Windows Keyboard Shortcut of the Day

Last week we learned how to navigate using the keyboard. At the beginning of this week, we learned about the Shift key, combined with the navigation keys, to select text. We learned how to use Alt+Tab to switch back and forth between applications. And we covered Ctrl+C to copy, Ctrl+X to cut, and Ctrl+V to paste.

So, let’s put all of that together. Suppose you want to copy some text from a Notepad document into an e-mail. Here’s what to do:

1. Hold down the Alt key, and press Tab until Notepad is selected, then let go of the Alt key.
2. Use the arrow keys or other navigation keys to move to the beginning or end of the text you want to select.
3. Use Shift key and navigation keys to move to the other side of the text; notice how it highlights as you go as long as you’re holding down the Shift key.
4. Once the text is highlighted, press Ctrl+C. Nothing to seems to happen, but behind the scenes, the text you selected has now been copied to the clipboard.
5. Now press Alt the key again and hold it down while you hit the Tab key until the e-mail is selected.
6. Move your cursor using the arrow keys to the point where you want the text to appear.
7. Press Ctrl+V. The text appears.

You’ve just copied and pasted text between two different applications without using the mouse. Congratulations!