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Universal Hot Keys

There are many "Hot Keys" that can speed your work up considerably. Most work in any Windows-based programs, including Windows itself. Here are some of the most common.

The way it works is you hold down the first key in the combination; i.e. Ctrl key, and then push the second key once.

These are universal to documents and Windows folders - these are the best ones for you to know for daily work:

  • Ctrl + Z = Undo (this one can save you - undo whatever you just did)

  • Ctrl + Y = Redo (redo what you just undid)

  • Ctrl + X = Cut (cuts any highlighted text or folder and puts on clipboard to be pasted somewhere else)

  • Ctrl + C = Copy (copies any highlighted text or folder and puts on the clipboard to be pasted)

    • The clipboard, for the most part, holds only one thing, so when you copy or cut something it's in the clipboard and ready to be pasted.  If you don't paste and copy something else, what you previously copied or cut is overwritten and no longer there, so you need to paste before you put more on the clipboard
       

  • Ctrl + V = Paste (pastes the clipboard to wherever you have your cursor)

  • Ctrl + A = Select All (wherever you click and do a Ctrl + A will highlight everything - with text it would be the whole document, with folders it would be all of the folders in the directory where your cursor is)

  • Ctrl + F = Find (brings up a find window)

  • Ctrl + H = Replace (brings up a find and replace window)

  • Ctrl + N = New (opens a new Internet Explorer window, or new document in Office products)

  • Ctrl + P = Print (same as clicking the Print button)

  • F1 = Help (brings up the help menu)

  • F2 = Rename selected item (such as a folder)

  • F3 = Search (brings up search window, or if find is open forces it to find the next item)

  • Alt + F4 = Closes the top window (this is handy if you get popups on a website you cannot close - closes them as fast as you can click Alt + F4)

These are general Windows Hot Keys - you use these rarely, but they can be handy:

  • Alt + Tab = Cycle through open programs

  • Ctrl + Alt + Del (brings up the Windows Security window where you can lock your system, change your password, select Task Manager or log-off - Local machine only - this doesn't work on your NetOffice session - see below)

  • Ctrl + Alt + End (this will send the Ctrl + Alt + Del to your remote desktop session - see above)

  • Windows Key + R = Run (brings up your Run window)

  • Windows Key + M = Minimize (minimizes all windows)

  • Windows Key + Shift + M = Restore minimized windows

  • Windows Key + E = Opens Windows Explorer

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