Menus

When many operations are available it is impractical to arrange them all in command buttons. For this reason we have menus. Typically we will use a "menubar" consisting of several menus arranged side by side

The menubar is a series of menu buttons arranged side by side. In the above picture, the menus are "File" through to "Help". Selecting an item from a menu is done by pressing and holding the left mouse button whilst the cursor is above the menu button. The available menu choices will then be displayed. Whilst still pressing the mouse button, move down to the desired choice and then release the mouse button. Releasing the mouse button when the mouse cursor is not over a menu item will remove the menu without executing any options. Alternatively, it is possible to press and release the left mouse button whilst the cursor is above a menu button. The menu options will be revealed. Now move down and press and release the left button once more once on the selected item.

To see an overview of the menu contents press the left mouse button over a menu button and move the mouse cursor over the other menu buttons. As each menu button is highlighted the appropriate options for this menu will be shown.

Some menu items lead to further menus. These are called cascading menus. Treat these exactly as normal menus.

To tear off a menu pull down the menu using the left mouse button, select the dashed perforation line, and release the button. The menu will be redrawn with a title bar which can be used to move it to any position on the screen. Not all menus support tearing off.