To step through all available controls, use the Tab key. To reverse direction and go left, just add the shift key.

In Mac 2011, to switch tabs, you can use Control + tab to move right.

To illustrate, let's look at the Format Cells dialog, which provides many options in a tabbed interface.įirst, notice this dialog has an active Tab, which is remembered from the last time you accessed the dialog. This will let you tab and shift tab to select all dialog box controls. Then make sure 'All controls' is selected in the Full Keyboard Access area. Go to System Preferences > then Keyboard > and to the shortcuts tab. On a Mac, you have a more limited ability to select controls in dialog boxes, but it is possible to drive these dialogs entirely from the keyboard.įirst, to allow you to access all dialog controls, you need to enable a preference.

Some examples include Format Cells, find and replace, spelling, paste special, go to special, and many more. In this video, we'll look at shortcuts for navigating dialog boxes on a Mac.Įxcel has a large number dialog boxes that you will use frequently.

The dialog box launcher