Keyboard Shortcuts
or
Saving Time By Not Using a Mouse
by Dave Clingman
 

Published in Guadalajara Reporter,
September 25, 2009, page 24

Did you know you can close a computer program without using your mouse?  Many combination keystrokes on the computer keyboard allow you to do things without resorting to your mouse.  These shortcut keys are activated by holding down another key.  Mac users have the Control key, the Option key (which may say "Alt"), and the Command key (a four sided curlicue shape, and maybe an apple).  PC users have CTRL, Alt, and the Windows key (a Windows logo).  Each one of these keys, when held down, gives you a new range of special functions at your disposal.  Below are a few very handy examples for Mac and PC computers.

For Macs:  To close a program window, hold down the Command key and tap the letter "w".  To reverse the last word processing action you made, like typing the wrong word or deleting the wrong paragraph, hold down the Command key and tap the letter "z". 

For PC users:  To close the current program window, hold down the Alt key and tap the F4 key.  To avoid retyping text, highlight the text, then hold down CTRL and tap "c".  Move the cursor to where you want the text, hold down CTRL and tap "v".  This will copy the text to the new location.

Many menu words at the top of your computer screen (File, Edit, View, etc.) have their corresponding keyboard commands listed in parentheses.  Find out the ones you use often, and practice using the keyboard rather than the mouse to select them.  Once you're confident with using them, they'll save you time.

For a comprehensive list of combination shortcut keys, refer to the following web pages:
for Mac:  http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1343
for Windows:  http://support.microsoft.com/kb/126449

Another useful key on most notebook and many desktop computers is the Function (Fn) key.  It is usually colored blue or green and is often located near the left Shift key.  This key is used in combination with other keys to give you extra keyboard functions, such as changing the sound volume, adjusting the brightness and contrast of your computer screen, and more.  If you have the Fn key, you will notice that many other keys have symbols in the same color.  This means that when you hold down the Fn key and tap those other keys, the symbols in blue/green are performed.

Using shortcut keys on your keyboard can relieve you from moving back and forth from your keyboard to your mouse, thus saving you time.

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