Tip: Keyboard Shortcuts – Manage Your Windows with Alt
There’s no doubt that knowing a few keyboard “shortcuts” can enhance your computing and save you time.. and make you appear the Über Geek to friends and coworkers. My favorite is Ctrl+Z, aka “Undo”. It has saved my bacon more than once!
Today’s tip focuses not on the Ctrl key, but the Alt key, and managing your open windows. Start today’s lesson by hitting your Alt+spacebar. Keep the Alt key depressed..
If you had a window open – your web browser, or Word, say – a little window will have opened. Here are some more shortcuts.
Alt+X will “maximize” your active window to “full screen” mode, and Alt+R will get it back to the size-adjustable “windowed” mode.
Alt+C will close the window. As will Alt+F4 .. if you can remember that.. (I remember “c”-for-“close”.)
Alt+Tab will switch between your open windows (jumping from Word to your browser, for example), which is a fast way to do your Copy (Ctrl+C) from here and Paste (Ctrl+V) to there operations. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist a few Ctrl’s…)
Using keyboard shortcuts takes a little getting used to, but once you do, you will (probably) never go back to reaching for the mouse. Try it and see how much quicker it is for yourself.
And remember folks: Ctrl+Z un-goofs many goofs.
** Software License Giveaway Drawing **
The folks at Codyssey have generously donated 10 licenses for CodySafe Σ (Sigma) to me, to award to my readers. I sincerely thank them for that. So I am having a random drawing¹ contest from folks who “enter”. The drawing will close midnight Thursday, July 22nd, and the winners announced Friday. So act now.
CodySafe is essentially a portable applications launcher and portable drive management tool for use with USB drives, and making them into a “computer on a stick”. With it, you launch your “portable” programs and files from a Vista-like menu. For details (and to enter), click here.
Today’s reco’d reading: The Helplessness of a Father in the Internet Age
Copyright 2007-2010 © “Tech Paul” (Paul Eckstrom). All Rights Reserved. 
post to jaanix.
>> Folks, don’t miss an article! To get Tech – for Everyone articles delivered to your e-mail Inbox, click here, or to subscribe in your RSS reader, click here. <<
| Share this post : |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
9 Comments »
Post your Comment/Question
• About Tech Paul
I am a Retired computer & network technician. I used to think the machines were pretty cool. Now I don’t.
They’re anything but.
I regularly posted how-to’s and tricks & tips and general computing advice here starting in 2007. (Use the Search tool to find answers. But be aware, many are rather dated.) Sometimes I answered (your) specific questions in an article if I believed the answer was generally helpful to “everyone”. All the writing you see was my own, typos and all. There always is/was an implied “IMHO” in what you see here.
Note: You are responsible for using this blog and its content. I am in no way liable for any losses caused by user error, viruses and/or other malware, hardware or software failure, or any other conceivable reason.
-
Say "thank you!" Buy Tech Paul a cup of coffee (and keep T4E ad free).
-
-
McAfee® Cybersafety Resource Portal, an online help center designed to assist victims of computer crime and provide information on how to avoid becoming a victim.
-
Subscribe to Tech--for Everyone by EmailRecent Comments
Rahul Kumar on The Internet techpaul on Just one reason I walked … Ranjan on Just one reason I walked … techpaul on How Do I Fix Messy Printi… Ruth Miller on How Do I Fix Messy Printi… techpaul on How To Keep Your Images In A S… Helen Marsh on How To Keep Your Images In A S… -
-
-
-
Also:
-
-
Paul,
Yep. Knowing some keyboard shortcuts can really speed up your work. In fact, these days, i’m tending to use keyboard more than mouse for scrolling, closing windows, switching, minimizing etc etc…
And like you, Ctrl+Z (undo) is my favourite too.. It can be a life saver at times…
LikeLike
Ranjan,
To me, the copy command simply is Ctrl+C. I don’t know when that came to be “hardwired into my brain”…
There are people who say that to truly achieve Geek Super-stardom, one must be able to compute solely with the keyboard (pointing devices are for wimps), but I’m not ready to give up my mouse just yet..
LikeLike
Some don’t work in Win7
LikeLike
“old Salt”,
Ummm… which ones?
LikeLike
Hi Paul
“to truly achieve Geek Super-stardom, one must be able to compute solely with the keyboard” I agree and i m trying to achieve it.. :P
Alt+X, Alt+R, Alt+C — These aren’t working, at least for me.
LikeLike
Ranjan,
I think the step you’re missing is keeping the Alt key depressed after the Alt+spacebar.
It’s kinda Alt+spacebar+Alt+X.. Or, Alt+spacebar+X
I do this on XP/Vista/Win 7, so..
LikeLike
Oh, its working now. I was directly pressing Alt+X and so on. . . :P
Thanks for clarifying, Paul.
LikeLike
Well.. I will alter the article in an effort to make it clearer, so thanks Ranjan!
LikeLike
Thanks Paul.
well this is a news to me:
Alt+C will close the window
Thanks,
Grr
LikeLike