Windows XP, part 2:
Powerful Specialties
In this section, you will learn some more very useful Windows shortcuts that you
may not have known. Take pictures of the screen and access menus and buttons
without your mouse – keeping your hands on the keyboard.
If you like to review the previous list of more basic keyboard shortcuts, you are
welcome to go
here.
So, then, let's roll:
|
PrtSc - PrintScreen
|
Capture the entire screen into the
clipboard.
Pressing PrintScreen will store the contents of your screen as an image into the
system
clipboard
. This image is then available for pasting into other programs or documents
– try it!
If you use PrintScreen and you don't need special functionality, you can save
money on third-party screen capturing software.
Note: This key may have different labels on every keyboard,
such as Pr Sc, PrtSc
and others.
Also, PrintScreen will capture everything on your screen just as you see it, except
for your mouse pointer (so that it doesn't stand in the way of anything).
|
|
Alt+PrtSc
|
Capture active window into the clipboard.
This keyboard shortcut is an extension of the previous one.
The use and functionality is the same, except that only the region of the
active window is captured.
Alt+PrtSc helps you capture only the relevant portion of the screen. This
is helpful if you are planning to send the captured image via e-mail – the
image size may be smaller.
What is more, sharing the image of only one window is less likely to breach your
privacy – you may not always realize that your online banking is being displayed
in the corner of your screen.
An active window is any window which currently has focus
(i.e. you are typing into it) and is usually on top of other windows.
If there is another window obfuscating part of your active window, that edge of
the other window will also be captured.
|
If you are looking for more fun with screen capturing and images in general, you
may want to check out an amazing light-weight application named
IrfanView.
This application is free for personal and academic use (please read their
policy).
Anyway, try pressing Ctrl+PrtSc in IrfanView and enjoy
the action!
Let's unleash the power of the Alt key:
|
WinKey+F1
|
Open Windows Help.
In case you are looking for information on common matters related to Windows, this
shortcut is the simplest way to access Windows Help and start searching.
Knowing this shortcut, you can now remove the help button from your Start Menu and
save space for more important icons.
|
|
Context-menu Key
|
Show context menu for the currently selected item.
This shortcut is a replacement of the right-click (for
right-handed mouse-users).
It will let you access the context menu (item-specific menu) for the item that is
currently selected.
For more information on the context-menu key please read
here.
For another shortcut with the same effect please see the next one.
|
|
Shift+F10
|
Show context menu for the currently selected item.
Déjà vu! Yes, you are not mistaken – you already have seen a keyboard
shortcut that has the same effect right here.
The only difference with Shift+F10 is the fact that it can be used on any keyboard
– with or without the context-menu key.
|
|
F10
|
Go to the main menu of an application.
Since we already covered the context menu, why not learn how to access the omnipresent
application menus too?
To review how to navigate in a menu using your keyboard please see
here.
Note: This shortcut may have a different meaning in
some applications, especially those that do not have a menu.
|
Interesting, right? And yes, you may have noticed that we used F10 to activate
application menus – but is there any other, more common way to do it?
And perhaps one that is less ambiguous and easier on your fingers?
Let's unleash the power of the Alt key:
|
Alt
|
Access the application menu.
When you press and release your Alt key, the focus will
jump to the application menu. From that point on, you can navigate in the
menu as described here.
If you want to access the System menu of an application,
press the Spacebar after pressing Alt. The System
menu is a set of generic window options that you get when you right-click on a window's
title-bar or its taskbar
icon. The System menu is one of the ways to move and resize a window without
a mouse!
|
|
Alt+[letter]
|
Use accelerator keys to access controls.
This will let you easily run special commands and applications. Sometimes,
this is useful when you have troubles with an unstable system. Try typing
iexplore, cmd, or regedit into the Run dialog and see what happens when
you press Enter.
|
|
Tab
Shift+Tab
|
Cycle focus between controls.
When you are not editing text, you can use the Tab key (or Shift+Tab for a reverse
effect) to switch focus from one control to another until you land on the control
you would like to operate with. This is particularly useful when you are in
a dialog window with settings or forms, etc.
An illustration of how "tabbing" may be useful is when you are filling
out forms such as your name and address – it lets you jump between the fields
simply by clicking Tab – no need for a mouse to locate each field and click
into it. Again, if you jump too far, you can jump backwards by clicking Shift+Tab.
Try "tabbing" next time you are logging into your
Facebook or
your e-mail account. Jump from your "username" field to the "password"
field using Tab and then log in by pressing Enter. Now you can tell your friends
that you threw your mouse away.
Leave us a
message if
it worked!
|
Good job reading all the way down here. You have learned some not-so-well-known
shortcuts which you can use to impress your friends.
As soon as you are ready for more, it is waiting for you
here or
you can choose from the topics on the top of the page.