Select, copy and paste text from windows

[juandiego]

Hello everyone.

Sorry if this has been already discussed but the search engine didn't show any match on the matter.

At least I can't select text in a window to be copied and pasted elsewhere. If my memory serves me right, it was possible with XP.

I know there are windows on which a right click option allows you to copy all details it shows but many times you just need part of them. However, there are many other windows in which it's not possible whatsoever.

Looks like those windows are images rather than text; though they have links to other options (windows) and they obviously work, neither you can copy them.

Am I missing something here perhaps?

Thanks in advance.

 

[reghakr]

Copy and paste should copy files and/or folders.

Yes you can paste text into a text editor. Just select all text and choose copy, then paste it into the document

I hope I;m on the right track here.

 

[juandiego]

Hi, reghakr.
I mean text from (at least most) a Windows 7's window. I know it works for files and folders but it doesn't for the text any window shows. If you pass the cursor while clicking on and throughout the text you'd like to select to be copied, nothing is highlighted hence selected. Nor even links to other windows can be selected as normal text by the same procedure. Even those options (copy, cut and paste) are in gray (deactivated) in the edition scrolling menu.

For instance: go to Control Panel/System and try to select text or any other way to copy the text the window shows. I can't.

 

[reghakr]

Did you click your mouse in the box where you wanted to paste?

 

[juandiego]

Of course I did, reghakr.
And as I said before, not even the edit options in the scrolling menu are available except the first one (undo last).
Do you mean you are able to select and copy the text you want to in, say, the window I mentioned? If so, could my issue be because of something related to configuration?

 

[reghakr]

I don't see how it could be

Go to Start > Run,. and type psw. This will track the steps you take.

Zip up file file and attach it here.

 

[juandiego]

Did you click your mouse in the box where you wanted to paste?

Ok, sorry, I thought you meant to copy, not to paste.
Anyway, the problem is that I cannot even select the text, therefore it can't be pasted elsewhere.

Thanks for your interest, reghakr. I'm now wondering whether this is only in my case or it's the same in everyone's.

 

[reghakr]

Did you click your mouse in the box where you wanted to paste?

Ok, sorry, I thought you meant to copy, not to paste.
Anyway, the problem is that I cannot even select the text, therefore it can't be pasted elsewhere.

Thanks for your interest, reghakr. I'm now wondering whether this is only in my case or it's the same in everyone's.

It's OK,. copy will work also.

 

[juandiego]

I don't see how it could be

Go to Start > Run,. and type psw. This will track the steps you take.

Zip up file file and attach it here.

Thanks, reghakr.
I'll do that. Wait a minute, please.

 

[juandiego]

I don't see how it could be

Go to Start > Run,. and type psw. This will track the steps you take.

Zip up file file and attach it here.

Thanks, reghakr.
I'll do that. Wait a minute, please.

Odd thing, no action. Windows states there's no file named that way (psw). Windows searching tool directs the search of psw to a only file named setup.inx.

 

[reghakr]

Go to Start > Run,. and type psr

Sorry,. my fault

 

[juandiego]

I didn't know that psr tool, reghakr. I hope to have done it correctly.
Here it is:View attachment tryingtocopytextinsystemwindow.zip.
Thanks.

 

[juandiego]

Here's a new one starting from the start menu.
View attachment tryingtocopytextinsystemwindow2.zip
Once the system window is shown, I tried to use the edit menu, the text selection mode and the right click options but nothing happened.

 

[juandiego]

Ok, I've unzipped them and now I see the reports psr issued. They are amazing, by the way, but I'm afraid they are in Spanish, reghakr. Let me know what you need to be translated.

 

[reghakr]

When you hit the Stop Recording it will be there.

 

[juandiego]

When you hit the Stop Recording it will be there.

I see. I expected to see a hardly decipherable (for me) list of commands and values.

Text translation in tryingtocopyinsystemwindow.zip

User's action #1.
User's click on Control panel/All elements of control panel/System
User's action #2.
Start of user mouse dragging on Basic Information about the System (text) in Control panel/All elements of control panel/System
User's action #3.
End of user mouse dragging on Control panel/All elements of control panel/System [Notice that no text was selected]
User's action #4.
User's click with the secondary button of the mouse (right click) on Control panel/All elements of control panel/System [Notice that no contextual menu appears]
User's action #5.
User's click with the primary button on "Edit (menu element)" in Control panel/All elements of control panel/System
User's action #6.
User's click with the primary button on "Paste Ctrl+V (menu element)" in Control panel/All elements of control panel/System [Notice that options are not available]

...and the same process again trying to select some text.

Hey, reghakr, sorry. I know this is becoming a bit annoying but at least I would like just to know whether or not you and others can select and copy part of text from a window by dragging the cursor on it; as you see, I can't.

 

[reghakr]

In Control panel you can create a shortcut on any item..

Notice that some entries have different right-click options

Or you can use the the left or right mouse button to frag a shortcut. There are two options Move Here or Copy here.

 

[juandiego]

Well, I know all that, reghakr, but...
Does it mean neither you can select some window's text by dragging the cursor on it?
Thanks for your time.

 

[reghakr]

You can highlight and select text. yes. say it's a text document.

You can select/highlight and drag it to a different spot.

Am I on the right track here?

 

[juandiego]

I can also do it in program windows as Opera, MSOffice, Autocad, OpenOffice etc but I meant in Windows7's windows, as the one I mentioned before. I'm referring to the plain text those information windows show. At least in my case, when I drag the cursor on it, the text is not highlighted therefore there's no how to select it to be copied. In addition, edit menu options are grayed out, there's no right-click context menu and Ctrl+C neither works.

For instance: I was interested to copy only the CPU specifications that system window shows and found out that there's no way to accomplish this simple task. You have to type elsewhere what is shown.