Of course you get lost, the basic thing that you require is some help. So, [F1] key is the first short cut to Help. It displays Windows Help, when in Windows Explorer or viewing the desktop, otherwise, the active program’s documentation.

Next thing that you should learn is to quickly copy things. To do so, simply select whatever you wish to copy (could be text, or image, file or a folder itself) and press [Ctrl] + [C]

Here’s a quick compilation of all the Common Windows Keyboard Short-Cuts for Beginners -



[Ctrl] + [X] – To cut the selected item or text

[Ctrl] + [V] – To Paste the selected item or text

[Ctrl] + [Z] – To undo the last action

[Ctrl] + [Y] – To Redo the last action

[Delete] – Delete the selected item and move it to the Recycle Bin

[[Shift]] + [Delete] – Permanently Delete the selected item without moving it to the Recycle Bin

Warning: You will lose the data completely and it can’t be recovered)

[F2] – To Rename the selected item

[Ctrl] + [Right Arrow] – To Move the cursor to the beginning of the next word

[Ctrl] + [Left Arrow] – To Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous word

[Ctrl] + [Down Arrow] – To Move the cursor to the beginning of the next paragraph

[Ctrl] + [Up Arrow] – To Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous paragraph

[Ctrl] + [[Shift]] + an arrow key – To Select a block of text

[[Shift]] with any arrow key – To Select more than one itemin a window or on the desktop, or select text within a document.

[Ctrl] with any arrow key + [Space] – To select multiple individual items in a window or on the desktop

[Ctrl] + [A] – To Select all items in a document or window

[Ctrl] + [F4] – To close the active document (in programs that allow you to have multiple documents open simultaneously)

[Alt] + [Tab] – To switch between open programs or items

[Ctrl]+ [Alt] + [Tab] – To use the arrow keys to switch between open items (Vista only). Hit [Enter] to select the program you want to switch to.

[Ctrl] + Mouse scroll wheel – To change the size of icons on the desktop –
Note: Works in Vista only

[Windows] + [Tab] – To Cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Windows Flip 3D(Vista only). In XP, cycle through programs using the taskbar buttons and hit [Enter] to select a program.

[Ctrl] + [Windows] + [Tab] – To use the arrow keys to cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Windows Flip 3D (Vista only). Hit [Enter] to select the program you want to switch to

[Alt] + [Esc] – To cycle through items in the order in which they were opened

[F6]
Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop

[F4] – To Display the Address bar list in Windows Explorer

[[Shift]] + [F10] – To Display the right-click menu for the selected item

[Ctrl] + [Esc] or [Windows] – To open the Start menu

[Alt] + underlined letter (in program menu) – To display the corresponding menu – for Example, [Alt] + [F] in a program opens the File menu

[F3] – To Search for a file or folder

[Alt] + [Enter] – To Display properties for the selected item

[Alt] + [F4] – To Exit the active program

[Alt] + [Space] – To open the shortcut menu for the active window

[F10] – To activate the menu bar in the active program [Right Arrow] (in menu bar) Open the next menu to the right, or open a submenu [Left Arrow] (in menu bar) Open the next menu to the left, or close a submenu

[F5] – To Refresh the active window

[Alt] + [Up Arrow] – To view the folder one level up in Windows Explorer

[Esc] – To cancel the current task

[Ctrl] + [[Shift]] + [Esc] – To Open Task Manager. Also [Ctrl] + [Alt] + [Delete] in Windows XP

Hold down [[Shift]] when you insert a CD / DVD – - To prevent the CD / DVD from automatically playing.