The keypad is the block of keys on the far right of the PC keyboard. These keys all have two different names, depending on whether the number lock is turned on or off. The number lock key is in the top left hand corner of the keypad and when you press it, JAWS will announce whether it has been turned on or off.
When the number lock is off, the keypad keys act as navigation keys and have names like RightArrow, Home, Delete and Enter. When the number lock is on they act like the keys on a calculator and become numbers and signs used in simple sums.
The reason why this is so important is that JAWS and Sibelius both make heavy use of the keypad. But wheras JAWS needs the number lock to be turned off, Sibelius needs the number lock to be turned on.
Fortunately, the navigation keys that JAWS needs can all be found in other places on the keyboard. The arrow keys are located immediately to the left of the keypad, arranged in an “inverted T”, and the Insert, Delete, Home, End, PageUp and PageDown keys are placed in a block of six keys, immediately above the arrow keys. These alternative keys are called the “extended” keys and it is strongly recommended that you get used to accessing JAWS features with them, rather than using the keypad.
One of the most common mistakes you are likely to make is trying to check the time by pressing Insert+F12. If you have a note selected and the number lock is on, then pressing this keystroke will replace the note with a rest and then bring up the save as dialog. Of course, there is nothing to stop you from turning the number lock on and off, but it is easy to make mistakes this way. It is far better to simply start using the extended navigation keys. The ExtendedInsert key is usually in the top left corner of the block of six keys, so you can easily check the time by pressing this key with F12.
There are five keypad layouts, which change what properties the keypad keys can affect. For example, the #5 key can make the selected note a half note or a 64th note, add five tremolo strokes to the note, place an up bow sign above the note or place a quarter sharp in front of the note.
You switch between the five keypad layouts with the keys F8, F9, F10, F11 and F12. You can also use the plus key on the keypad to cycle through each layout however, this is a rather slow way of doing things and not recommended.
The five keypad layouts are as follows:
The best way to learn what every key does in the different layouts is to open a score and press escape to clear any selections. After this, you can press the keys on the keypad without affecting the score, and JAWS will announce what each key is.
The table below lists all the keypad keystrokes. The column on the far left shows what the key normally does when the number lock is turned on and the remaining five columns show what the key does in each of the five keypad layouts. Note: you can navigate this table by holding down the Alt and Control keys and then using the arrow keys.
Key | Common notes (F8) | Small notes (F9) | Tremolos and beams (F10) | Articulations (F11) | Accidentals (F12) |
0 | rest | Bar rest | Remove all | Remove all | Remove all |
. | Rhythm dot | slide | none | open | none |
= | tie | Cue size | Tremolo with next | none | Bracket accidental |
1 | 32nd | Bracket note | 1 stroke | Fermata | Natural then flat |
2 | 16th | double dot | 2 strokes | Short Fermata | ¾ sharp |
3 | 8th | Triple dot | 3 strokes | Long Fermata | ¾ flat |
4 | quarter | 64th | 4 strokes | Close | Natural then sharp |
5 | half | 128th | 5 strokes | Up bow | ¼ sharp |
6 | whole | 256th | Buzz role | Down bow | ¼ flat |
7 | natural | 512th | Start beam | Wedge | Natural |
8 | sharp | Double whole | Mid beam | Marcato | sharp |
9 | flat | long | End beam | Staccatissimo | flat |
/ | accent | appoggiatura | Secondary beam | Custome 1 | Double sharp |
* | staccato | acciaccatura | No beam | Custome 2 | Double flat |
- | tenuto | prebend | none | Custome 3 | none |