Click-click-click. The march of the mouse goes on for every computer user.

It’s actually quite amazing to watch. Some computer users just seem to know when to click, when to double-click and when to right-click. Others are constantly frustrated by never knowing which click to use.

There seems to be very little rhyme or reason for when to single-click and when to double-click that notorious left mouse button. Single-clicking instead of double-clicking is frustrating because often nothing at all will happen.

Double-clicking when you should single-click can be worse as it can lead to unexpected and unwanted results. Yet, although it can be confusing, it is actually fairly easy to understand which type of click to use for different occasions.

When in doubt — use a single-click. Most of the time, a single-click (with the left mouse button) will suffice. This is especially true when you are surfing the Internet. The program that you use to surf the Web is called a Web browser, and when you are using any Web browser a single-click is all you need.

When you click on links, toolbar icons, buttons or tabs in an Internet browser, you only have to single-click.

A single-click is also all you need when you want to activate anything on the task bar in Windows on the bottom of the screen. From the Start button to the Quick Launch buttons to the right of the Start button, to the Notification icons at the bottom right of the screen, all you need to get them started is a single-click.

So when do you double-click that left mouse button? Double-click when you want to start any program from an icon on your desktop or when you want to open files or folders.

Now, I’ll tell you a little secret — if you don’t want to have to double-click to start a program or to open a folder or file, you can set Windows to perform those actions with a single-click. To do that, you click on the Start icon in the lower left of the screen. Then choose Control Panel.

Once the Control Panel is on the screen, choose Folder Options. If you don’t see the Folder Options choice, change the view by clicking on the “View by” at the top of the screen and choosing to view by large icons or small icons rather than by category. Once you click on Folder Options, make sure you are on the General tab, then click on the circle next to the “Single click to open an item” choice. Click OK.

Once you do that you will only need a single-click to start programs from an icon and/or to open folders and/or files. That means that you will hardly ever have to worry about double-clicking.

The last procedure in the clicking parade is the right-click. All you have to remember is that right-clicking on any program icon, file or folder will bring up information about that item. Right-click and choose Properties to find all sorts of details about that item.

Right-clicking will also allow you to perform actions regarding that item. It will allow you to cut, copy, rename and delete that item as well as to perform several other tasks related to that item. So if you want to do something to a program, icon or file, you should use a right-click. That means simply using a single-click on the button on the right rather than the one on the left.

Well, that’s all there is to know about clicking. Not as hard as you thought, is it?

Contact Sandy Berger at sandy@compukiss.com.