Center for Teaching, Research and Learning
Research Support Group
American University, Washington, D.C.
Hurst Hall 203
rsg@american.edu
(202) 885-3862
Tips for Using the VCL on Mac Machines
The Virtual Computing Lab (VCL) allows users to remotely access software applications
that they do not have installed on their personal computers. The benefit is the ability to run these
programs “anywhere, anytime”. Mac users may find certain aspects of the VCL use unintuitive,
because the VCL environment will function as if it is a PC, regardless of the type of computer
accessing it. In particular, Mac users will want to know:

How to “Right Click”

What keys might work slightly differently

How to use keyboard shortcuts
1. The Right/Secondary Click
One of the most frequently used options, which you might not think about much, is the right
click. For those on a PC, the mouse usually has either a clear outline of where one can right click or
two buttons at the bottom of the device. Instead, when you are using the VCL on your Mac, you
will double click however you normally do that. So, if you “right-click” using two fingers on the
mouse of the Mac, the same gesture will be used on the VCL.
If you have a single-button mouse, you can click while holding the control button. If you do
not know what gesture you use or you want to change that gesture, you can go to System
Preferences -> Trackpad -> Point & Click tab. The second gesture in the list is titled “Secondary
Click.” You will have three different options when it comes to right-clicking: 1) Click or tap with
two fingers; 2) Click in bottom right corner; and 3) Click in bottom left corner.
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2. Getting to Know Your Keyboard
Below is a quick table of all the main command buttons on a Mac. In general, a PC will use
the “Control” button in situations where Mac users are accustomed to using the “Command”
button. Also, while PC keyboards typically have a top row of “Function” buttons (“F1”, F2”, etc.),
Mac users will get the same effect by hold the “fn” button while pressing their regular 1 to 0
numbers at the top of their keyboards.
Modifier key
Symbol
Modifier key
Command
Control
Shift
Return
Option
Delete
Symbol
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3. The Editing Keyboard Shortcuts
It can be frustrating when keyboard shortcuts do not work the same on the VCL, but it is a
very easy fix. Simply, use the “Control” button instead of the “Command” button. For example:
Command Name
On Mac
On VCL
Cut to clipboard
Command (
)X
Control (
)X
Copy to clipboard
Command (
)C
Control (
)C
Paste from clipboard
Command (
)V
Control (
)V
Undo
Command (
)Z
Control (
)Z
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