HINT - Each program you use will have slightly different shortcuts to use. On the menu, in a program you use often, just click File, Edit View etc. On each dropdown will be the shortcuts available for that program. If you want, write them down, print the list and have handy next to your computer. Or the manual may have a page or pages showing all shortcuts.
Please note: If you are on a Logitech keyboard you will have to hit the "F Lock" key located to the left of the Esc button or just above the number keypad on the right side of the keyboard in order to use your function keys normally. Otherwise the keyboard keys load using their "enhanced" function which effectively means you will not be able to use F11 for full screen or F5 to save a game etc. If you want to boot up in Safe Mode you will have to hit the "F Lock" key and then the F8 key as quickly as possible.
APPLIES TO
Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition
Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition
Microsoft Windows 98 Standard Edition
Microsoft Windows 95
Windows System Key Combinations
F1: Help
CTRL+ESC: Open Start menu
ALT+TAB: Switch between open programs
ALT+F4: Quit program
SHIFT+DELETE: Delete item permanently
Windows Program Key Combinations
CTRL+C: Copy
CTRL+X: Cut
CTRL+V: Paste
CTRL+Z: Undo
CTRL+B: Bold
CTRL+U: Underline
CTRL+I: Italic
Mouse Click/Keyboard Modifier Combinations for Shell Objects
SHIFT+right click: Displays a shortcut menu containing alternative commands
SHIFT+double click: Runs the alternate default command (the second item on the menu)
ALT+double click: Displays properties
SHIFT+DELETE: Deletes an item immediately without placing it in the Recycle Bin
General Keyboard-Only Commands
F1: Starts Windows Help
F10: Activates menu bar options
SHIFT+F10 Opens a shortcut menu for the selected item (this is the same as right-clicking an object
CTRL+ESC: Opens the Start menu (use the ARROW keys to select an item)
CTRL+ESC or ESC: Selects the Start button (press TAB to select the taskbar, or press SHIFT+F10 for a context menu)
ALT+DOWN ARROW: Opens a drop-down list box
ALT+TAB: Switch to another running program (hold down the ALT key and then press the TAB key to view the task-switching window)
SHIFT: Press and hold down the SHIFT key while you insert a CD-ROM to bypass the automatic-run feature
ALT+SPACE: Displays the main window's System menu (from the System menu, you can restore, move, resize, minimize, maximize, or close the window)
ALT+- (ALT+hyphen): Displays the Multiple Document Interface (MDI) child window's System menu (from the MDI child window's System menu, you can restore, move, resize, minimize, maximize, or close the child window)
CTRL+TAB: Switch to the next child window of a Multiple Document Interface (MDI) program
ALT+underlined letter in menu: Opens the menu
ALT+F4: Closes the current window
CTRL+F4: Closes the current Multiple Document Interface (MDI) window
ALT+F6: Switch between multiple windows in the same program (for example, when the Notepad Find dialog box is displayed, ALT+F6 switches between the Find dialog box and the main Notepad window)
Shell Objects and General Folder/Windows Explorer Shortcuts
For a selected object:
F2: Rename object
F3: Find all files
CTRL+X: Cut
CTRL+C: Copy
CTRL+V: Paste
SHIFT+DELETE: Delete selection immediately, without moving the item to the Recycle Bin
ALT+ENTER: Open the properties for the selected object
To Copy a File
Press and hold down the CTRL key while you drag the file to another
folder.
To Create a Shortcut
Press and hold down CTRL+SHIFT while you drag a file to the desktop or
a folder.
General Folder/Shortcut Control
F4: Selects the Go To A Different Folder box and moves down the entries in the box (if the toolbar is active in Windows Explorer)
F5: Refreshes the current window.
F6: Moves among panes in Windows Explorer
CTRL+G: Opens the Go To Folder tool (in Windows 95
Windows Explorer only)
CTRL+Z: Undo the last command
CTRL+A: Select all the items in the current window
BACKSPACE: Switch to the parent folder
SHIFT+click+Close button: For folders, close the current folder plus
all parent folders
Windows Explorer Tree Control
Numeric Keypad *: Expands everything under the current selection
Numeric Keypad +: Expands the current selection
Numeric Keypad -: Collapses the current selection.
RIGHT ARROW: Expands the current selection if it is not
expanded, otherwise goes to the first child
LEFT ARROW: Collapses the current selection if it is expanded,
otherwise goes to the parent
Properties Control
CTRL+TAB/CTRL+SHIFT+TAB: Move through the property tabs
Accessibility Shortcuts
Press SHIFT five times: Toggles StickyKeys on and off
Press down and hold the right SHIFT key for eight seconds:
Toggles FilterKeys on and off
Press down and hold the NUM LOCK key for five seconds: Toggles ToggleKeys on and off
Left ALT+left SHIFT+NUM LOCK: Toggles MouseKeys on and off
Left ALT+left SHIFT+PRINT SCREEN: Toggles high contrast on and off
Microsoft Natural Keyboard Keys
Windows Logo: Start menu
Windows Logo+R: Run dialog box
Windows Logo+M: Minimize all
SHIFT+Windows Logo+M: Undo minimize all
Windows Logo+F1: Help
Windows Logo+E: Windows Explorer
Windows Logo+F: Find files or folders
Windows Logo+D: Minimizes all open windows and displays the desktop
CTRL+Windows Logo+F: Find computer
CTRL+Windows Logo+TAB: Moves focus from Start, to the Quick Launch toolbar, to the system tray (use RIGHT ARROW or LEFT ARROW to move focus to items on the Quick Launch toolbar and the system tray)
Windows Logo+TAB: Cycle through taskbar buttons
Windows Logo+Break: System Properties dialog box
Application key: Displays a shortcut menu for the selected item
Microsoft Natural Keyboard with IntelliType Software Installed
Windows Logo+L: Log off Windows
Windows Logo+P: Starts Print Manager
Windows Logo+C: Opens Control Panel
Windows Logo+V: Starts Clipboard
Windows Logo+K: Opens Keyboard Properties dialog box
Windows Logo+I: Opens Mouse Properties dialog box
Windows Logo+A: Starts Accessibility Options (if installed)
Windows Logo+SPACEBAR: Displays the list of Microsoft IntelliType shortcut keys
Windows Logo+S: Toggles CAPS LOCK on and off
Dialog Box Keyboard Commands
TAB: Move to the next control in the dialog box
SHIFT+TAB: Move to the previous control in the dialog box
SPACEBAR: If the current control is a button, this clicks the button. If the current control is a check box, this toggles the check box. If the current control is an option, this selects the option.
ENTER: Equivalent to clicking the selected button (the button with the outline)
ESC: Equivalent to clicking the Cancel button
ALT+underlined letter in dialog box item:
Move to the corresponding item
The mouse is a wonderful device for quickly accessing menus and performing a variety of other actions, but many people spend the majority of their computing time with their fingers on the keyboard. In this situation, or when your mouse fails or you are using a notebook computer and don't necessarily want to use a clunky touchpad or pointing stick, keyboard shortcuts are a real boon. Here's a rundown of some timesaving shortcuts to use when working with Windows, Internet Explorer, and Microsoft Office.
Although the following commands are described in the context of certain OSes (operating systems) or programs, many of them work with a variety of applications. Experiment or check the documentation that came with your favorite applications to find out which of these commands are applicable.
General Windows Shortcuts
The following set of commands should work regardless of the version of Windows you use and regardless of what other programs are running.
ALT-TAB. Sure, you can switch among open programs by clicking their buttons on the Taskbar, but if you want to take a keyboard-only approach, hold down the ALT key and press TAB. Pressing this combo once switches to the next open application and brings it to the foreground, but it is possible to cycle through all running programs by continuing to hold ALT and tapping TAB until the program you want to select is highlighted. Release both buttons when this happens and the highlighted program pops into the foreground.
ALT-ENTER. Highlight a file or folder and press ALT-ENTER to view its Properties dialog box.
ALT-F4. Use this combo to quickly close a program or window. It is very handy when you are browsing the Internet and a bunch of pop-up windows cascade across the screen (especially if those windows expand to full-screen mode or don't have controls to close them). Just bring the window you want to close to the foreground (ALT-TAB provides an easy way to do this) and press ALT-F4, and it is zapped into oblivion.
CTRL-C, CTRL-X, and CTRL-V. These are undoubtedly the most important editing commands you can commit to memory. CTRL-C copies highlighted text to the clipboard or stores highlighted files in system memory. Place the pointer where you want to paste the text or open the folder where you want to place the copied file and press CTRL-V to paste or copy. CTRL-X is the Cut command, which is used less often because it erases highlighted text before saving it to the Clipboard. The cut text can still be pasted, but it's usually better to play it safe and use Copy instead.
CTRL-Z. If you ever make a mistake while moving files, renaming files or folders, pasting text, or performing a variety of other Windows tasks, CTRL-Z is your best friend. It is an Undo command and can undo the last action you took, but it sometimes has a serious limitation. In some applications (excluding Microsoft Office applications), it offers only a single level of undo, meaning you can rewind only the very last action you took and not multiple actions. If you use the CTRL-Z command and decide it was a mistake, immediately press CTRL-Z again to undo the undo.
F1. Have a question about Windows or the program that is currently in the foreground? Press F1 to quickly access the electronic help files.
F2. Want to rename a folder or file? Highlight its icon and press F2 to activate the name for editing.
F3. Pressing F3 immediately opens the Find Files Or Folders utility for the OS you are using.
F10 (or ALT). Press either F10 or the ALT key by itself to activate the menu bar in the active window. You then can use the keyboard (press the underlined menu letters) and arrow keys to navigate the menus and press ENTER to execute highlighted entries.
Windows Key Commands
If you have a keyboard with a Windows key (indicated by a "flying" Windows icon), it opens up a slew of extra keyboard commands. Press the Windows key alone to open the Start menu, but to tap into its true power, use it with other keys.
Windows-M and Windows-D. If you want to clear your Desktop, pressing Windows-M or Windows-D instantly minimizes all open windows. To restore all of the windows, press SHIFT-Windows-M.
Windows-E. Pressing Windows-E opens up the Windows Explorer, saving a few mouse clicks.
CTRL-Windows-F. If you use a network, press CTRL-Windows-F to open the Find Computers dialog box so you can look for other computers.
Windows-BREAK. Normally you must right-click My Computer and click Properties or wade through the Control Panel entries to open the System Properties dialog box. Save yourself some trouble and press Windows-BREAK instead.
Dialog Box Commands
Navigating dialog boxes to select options and press buttons seems impossible sans a mouse, but the keyboard will do in a pinch. This is handy when installing Windows if the mouse hasn't yet been detected.
TAB and SHIFT-TAB. To cycle the focus among the various radio buttons, standard buttons, and other interactive elements of a dialog box, press TAB to move to the next item or SHIFT-TAB to move to the previous item. The item currently selected is highlighted using a dashed outline.
Spacebar and ENTER. Once a selection in a dialog box is highlighted using the previous commands, press the Spacebar to place a check in a checkbox or select a radio button.
ALT-underlined letter. If a dialog box (or menu or anything else, for that matter) contains entries that have underlined letters, hold down the ALT key plus the key that corresponds to the underlined letter to select that entry. For example, in the Print dialog box, pressing ALT-W opens the Print What drop-down menu.
Internet Explorer
Many of the commands described in this article work with IE, but the Web browser also comes with a few shortcuts of its own.
ESC. Pressing ESC is equivalent to clicking the Stop icon. It immediately causes the browser to stop downloading the requested page and comes in handy when pages load slowly, stalling the browser.
F5. Pressing F5 instantly refreshes the page currently loaded in the browser window and is useful for tracking auctions or updating news pages.
F11. Press F11 to expand the selected browser window into full-screen mode, and press it again to revert to the original size.
CTRL-F. If you want to look for a particular word or phrase on a Web page, press CTRL-F to open the Find dialog box.
Microsoft Office
The following commands work with most of the applications included in Microsoft Office, but try them in your other programs, as well.
CTRL-A. Press CTRL-A to highlight all of the text in a document at once. Press BACKSPACE or DELETE to erase the selected text or use the other commands in this article to change the formatting of the text or perform copy and paste operations.
CTRL-B, CTRL-U, and CTRL-I. To make highlighted text bold or set up a line to produce bold text as you type, press CTRL-B. Press CTRL-U for underlined text and CTRL-I for italicized text. Press these commands a second time to revert back to normal formatting.
CTRL-F and CTRL-H. To find words, phrases, or numbers in an open document, press CTRL-F to open the Find dialog box. You also can press CTRL-H to open the Find And Replace dialog box.
CTRL-O. To quickly open a file, press CTRL-O to call up the Open dialog box.
CTRL-S. Press CTRL-S to save an open file.
CTRL-P. Pressing CTRL-P opens the Print dialog box to prepare a document for printing.
by Tracy Baker
Your Shortcut Short List
Cut out this table, tape it to your monitor, and watch your productivity soar.
General Windows Shortcuts 