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Using scratch-out gestures
Using gestures for common editing actions

How do I use gestures in Tablet PC Input Panel?

In Tablet PC Input Panel, you can use gestures in the writing pad and in the character pad to delete handwriting and to control the insertion point in the active program. A gesture is a motion that you make with your tablet pen, or a symbol that you draw with your tablet pen. Using a gesture gives you the same result that you would get if you pressed the corresponding key on a standard keyboard.

There are two types of gestures that you can use in Input Panel:

Scratch-out gestures. Scratch-out gestures make it easy to delete text when you're handwriting uisng the Input Panel.
Gestures for common editing actions. You can also use gestures to perform some basic editing tasks, like inserting spaces and tabs.

Note

Handwriting recognition is currently available for English, Japanese, Chinese (Traditional), Chinese (Simplified), Korean, German, French, Italian, Dutch, Spanish, and Portuguese (Brazil). If you are not using one of these input languages, you can use the on-screen keyboard in Tablet PC Input Panel to enter text without using a standard keyboard.

Using scratch-out gestures

You can use a scratch-out gesture to delete text in the writing pad and the character pad.

Windows includes new, more tolerant scratch-out gestures that you can use to strike through what you wrote to delete handwriting in Input Panel. The new scratch-out gestures are more natural and should work better with your personal style of crossing out text in Input Panel. The new scratch-out gestures include, but are not limited to:

Strikethrough
Vertical scratch-out, in the pattern of an M or a W
Circular scratch-out
Angled scratch-out

Also, you can still use the Z-shaped scratch-out gesture that was available in Microsoft Windows XP Tablet PC Edition.

If you find that your handwriting is sometimes accidentally deleted by the strikethrough or other new scratch-out gestures, you can adjust your settings to use only the Z-shaped scratch-out gesture.

To use only the Z-shaped scratch-out gesture

To open Input Panel, tap the Input Panel tab or the Tablet PC Input Panel icon.
Tap the Tools menu, and then tap Options.
Tap the Gestures tab, and then select Only the Z-shaped scratch-out gesture that was available in Microsoft Windows XP Tablet PC Edition.

To delete handwriting or recognized text by using the Z-shaped scratch-out gesture, draw a horizontal line back and forth at least three times through the handwriting or recognized text that you want to delete. When you delete handwriting, the corresponding recognized text is also deleted.

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Using gestures for common editing actions

When you use an editing gesture, you get the same result that you would get if you pressed the corresponding key on a standard keyboard. You can use editing gestures in the writing pad and in the character pad.

You can choose from two different sets of gestures for common editing actions:

Gestures commonly used on handheld computers, which should be familiar to PDA users.
Gestures from the Simplified Chinese (PRC) standard, GB/T 18790-2002, which have been adopted by the Chinese government.

Gestures commonly used on handheld computers

The following table shows how to draw gestures that are commonly used on handheld computers.

Gesture	Gesture symbol
Backspace
Space
Enter
Tab

Gestures from the Simplified Chinese (PRC) standard, GB/T 18790-2002

The following table shows how to draw gestures from the Simplified Chinese (PRC) standard, GB/T 18790-2002.

Gesture	Gesture symbol
Backspace
Space
Enter
Tab
Delete

Show all

To choose which editing gestures you want to use

Open Input Panel.
Tap the Tools menu, and then tap Options.
Tap the Gestures tab, and then select Use gestures commonly used on handheld computers or Use gestures from the Simplified Chinese (PRC) standard, GB/T 18790-2002.

To use an editing gesture in the writing pad

Make sure that the writing area is completely clear of ink. This does not apply if you're using a scratch-out gesture.
In the writing area, draw the symbol for the gesture that you want to use.

To use an editing gesture in the character pad

Make sure that the writing area is completely clear of ink. This does not apply if you're using a scratch-out gesture.
In the writing area, draw the symbol for the gesture that you want to use. Make sure that you draw the gesture at least two spaces wide.

Tips for drawing editing gestures

Make sure that the tip of your tablet pen touches the surface of the screen as you draw the gesture.
Make sure that the writing area is completely clear of ink before you draw a gesture. This does not apply if you're using a scratch-out gesture.
If the gesture you draw isn't recognized:
- Try drawing the gesture faster.
- For the backspace gesture and the space gesture in western languages, try drawing a longer line.
- For the enter gesture, draw the left part of the stroke two to four times longer than the downward part of the stroke.
- For the enter gesture, draw a 90-degree angle—not a curve—between the downward and left sections of the stroke.
- For the tab gesture, draw the right part of the stroke two to four times longer than the upward part of the stroke.
- For the tab gesture, draw a 90-degree angle—not a curve—between the upward and right sections of the stroke.