Most programs also provide accelerator keys that can make it easier to work with menus and other commands. Check the menus of programs for accelerator keys. If a letter is underlined in a menu, that usually means that pressing the Alt key in combination with the underlined key will have the same effect as clicking that menu item.
General keyboard shortcutsThe following table contains general keyboard shortcuts.
| Press this key | To do this |
| F1 | Display Help |
| Ctrl+C | Copy the selected item |
| Ctrl+X | Cut the selected item |
| Ctrl+V | Paste the selected item |
| Ctrl+Z | Undo an action |
| Ctrl+Y | Redo an action |
| Delete | Delete the selected item and move it to the Recycle Bin |
| Shift+Delete | Delete the selected item without moving it to the Recycle Bin first |
| F2 | Rename the selected item |
| Ctrl+Right | Arrow Move the cursor to the beginning of the next word |
| Ctrl+Left | Arrow Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous word |
| Ctrl+Down | Arrow Move the cursor to the beginning of the next paragraph |
| Ctrl+Up Arrow | Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous paragraph |
| Ctrl+Shift with an arrow key | Select a block of text |
| Shift with any arrow key | Select more than one item in a window or on the desktop, or select text within a document |
| Ctrl with any arrow key+Spacebar | Select multiple individual items in a window or on the desktop |
| Ctrl+A | Select all items in a document or window |
| F3 | Search for a file or folder |
| Alt+Enter | Display properties for the selected item |
| Alt+F4 | Close the active item, or exit the active program |
| Alt+Spacebar | Open the shortcut menu for the active window |
| Ctrl+F4 | Close the active document (in programs that allow you to have multiple documents open simultaneously) |
| Alt+Tab | Switch between open items |
| Ctrl+Alt+Tab | Use the arrow keys to switch between open items |
| Ctrl+Mouse scroll wheel | Change the size of icons on the desktop |
