Living Without A Mouse

By: Lakshmi Ganesan

Rushing to submit that project or assignment, or getting a little weary-eyed because you’ve been staring too long at the computer? Fear not, for we’re here to save you by introducing selected keyboard shortcuts. Specifically for Windows 7 users (which we know most of you are), these shortcuts will have you saving time, and have you displaying your computer prowess.

For the ones who wish to impress: Windows + Tab or Alt + Tab

A mighty cool keyboard trick that allows you to switch between multiple tabs/windows. There’s no need to keep using your mouse to click on the taskbar application. For example, if you have a web browser, a word document and a PowerPoint presentation open, just use this shortcut to switch between the three. Even if you don’t use it for practical purposes, it’s a fun shortcut to show off.

For the ones with nosy friends: Windows + L

The minute you leave your computer on and walk away to grab some food or visit the loo, you know your facebook account is going to be hacked. No need to ask who it was because you know the culprits. So if you want some good protection against your lovely buddies, just use this shortcut which helps lock your laptop. It’s a great shortcut to use – unless you’ve already told your friends your password, or if you don’t have one.

For the disorganised & research-oriented: F3

This shortcut enables you to search for a specific word/phrase in a document/webpage, or search for a file or folder. If you’re doing research on a particular tab in your browser, you could also use this to search for a name or a keyword/phrase within it, even if it is a spreadsheet. Alternatively, when you press F3 on your desktop, you can search for files or documents that you’ve saved to any place in your computer. Locating previous projects would be so much easier with this!

For the mischievous: Ctrl + W

If your teacher regularly walks behind the class to inspect on what you’re doing on your laptop, this shortcut is probably something you’d want to master. This little shortcut helps you close a tab that’s open – so if you’re watching something that you’re not supposed to during class, this my friend, is your new partner-in-crime.

For presentations: Ctrl + B, Ctrl + I, Ctrl +U

We all know that feeling – that annoying feeling of having to align everything in your PowerPoint slides. You’ve got to check if it’s the same font, if the words have been bolded, italicised, etc. Well, meet these useful shortcuts: Ctrl + B helps you bold words, Ctrl + I helps you italicize words, and Ctrl + U (as you probably would have guessed) enables you to underline words.

For the everyday user: F6

In your free time, how often do you click on your address/url bar to switch to a different website? Now, there’s no need to click on the url bar to change the web address – just press F6, and the url is automatically highlighted for you. All you’ve got to do now is click backspace and type in whichever website you want to go to. This shortcut, however, does not work on Mozilla.