The top computer and browser tricks you need to know

Do you love using your computer but sometimes feel overwhelmed by everything there is to learn? Even the biggest computer nerds sometimes have trouble remembering shortcuts or knowing everything there is to know.

Luckily, we’ve found some of the most useful shortcuts for you so you can navigate your computer much more easily.

Here’s 14 of the best:

1. Bookmark your favourite internet pages that you visit daily 

You can save time by making your favourite internet pages “bookmarks” your the browser. This means there will be an icon displayed at the top of the browser, at all times, for your convenience. Simply, follow these steps:

1. Go to your favourite website i.e. www.startsat60.com
2. Click “bookmarks” on the tool bar and click “bookmark this page”
3. You can also do this by pressing Command + D on Mac or Ctrl + D on PC

2. Do a quick search

On a Mac computer, hit Command + spacebar. Your cursor will automatically go to the Spotlight Search bar in the upper right corner of your screen. There you can type the first few letters of the program you want and it will show up, immediately! Hit enter when you see the app you want. On a PC computer, use the windows logo key+F.

3. Scroll faster using the space bar 

Sometimes your mouse wheel, cursor on the scrollbar or the arrow key can be a bit slow. Instead, simply use the space bar to jump down one full screen at a time. Then to scroll back up the page quickly, simply add shift to the equation, Shift+spacebar and you will scroll up a full screen with each press!

4. Fix those little mistakes

Did you know you can undo almost any action? Whether you accidentally deleted a word or a file, there is a quick and easy keyboard shortcut to bring it back to life!

PC: Ctrl + Z
Mac: Command + Z

5. Zoom in and out

Whether you’re viewing articles on the internet or writing in Microsoft Word, zoom in or out with this command.

PC: Ctrl + scroll mouse wheel or press up or down keys
Mac: Command+plus sign; Command+minus sign

6. Take a screen shot

Capture an image of anything instantly with a screen shot!

PC: Print Screen button
Mac: Command+Shift+3

7. Go incognito

Browsers (Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari) offer an option where you can privately browse. This is great if you want to keep an information a secret, whether it’s bank details or a surprise for your partner. No browsing history is saved in incognito. You can also do it on your smart phone or device!

Chrome

PC: Ctrl+Shift+N
Mac: Command+Shift+N

Internet Explorer

PC: Ctrl+Shift+P
Mac: Command+Shift+P

Firefox

PC: Ctrl+Shift+P
Mac: Command+Shift+P

Safari

Drop down the ‘Safari’ main menu and click ‘Private browsing’

8. Open a new tab

Right click your mouse to open a new tab. This way you won’t lose your place on the current page so you can keep reading. When you’re ready, the new tab will be open at the top of your browser to explore. You do not need to open a new window.

PC: Control+T
Mac: Command+T

9. Close down a program that’s frozen

Is your computer frozen in a program? You can end the process by simply holding down:

PC: Ctrl + Alt + Delete to open up the dialog box.
Mac: Command + Option + Exc to open the Force Quit box.

10. Close the current program

Want to close the current program quickly?

PC: Alt + F4
Mac: Command + Option + Shift + Esc

11. Minimise all windows

Sometimes you have a bunch of stuff running, and you want it all to go away so you can get to the desktop. This will minimise everything you have up, which will save you some time pressing the minimise button for each window.

PC: Windows + D
Mac: Use three fingers and one thumb on your trackpad and push out to literally flick the windows away.

12. Automatically add www. and .com to a URL

You can shave off a couple of seconds typing in a URL by simply press CTRL + Enter after you type the name of the site. Need .net instead of .com? press CTRL + Shift + Enter instead.

13. Rename a file quickly

Right-clicking and selecting rename is not very efficient. Instead, simply press F2 while a file is selected to change its name.

14. Lock your computer quickly

Windows icon + L will lock your system right away, requiring a password to log in again. This is much easier than going through the whole ‘log off’ procedure.