 November 21st 2007
 Technology & Tools
 3 comments
The humble keyboard shortcut is one of the most productive tools in your arsenal if you are a regular computer user. When it comes to flicking through menus, the mouse is almost always slower, so incorporate even just a few shortcuts into your daily work and you will never look back. If you already use some of even all of the following shortcuts you will no doubt be able to understand the frustration of watching those who use the old fashioned mouse method of working. Can you relate? If you know a slowpoke who could benefit from this article be sure to point it out to them so they too can streamline their computer work!
- Save (ctrl + s)
- Undo (ctrl + z)
- Redo (ctrl + y)
- Cut (ctrl + x)
- Copy (ctrl + c)
- Paste (ctrl + v)
- Select all (ctrl + a)
- Task switch (alt + tab)
- Open new tab (ctrl + t)
- Go to next tab (ctrl + tab)
- Open new window (ctrl + n)
- Go to bottom of page (end)
- Go to top of page (home)
Above are some of the most simple but also the most influential keyboard shortcuts that almost everybody who uses a computer on a regular basis can benefit from. The best approach would be to experiment with them all briefly to get an understanding of what they do. Then, to fully implement these shortcuts into your routine it’s important to work on them until they become habits. Print this article out and keep it next to your computer, then take one keyboard shortcut at a time until you are used to using it. For instance, if you want to italicize some text, hold back that urge to use the mouse and try doing it on the keyboard instead. Early on you may occasionally forget, but that’s just part of the process. Eventually it becomes second nature. If you want to read more about it, check out my post about habit building.
The save shortcut can perhaps be the biggest lifesaver in your life. Ever lost work because you forgot to save it? If you are on a roll with a report, taking your attention off the keyboard to use the mouse can ruin your momentum. However, with the save shortcut you can basically carry on typing without taking your attention off of the keyboard (if you want to backup your work check out Mozy). What is your favorite shortcut?
A special mention should go to your web browsing because that is such an integral part of using a computer nowadays. If you want to graduate from the slow paced approach of viewing one website at a time, it’s important you learn to open new tabs and windows on the fly as you often want to have more than one page open at a time and you can save minutes by viewing one site in one tab, while other sites load in another tab.
Reader discussion
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Dan Anton
November 23rd 2007
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I knew about most of these but never utilized the last two – going to top of page and bottom of the page. It’s going to be much faster than using the mouse, like you state. Thank you.
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Alexander Hirsch
November 23rd 2007
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Great advice. I use nearly all of these, although in Firefox, CTRL + W seems to close the current tab. CTRL + N opens a new window. CTRL + R is also helpful. It reloads the page just like the F5 key. KeyXL is a site that claims to offer the largest database of keyboard shortcuts in the world for all kinds of software. I found it very helpful (and I’m not affiliated to them). Thanks again.
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Thanks for the feedback guys, glad you found it useful. Also, thanks for noting the mistake Alexander, I’ve fixed the article to reflect this.
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