Secret Tricks from the IT Professionals

PART TWO: Typing Tricks

Many computer users might consider themselves above learning new tricks, but there are always new ways to sharpen your skills on the PC and I’d bet that you will find at least one useful thing here that you didn’t know before.

I asked the Supreme Systems engineers for some handy computer tricks that you can take advantage of and compiled them here, we hope you find them helpful.

Please note that these tricks are for Windows operating systems, though some can be used elsewhere too.

Typing Tricks

Emoji keyboard

If you’re addicted to using emoji, know desktop OS support them natively just like mobiles do. On Windows press the [Windows Key + . (period)]. An Emoji panel will appear so you can carry on as usual using all the expressions you want.

Paste the plain text of what was copied

When you copy text from any source, programs will usually include any formatting that comes with it. To paste this as plain text, press [Ctrl + Shift + V] instead of the standard [Ctrl + V], and the system will paste unformatted text.

Delete an entire word

Instead of deleting a single letter, pressing [Ctrl + Backspace] will delete the entire word behind the cursor. This makes deleting text quicker if you screw up more than a single character.

Move your cursor to beginning of the next or previous word

Moving the cursor around manually while typing is a great way to make your work take longer than it needs to. To speed up the process, move the cursor around with keyboard shortcuts. To move it to the beginning of the previous word, use [Ctrl + Left Arrow]. To move it to the beginning of the next word, use [Ctrl + Right Arrow]. You can also select whole bodies of text by using [Shift + Ctrl + Arrow (up or down)].

Making sub and superscript text

If you need to make sub or superscript text (think exponents for superscript), press [Ctrl + =] for subscript and [Ctrl + Shift + =] for superscript.

Use Windows’ character map to identify and create foreign symbols

Search the Start menu for “character map” and you should find a utility that lets you copy every character imaginable and even provides an “Alt + Numpad code” for later use. For example, the euro sign (€) can be made with [Alt + 0128].

Want more advice? If you would like advice on IT for your small business or start-up, get in touch.