10 Windows Find Dialog This learning module is entitled, “Using the Windows Find Dialog.” This lesson shows you how to quickly locate specific file and folder information on your computer. Currently, my focus is on the Desktop and JAWS is the only application running. I want to open the Find Dialog, and perform a search for a folder. The Find Dialog is used throughout the Windows operating systems. You can open the find dialog in a number of ways. The first way is to open it from the Start menu, or you can simply press the Windows logo key with the letter F for find. You can also use the Find Dialog while working in My Computer and the Windows Explorer program. I’m going to press the WINDOWS LOGO KEY+F now. Windows F. Search results, pictures music or video button. To activate press SPACEBAR You may have to press insert up arrow, say line, to read this again. We are now in an area of the screen called the search companion. I’m in a dialog that lets me choose what kind of files I want to search for. Several options are available, including word processor files and music or video files. The option I want to use is all files. This way I’ll be sure to find the file I’m looking for. I’m going to press tab until JAWS says, “All files.” Documents (word processing, spreadsheet, etc.) button. To activate press SPACEBAR. All files and folders button. To activate press SPACEBAR. I’m going to press SPACEBAR to activate this button. Space. All or part of the file name. Edit. Type in text. Before beginning a find, it’s important to have two pieces of information. First, you want to have an idea of the name of the folder or file you’re looking for. Also, you want to make sure you direct where the computer begins looking for that particular file or folder. The control we’ve landed in is an edit box. The folder I’d like to find is called, “Text Manuals.” You’’ remember that we restored this folder when working in the Recycle Bin lesson earlier. We already know where this folder is located, but this example will provide us with practice. Because the item we're searching for contains more than one word, it’s a good idea to surround the text with quotes. In contrast, if you were looking for just one word, or you wanted the computer to find all filenames containing the text you type in, you would not surround it with quotes. I'll type the name of that folder surrounded by quotes here. quote T-e-x-t-space-m-a-n-u-a-l-s quote I’m going to move on to a second important piece of information in this dialog box, so I won't press ENTER now to begin my search. The reason for this is that I want to verify where my computer will be looking for this folder. I'll press TAB. jaws says: A word or phrase in the file. Here, we’ve moved to another edit field. This field allows us to search for a word or phrase within a file. The first field, the one we just left, searches for file names or words in the file names. I’m going to press tab again. jaws says: Look in Here you can tell Windows to search entire drives, or you can limit your search to specific folders. JAWS announced where this search for the Text Manuals folder will begin. There will always be a choice filled in here, so you need to verify where your search happens. I’ll press tab again. jaws says: When was it modified? If you press enter here, you get more choices. They are: First, a group of radio buttons that allows you to narrow the search to certain or specific dates. Choosing the last radio button allows you to tab to an edit field where you can type in the dates of the files you are looking for. On this item, when you press enter you toggle the state of the options beneath it being visible or hidden from tab view. I’ll press tab again. jaws says: what size is it? Here you have a similar group of radio buttons allowing you to choose a size range. The last radio button in this group allows you to type in the exact size of a file you might be looking for. On this item, when you press enter you toggle the state of the options beneath it being visible or hidden from tab view. I’ll press tab again. jaws says: more advanced options… The advanced options allow you to search for specific types of files, search system or hidden folders, make your search case sensitive, and search a tape backup if you have one. On this item, when you press enter you toggle the state of the options beneath it being visible or hidden from tab view. Press tab again. jaws says: back button Tab again. JAWS says: search button. While you are in the edit combo boxes to search for a file or folder, a word or phrase, or look in, the search button is the default button in this dialog box. When you get to the part of the dialog that begins with When was it Modified, the search button is no longer the default button and you would have to press tab to reach it and activate it. Tab again. jaws says: folder view, list view, XXX items. This is the list of files that match the search you typed in. It is a vertical list, so you can press up or down arrow to move through it. You can press enter on a file and open it directly from this list view as well. Tab again. jaws says: address edit combo. Tab again. jaws says: toolbar close button. Pressing enter on this causes the list of search options to close. Your list of files that match the search criteria still remains open, however. Press tab again. JAWS says: pictures, music, or video button. And now we’ve wrapped back around to the beginning of the search area. When the find is complete, JAWS announces the total number of items found for that search, which JAWS reads from the status bar. To view my find results, I’m going to press DOWN ARROW to place the focus on the first item in the list view. Text Manuals. I could press ENTER and the Text Manuals folder would open. At that point, I could select either a folder or a file within that folder. If Text Manuals were a program, it would launch that program when I pressed ENTER on it. Now, however, I want to know where the Text Manuals folder is located. If you perform the JAWS key combination, SayLine, which is INSERT+UP ARROW, JAWS will read more details about my Text Manuals folder. I’m going to press that key combination now. jaws says: Text Manuals C colon backslash JAWS450 backslash ma dot dot dot file folder. Eight slash seven slash zero one, two forty one PM, one of one. We learned that this folder was located in the JAWS450 folder, but the name was too long to be displayed in this screen. This frequently happens to long location names in Windows. The status bar in the windows find dialog box shows the full path of the file. Press insert numpad three to read the status bar. jaws says… If you wanted to conduct a new search, you would need to press the tab key to move back to the search companion pane. Once there, you can press the access key ALT+N, which would activate the new search button, and also clear the previous search criteria. This concludes our lesson on the Windows find dialog. When you're ready to exit from this dialog, press ALT+F4. Our next lesson will focus on the Windows control panel. 3 10 Windows Find Dialog