Accelerator Editor (C++)
An accelerator table is a C++ Windows resource that contains a list of accelerator keys, known as shortcut keys, and the command identifiers that are associated with them. A program can have more than one accelerator table.
Normally, accelerators are used as keyboard shortcuts for program commands that are also available on a menu or toolbar. However, you can use the accelerator table to define key combinations for commands that don't have a user-interface object associated with them.
Tip
When using the Accelerator Editor, right-click to display a shortcut menu of frequent commands. The commands available depend on what the pointer is pointing to.
You can use Class View to hook accelerator key commands to code. For a list of pre-defined accelerator keys, see Accelerator Keys.
Note
Windows doesn't allow you to create empty accelerator tables. If you create an accelerator table with no entries, it is deleted automatically when you save the table.
Accelerator Properties
You can set accelerator properties in the Properties window at any time. You can also use the Accelerator Editor to modify the accelerator properties in the accelerator table. Changes made using the Properties window or the Accelerator Editor have the same result, edits are immediately reflected in the accelerator table.
The ID property references each accelerator table entry in program code. This entry is the command value that the program receives when a user presses the accelerator key or a key combination. To make an accelerator the same as a menu item, make the ID the same, so long as the ID of the accelerator table is the same as the ID for the menu resource.
Each accelerator ID has three properties: Modifier, Key, and Type
The Modifier property sets control key combinations for the accelerator.
Note
In the Properties window, the Modifier property appears as three separate Boolean properties, all of which can be controlled independently: Alt, Ctrl, and Shift.
The following are legal entries for the Modifier property in the accelerator table:
| Value | Description |
|---|---|
| None | User presses only the Key value. This value is most effectively used with the ASCII/ANSI values 001 through 026, which is interpreted as ^A through ^Z (Ctrl+A through Ctrl+Z). |
| Alt | User must press Alt before the Key value. |
| Ctrl | User must press Ctrl before the Key value, not valid with ASCII Type. |
| Shift | User must press Shift before the Key value. |
| Ctrl+Alt | User must press Ctrl and Alt before the Key value, not valid with ASCII Type. |
| Ctrl+Shift | User must press Ctrl and Shift before the Key value, not valid with ASCII Type. |
| Alt+Shift | User must press Alt and Shift before the Key value, not valid with ASCII Type. |
| Ctrl+Alt+Shift | User must press Ctrl, Alt, and Shift before the Key value, not valid with ASCII Type. |
The Key property sets the actual key to use as the accelerator.
The following are legal entries for the Key property in the accelerator table:
| Value | Description |
|---|---|
| An integer between 0 and 255 in decimal format. | The value determines whether the value is treated as ASCII or ANSI as follows: - Single-digit numbers are always interpreted as the corresponding key, rather than as ASCII or ANSI values. - Values from 1 through 26, when preceded with zeros, are interpreted as ^A through ^Z, which represents the ASCII value of the letters of the alphabet when pressed with the Ctrl key held down. - Values from 27-32 are always interpreted as three-digit decimal values 027 through 032. - Values from 033 through 255, whether preceded by 0's or not are interpreted as ANSI values. |
| A single keyboard character. | Uppercase A - Z or the numbers 0 - 9 can be either ASCII or virtual key values. Any other character is ASCII only. |
| A single keyboard character in the range A - Z (uppercase only), preceded by a caret (^), for example, ^C. | This option enters the ASCII value of the key when it's pressed with the Ctrl key held down. |
| Any valid virtual key identifier. | The drop-down Key box in the accelerator table contains a list of standard virtual key identifiers. |
Note
When entering an ASCII value, the Modifier property options are limited. The only control key available for use is the Alt key.
Tip
A shortcut to define an accelerator key is to right-click an entry or multiple entries in the accelerator table, then choose Next Key Typed and press any of the keys or key combinations on the keyboard.
This Next Key Typed command is also available from the Edit menu.
The Type property determines whether the shortcut key combination associated with the accelerator ID is interpreted as an ASCII/ANSI key value or a virtual key (VIRTKEY) combination.
If the Type property is ASCII, the Modifier property may only be
NoneorAlt, or it can have an accelerator that uses the Ctrl key, as specified by preceding the key with a^.If the Type property is VIRTKEY, any combination of Modifier and Key values is valid.
Note
If you want to enter a value into the accelerator table and have the value treated as ASCII/ANSI, select the Type for the entry in the table and select ASCII from the dropdown list. However, if you use the Next Key Typed command from the Edit menu to specify the Key, you must change the Type property from VIRTKEY to ASCII before entering the Key code.
Accelerator Tables
In a C++ project, you can edit an accelerator table directly with in-place editing in the Accelerator Editor.
The procedures below refer to the use of standard property pages, however, both in-place editing and the property page method have the same result. Changes made using property pages or using in-place editing are immediately reflected in the accelerator table.
To edit in an accelerator table
Open the accelerator table by double-clicking its icon in Resource View.
Select an entry in the table and select to activate in-place editing.
Select from the drop-down combo box or type in place to make changes:
For ID, select from the list or type to edit.
For Modifier, select from the list.
For Key, select from the list or type to edit.
For Type, select ASCII or VIRTKEY from the list.
To find an entry in an open accelerator table
Open the accelerator table by double-clicking its icon in Resource View.
Select a column head to sort the contents of the column alphabetically. For example, select ID to display all the IDs in your accelerator table alphabetically.
You can then scan the list and find the entry.
To add an entry to an accelerator table
Open the accelerator table by double-clicking its icon in Resource View.
Right-click within the accelerator table and choose New Accelerator, or select the empty row entry at the bottom of the table.
Select an ID from the drop-down list in the ID box or type a new ID in the ID box.
Type the Key you want to use as an accelerator, or right-click and choose Next Key Typed to set a key combination, or go to menu Edit > Next Key Typed.
Change the Modifier and Type, if necessary, and press Enter.
Note
Make sure all accelerators you define are unique. You can have several key combinations assigned to the same ID with no ill effect, for example, Ctrl+P and F8 can both be assigned to ID_PRINT. However, having a key combination assigned to more than one ID won't work well, for example, Ctrl+Z assigned to both ID_SPELL_CHECK and ID_THESAURUS.
To delete an entry from an accelerator table
Open the accelerator table by double-clicking its icon in Resource View.
Select the entry you want to delete, or hold down the Ctrl or Shift key while selecting to choose multiple entries.
Right-click and choose Delete, or go to menu Edit > Delete.
Tip
You can also press the Delete key to delete.
To move or copy an accelerator table entry to another resource script file
Open the accelerator tables in both resource script files and select the entry you want to move.
From the Edit menu, choose Copy or Cut.
Select an entry in the target resource script file and from the Edit menu, choose Paste.
Note
You can also use the shortcut keys for copying and pasting.
To change the properties of multiple accelerator keys
Open the accelerator table by double-clicking its icon in Resource View.
Select the accelerator keys you want to change by holding down the Ctrl key as you select each one.
Go to the Properties window and type in the values you want all of the selected accelerators to share.
Note
Each modifier value appears as a Boolean property in the Properties window. If you change a modifier value in the Properties window, the accelerator table treats the new modifier as an addition to any modifiers that were previously there. Because of this, if you set any modifier values, you'll need to set all of them to ensure that every accelerator shares the same Modifier settings.
Requirements
Win32