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Alt + Tab. The Forgotten Shortcut 

Alt + Tab. The Forgotten Shortcut 

15

February

Those of a certain generation will nod their heads in a nostalgic fashion at the mention of Alt+Tab. In the days before a taskbar that showed previews of what programs are open, and indeed what documents are open within each program, the only way to easily get a snake peek at this was to use Alt+Tab. 

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But this classic keyboard shortcut remains today, alive and well and available in Windows 10. And what’s more, it remains a very useful function for those users that find themselves with multiple windows open. Yes, you can hover your mouse pointer on the task bar, but to quickly press Alt+Tab and have a full visual display of your open windows simultaneously cannot be beaten. 

And its usefulness doesn’t end there. Once you press and hold Alt with your thumb and press and release Tab with your finger, the open windows remain displayed. And now you can navigate these open windows by either tapping the Tab key to move one at a time, or by using the cursor keys to move from window to window, or even by using your mouse to select the window you want to navigate to. 

And last, but by no means least, there is the classic “back and forth” between 2 open programs. If you are using source data from one window and want to enter it into another, constantly reaching for your mouse can be a pain. So using Alt+Tab is a much easier option. Press and hold Alt with your thumb and press and release Tab twice with your finger, and this navigates back and forth for you. It’s as simple as that. 

David Henderson-Begg
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