19 Computer Tricks You Should Know

Those of us who spend hours a day on the computer may think we know all the tricks there are to make our work easier. It seems you can teach an old dog new tricks, because there are countless shortcuts that even the most proficient PC users don’t realize they could be utilizing on a daily basis. Otherwise, impress your friends with these easy computer tricks.

Tricks for Typing

Here are a few tips that will save you lots of time when typing documents:

• Move the cursor quicker to the beginning of the previous word by pressing CTRL+Left Arrow, instead of doing it manually.
• To get the cursor to the beginning of the next word, use CTRL+Right Arrow.
• Recover a deleted item with ALT+Backspace.
• Delete an entire word by pressing CTRL+Backspace.
• Select a word you want to highlight quickly, without dragging the mouse, by double-clicking on it.
• Highlight a whole paragraph by triple-clicking on it.
• Make superscript and sub text by pressing CTRL + = for sub, and CTRL+ Shift for superscript.
• Paste in plain text and not what was originally formatted, after copying, by pressing CTRL + Shift + V.

Efficiency and Space Saving Tricks

Have better luck with your PC running smoother with these tips:

• When your PC takes a long time to boot up, you may have too many programs running when you get started. To eliminate unnecessary programs, press Windows key + R, then type “misconfig”. Select the Startup tab from the window that pops up, and you will be able to turn off any programs you want that are slowing your boot time.
• Delete large space wasting files with WinDirStat, which is short for “Windows Directory Statistics”. It shows you which files are taking up the most space, and you can then delete them accordingly.

Tricks on the Keyboard

• Close all your windows quickly if you’re in a hurry by pushing the Windows button +D, and they will all shut immediately.
• Rename your highlighted files quickly by pressing F2.
• Close the program running with ALT + F4.
• To minimize all windows only, press Windows + D.
• Re-open your last closed tab with Shift + CTRL + T on most browsers.
• Instead of moving the cursor to the X in the corner, press CTRL + W to close the current window.
• Take a screen shot with ALT + Print Screen.

General PC Tips

• Backup beyond a local file with services like Google Drive, Drop Box or other reputable cloud storage solutions, as extra security.
• Problem Step Recorder will record all mouse clicks and take screenshots. This tool is helpful to a tech when an issue with your PC needs to be diagnosed. Use this by pressing Windows + R then type the letters “psr”.