"Chord" keys to save time

27 February 2013, 09:00

This is on the periphery of being a tip, but still worth sharing because I think it’s pretty cool and something I’ll bet you’ve never realised.

If you’re used to performing several Command or Option keystrokes in succession — such as selecting all text with Command+A, then copying it with Command+C — you can usually combine them all into one simple keystroke: Command+A+C.

There’s no magic happening here. In this particular case, the layout of a QWERTY keyboard means you’ve hitting Command+A a split second before you hit Command+C. But I’ve been using this tip for a few weeks and it’s never failed yet, which is to say I’ve never hit Command+C first.

Want to bold and italicise some text? Just highlight it and select Command+B+I. There are other examples. If you have any, please share them in the comments below.

Know better?

 
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