Lists of Keyboard Shortcuts to Make Your Computer Tasks Easier

There are no shortcuts in success and life but there are keyboard shortcuts or key combinations that allow you to perform tasks that you would normally do with a mouse. Well, these key shortcuts will be deemed beneficial if you are lazy, in a hurry, or you simply prefer convenience above anything else. That is, if you can spare these shortcuts some Megabytes in your mind’s palace.

Most current operating systems and associated software applications use keyboard shortcuts. Their use is so widespread that some users consider them an essential part of their daily computer interactions. The pervasiveness of similar conventions means that a meaningful comparison of keyboard shortcuts may be done across several widely used operating systems, whether utilized for personal preference or adaptive technology.

Below are the basic key shortcuts you must probably know and memorize by now.

KEY COMBINATIONS	ACTION
CTRL+X	CUT
CTRL+V	PASTE
CTRL+Z	UNDO
CTRL+B	BOLD
CTRL+U	UNDERLINE
CTRL+I	ITALIC
F1	HELP
F2	RENAME SELECTED OBJECT
F3	FIND ALL FILES
F4	OPENS FILE LIST DROP-DOWN IN DIALOGS
F5	REFRESH CURRENT WINDOW
F6	SHIFTS FOCUS IN WINDOWS EXPLORER
F10	ACTIVATES MENU BAR OPTIONS
ALT+TAB	CYCLES BETWEEN OPEN APPLICATIONS
ALT+F4	QUIT PROGRAM, CLOSE CURRENT WINDOW
ALT+F6	SWITCH BETWEEN CURRENT PROGRAM WINDOWS
ALT+ENTER	OPENS PROPERTIES DIALOGUE
ALT+SPACE	SYSTEM MENU FOR CURRENT WINDOW
ALT+¢	OPENS DROP-DOWN LISTS IN DIALOGUE BOXES
BACKSPACE	SWITCH TO PARENT FOLDER
CTRL+ESC	OPENS START MENU
CTRL+ALT+DEL	OPENS TASK MANAGER, REBOOTS THE COMPUTER
CTRL+TAB	MOVE THROUGH PROPERTY TABS
CTRL+SHIFT+DRAG	CREATE SHORTCUT (ALSO RIGHT-CLICK, DRAG)
ESC	CANCEL LAST FUNCTION
SHIFT	PRESS/HOLD SHIFT, INSERT CD-ROM TO BYPASS AUTO-PLAY
SHIFT+DRAG	MOVE FILE
SHIFT+F10	OPENS CONTEXT MENU (SAME AS RIGHT CLICK)
SHIFT+DELETE	FULL WIPE DELETES (BYPASSES RECYCLE BIN)
ALT+UNDERLINED LETTER	OPENS THE CORRESPONDING MENU PC KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS
DOCUMENT	CURSOR CONTROLS
HOME	TO BEGINNING OF LINE OR FAR LEFT OF FIELD OR SCREEN
END	TO END OF LINE, OR FAR RIGHT OF FIELD OR SCREEN
CTRL+HOME	TO THE TOP
CTRL+END	TO THE BOTTOM
PAGE UP	MOVES DOCUMENT OR DIALOGUE BOX UP ONE PAGE
PAGE DOWN	MOVES DOCUMENT OR DIALOGUE DOWN ONE PAGE
ARROW KEYS	MOVE FOCUS IN DOCUMENTS, DIALOGUES, ETC.
CTRL+ >	NEXT WORD
CTRL+SHIFT+ >	SELECTS WORD
NUMERIC KEYPAD	EXPAND ALL UNDER CURRENT SELECTION
NUMERIC KEYPAD +	EXPANDS CURRENT SELECTION
NUMERIC KEYPAD –	COLLAPSES CURRENT SELECTION
¦	EXPAND CURRENT SELECTION OR GO TO FIRST CHILD
‰	COLLAPSE CURRENT SELECTION OR GO TO PARENT
SPECIAL	CHARACTERS
ALT 0145	‘ OPENING SINGLE QUOTE
ALT 0146	’ CLOSING SINGLE QUOTE
ALT 0147	“ OPENING DOUBLE QUOTE
ALT 0148	“ CLOSING DOUBLE QUOTE
ALT 0150	– EN DASH
ALT 0151	—EM DASH
ALT 0133	… ELLIPSIS
ALT 0149	• BULLET
ALT 0174	REGISTRATION MARK
ALT 0169	COPYRIGHT
ALT 0153	TRADEMARK
ALT 0176	° DEGREE SYMBOL
ALT 0162	¢ CENT SIGN
ALT 0188	1⁄4
ALT 0189	1⁄2
ALT 0190	3⁄4
PC KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS	CREATING UNIQUE IMAGES IN A UNIFORM WORLD!
ALT 0233	é
ALT 0201	É
ALT 0241	Ñ
ALT 0241	ñ
ALT 0247	÷
FILE MENU	OPTIONS IN CURRENT PROGRAM
ALT + E	EDIT OPTIONS IN CURRENT PROGRAM
F1	UNIVERSAL HELP (FOR ALL PROGRAMS)
CTRL + A	SELECT ALL TEXT
CTRL + X	CUT SELECTED ITEM
SHIFT + DEL	CUT SELECTED ITEM
CTRL + C	COPY SELECTED ITEM
CTRL + INS	COPY SELECTED ITEM
CTRL + V	PASTE
SHIFT + INS	PASTE
CTRL + HOME	GO TO BEGINNING OF DOCUMENT
CTRL + END	GO TO END OF DOCUMENT
SHIFT + HOME	HIGHLIGHT FROM CURRENT POSITION TO BEGINNING OF LINE
SHIFT + END	HIGHLIGHT FROM CURRENT POSITION TO END OF LINE
CTRL + F	MOVE ONE WORD TO THE LEFT AT A TIME
CTRL + G	MOVE ONE WORD TO THE RIGHT AT A TIME
MICROSOFT	WINDOWS SHORTCUT KEYS
ALT + TAB	WITCH BETWEEN OPEN APPLICATIONS
ALT + SHIFT + TAB	SWITCH BACKWARDS BETWEEN OPEN APPLICATIONS
ALT + PRINT SCREEN	CREATE SCREEN SHOT FOR CURRENT PROGRAM
CTRL + ALT + DEL	REBOOT/WINDOWS TASK MANAGER
CTRL + ESC	BRING UP START MENU
ALT + ESC	SWITCH BETWEEN APPLICATIONS ON TASKBAR
F2	RENAME SELECTED ICON
F3	START FIND FROM DESKTOP
F4	OPEN THE DRIVE SELECTION WHEN BROWSING
F5	REFRESH CONTENTS
ALT + F4	CLOSE CURRENT OPEN PROGRAM
CTRL + F4	CLOSE WINDOW IN PROGRAM
CTRL + PLUS KEY	AUTOMATICALLY ADJUST WIDTHS OF ALL COLUMNS IN WINDOWS EXPLORER
ALT + ENTER	OPEN PROPERTIES WINDOW OF SELECTED ICON OR PROGRAM
SHIFT + F10	SIMULATE RIGHT-CLICK ON SELECTED ITEM
SHIFT + DEL	DELETE PROGRAMS/FILES PERMANENTLY
WINKEY	SHORTCUTS
WINKEY + D	BRING DESKTOP TO THE TOP OF OTHER WINDOWS
WINKEY + M	MINIMIZE ALL WINDOWS
WINKEY + E	OPEN MICROSOFT EXPLORER
WINKEY + TAB	CYCLE THROUGH OPEN PROGRAMS ON TASKBAR
WINKEY + F1	DISPLAY THE WINDOWS SEARCH/FIND FEATURE
WINKEY + R	OPEN THE RUN WINDOW
WINKEY + U	OPEN UTILITY MANAGER
WINKEY + L	LOCK THE COMPUTER (WINDOWS XP & LATER)
OUTLOOK	SHORTCUT KEYS
ALT + S	SEND THE EMAIL
CTRL + C	COPY SELECTED TEXT
CTRL + X	CUT SELECTED TEXT
CTRL + P	OPEN PRINT DIALOGUE BOX
CTRL + K	COMPLETE NAME/EMAIL TYPED IN ADDRESS BAR
CTRL + B	BOLD HIGHLIGHTED SELECTION
CTRL + I	ITALICIZE HIGHLIGHTED SELECTION
CTRL + U	UNDERLINE HIGHLIGHTED SELECTION
CTRL + R	REPLY TO AN EMAIL
CTRL + F	FORWARD AN EMAIL
CTRL + N	CREATE A NEW EMAIL
CTRL + SHIFT + A	CREATE A NEW APPOINTMENT TO YOUR CALENDAR
CTRL + SHIFT + O	OPEN THE OUTBOX
CTRL + SHIFT + I	OPEN THE INBOX
CTRL + SHIFT + K	ADD A NEW TASK
CTRL + SHIFT + C	CREATE A NEW CONTACT
CTRL + SHIFT+ J	CREATE A NEW JOURNAL ENTRY
WORD	SHORTCUT KEYS
CTRL + A	SELECT ALL CONTENTS OF THE PAGE
CTRL + B	BOLD HIGHLIGHTED SELECTION
CTRL + C	COPY SELECTED TEXT
CTRL + X	CUT SELECTED TEXT
CTRL + N	OPEN NEW/BLANK DOCUMENT
CTRL + O	OPEN OPTIONS
CTRL + P	OPEN THE PRINT WINDOW
CTRL + F	OPEN FIND BOX
CTRL + I	ITALICIZE HIGHLIGHTED SELECTION
CTRL + K	INSERT LINK
CTRL + U	UNDERLINE HIGHLIGHTED SELECTION
CTRL + V	PASTE
CTRL + Y	REDO THE LAST ACTION PERFORMED
CTRL + Z	UNDO LAST ACTION