You know, the humble keyboard shortcuts. From Ctrl+C to Ctrl+Alt+Delete, these key combos certainly help improve productivity. Here are some relatively lesser known keyboard shortcuts that can make your day in front of the computer better.
Try the shortcuts listed below and do share this page on Twitter or Facebook if you find something useful in here.
1. Windows 7: Create new folders with Ctrl+Shift+N
You no longer have to fiddle with the File/right click menu options to create a new folder in Windows Explorer. Just hit Ctrl+Shift+N and voila – a new folder appears right in the Explorer window, and you can instantly rename it. Same shortcut works on your Windows desktop too, as long as you are using Windows 7.
2. Browsers: Recover accidentally closed tabs with Ctrl+Shift+T
Ever hit the close button in the tab bar inadvertently and sighed at yourself? Don’t worry, you can open it in a jiffy by pressing Ctrl+Shift+T. This shortcut works in most modern browsers, and could come to use often. Bang that in your head.
3. Evernote: Ctrl+Alt+V from anywhere dumps clipboard into a new note
If you’re an Evernote nerd, hit the Ctrl+Alt+V combo from any desktop application after you’ve copied a piece of text or an image. Evernote opens in a flash, with a new note holding clipboard contents.
4. Facebook: Alt+1 for News Feed, Alt+5 for Notifications
You might land up on Facebook.com a gazillion times everyday, and you probably look at your news feed and notifications often. Alt+1 takes you to the former, and Alt+5 takes you to the latter. If you’re using Firefox, try Alt+Shift in place of just Alt.
5. Twitter: ‘n’ for a new Tweet, ‘g’ then ‘r’ to view mentions tab
If you tweet actively via the Twitter web interface, these shortcuts could be tremendously useful to you. When you’re on the page, just hit ‘n’ to bring up a box to compose a new tweet. ‘g’ then ‘r’ shows your mentions immediately.
6. TweetDeck: Space for quick tweet actions, ‘/’ for new search column
If TweetDeck is open all day in your desktop, try hitting the spacebar after you choose a tweet by using the up/down keys. It shows you a panel like the one above from which you can quickly hit another key to reply/retweet that particular tweet. In addition, you can also DM the user or fave the tweet. Also, hitting / in TweetDeck creates a new search column.
7. Google Search: Right arrow for instant preview, Up/Down Keys to navigate search results
If you search Google with Instant turned on, you can use the up/down arrow keys to put the focus on one search result after another. You can then use the right arrow key to see an instant preview of the highlighted result.
8. Gmail: Quickly send emails with Tab+Enter
Pressing Tab, then Enter could be a trivial shortcut to many of you, but you’ll be surprised at how many tech novices don’t use it. When you’re done composing a new message in Gmail the next time, just hit Tab, followed by Enter. It’s the same as clicking the Send button.
9. Google Reader: Open the current item with ‘v’
If you just started reading something in Google Reader, and would like to directly go to the site to comment on the blog post, just hit V on your keyboard. A new tab should open with the appropriate site.
10. Windows: Capture a screenshot of only the active window with Alt+PrintScreen
The humble PrintScreen key comes to good use when you want to take a screenshot in Windows. The Alt+PrintScreen combo makes it even more nifty by capturing only the currently active window. You can then paste it to any image editor of your choice.
11. Notepad: Insert the current timestamp with F5
If you occasionally fire up Notepad to jot down your activities, try the F5 keyboard shortcut the next time you’re recording something. It will insert the current date and time in the text document.
12. WLW: F2 shows post properties, Ctrl+Alt+Number cycles through heading formats
If you’re an avid Windows Live Writer user, try the F2 shortcut that shows you the properties (categories, slug, scheduled date, etc.) of the open blog post. Ctrl+Alt+1 till Ctrl+Alt+6 shortcuts cycle through heading styles 1-6.
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