You are in the middle of some urgent work and suddenly your Keyboard stops responding. And you do not have either enough time to get a new one. In such a situation comes handy Windows inbuilt on-screen Keyboard that can make your life easier when your physical keyboard is malfunctioning.
And if you have a touch screen computer then using an on-screen keyboard is just a cake walk, but it doesn’t mean that you can’t use it with a PC. How? That we will discuss in this article.
How to Enable On-Screen Keyboard on Windows 10
Whether you are on Windows 7, 8 or 10, on-screen Keyboard is available on all versions of Windows operating system. However, the steps to enable it will differ with every version. We would also like to make it clear that to use an on-screen keyboard it is not compulsory to have a touchscreen computer. Also the on-screen keyboard has all the keys that exist on a physical keyboard, that can be accessed with the mouse pointer.
The on-screen keyboard on Windows 10 can be easily enabled from Windows Settings by following the steps given below:
1. Click on the Windows 10 Start button and from the menu that appears click on the Gear icon to open Windows Settings.
2. On the Window Settings screen, click on the option, Ease of Access.
3. Now on the Ease of Access screen, click on the Keyboard in the left pane and then toggle the button to ON position that is below the option, “Turns on the On-Screen Keyboard”.
This on-screen keyboard will differ from the touchscreen keyboard and is more likely a physical keyboard will all the keys that exist on a traditional keyboard. Also, as per your requirement you can resize the on-screen keyboard. Moreover, you can use the Options button that is located at the bottom right corner of the on-screen keyboard to further configure on how to use the on-screen keyboard. And if you need to access it frequently then you can pin it to the taskbar like you pin your other apps.
Enable On-Screen Keyboard on Windows 7
If you are on a Windows 7 computer then the steps to enable onscreen keyboard will be slightly different from the one that we followed in Windows 10.
1. Click on the Windows start button and select All programs > Accessories > Accessibility > Ease Of Access.
2. This will open the Ease of Access Centre.
3. Click on the Start On-Screen Keyboard option to start using the keyboard.
Also it is recommended to pin the on-screen keyboard to the task so that it can be accessed easily in the near future. To do so right click on the on-screen keyboard icon on the taskbar and select the option Pin this program to taskbar. Similar to Windows 10, you can rescale the size of the on-screen keyboard as per your requirements. You can also use the Option Key present at bottom right of the on-screen keyboard to make further changes to on-screen keyboard.
How to Enable On-Screen Keyboard at Startup On Windows 10
You do not want to every time start the on-screen keyboard after you login to your computer then you can set it to be available automatically after you sign in to your computer. To do so follow the steps below:
1. On your Windows 10 computer open Control Panel.
2. Once you are inside the Control Panel, first switch it to Category view. Now click on the option, Ease of Access.
3. On the Ease of Access screen, click on the option Ease of Access Center.
4. Once you are inside Ease of Access Center, scroll down and under the Explore all Settings section click on the option, Use Computer without a Mouse or Keyboard.
5. On the Next screen, under Type using a pointing device, check-mark the option Use On-Screen Keyboard. Now click on the Apply and OK button to apply the changes you have made.
6. Now whenever you restart your computer you will find the on-screen keyboard there on your screen.
Also, if you have set the password for logging in to your computer then you can set the on-screen keyboard to enable right at login screen by following the below steps:
1. Open Control Panel on your computer and navigate to Ease of Access > Ease of Access Center by following the above steps till 3.
2. On the Ease of Access Center screen, click on the option, Change sign-in settings in the left pane.
3. Now on the next screen, check the option, At Sign-in that is in front of the setting, Type Without the Keyboard(On-Screen Keyboard).
4. Click on Apply and OK to apply the setting.
From onwards you will be able to use the on-screen keyboard right from the login screen.
Wrapping Up
The on-screen keyboard is a complete physical keyboard that you can easily access with your mouse pointer. You can use all your keyboard shortcuts on it, similar to the physical keyboard. So, guys we hope now you have a better insight of how to use the on-screen keyboard on your Windows 10 computer when your physical keyboard is out of order. Please do mention in the comment section if you have any feedback or question regarding this article.
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