We all spend a lot of time worrying about the speed of our computer systems – too slow, not fast enough, how can I make it faster? You might figure that if you could just get your computer to run faster, then you could get your work done faster. And while that is certainly true, it is not all up to the computer itself to be a speed demon on its own. There are some tricks you can learn that make navigating through Windows much faster, so you can be a speed
A lot of people type with the hunt and peck method. That is fine, though for true quick computer use, you should have some decent typing skills under your belt. The following tips and tricks will still work if you have not taken Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing since the 3rd grade or so, but the faster your typing skills, the faster these will make you, in general, when you are navigating your way through the Windows jungle.
The way to make your work go faster is to learn your way around your keyboard. Keyboard shortcuts make life a lot easier once you get the hang of them. These are also sometimes called hotkeys. They are basically a set of specific keystrokes you make to trigger a specific action or operation in your operating system or programs and applications. Most keyboard short cuts and hotkeys involve the Control button (there are two on your keyboard, down on either side of the space bar, and they are labeled Ctrl) and the Alternative button (also two of these on your keyboard, located on either side of the space bar, and they are labeled Alt). The shift button is also used frequently. Windows XP and Vista have quite a few useful keyboard short cuts that you will find make your life a lot easier. Some you may already be familiar with, but there are plenty of really useful ones that you may not have heard of or used before, too.
Here's a quick guide:
Ctrl + Alt + Del – Opens the Task Manager
Ctrl + C – Copies selected text or object
Ctrl + V – Pastes copied selection
Ctrl + A – Selects everything in the active window
Alt – Activates the menu bar in the active window
Alt + Tab – Lets you toggle through open programs and windows
Ctrl + N – Opens a new document in the current program
Ctrl + S – Opens the save window
Alt + F4 – Closes the active window
When browsing the web:
Ctrl + B – activates the bookmarks menu
Ctrl + Enter – adds www. & .com to a url in the address bar
F5 – Reloads a page from cache
Ctrl + F5 – Reloads a page while bypassing the cache
These are just a few handy shortcuts that can make your life a lot easier, and make your work go a lot faster when you are using Windows
