Whenever we feel that we need to click, we press the mouse button (a true replacement of the Enter key). Actually, we use the mouse to perform very little and I say so because we do not know the inner potential and are unaware of many tricks associated with it. However, there are few on top of my head right now that I would like share with our readers.
1. Holding Shift Key to Select Text
Most of know that we can select contiguous files and folders by holding the Shift key and clicking on the first and then the last file/folder. This also applies to selecting text on documents like MS Word, Notepad or any other text editor. All you need to do is click on the first character, then press the shift, point to the last character, click there and release the Shift key.
2. Holding Ctrl Key to Select Multiple Text Chunks
Have you ever wanted to select multiple pieces of text on a document? What do you do then? Here’s the answer. Keep the Ctrl key held while selecting text. Again, keeping it pressed, select another piece of text; select the third piece of text and so on.
3. Holding Shift Shows Extended Context Menu
All files and folders are bestowed with a right-click context menu which allows us to perform certain action on the files/folders. Did you know that there are some hidden options in it? If you press the Shift Key while doing a right-click you will be presented with an extended menu with those hidden options.
4. Zoom In and Zoom Out
All applications- image viewers, document editors, browsers and even the explorer allow you to zoom in and zoom out. While most of them have keyboard shortcuts or a dedicated tool to support that, some have none. You can use the mouse scroll to for all zooming activities along with the Ctrl key kept pressed. Never tried? Try it right now!
5. Window Tips with Mouse
Many people double click on the center of the title bar in order to maximize the said window. Give it a try if you were unaware of it. But the smarter trick is in closing a window by double clicking on the left end of the window title bar.
6. Hold Ctrl to Open a Link in New Tab
Whenever we click on links, some open in the same tab, some open on a new tab and others open in a new window. We can always right-click on the link and select our desired behavior. If your regular choice is Open in New Tab you can emulate the same behavior by holding the Ctrl key and clicking on the link.
7. Closing Browser Tabs
Left button of the mouse is not working? And if you do not know the keyboard shortcut to close a browser tab, what are you going to do? Simply press the mouse scroll by pointing on the middle of a tab and see what happens.
8. Activate Mouse ClickLock
This feature relieves you from keeping the mouse button pressed for performing activities like text selection and moving files of folders. It can be really useful for laptop users when their touchpad is not functioning. Learn more on how to fix mouse drag issues by activating ClickLock.
9. Want More Drag Drop Options?
All of us are accustomed to the drag and drop activity of the mouse. But have you ever tried doing the same with the mouse right key? You will see added options to Move Here, Copy Here and Create shortcuts here. Read our article on- hold mouse right button for more options on drag and drop.
10. Hold Alt to Select Columnar Text
Have you ever felt the need to select text vertically on a Word document? And did you end up doing that one by one, wasting lot of time? There is a better way in combination with the Alt key and here’s our post on how to select text vertically in MS Word.
Conclusion
There could be many more such tricks. The list is consists of a few that were on my mind while writing this. If you know of more such tips, let us know in the comments section. Image Credit: William Hook The above article may contain affiliate links which help support Guiding Tech. However, it does not affect our editorial integrity. The content remains unbiased and authentic.
