What do the Function Keys do?

Continuing on from my last column about keyboard and mouse shortcuts, today I will shed some light on those mysterious Function Keys, F1 – F12, located at the top of your keyboards. 

What is the purpose of these keys?  Well they are there to help shortcut your tasks, so you don’t have to take your hand off your keyboard. 

On a notebook keyboard your function keys may also have symbols as well.  This is because the button has multiple uses. 

The most common problem we hear from our customers using a new notebook is the mouse cursor moving on its own.  Now this is usually due to your palm brushing over the touchpad when typing.  You can eliminate this issue by pressing the function key to lock your touch pad.  It is usually F5, but look for a touchpad icon with a cross through it on your function keys.  Another common error is wireless connection stopping.  This could be due to you accidentally clicking on a function key, normally F8, but look for an aerial icon on your function keys. 

Every manufacturer differs, but if you look at the icons on your function keys you should be able to see what functions they represent. 

Some of the old school function shortcuts are: 

F1 – will open help menu within the open application 

Ctrl F2 – will bring up print preview within Microsoft Office 

Shift F3 – will change your text from lower case to upper case 

Alt F4 – will close the open program 

F5 – will open ‘Find and Replace’ function in Microsoft Office 

F7 – will spell check your current Microsoft Office document 

F9 – will ‘send and receive’ email in Microsoft Outlook 

F11 – will change to full screen within Internet browser window 

Shift F12 – will save Microsoft Office document (same as ctrl + S) 

There are many other functions available, too many to list in my column.  But most importantly is those who are using a notebook computer to be aware of the options available with their function keys. 

If you’re still not too sure then why not book in to a one on one training session with your computer specialist and they can help you guide your way around your computer better.