For me, it’s CTRL-SHIFT-T = reopen the last closed tab in a browser. I stumbled upon it many years ago by chance, but have used it thousands of times since then. I always work with many open tabs and often close a tab by mistake, and that’s the quickest way to fix that, much faster than wading through the browser history. What’s yours?
Command +, Command -, resizes web pages. Sometimes the type is too small to read comfortable, other times there is awkward placement due to the size.
Right, that’s also very handy. Add Command (or CTRL for Win) + 0 to resize to 100%.
Windows key + M => Minimize all windows
I communicate through email a lot with a man named Jürgen. In Outlook and other MS Office products, you can get the umlaut by hitting the virtual umlaut character, Ctrl + colon . Since the colon is a shifted function, it’s ctrl-shift-colon. Then type the “u” and it comes out with an umlaut.
Or you could just type Juergen. We Jürgens don’t mind ;).
In OS X, Option + Shift + F11 or F12 = fine volume adjustment. Apple volume has 16 increments using just the volume up/down commands, but the above quadruples the number of increments.
Interesting. I’ve always used Windows + D ==> (show the) Desktop. They seem to do the same thing. I wonder if there’s a difference.
When I’m doing numbered or bulletted lists, Shift-Alt-left/right will decrease/increase the level. Use it all the time.
In Excel to delete the row or column of the active cell:
- Shift spacebar to select the row (Ctrl spacebar to select the column)
- Menu d to delete the row
Also in Excel, F4 to repeat the last action (like delete the selected row)
You must have different settings. I use those key combinations as follows:
Ctrl-semi colon… insert today’s date
Ctrl-colon… insert current time
Another one I use in excel:
Ctrl-’ or Ctrl-" (think ditto) copy cell above into active cell
Win+M sends a minimize command to all the open windows. However if a given window is part of a program written by someone who has chose to have it ignore the minimize command, it will still be visible. Win+D will also hide those windows. (Because it’s not actually minimizing them, but moving the desktop in front of them.) Also, if you use win+D, you can hit it again to restore. You have to hit win+shift+m to restore minimized windows.
(1) For those of us who turn off our workstations…
On the Windows platform after logging out I hit <tab - tab - enter> to tell Windows to shut down. It’s a lot faster than using the mouse and I can do it while I get out of my chair.
(2) I have to throw this in because so many users still don’t get it: ctrl/command-X,C and V. If you need these explained in 2018 you need to read a copy of Windows (or Macintosh) for Dummies.
:shrug: I get it. I’m a programmer. I cut and paste a LOT. I just highlight, right click the mouse copy right click paste. Don’t have to take my hand off the mouse, and can easily find and target where/what I want to copy and paste. I don’t use any keyboard shortcuts at all.
My background is GIS. We’ve been using mice, (used to call them pucks and oddly cursors) for a long, long time.
Scrollwheel click (use the wheel as a mouse button) opens a link in a new tab. It also closes a tab without having to click on the x. I use it all the time.
Ctrl-scrollwheel zooms the screen in and out.
For years my go-to shortcut in Windows was Alt+F W F to create a new folder, which I do a lot of at work. However I recently had my work laptop upgraded from Windows 7 to 10, and discovered those bastards at Microsoft changed the shortcut on me. Now it’s Ctrl+Shift+N or something?
And this one isn’t a keyboard shortcut but it is a real timesaver. If you hold Shift while right-clicking in a folder, there is a pop up menu option to open a command window in that folder. Lots easier than opening a command window and then having to change directory from the default location, especially when you are several folders deep.
Holding down control while spinning the mouse wheel zooms your document smoothly in or out. I think I’ve shown my bosses how to do this about a dozen times but they don’t retain it.
While in a Word document, clicking down the mouse wheel as if it’s a clicker changes the cursor to a differently-shaped arrow. Now, when you slide the entire mouse forward or backward on its pad, your document will scroll smoothly and continuously up or down. You can control the speed of the scrolling by moving the mouse further forward or backward. You can even remove your hand from the mouse but the scrolling will continue on its own.
Also ctrl-z for undo and ctrl-y for redo
Ctrl-N will open up a new browser so you can alt-tab back and forth. It does the same thing if you’re in folders so you have another folder to move files back and forth to.
See post above on CTRL-N
Say to want to send multiple people e-mails that are almost, but not quite the same. Maybe the only thing you need to change between them is a name in your greeting or add a different attachment. Sure would be nice not to have to type and format or copy and paste the same message over and over again, wouldn’t it?
Type a message in Outlook. Put your cursor in the To field and then press ctrl-F. Now you have two identical messages that you can add the name or attachment to. If you need to CC the same person on every e-mail, you can copy that too if you add it before making the copies.