FormFormatter: A Software Tool for Generating Mouse-Optional User Interfaces in Visual Basic Applications

Repeated use of a pointing device can cause repetitive stress injuries due to the nature of the movement required to manipulate the device. Several solutions for this problem exist; one such solution is a keyboard-based interface where use of the mouse is optional. That is, the keyboard is used as the primary input device to control all aspects of interacting with software. In order for an application to utilize this keyboard-based interface, it must be added to the source code of the application. In this paper we will look at the feasibility of a software tool that can automate this activity. Given the volume of Visual Basic source code in existence, such a tool would be extremely useful. We will discuss the implementation, capabilities, and limitations of FormFormatter, an automatic Visual Basic source code formatter designed to automatically convert any application to one where the use of the mouse is optional.