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Computer shortcuts / Tips (for PC, MS Office and internet)

The aim behind giving these shortcuts is to minimize the usage of mouse and increase your efficiency, as usage of mouse and keyboard both increases time wastage as you shuffle from keyboard to mouse again and again while many of those tasks can be done by keyboard only. I personally use almost all of these. It would need some practice to get used to using all of these in daily computer life. You can start with few and then gradually increase the shortcuts used.

* Some of these would not work in Open Office Suite.
For computer in general:

1. Open a new file/ folder / doc: Right click on desktop --> ‘New’ --> <select>

2. Go to recently open documents : Press Windows symbol (Win) --> 'D'

3. To change name of a file: F2

4. Show desktop (For Win 2003, and previous): Win + D

5. Restore same sequence of windows : Win + D again


6. Switch between windows : Alt Tab (also shows desktop for Win 2007 onwards)

7. See properties/ info: Alt Enter

8. Shut Down computer: Win --> 'U' --> ‘U'

9. Find anything in a file or web-page:  Ctrl F (wont work on home screen of desktop)

10. Minimize/ maximize/ restore /close a folder /window: Alt + Space bar + <select>


11. Increase/ decrease window/ document viewable text size : Ctrl + Mouse Scroll

12. Go to top of a webpage/ document/ folder : Ctrl + Home

13. Go to end of a webpage/ document / folder : Ctrl +End

14. Close webpage/ document/ folder: Alt F4

 

Internet (tested on Firefox, IE and Chrome)

15. Full Screen on webpage : F11

16. Refresh webpage: F5

17. Refresh webpage to allow pop-ups / cookies: Ctrl + F5

18. Stop a loading/ refreshing webpage: Escape

19. Go to URL Bar: F6 or Ctrl L

20. Open home page (e.g., google.com) : Alt + Home


21. Go to google search bar beside URL bar: F6 --> Tab or Ctrl E

22. Go back to previous web-page : Backspace or Alt + Left arrow

23. Go to next webpage: Shift + Backspace or Alt + Right arrow

24. Open new tab: Ctrl T

25. Close tab: Ctrl W


26. Go to next tab: Ctrl + Tab

27. Go to first 8 tabs: Ctrl 1 to 8 respectively

28. Go to the tab before current one: Ctrl + Shift + Tab

29. Go to last tab: Ctrl 9


30. Open link in new window: Shift + Click

31. Open link in new tab: Ctrl + Click

32. Open downloaded items' list: Ctrl J

 

MS Office:
(For majorly Word and Excel; Some of these wont be required or will not work exactly in Office 2007)

33. Open New / existing file: Ctrl N/ Ctrl O

34. Go to beginning (top left) of a page: Ctrl + Home

35. Go to beginning of a sentence/ row: Home

36. Go to end of a sentence/ row: End

37. Go to end (bottom right) of a page: Ctrl + End


38. Changing name of open file / Save As : F12

39. Scroll : Page Down/ Page Up

40. Left / Right Align/ Center Align : Ctrl L/ R/ E

41. Go to right side cell / give indentation: Tab

42. Go to left side cell / reduce indentation: Shift + Tab


43. Select All: Ctrl A

44. Select till end: Shift + Ctrl + End

45. Select till beginning: Shift + Ctrl + Home

46. Go to next paragraph or terminal text cell: Ctrl Up / Down/ Right/ Left

47. Insert a hyperlink after selecting: Ctrl K

48. Replicating Format : Select the format, click on ‘Format Painter’ icon beside ‘paste’ icon on top, and then select the text to be formatted in same manner.

 

Only MS Word

49. Open text font settings: Ctrl D

50. Right Justify a paragraph: Ctrl J

51. To repeat a previous action (like ‘Bold’) many times: Ctrl Y (It stops after Undo or after a different action has been done)


52. Start from next line : Shift + Enter

53. Start from next page: Ctrl + Enter

54. Selecting a line: Move cursor to left of a line à click when it becomes an arrow

55. Selecting a sentence: Ctrl +Click


Only MS Excel

56. Copy content of upside/ leftside cell : Ctrl D / Ctrl R

57. Go to downside cell: Down Arrow or Enter

58. Go to upside cell: Up arrow or Shift + Enter

59. Edit text in a cell: F2

60. Select entire Row: Shift + Space

61. Select entire Column : Ctrl + Space

 

Other shortcuts/ add-ons you can use to save time:

- Make your mouse - 1 click, wherein you select just by moving cursor over a file and 1 click on it opens or executes it : Go to Tools menu in any folder, and there in Folder Options, you can see this option. Saves hassles of double click.

- Gmail Keyboard Shortcuts: http://bit.ly/sZJs

- Firefox add-ons/ plugins – e.g., you can have a twitter/ facebook button to directly post a link there

- Chrome add-ons / plugins


PS- This is not an exhaustive list of shortcuts but those which are commonly used and can be mostly done in lesser time with keyboard.

 Will soon give other best practices to increase efficiency of computer. Take Care. Use time efficiently. And love your computer (as well). :-)

 
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