Quick-access notepad, calculator & paint for “scratchpad”
When I was in the navy, one was considered out-of-uniform if one did not have a pen and notepad on his person. On my workstation, I have a few tools to use for “jotting things down” when simple copy-and-paste is not quite enough.
Quick access shortcuts
I like to use MS Notepad as an on-screen scratchpad. I find it is handy for storing quick notes and lists of numbers that I may need elsewhere during the course of my CAD modelling. To make Notepad readily available, I add a shortcut key to the Windows menu. That way, I can have my scratchpad ready with a quick “Ctrl + Alt +N”.
To add a shortcut key, go to the Windows menu and find the application of interest (i.e. MS Notepad). Instead of left-clicking to start, right-click and select “Properties”. You will see a line for the shortcut key. Here, you can enter a “Ctrl + Alt + {letter}” or “Ctrl + Shift + {letter}” for a shortcut key. Once set, the application will start when the shortcut key combination is pressed.
Quick shortcuts for screenshots
I have a key shortcut for MS Paint, which I use for editing screenshots. Use “Shift + Printscreen” to capture the screen, open MS Paint, and paste (Ctrl + v). MS Paint will allow you to select a portion of the screenshot to crop or copy. The copied protion can be pasted into email, PowerPoint, MS Word, etc.
Other handy tools
Two other tools I like to keep on “hot standby” are the Windows Calculator and the Character Map. Character Map is handy for those odd symbols, Greek letters, etc. Calculator is good for, well, calculating. BTW, if you haven’t discovered it yet, Calculator does have a scientific mode w/ trig & log functions, etc.
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