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Tech Talk Tuesday is a new feature on The Zen Introvert. April’s Theme is Computer Keyboard Shortcut Hacks to make your life easier.
Alternatives to Hunt, Point, and Click
Tired of searching around a toolbar or ribbon for cut, paste, redo, undo, print? Tired of interrupting the flow of your thoughts to hunt down the function you want to do? This week we’re examining simple keyboard shortcuts with your CTRL button that will make writing faster and easier. Curious? Click the more to make writing smoother…
JeongGuHyeok / Pixabay
Note: If you’re a Mac user, simply swap CTRL for the Command Key
Note2: The key you press with Ctrl is not case sensitive. For clarity, I’m using the capitalized version here.
The Most Universal Shortcut
Ctrl+P. Print is the most used shortcut. To bring up the print screen, hold down the Ctrl and then hit the P key and release both. This combo works everywhere! The only exception is on the desktop itself. I have yet to find an application or web browser where Ctrl+P doesn’t pull up a print menu. Very handy for turning Word and Google Docs into PDFs. I also love using it in browsers to print receipts. Some companies and web pages don’t have convenient Print buttons on their receipt pages or buttons that don’t work well.
The {Seemingly} Least Known About Shortcut
Ctrl+F. According to a Google Survey, only one computer user in ten knows about this one. I was pretty stunned when I found out about that. Ctrl+F will bring up a search box in every browser and almost every application that I’ve used. It’s another one that’s pretty universal.
The search box that Ctrl+F brings up is not standard across all platforms like the Print shortcut is. The box that comes up in MS Word is very different from the one that comes up in MS Excel. The search box comes up in very different areas of the screen depending on which browser you’re using. This shortcut not only finds words, it also will replace them. Caution if you’re doing a replace all. I’ve done some mighty strange looking things with this command.
The Three Amigos – Cut, Copy, and Paste
My first ever computer was the Macintosh, yes that Macintosh. The one was first released in 1984. The squat little box with the monochrome display. The first computer ever with a desktop and icons (take that Microsoft). It also had a cool set of keyboard shortcuts – Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V, and Ctrl+X. These three are God sends to anyone who writes a lot and moves blocks of text around.
Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V. Copy and paste text. Instead of taking a long way around by right clicking and choosing copy or going up to the ribbon and clicking the symbol with the two sheets of paper, simply whoosh over the text and highlight it with your mouse. Hit Ctrl+C to copy and then stick your cursor into the area you want to paste it into and hit Ctrl+V. I use this ALOT in spreadsheets. It’s also practical and handy if you’re copying from one document or window into another document or window.
Ctrl+X. Cut. I confess that I don’t do this one very often. If I’m cutting without pasting something back in, I tend to highlight what I’m removing and hitting the backspace. I do love using it when I’m moving text around in a post or document.
These three shortcuts are not as universal as the first two. There are some applications out there that will not allow you to use cut and paste. If you’re not sure, right-click anywhere in the application you’re working with. If the shortcuts appear in that menu, you’re golden.
And for all you out there who rolled their eyes at me for putting in this section – I really know people who don’t know how to use these three.
He Shoots, He Saves!!
Sorry…hockey reference….not sorry …avid hockey fan here…
Ctrl+S. Save. Use it often when you’re creating in Microsoft or Google Docs. If you’ve already saved your document to a location and named it, Ctrl+S will simply save what you have to the original location. If you haven’t saved it already, the application will pop up a window asking you to name it and save it. Sadly, Ctrl+S does not work in a lot of online applications or websites. I’m looking at you WordPress. When I started blogging made a bad assumption that if some of the Ctrl combos worked in WP, they all would. Hit Ctrl+S and closed out of the browser. #blogpostchangeslost
Always when using this shortcut in a browser, double check that it really does work.
Undo, Redo, We do!
These two aren’t really all that spectacular but I’ve included them for a reason. The Redo shortcut has an interesting bonus to it.
Ctrl+Z – Undo. I don’t use this one at all. The undo that’s on the ribbon if you’re working in Microsoft is actually better. It will undo your work in steps all the way back to the last save. The keyboard shortcut will only undo the last command or keystroke.
Ctrl+Y. Redo. I don’t use this one either as a redo for keystrokes. However, if the last thing you did was a command like insert or delete, hitting Ctrl+Y will keep duplicating that command. It’s a lifesaver when working in a spreadsheet.
Don’t be afraid to play a little with these two. I don’t believe that they’re relevant for most applications or websites. Some editors will allow their use and Ctrl+Z definitely works in WordPress.
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Recap
Ctrl+P – Print
Ctrl+F – Find
Ctrl+C – Copy
Ctrl+V – Paste
Ctrl+X – Cut
Ctrl+S – Save
Ctrl+Z – Undo
Ctrl+Y – Redo
See this related post on Keyboard Shortcuts for Copyright and Trademark Symbols
That’s All She Wrote!
Stayed Tuned for next week, we’ll get into the nitty-gritty of writing and editing with keyboard shortcuts.
Say ‘To Tech with IT’ and go out and tame your tech monster!
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