Keyboard shorcuts

HANDY KEYS. Before that Windows key (the one with the Windows logo in the lower left of the keyboard) gets rusty for lack of use, look at all the handy things it will do for you: By itself, it displays the Start menu. With D, it minimizes or restores all Windows, with E it displays the Wondows Explorer, with Tab it cycles through active applications on your taskbar, and with F it displays the find function for all files. Use it with F1 to display Help, with R to display the Run command, and with Pause/Break for the System Properties dialog window. With Shift + M, the Windows key will undo minimizing all Windows, and with Ctrl + F it will display the find: computer dialog window. All these work on at least Windows 98 and XP operating system and you can experiment on the others as you please.
MOUSE WHEEL REVISITED. That wheel on your mouse (if you have one) can be useful with Internet Explorer. With the Ctrl key depressed, moving the wheel forward or backward resizes the font. With the Shift key depressed, the wheel moves you backward or forward to other sites visited in the current browsing session.
You can open a menu by holding the Alt key and typing the first letter of the menu title. For example, pressing Alt + E opens the Edit menu. You can also press either Alt or F10 to activate the menu bar, then use the right and left arrow keys to highlight a menu name, and press Enter to open the highlighted menu.
WINDOW + M - Have you ever wanted to get to your Desktop screen fast, but found yourself closing applications with your mouse? Try this shortcut, which instantly minimizes all open windows and returns you to the desktop in one quick jump. (The WINDOW key is the one between CTRL and ALT.)
WINDOW + E - This lauches an instance of Windows Explorer, a very handy program for file management. Use this shortcut intead of running through the Start > Programs > Accessories > Windows Explorer route.
SHIFT + CTRL + ARROWS - This shortcut is very handy for selecting text in HTML or text editors. Rather than highlighting with a mouse, this will quickly grab text one word at a time from the cursor position.
Cut: Ctrl > X Copy: Ctrl > C Paste: Ctrl > V
Undo: Ctrl > Z Select All: Ctrl > A


F10 - goes to menu mode
Alt - activates menu Enter - opens Esc - Cancels
Ctrl > Tab or Ctrl > Shift > Tab (in Properties) - Switches between properties tabs

Alt > Space Bar - open application central box
Alt > Enter - switch from icons to editing mode
Alt > Tab - to switch between running programs
Alt > Enter - properties Ctrl > F4 - to close window
Alt > double-click - properties Ctrl > Esc - display start menu
Alt > F4 - to exit program Ctrl > End go to end of a document
Shift > F10 - context menu for selected item

F1 - Help F3 - Find
Ctrl > Shift + drag a file to the desktop or a folder to create a shortcut

CLOSING POPUPS AND AD BANNERS. Next time you're annoyed with a popup message or ad banner, try Ctrl+W to close it. This works with some browsers, some popups, and some ads, but not all. Still, it's worth a try.
INTERNET EXPLORER SHORTCUTS. Here's a few keyboard shortcuts you might find handy in Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 5.0 and 5.5. In combination with the CTRL key, O (alpha, not numeric) opens the Address box so you can enter a URL; I opens the Favorites list, H the History list, E the Search menu, F the Find box, and N a new browser window.