We all had that day where our computer was simply overwhelmed by countless opened tabs, unnecessary programs, and a lot of documents that we forgot to close. I remember I had one such day, and living to see its end was quite the effort. The thing is that, at that time, I didn’t know about these shortcuts that I now know. Here are: PC shortcuts you should know. Because I don’t want you to have the same day as I had then. For that reason, I present you with 5 of them.
1. Control+Shift+Escape
There was always a time when your computer refused to run a certain program, or when it suddenly froze. I can feel how annoyed were you that time. I bet you immediately hit Control+Alt+Delete and went to Task Manager and- What? What do you mean there is an easier way? And you can save more time?
Yes, you heard that well, the shortcut for the Task Manager is Control+Shift+Escape, trust me, it’s easier to press and remember. Plus, you don’t need two hands to complete the task. And the good part is that you don’t have to go to all that ”Lock, Switch User, etc.” screen. It instantly prompts up the Task Manager.
2. Windows+D
I remember I once had a few Powerpoint Presentations open because I was copying slides and other elements. And I needed to open one more file that was on my desktop. At that time I was still a beginner at using a computer, and I clicked ”Minimise” 5 times, to close 3: powerpoints, the browser, and Discord. And only then look up the file on the desktop.
Well, today, I’m not doing that anymore. I discovered 2 useful ways to show your desktop in 1 click or a 2-key combination. With one click: hit the ”Peek” button in the bottom right corner. The ”Peek” button should be a tiny button, on the right of the ”Notifications” button.
The other way to show desktop fast is to hit Windows+D, it does the same thing as clicking on the ”Peek” button. But the advantage here is that you can press the shortcut with your left hand, and not waste time on going all the way down to the right corner. I prefer the shortcut.
3. Alt+Tab
Gamer Time. What is your first reaction when your mom enters the room and you are playing games when she told you not to? The answer is simple: You smash Alt+Tab and switch to that homework word file that you were working on. Your mom will have no time to see that you just changed tabs. (Unless you don’t have an SSD, sometimes having an HHD slows down the process)
And it’s not useful just when you need to play games secretly. It is useful when you have more than 2 tabs open and you need to use them all at different times. It may be annoying when you need to click on the window several times. It becomes repetitive after a while. Alt+Tab saves you more time and you can keep the mouse in the same position too.
I need to mention this though: there is a similar shortcut for the browser: Control+Tab that does the same thing. It commutes between your open tabs and, depending on the browser, you can see a preview of the tab you want to switch on. That is useful in case you have a million open tabs (but I doubt you have).
4. Scrolling wheel click
Now, this is one of the most overlooked and underused buttons/shortcuts. Not only it’s very easy to access, but in games, you can bind it to do a certain action. In Windows though, it has more than one use. The first is that you can duplicate an open program. It’s one of the most elementary PC shortcuts you should know.
Let me give you an example: if you have a word file open, in which you are writing an important essay, and you need one more word file to make a quick note, then you simply click the mouse wheel while hovering on that file in the taskbar. One-click, a new word file. And it can be used with other programs too.
This shortcut, if I may call it that, is most used with a browser. If you hover over a link and click the mouse wheel, it will open that link in a new tab. You don’t need to right-click and select ”Open link in a new tab”. It is easier and more efficient. Also, if you click on the mouse wheel while hovering over a tab, that tab will be closed.
5. Control+Shift+T
Have you ever accidentally closed a really important tab while internet surfing? If yes, then you know at least that you can find that link/address/tab in the History Menu. But if you have a history with such mistakes you might know how to recover that link faster. Using some PC shortcuts you should know, no, everyone should know.
Control+Shift+T. It re-opens the last closed tab. And, depending on how sites store information, you may recover the progress that you had there. Keep in mind tho, that if you keep on pressing Ctrl+Shift+T the browser will continue to open the closed tabs in the order they were closed.
Conclusion – 5 Easy PC shortcuts you should know
And this concludes the 5 PC shortcuts you should know to make your life easier and to save more time at the end of the day. One thing that must be said before you leave, is this: If you read this far, then consider subscribing to this blog, it would help me a lot and it will keep it alive. For more information here.