower computer, is that enough to operate it
from cheese_greater@lemmy.world to nostupidquestions@lemmy.ca on 18 Mar 19:16
https://lemmy.world/post/44439000

I have a monitor/HDMI. No mouse

#nostupidquestions

threaded - newest

Onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe on 18 Mar 19:24 next collapse

Uh, yes?

No?

Maybe?

KoboldCoterie@pawb.social on 18 Mar 19:24 next collapse

Yes, though it might be inconvenient for some apps or workflows. If you can use CLI it’ll go a lot more smoothly than trying to use a mouse-driven interface with a keyboard only, but you can do that, too, if it comes down to it.

You can get a cheap mouse or trackball for under $10, though, if you don’t want to deal with the hassle.

cheese_greater@lemmy.world on 18 Mar 19:27 collapse

Do you think it might be a good experience in terms of becoming a better programmer/user? Like, using the circumstance/constraint as a positive?

theunknownmuncher@lemmy.world on 18 Mar 19:29 next collapse

No.

neidu3@sh.itjust.works on 18 Mar 19:38 next collapse

Not really, but you’d probably learn hotkeys much faster.

bluGill@fedia.io on 18 Mar 20:32 collapse

Yes, but more because you think of the blind who can't see a GUI than anything it does for your coding skills.

Vi/Emacs/modern IDE - all of them work about the same. You need to learn your tools, but since your speed to do input isn't the limitation hotkeys vs mouse is rarely a limit so long as you no the basic shortcuts of your editor.

ns1@feddit.uk on 18 Mar 19:32 next collapse

Some people here can remember a time when most computers had just a keyboard and no mouse!

bluGill@fedia.io on 18 Mar 20:29 collapse

Some computers didn't even have a keyboard, just a set of toggle switches used to set memory directly.

rljkeimig@lemmy.world on 18 Mar 19:38 next collapse

If you are on Windows, you can do this: …microsoft.com/…/use-mouse-keys-to-move-the-mouse…

Otherbarry@lemmy.frozeninferno.xyz on 18 Mar 19:42 next collapse

is that enough to operate it

Yes.

It’ll take longer navigating around different windows & such in a GUI operating system but is totally doable.

Rentlar@lemmy.ca on 18 Mar 19:45 next collapse

It is possible to operate. Some Desktop Environments make it easier than others.

Websites are hard to use but as long as they play nice with web standards it should be navigable.

A once needed a mouse in a pinch, I got it from Dollarama (Canada) for $4 ($2.80 US).

reallykindasorta@slrpnk.net on 18 Mar 19:46 next collapse

You have to tab around and use shortcuts. It’s quite annoying but possible.

Source: Parents used to take away the mouse as a deterrent sometimes

cheese_greater@lemmy.world on 18 Mar 19:48 collapse

Thats amusing. I like when the punishment doesnt totally take you out of business, just enough to make shit annoying af

reallykindasorta@slrpnk.net on 18 Mar 19:53 collapse

Eventually I bought a cheap mouse, but it was sort of a deterrent for awhile!

cheese_greater@lemmy.world on 18 Mar 20:15 collapse

As it shouldve been. Wat was yer crime?

reallykindasorta@slrpnk.net on 18 Mar 21:22 collapse

Staying up too late chatting with online friends on java chat applet. Good times :’)

[deleted] on 18 Mar 19:56 next collapse
.
bluGill@fedia.io on 18 Mar 20:35 next collapse

Sure, just install FreeBSD (or any other unix link OS) and don't install a GUI. There are plenty of command line and terminal programs that still work great.

You can also use a GUI with hotkeys (including Windows if you must), but you will find a lot of things are not easy without a mouse. It can be done, but often not easy. If you use a open source desktop be prepared to fix a lot of bugs in this area for your chosen desktop and programs (please do - we all benefit)

aramis87@fedia.io on 18 Mar 21:01 next collapse

Yes, and no. You should be able to do many things using keyboard shortcuts - alt-tab to switch windows, shift-tab for previous field, alt-space to move a window, etc. Much of this has been standard in Windows for decades, and I can't imagine them deliberately going out of their way to handicap that capability, especially with ADA accommodations.

However, companies making programs and applications, and people designing webpages, are not as aware of these accommodations and frequently overlook things when designing their programs and pages. I should fully expect you to run across a badly designed page at some point that's going to leave you frustrated.

I'd suggest printing out a list of keyboard shortcuts (both for the O/S and whatever programs you're likely to use) but expect to run into poor design decisions at some point.

Is this a temporary situation ("I'm just setting up this PC, I'll grab a mouse later"), or a permanent one? If the latter, is there someone you know who might have a spare mouse?

unknownuserunknownlocation@kbin.earth on 18 Mar 23:27 collapse

You can even emulate a mouse with a full-sized keyboard. There was (and I'm assuming still is? I'm remembering this from Windows 98 times) a function that will let you use your numpad to emulate a mouse. It was somewhere in the control panel and could definitely be accessed using only the keyboard.

Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyz on 19 Mar 01:49 next collapse

Small addition to what everyone else has already mentioned: in Linux, there are a few window managers that are built around the idea of not needing a mouse. Example: ratpoison

knightly@pawb.social on 19 Mar 02:51 collapse

Got a microphone?

I remember trying out some accessibility software a couple of decades back that let you move the cursor and click on things with voice commands. I dunno if there’s an open-source alternative, but Dragon Naturally Speaking is still around and still has that feature: www.nuance.com/products/…/using_your_mouse.htm