Using two mice/cursers

[flyboyy]

Is this doable?

I am doing a course where I am logged onto the web and have a long project where I have to listen and watch the instructor and in Pages I am Typing notes as she speaks, so I have to turn off the video constantly as I am typing. This is very tedious because I have to listen to the vid, then turn it off (click or spacebar) then click on the Pages page and type then move the mouse over to click on the vid and then hit SB to restart it. Inevitably I have to backtrack the vid a bit constantly because it takes time to move the mouse over and click then SB.

I know that there are programs that Court Clerks use to stop/start/rewind an audio file with a floor switch (foot activated). This is roughly the idea but I would like to use two mice.

Any suggestions?
TIA Alan

 

[MacInWin]

What do you mean by "logged into the web?" Is there a specific app for the course, or are you just using a browser? You could go split screen, with the vid in one window taking up half of the screen and Pages in another using the other half of the screen, let the vid run while you type into Pages. Depends on how fast you type, how fast the speaker is on the course, but a good typist should be able to keep up reasonably well.

 

[flyboyy]

Thanks MacInWin,
Took me a second to figure out your pic, but it is an aircraft carrier. I've never landed on one but I watched some guys practicing to do it in FLA years ago.

I meant using a browser and a logged in site.

I am a reasonably fast typist but the material is complicated with technical terms and I am making a checklist which requires thought as to where thing go, so I often have to backtrack.

 

[MacInWin]

OK, then I'm sorry it won't work. Only one screen can have the "focus" of the mouse and keyboard at a time, so when you are typing, the focus is in Pages and not in the browser. To get back to the browser having focus requires, as you have discovered, moving the mouse into the window and clicking, thus transferring the focus to the browser. I don't know of any way to get around that focus issue. Maybe two computers? But then you'd have to change YOUR focus from one to the other.

 

[pm-r]

I am logged onto the web and have a long project where I have to listen and watch the instructor

Is this a training video that you could pause while you typed??

If so, you should be able to do what you want just by having the video in one window and your Pages document in another. Then just a click to make each one active, and unpause the video for a bit more, then pause, click the Pages window as required.

PS: Nice to see another Vancouver Islander amongst us.





- Patrick
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[chscag]

@Patrick:

Jake already suggested that and it was rejected. Read post #2 and #3. ;D

 

[pm-r]

@Patrick:

Jake already suggested that and it was rejected. Read post #2 and #3. ;D

Except Jake was talking about " split screen" which I believe and thought only some new Macs or their macOS supports.

I thought it was a separate "feature" or maybe I need another large glass of wine!!!





- Patrick
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[flyboyy]

Hi Patrick,
Hope you weren't too badly affected by the winds. We got a bit of wind but nothing serious.

That is what I have been doing, but what I am hoping is that there is someone who has figured out a means of using two separate mice or maybe a mouse and an extra KB or whatever with each having their own curser so I could stop the vid with one finger instead of having to move the one mouse over to the vid to stop or rewind it and then back to the Pages document. It's just very tedious going back and forth. A 45 minute video will take a morning and part of the afternoon due to the nature of what I am transcribing.

Court scribes have a special machine that they type what they hear and with their foot they hit pause or rewind. I also had a program (I think called Scribe) that I could play a recording and do the same except just using KB shortcuts as I recall, (and my recall mechanism doesn't always bang on all 4 cylinders)

 

[flyboyy]

Except Jake was talking about " split screen" which I believe and thought only some new Macs or their macOS supports.

I thought it was a separate "feature" or maybe I need another large glass of wine!!!





- Patrick
======

Maybe that's what I need so I can stop trying to change the world in the waning moments of another momentous year

Actually I looked up and tried split screen which works but I use Moom which is easy. I heard about it from one of you guys.

 

[chscag]

I thought it was a separate "feature" or maybe I need another large glass of wine!!!

How about an entire bottle? Might be a bit too expensive but I figure with your wealth, you can afford it. LOL

 

[pm-r]

This is what I had in mind and was suggesting. IF the video can be paused!!!







- Patrick
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[MacInWin]

Patrick, if you have a system that cannot do split screen (I forget which version of OSX introduced it), you can just make two windows side by side and shape them to be 1/2 of the screen each. Nothing complex, no fancy stuff. The issue remains that only one can have the "focus" at a time, so not possible to have two mice, two keyboards, two trackpads. It's one at a time, AFAIK.

What the OP wants is to be able to stay in Pages and pause the video, but I don't know any way to do that. No matter what, the video has to have the "focus" to be able to be stopped and started again.

 

[pm-r]

What the OP wants is to be able to stay in Pages and pause the video, but I don't know any way to do that. No matter what, the video has to have the "focus" to be able to be stopped and started again.

Well with the example I tried and posted above, with just a quick click or two, I could type in the Pages document while the video was paused or in play mode. If in play mode, the video would still keep playing as I typed.

If I needed it to pause, a quick click on the video Pause icon did the trick. Then click the Pages document and keep typing. Or click the Play icon and listen and still type. Truly multi-functional. At least it worked for me.

I'm assuming they are using a Mac and OS X and not an iOS iPad or similar.





- Patrick
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[MacInWin]

Hmmm, I just had a wild idea. What if the OP, while typing, used CMD-Tab to open the selector window, tabbed to video, hit SB, then CMD-Tab, tabbed to Pages and resumed typing. At least his hands would stay on the keyboard. Would work best if only two apps were open (browser and Pages) so that the Selection window only had two options.

(Actually, I have another possibility, but it would be a MacGuyver-esque kludge requiring a second monitor, Parallels, a second USB mouse and a second copy of OSX or even Windows.)

Patrick, what you suggested seems to be what the OP is doing now, but doesn't want to do. But your way is very efficient except for moving hands from keyboard to mouse to do the clicking.

 

[pm-r]

*&%$ Can't post again!!!

 

[pm-r]

Actually, I just noticed that the "Spark.app" IS available that I used to use for switching app etc. but the new version needs 10.10+ which I can't use currently in 10.9.5. It's FREE!!!
Spark
https://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/14352/spark



EDIT:
Please excuse some of my posts in this thread will be out of order and I'll try getting some that wouldn't work posed.




- Patrick
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[pm-r]

Set shortcuts for:

Applications: - You can launch applications like iCal, iTunes, and Mail by pressing a keystroke. You can easily reconfigure shortcuts and choose other apps or keyboard keys.

 

[MacInWin]

But Patrick, he doesn't need any third party software, free or not. The keystroke CMD-Tab opens the selection window, tab moves in it. Done. No third party software downloaded from a site with a less than sterling reputation.

 

[pm-r]

But Patrick, he doesn't need any third party software, free or not. The keystroke CMD-Tab opens the selection window, tab moves in it. Done. No third party software downloaded

I just prefer a quick single key click thanks.

PS: Or just goto the developers site that's listed and download directly from there. If its available to do so.






- Patrick
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[flyboyy]

Just got a hot tip;

When in Pages etc, I can stop/start the vid while remaining in Pages for typing, by hitting F8.

Now if there was a F key that I could convert to 'backspace 5 seconds'.....