Like most IT Professionals, I use a whole array of keyboard shortcuts to speed up my working throughout the day. In this two-part series, I’ll share some of the more useful ones with you.
In this post - Part 1 - I'm going to cover shortcuts that I use when generally working with, and troubleshooting, Windows. In Part 2, I'll cover shortcuts for Working with Files and Text.
Part 1 - Working with Windows
Control + Shift + Escape
Instantly brings up Task Manager. Always handy for troubleshooting, and especially useful in a Domain environment, where the traditional Ctrl+Alt+Del brings up a Windows Security panel.
WinKey + D
Shows the Desktop, minimizing all windows. Press it again, and all your windows are restored. This shortcut is superior to WinKey+M, as it retains all window positions.
WinKey + L
Locks your workstation. Incredibly useful if you work in IT, and frequently need to leave your PC at a moment’s notice.
Alt + Tab
Switches between open windows. To scroll “backwards” use Alt + Shift + Tab. Sometimes quicker than using the taskbar, sometimes not ;)
WinKey + Break (sometimes labeled Pause)
Opens up Systems Properties quickly.
WinKey + R
Opens up the Run command, ready for your bidding ;)
Alt + F4
Close the current window. Also, Ctrl + F4 closes the current tab in Firefox and IE7, and many other applications which feature Tabbed navigation.
Control + Tab
Switches tabs in Mozilla Firefox / Internet Explorer 7 (and a lot of other programs that use Tabs). To go backwards, use Control + Shift + Tab.
Note: WinKey is short for Windows Key. It’s the key with the Windows symbol on it, usually between the Ctrl button and the Space Bar :)
Have I missed any useful ones? What shortcuts do you use? Let us know in the comments! :)Article originally published at Mind Circus - Inside the mind of a young IT Professional
