Keyboarding Shortcut Tips

Has your mouse ever went wonky and quit working? Has your computer ever frozen up and you don't know how to shut it down without your mouse? Do you get tired of constantly clicking your mouse and want to relieve some of the repetition? If you answered yes to any of the above, this tutorial is for you! The answer lies in computer keyboard shortcuts.

Here are some of the shortcuts I use most often.

FILE MENU

If your computer freezes up and the mouse won't work and you need to see the file menu, use the ALT-F keys. After the file drop down menu appears, use the down arrow to navigate through the menu and hit ENTER to select an action.

DELETE FILES PERMANENTLY

To delete a file permanently without it going into the recycle bin, hold down the SHIFT key before hitting DELETE. Release DELETE before releasing SHIFT.

BRING UP WINDOWS MENU

If your mouse ever freezes up for some reason and stops working and you need to shut down your computer, hold down the ALT key and hit the spacebar. After the drop down menu appears, use the down arrow to navigate through the menu and hit enter to select an action.

OPEN START MENU

Holding down the Windows logo key will perform the same action as clicking on the Start button. The Windows logo key is located just below the SHIFT key and the CTRL key. Once the Start menu opens, use the arrow keys to navigate the menu.

MY COMPUTER

Holding down the Windows logo key and the E key will bring up the My Computer folder. Hold down the Windows logo key before hitting the E key. Release the E before releasing the Windows logo key.

COPY

Let's say you're typing a document, such as an ehow tutorial, and you want to put parts of the words into an email. Instead of having to type the same text into the email, you can simply copy and paste it. To copy text, highlight the portion of text you want to copy and then hit CTRL-C on your keyboard. Note: you need to hold down the CTRL key first then keep holding it while you press the C key, and then release the C key before releasing CTRL. Your text will now be in a buffer or clipboard and you can paste it into your email (or anywhere else you might want to put it).

PASTE

To paste the text, simply hit CTRL-V on your keyboard. You'll need to hold down the CTRL key first then keep holding it while you press the V key, and then release the V key before releasing CTRL.

SELECT TEXT

To select entire lines of text at once, place your cursor at the first character of the word you want to start with then hold down the SHIFT key and hit the down arrow key. Don't release the SHIFT key until you having finished selecting all of your text. An entire line of text will be selected each time you hit the down arrow key. If you do realize you stopped short of selecting everything, just hold down the SHIFT key again and click your mouse at the end of where you really wanted to stop.

CUT

If you have a piece of text selected and want to remove it, use the CTRL-X keys. Note: you need to hold down the CTRL key first then keep holding it while you press the X key, and then release the X key before releasing CTRL. Cut text (like copied text) will go into a buffer or clipboard and you can paste it into your email (or anywhere else you might want to put it).

PRINT

If you are working on a document and want to do a quick print, simply press the CTRL-P keys. This will bring up the same printer properties dialog box as clicking File, Print. Note: you need to hold down the CTRL key first then keep holding it while you press the P key, and then release the P key before releasing CTRL.

BRING UP "RIGHT-CLICK" MENU

If your mouse ever freezes up for some reason and stops working and you need to right-click, don't fret. Your keyboard has a menu key. It's located on the bottom right side just below the Shift key, in between the Window and Ctrl key. Hitting the menu key will allow you to perform the same functions as right-clicking with your mouse. After you initially hit the menu key, a pop-up window will appear and you can use the up arrow key and the enter key to perform whatever task you need done.

UNDO

If you make a mistake and need to undo an action, use the CTRL-Z keys. Note: you need to hold down the CTRL key first then keep holding it while you press the Z key, and then release the Z key before releasing CTRL.

SAVE

If you are working on a document and want to save the changes, use the CTRL-S keys. Note: you need to hold down the CTRL key first then keep holding it while you press the S key, and then release the S key before releasing CTRL.

There are many more commands that can be performed on your computer without ever touching your mouse. Knowing how to use them can save time and frustration should you ever find yourself in a jam without an input device such as a mouse.

Feel free to read my other article here for some keyboard shortcuts that are a bit more whimsical.