What are Keyboard Shortcuts?
Keyboard shortcuts are a practical method to enter instructions that might take multiple keystrokes or mouse clicks. A keyboard shortcut can also be used to replace a mouse command, which is useful when entering the shortcut is faster than moving your mouse arrow and clicking, as is often the case with laptop computers or when using a large screen display.
Knowing even a just a few keyboard shortcuts can make many everyday tasks easier and faster to perform when using your computer. You might already know some common ones, like typing and holding the Ctrl (short for Control) and C key, which is the command for Copy, or pressing the Ctrl and X key, which is the command for Cut. I should mention here that there's a slight difference in keyboard shortcuts between computers using Windows and Apple's Mac computers.
On computers running Windows, the keyboard includes a key in the lower left corner named Ctrl, while on Mac computers the cmd (short for Command) key, just to the left of the spacebar, is usually used with similar shortcuts. There are some other differences in the keyboards between Windows and Apple computers which result in some different keys being used to accomplish the same task. As I mentioned earlier, to Cut an item, like text you've selected with your mouse cursor, the Windows shortcut is Ctrl plus C. On a Mac, the shortcut uses the Command plus C combination.
The action and results are the same on Windows and Macs, but each one uses slightly different keys to perform the same thing. At the end of the article is a link to the web pages for Windows and Mac keyboard shortcuts so you can learn more of them for your computer. However, since there are some slight differences in the keys, you might have to learn a few of the differences if you use both types of computers or if you're moving from one to another.
Keyboards and Computers
The simple keyboard, often taken for granted, is a pretty sophisticated tool for people to communicate with their computer, and whenever you press any key on your keyboard, you're giving your computer instructions about what you want it to do for you. Keyboards are the most frequently used way for people to send information to their computer, and a keyboard is a human data entry device. So what happens when we enter data by pressing keys?
A physical keyboard uses buttons in an arrangement of letters, numbers, and special keys that have a switch and electrical contact for each button. When you press down on a key, you create an electrical connection that sends the character information to your computer. Keyboards on touchscreen devices, like smartphones and tablets, work similarly to physical buttons, but they respond to where you touch the screen when you tap a key.
The software on your computer interprets the information you sent it by pressing on a key, and then does something with it. If you're using a word processing application and are typing on your keyboard, your computer's displays the characters in a document as you type. Using a combination of keys is a way you can give more elaborate instructions to your computer., you can give your computer instructions to do something more sophisticated and complex. But the sequence that you use is critical. Otherwise, your computer won't understand what you're meant.
Modifier Keys
A “modifier” key is the first key pressed to start the shortcut. If you've ever typed a capital letter you've used a modifier key, in this case, it's the Shift key. Pressing and holding the Shift key and a letter enters an upper case character instead of a lower case one. Modifier keys for shortcuts work the same way, by modifying the instruction for the next key you press. Pressing Ctrl and the C key changes what the C key does when it's pushed, just like the pressing, the Shift key altered what case the letter C appears in the document.
Modifiers are keys that aren't used to enter frequently used characters, numbers or symbols. Ones like the Ctrl key (Command on Mac, the Alt key (Option key on Mac), and the Windows Logo key are useful modifier keys.
Some shortcuts use a combination of three or more keys. In Windows, you can use the Ctrl + Shift + arrow key to select a block of text. On a Mac, pressing the Command + Shift + 3 key takes a screenshot of your desktop and pressing the Command + Option + Control + Power buttons will quit all apps and shut down your computer.
You may have noticed that the keyboard shortcut descriptions I've been including are written with the name of the key, a plus sign, and the name of a second key, third key, and so on. Written keyboard shortcuts usually this follow a format in help guides. The plus sign indicates you should press one key, then press and hold another, etc.. The Mac website uses a dash between the keys to describe the shortcut, but you should hold down on each key in the sequence for the command.
Special Keys
Some keys have a designated function. On a Windows computer, pressing the Windows key opens the Start screen, press it again to close the Start screen. The ESC (escape) key, located in the upper left of your keyboard, is used to cancel or undo your last action and is used for this function on both Mac and Windows computers. Function keys often have multiple uses.
On both Windows and Mac computers, the top row of keys are called Function keys and have a small F and number on them. They're referred to as F1, F2, F3, etc.. in instructions. Many of them have an icon on them that indicates the “function”, like a small speaker symbol on one, and a larger speaker for volume down and volume up controls.
Other buttons on Mac and Windows include a home button (to move to the top of a document), along with the page down and page up buttons which make it easy to navigate around a document with a single press.
Where do I find keyboard shortcuts
The menus at the top of your screen are a good place to look for keyboard shortcuts that can save you time and effort. When you use your mouse or trackpad to move your cursor to a menu and scroll down to select a menu option, there's probably keyboard shortcut available for that menu item. In Mac's the keyboard shortcut for any menu item is shown to the right of that item and this is a common format used in Mac's for all applications. Windows has several ways to locate the shortcut, so there are several ways to look for them.
In Windows, look for an underlined letter in the menu item, a description of the shortcut next to a menu item, or move your mouse cursor over a command icon. Sometimes keyboard shortcuts aren't apparent.
In Microsoft Word, the icons above your document are used to access commands with your mouse and a click. If you hold your mouse over an icon, the function is displayed in a small pop-up window along with the keyboard shortcut for that command.
Custom shortcuts
Both Macs and Windows offer ways you can create custom keyboard shortcuts. I was reviewing a document recently and I wanted to accept or reject edits from my editor quickly as I went through the manuscript. I was using my mouse and after taking action on each edit, I had to move the mouse to the next edit and click. I was able to create a custom shortcut that would accept an edit, then move my cursor automatically to the next edit. I created another one to reject an edit, and a third one to pass on the edit for later review. Having quick shortcuts let me move through the document faster than using individual keystrokes or mouse clicks and saved me the time when reviewing. I've included links to the support websites for Microsoft and Apple which explain how to create custom shortcuts.
To my way of thinking
Using a mouse or trackpad to move a cursor on a computer screen and clicking seems easy enough, but when it's for a repetitive task it can become annoyingly tedious. If that's the case for you, then it's time to take advantage of the keyboard shortcuts available in the applications you use most frequently.
Using just a few of the simple editing shortcuts like Copy, Cut, and Paste will save you the effort of moving your hand away from your keyboard to your mouse and back again. When touch-typing was still taught in schools, it was common knowledge that keeping your hands in position over the keyboard was important to fast and accurate typing. Sometimes we forget the basics of technology and forget that something as simple as a few finger movements can make technology work so much better for us than we thought possible.
Here are the links for creating your own on a Mac or Windows
Links to keyboard shortcuts for Windows and Mac
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