Selecting multiple items on the screen

Selecting multiple items at first sounds like a trivial topic to write about, but we’ve seen too many people amazed by a massive chunk of files disappearing into the Recycle Bin to pass this article up. If computers make us more productive, how can we let the world go on deleting e-mails from Outlook one message at a time?

This article applies to any collection of items on your screen, regardless of what program you are using. You can use this tip to work with the list of messages in your e-mail inbox, a folder full of files or an array of selections presented in a combo box by a website’s input form.

There are different ways to select multiple items depending on whether you want all of them or just a subset, and whether the desired items are blocked together in consecutive order or spread out in disarray.

Method #1: Draw a box

Say you’re finished reading a few PDFs that you downloaded from the Web and they’re sitting on your desktop collecting dust - with your mouse, point slightly above the first file’s icon, then click and hold the mouse button. While holding the mouse button down, drag the pointer diagnolly to the opposite corner, slightly past the last icon you want selected. Let the mouse button go and all of the icons will be selected. Click and drag one of those icons to the trash and all the rest will follow.

Note: Make sure to click and drag one of the icons. If you click on an empty area of your desktop, the icons will be deselected.

Method #2: Select All

Select All is a feature that does just what it says: it selects everything. If you’re looking at the icons in a folder, all of them will be selected (even if some are off screen and need to be scrolled past). If you’re looking at a Word document or a web page, all of the text and images you see will be selected.

Most people are familiar with the Edit menu that comes with most applications (sitting at the top of your screen right next to File). Click Edit, then click Select All. If you can’t find Select All under Edit, check the other options in that toolbar. There are some programs that have many more advanced methods of selecting elements on the screen - Adobe Photoshop for example, has an entire Select toolbar menu.

There is also a second, faster method to Select All without the mouse - hold Ctrl and press A (Cmd+A if you’re using a Mac).

Method #3: Select a subset of consecutive items

Situation: you have a list of items (files, e-mail messages, etc…), of which you want to select a subset of items that are together, in order.

Solution: click on the first item that you want, then scroll to the last item, hold Shift and click on it. The first item, the last item, and everything in between will be selected.

Note: you can do this in reverse order by clicking on the last item, holding shift and then click on the first one.

Method #4: Select a subset of non-consecutive items

Situation: you have a list of items of which you want to select a subset of items that are not in order.

Solution: hold Ctrl (Cmd if you’re using a Mac) and click on each item that you want to select. Each new item will be hilited without deselecting the last item.

Note: if you click on an item without holding Ctrl, you’ll select that item but deselect all the others.