Shortcut keys ABCs

Shortcut keys help provide an easier and quicker method of navigating and executing commands in the computer software. Shortcut keys are performed using Alt (on IBM-compatible computers), Command (on Apple computers), Ctrl, or Shift in conjunction with another key. The de facto standard for listing a shortcut is listing the modifier key, a plus symbol, and another key. In other words, “Ctrl+S” tells you to press and hold Ctrl and then press S simultaneously.

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You can also find the shortcut keys in popular programs by looking for underlined letters in their menus. For example, the file menu image has an underline on the “F” in File, which means you can press Alt and F to access the file menu.

Some programs require the user to press and hold Alt to see the underlined characters. In the image above, you can see that some standard features, such as Open (Ctrl+O) and Save (Ctrl+S), have shortcut keys assigned to them. As you memorize shortcut keys, you’ll notice that many applications share them. We have a list of the most commonly shared ones in the basic PC shortcut keys section.

Basic PC shortcut keys

Below is a list of commonly used basic shortcut keys that work with IBM-compatible computers and software. We highly recommend all users keep a reference to these shortcut keys or try to memorize them. Doing so can dramatically increase your productivity.

Non-English versions of Microsoft Windows may not be able to use all the shortcut keys below.

PC shortcut keys for special characters

Many special characters can be created using keyboard shortcuts. Below are special characters and the keyboard shortcuts to create them.

Besides the special character shortcuts listed here, some are also on the number keys (below the F1 - F12 keys). You can enter these special characters by pressing the Shift key and the number key with the special character listed.

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