My most commonly used basic Windows features
[ 29 August 2006 ]
Marked under time savers, windows.

Instant permenant delete

Instead of hitting the Delete button on something, then emptying the Recycle Bin after, hold shift while you delete. Shift + Delete will instantly delete the item while bypassing the Recycle Bin.

The Almighty Windows Key

One of the best keyboard keys is the Windows Key. Combine this with a variety of letters, and you can do many basic things. My two most commonly used combos are WinKey + R to open the Run box, and WinKey + L to Lock the workstation.

Here’s a list of other combos:

WinKey + D             Minimizes windows and shows the Desktop
WinKey + E             Open an Explorer window
WinKey + F             Opens the Find feature
WinKey + L             Locks the workstation
WinKey + M             Minimizes all windows
WinKey + Shift + M     Undo minimization of windows
WinKey + R             Opens the Run box
WinKey + U             Opens the Utility Manager
WinKey + F1            Opens Help for Windows
WinKey + Pause/Break   Opens the system properties window
WinKey + Tab           Cycles through programs in the taskbar