The Best Mac Keyboard Shortcuts to Learn.
The engineering behind each of Apple’s touchpads makes them some of the best on the market today. Fast swiping can move the cursor anywhere, and gestures provide an unprecedented level of control over windows, applications, and more.
The user will be forgiven for thinking that a smooth touchpad is all they want, but there are keyboard shortcuts that can completely change your macOS experience.
Many people mistakenly believe that keyboard shortcuts are only for “power users” – that the average macOS user either can’t use keyboard shortcuts or don’t need them. It just isn’t right. The following keyboard shortcuts are the most useful macOS keyboard shortcuts you’ll need to remember. Knowing these shortcuts will help you with all aspects of macOS.
Close Windows and exit applications with Command + Q
A red X in the upper left corner of any macOS application means it will close the program, but not close it. He just closes the window. If you want to close the window and the program at the same time, you need to press Command + Q. The Command key, also called the Apple key, is located to the right and left of the spacebar on most Apple keyboards.
This is easy to remember if you ever forget – just select an app from the menu bar in the upper left corner and you will see a shortcut displayed next to the “Sign out” option.
Switch between Windows and apps using Command + Tab
If you are not using software to split your screen into multiple segments (or you need full-screen features from one application) and you still need to check something in another window, you can quickly switch between them using Command + Tab. This shortcut moves from the current window to the last used window.
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Pressing the combination quickly switches windows between windows, but if you press and hold Command + Tab, a series of icons will appear representing all open applications. By pressing Tab, you can navigate between them. Select the window you want to open and release the Command key to open it.
Force quit frozen and unresponsive applications with Command + Option + Esc
Sometimes apps block or freeze for various reasons. In this case, you can right-click the application in the taskbar or press Command + Option + Esc.
This brings up a list of active programs. Select the one that is not responding and choose Force Logout.
Highlight the spotlight with Command + Space
The built-in Spotlight search in macOS is one of the most useful tools the platform has to offer. You can quickly bring it up by pressing Command + Space.
The search will appear on the screen, and you can start typing your request without even taking your hands off the keyboard. Spotlight will search your files, emails, messages, and the Internet for any mention of your search phrase.
Quickly save your work with Command + S
Almost everyone experienced the excruciating fear of a sudden crash when the document was not saved. There is no need to touch the floppy disk icon every time you want to save your work; just press Command + S to save the file.
It happens instantly and takes almost no time; in fact, you can make it part of your workflow. Finish the sentence and press Command + S. If you save a previously unsaved file, you will be prompted to select a destination and provide a filename.
Select everything on screen or in a document with Command + A
If you need to select every file in the folder to delete, or you need to copy and paste the entire document, press Command + A. This will select all text or files on the screen. You will know because the selected sections will be highlighted
If you need to quickly copy and paste, just press Command + C and Command + V.
Skip the trash and permanently delete the file using Command + Delete
Sometimes you just need to delete a file that you know you will never need again. Perhaps you took a screenshot of the wrong part of the screen, or it was something that was accidentally saved due to the uncontrolled habit of constantly pressing Command + S.
Whatever the reason, you can avoid filling up your computer storage and permanently deleting the file by selecting it and pressing Command + Delete. However, be careful – this action cannot be undone.
Take a screenshot with Command + Shift + 3
You can take a screenshot of the entire screen by pressing Command + Shift + 3, but you can also take a screenshot of a specific part of the screen with Command + Shift + 4.
This will turn your cursor into a crosshair. Click and hold the cursor to select the portion of the screen you want to take a photo, then release the cursor to take a photo.
You can also press Command + Shift + 5 to open a list of additional options for capturing screenshots, such as Capture Full Screen and Capture Selected Part. Command + Shift + 5 can also record screen on some Mac computers.
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