An on-screen, or virtual, keyboard that replaces the traditional input peripheral is one of the services provided by Microsoft developers. The keys on it can be selected with the mouse, as well as with your finger or stylus, in the case of a touch screen.
How to open the on-screen keyboard in Windows XP using a mouse
Click on the "Start" button, open the "Programs" section, then the "Accessories" group, "Accessibility" and click on the "On-screen keyboard" icon. To start entering text, left-click on the desired place in the document, then select the appropriate keys on the screen.
When you open the onscreen keyboard, a window appears with a link to the Microsoft Web site where you can find programs that support other assistive technologies.
For convenience, you can change some of the keyboard settings. To change the font, go to the Options menu and click the Font option. Select the appropriate options and click OK to confirm.
In addition, you have the ability to choose how you enter characters: by mouse click or by the time the cursor lingers over a key. To do this, use the "Input Mode" option in the "Parameters" menu. The default is On Click. To change the mode, check the "Pointer delay for selection" and in the drop-down list select the time interval after which the symbol will be displayed on the screen. Click OK to confirm your selection.
In the "Joystick or selection key" mode, the program scans the keyboard at a time interval that you can select in the "Check interval" list. In this case, the groups of keys are alternately highlighted in color. If this group contains the character you want, use the device you assigned to the keyboard to stop scanning. After that, the program will begin to select all the keys in the group one by one. Use the device to point to the desired symbol. To assign a control device, click the Advanced button.
How to open the virtual keyboard in Windows XP using the keyboard
To call the Start button, use the Win key or the Ctrl + Esc combination. Use the directional arrow keys and Enter to navigate to the Accessibility section and launch the On-Screen Keyboard.
Go to the "Options" menu using the Alt + G combination. Use the directional arrow keys and Enter to select the appropriate font and input mode.
Pressing the alt="Image" key activates all the main menu items. Menu selection hotkeys are indicated by underlines.
Combined method
You can use both the keyboard and mouse to launch the onscreen keyboard. Minimize all windows and press F1. In the Help Center window, type On-Screen Keyboard in the search box. Click the Onscreen Keyboard Overview link. In the right window, find the line "Launch the On-Screen Keyboard" application and click on the link.
