From Newsgroup: alt.windows7.general

Hello all,

I've got a maindialog which opens a modeless dialog. I can't remember for
the life of me how to use the keyboard to switch between those two.

Tab goes to the next control
Alt-tab goes to the next program

What do I use to go to the next dialog ?

Regards,
Rudy Wieser


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From Newsgroup: alt.windows7.general

On Mon, 9 Mar 2026 11:18:31 +0100, R.Wieser wrote:

Hello all,

I've got a maindialog which opens a modeless dialog. I can't remember for the life of me how to use the keyboard to switch between those two.

Tab goes to the next control
Alt-tab goes to the next program

What do I use to go to the next dialog ?

Regards,
Rudy Wieser

It's originally ALT+F6 and ALT+SHIFT+F6 since Windows 2.0, but they're
removed since Windows Vista (sic).

Tested using Windows 3.x Write application's Find and Replace dialogs since both can be shown at the same time. Wordpad can't do that.

ALT+F6 switches between both modeless dialogs. If the main window
application is initially focused, it'll focus the modeless dialog. e.g. pressing ALT+F6 repeatedly will get:

Main->Find->Replace->Find->Replace->(and so on...)

ALT+SHIFT+F6 switches between the main window and one of the modeless
dialogs, alternating between the modeless dialog. e.g. pressing ALT+SHIFT+F6 repeatedly will get:

Main->Find->Main->Replace->Main->Find->Main->Replace->(and so on...)

The keyboard shortcuts were actually built in Windows and were not
application specific, since they work in Windows 2.x up to Windows Server
2003 (NT5.2), but no longer work in Windows Vista (NT6.0) and later; even though the exact same Write application EXE file is used.
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From Newsgroup: alt.windows7.general

JJ,

It's originally ALT+F6 and ALT+SHIFT+F6 since Windows 2.0,
but they're removed since Windows Vista (sic).

Thanks. Odd, I did multiple websearchs for it but could not find anything about it.

Tested using Windows 3.x Write application's Find and Replace
dialogs since both can be shown at the same time. Wordpad can't
do that.

:-) I posted it as a generic question, but that, the FindText dialog, is at the basis of it.

ALT+F6 switches between both modeless dialogs. If the main window
application is initially focused, it'll focus the modeless dialog.

I've got, in a test setup, a modeless dialog as my main window, which
created a modal dialog and than created another modeless dialog. The Alt-F6 cycles thru all three.

The keyboard shortcuts were actually built in Windows and
were not application specific,

Somewhat - as long as they are serviced by the IsDialogMessage function in their message-loops.

Which was the problem with the above-mentioned FindText dialog : I called it from a modal dialog, and thus it didn't get dialog-specific messages.
Hence, no dialog-specific handling. :-|

since they work in Windows 2.x up to Windows Server 2003
(NT5.2), but no longer work in Windows Vista (NT6.0) and
later; even though the exact same Write application EXE
file is used.

Thanks for the warning.

Regards,
Rudy Wieser


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From Newsgroup: alt.windows7.general

I've got, in a test setup, a modeless dialog as my main window, which created a modal dialog and than created another modeless dialog. The
Alt-F6 cycles thru all three.

Odd: Having more than one extra modeless dialog open causes Alt-F6 to just toggle between the last-used two (ignoring the (modeless) main and modal dialogs).

Shift-Alt-F6 makes it even more interresting. The sequence becomes : main (modeless) dialog, modal dialog, next modeless (extra) dialog. Rinse an repeat.

Oh well, I will only have that "problem" on Win XP. :-)

I wonder though : how are keyboard warriors on Vista and above switching between dialogs in the same program ? Can they still ? (a quick websearch doesn't answer it).

Regards,
Rudy Wieser


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From Newsgroup: alt.windows7.general

On Tue, 10 Mar 2026 09:45:58 +0100, R.Wieser wrote:

I wonder though : how are keyboard warriors on Vista and above switching between dialogs in the same program ? Can they still ? (a quick websearch doesn't answer it).

Unless they applications that they use provide their own shortcuts, they'd
have to resort to third party tool. Otherwise, they simply can't.

I'd reimplement the keyboard shortcut functionality into my AutoHotkey
script but with different keys, since some application developers aren't
even aware of such keyboard shortcuts and use them for something else.
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From Newsgroup: alt.windows7.general

JJ,

I wonder though : how are keyboard warriors on Vista and above
switching between dialogs in the same program ? Can they still ?
(a quick websearch doesn't answer it).

Unless they applications that they use provide their own shortcuts,
they'd have to resort to third party tool. Otherwise, they simply
can't.

Odd. Oh well.

I'd reimplement the keyboard shortcut functionality into my AutoHotkey
script but with different keys,

As I'm not too impresed with what Alt-(shift-)F6 does I might try to do something similar (writing a wrapper around the IsDialogMessage).

since some application developers aren't even aware of such
keyboard shortcuts and use them for something else.

:-) I had to ask for the key combination, so I am one of them - even though I'm a long-time Windows user.

Regards,
Rudy Wieser


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From Newsgroup: alt.windows7.general

On 2026/3/10 8:45:58, R.Wieser wrote:

I've got, in a test setup, a modeless dialog as my main window, which
created a modal dialog and than created another modeless dialog. The
Alt-F6 cycles thru all three.

Odd: Having more than one extra modeless dialog open causes Alt-F6 to just toggle between the last-used two (ignoring the (modeless) main and modal dialogs).

Shift-Alt-F6 makes it even more interresting. The sequence becomes : main (modeless) dialog, modal dialog, next modeless (extra) dialog. Rinse an repeat.

Oh well, I will only have that "problem" on Win XP. :-)

I wonder though : how are keyboard warriors on Vista and above switching between dialogs in the same program ? Can they still ? (a quick websearch doesn't answer it).

Regards,
Rudy Wieser

I don't know if it's relevant, but Thunderbird uses F6; I hadn't
realised it was a Windows thing, and thought it was a TB weirdness. (I
have to use shift-F6 to put focus back where I'm used to it being after
posting a followup, so I can hit space to move to the next post; if I
forget, hitting space starts another followup, which is irritating.)
--
J. P. Gilliver. UMRA: 1960/<1985 MB++G()ALIS-Ch++(p)Ar++T+H+Sh0!:`)DNAf

"... all your hard work in the hands of twelve people too stupid to get
off jury duty." CSI, 200x
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From Newsgroup: alt.windows7.general

John,

I don't know if it's relevant, but Thunderbird uses F6; I hadn't
realised it was a Windows thing,

Same key, but in Windows you also need to have ALT down.

and thought it was a TB weirdness

Probably just "stole" the idea of the F6 key from MS. :-)

Regards,
Rudy Wieser


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