How to use a computer keyboard

Updated: 05/02/2021 by Computer

Hope

A computer keyboard is an input

device used with all types of
computers. Newer devices like
a smartphone and tablet even still use
an on-screen keyboard. This page is
designed to help new computer users
become more familiar and efficient
with their keyboard. For new users, we
suggest reading through all the
sections below and doing all the
practices.
 Connecting the keyboard.
 How to turn on the keyboard.
 Familiarizing yourself with the
keyboard.
 Overview of each section of the
keyboard.
 Start typing and how to position
hands.
 Correcting errors.
 Deleting text one letter and one
word at a time.
 Using the arrow keys to move
around.
 Uppercase, lowercase, and all caps.
 Typing numbers and symbols
above numbers.
 Getting to the beginning and end of
a line.
 Highlighting text using the
keyboard.
 Copy and paste text using the
keyboard.
 Using the 10-key.
 Keyboard shortcuts.
 Additional practice sentences.
Connecting the keyboard
Before you can use the keyboard, it
must be connected properly to the
computer. If you have a new computer
and need help connecting the
keyboard, or the keyboard is not
working, see our steps on connecting
and installing a keyboard.
 How to connect and install a
computer keyboard.
How to turn on the keyboard
All computer keyboards with
a cord connecting them to the
computer automatically turn on when
the computer turns on. However, if
you have a wireless keyboard, it can
be turned on and off to conserve the
batteries. To turn these keyboards on,
flip the keyboard over and look at the
back of the keyboard. Near the
bottom or top of the keyboard should
be a switch that can be moved to the
on or off position.
Tip
You can test if the computer is on by
pressing the Caps Lock, Scroll Lock,
or Num Lock keys and looking for
an indicator light. As these keys are
enabled or disabled, a light should
turn on or off. If you're unable to get
any lights, the keyboard is not
working. For help with troubleshooting
a keyboard, see: Why don't any keys
on my keyboard work?
Familiarizing yourself with the keyboard
Below is an overview of a desktop
computer keyboard. This picture
shows the major sections of the
keyboard. Each section is explained in
detail below.
Overview of each section of the
keyboard
Alphanumeric keyboard
The alphanumeric keyboard is the
primary portion of the keyboard
with letters, numbers, punctuation,
and some symbol keys. Today, most
users use QWERTY keyboards, as
shown in the illustrations. You can tell
if you are using a QWERTY keyboard
by looking at the first six letters to see
if they spell "QWERTY."
Each of the group of alphanumeric
keys is positioned on rows of keys.
Most keyboards have six rows of keys
with the fingers resting on the home
row. Other keyboard rows include
the function keys, number keys, top
row, bottom row, and spacebar row.

Function keys
The function keys or F1 through F12
or F19 keys are used in programs as
keyboard shortcut keys to performed
frequently performed tasks. For
example, the F1 key is the key to
open the online help for most
programs.
 What are the F1 through F12 keys?
On some keyboards, the function keys
can activate additional functions on a
computer. Used in combination with
the Fn key, the function keys can
activate other functions, like changing
screen brightness, accessing media
controls, or turning off the computer.

Control and toggle keys

The control keys or toggle keys give
the user additional control over text
manipulation and cursor placement.
They may also be used as keyboard
shortcut keys in many programs. X
Tip
Control keys and Ctrl keys are
different.
Keypad
Although not available on all computer
keyboards, especially laptops, the
keypad gives the user quick access to
numbers and math functions such as
plus, divide, times, and subtract.
Wrist pad
In our example picture, the Saitek
keyboard has a wrist pad intended to
help support the user's wrists.
Although many keyboards do not
include a wrist pad, hundreds of
different options can be purchased at
a computer store or online.
Warning
Experts debate the need for wrist
pads, and many ergonomic experts
argue a wrist pad may be more
stressful and may help cause carpal
tunnel.

Arrow keys
The arrow keys are four directional
keys that allow you to move
the cursor or change
a highlighted selection.
Special keys or media keys on a
multimedia keyboard
Multimedia keyboards have additional
buttons not found on a traditional
keyboard. See our special keys page
for further information.
Start typing and how to position hands
Before typing, place your hands in the
proper position, with your fingers on
the home row keys. When you are
typing, glance at your fingers to
ensure that each finger is pressing the
correct key.
Tip
There are small bumps (homing bars)
on the "F" and "J" keys that help you
find the proper position without
looking at the keyboard. Your index
fingers on both hands should be able
to feel these bumps.
Below is a picture to help illustrate
where each finger should be
positioned and the home row keys.
Your left-hand fingers should be
positioned over A, S, D, and F keys,
and your right hand should be
positioned over the J, K, L, and ; keys.
Also, each color helps illustrate what
fingers are responsible for what key.

If you have never learned how to type

properly and use the hunt-and-
peck method of typing, we strongly
encourage you to practice throughout
this page using the proper technique.
Not only does this improve your
typing efficiency, but it also reduces
the strain you may encounter from
having to look down at the keyboard.
Once your hands are in the proper
position, practice typing the below
sentence, which has every letter in
the alphabet.
Practice typing every letter
the quick brown fox jumps over the
lazy dog

the quick brown fox jumps over the

lazy dog
Where should fingers be placed on the
keyboard?
Correcting errors
It's inevitable that you'll make errors
as you type, the backspace
key and delete key help you correct
these errors. Using the backspace key
erases one character to the left of the
cursor, and delete erases one
character to the right of the cursor.
Note
Apple computer keyboards have two
delete keys. The big delete key on the
keyboard acts the same as a
backspace key, and the other delete
key acts as a delete key.
Use the below practice are to practice
correcting errors.
Correcting errors
Using your mouse, click in the below
box after the "e" in "doe" and
press Backspace once. Once the "e" is
removed, type a g to make the word
"dog" in the sentence.

Using the mouse, click the cursor

before "s" in "sox," and then
press Del once. Once the "s" is
removed, type an f to make the word
"fox" in the sentence.

Tip
You can press delete or backspace
multiple times to delete
multiple characters.
Using the arrow keys to move around
One of the best methods to improve
your efficiency on the keyboard is to
avoid using the mouse whenever
possible. Having to move your hand
away from the keyboard to the mouse
and then back to the keyboard wastes
a lot of time. One method of avoiding
the mouse is to use the arrow keys to
move the cursor instead of using the
mouse to move the cursor.
In the practice area below, use the
arrow keys to move the cursor to
where you want to make a correction
or add new text.
Practice using the arrow keys
Click in the below box before the word
"wuick" and press Del to delete the
"w" and then type q to make the word
"quick." Next, press right arrow until
you are after the "a" in "brawn" and
press Backspace to delete the "a" and
then type o to make the word
"brown." Finally, repeat these steps
 until the below sentence reads, "the
quick brown fox jumps over the lazy
dog."
the wuick brawn f

Tip
Press Tab on the keyboard to place
the text cursor jump in the text field
below. Pressing "Tab" on a web page
moves the cursor or selection to the
next available interactive element,
such as a button, text field, or
hyperlink.
If you followed the tip, your browser
should have jumped to the below
field. If the text is all highlighted,
press Right Arrow to get to the end of
the text and then using the steps you
used earlier fix the below sentence to
read "the quick brown fox jumps over
the lazy dog."
the sick brown so
 Deleting text one letter and one word at
a time
It may also be necessary to delete
more than one letter or even a word
at a time. Use the below practice to
delete all of the text from a line.
Practice deleting one letter and one
word at a time
Move to the end of the line below and
then press q until all text is deleted in
the below box.
The quick brown

Now use the Ctrl key with backspace

to delete one word at a time by
moving to the end of the below
sentence, hold down Ctrl, and
press Backspace.
 Uppercase, lowercase, and all caps

Unless your Caps Lock key is turned

on, your computer types everything
in lowercase. To make the first letter
of a sentence or word uppercase, hold
down Shift on the keyboard and press
the letter you want to capitalize.
If you want all of the words capitalized
press Caps Lock, which should turn on
an LED indicator indicating it is
enabled. Once enabled, everything
remains capitalized unless you hold
down Shift or press Caps Lock again.
Use the below practice to type text in
uppercase and lowercase.
Practice typing uppercase, lowercase,
and all caps
Type "Example" by holding down the
left Shift and pressing e to get an
uppercase "E" and then letting go
of Shift and typing the remaining of
the word in lowercase.
Example

Type "EXAMPLE" by pressing Caps

Lock once and then typing out the
word. After you have finished
using Caps Lock, press the key again
to return it back to normal.
EXAMPLE
Now knowing what you know practice
using the Shift key and Caps Lock key
to complete the below sentence.
Again, make sure that when you are
typing these practices that you have
your hands on the home row keys and
are using the correct fingers.
The QUICK brown Fox jumps OVER the
LaZy dOg.

Getting to the beginning and end of a

line
The Home key and End key can also
be used to get to the beginning of the
line. Use the below practice to get to
the beginning and end of the line of
text.
Practice going to the beginning and end
of a line using the keyboard
 Click anywhere in the middle of the
text below and then press Home to get
to the beginning of the line and
then End to get to the end of the line.
The quick brown

Highlighting text using the keyboard

It is also possible to highlight text
using the keyboard with the Shift key.
Follow the below practice to highlight
text in the below sentence.
Practice highlighting text using the
keyboard
Move to the end of the sentence and
then press and hold Shift and while
continuing to hold Shift press left
arrow to begin highlighting the
sentence. You can highlight the whole
sentence if you continue to press or
hold down left arrow.
You can highlight one word at a time
by holding down Shift and Ctrl and
pressing left arrow or right arrow to
highlight one word in that direction.

Highlight all of the below text by

clicking anywhere in the below box
and then use the keyboard
shortcut Ctrl+A(press and hold Ctrl
and then while holding Ctrl press the
"a" key). If you are using an Apple
Computer, press Command+A (press
and hold the command key and while
holding the key press the "a" key).

Tip
When text is highlighted, you can
press Del to delete all highlighted text
or start typing to replace highlighted
text.
Typing numbers and symbols above
numbers
The keyboard has two areas
where numbers can be typed on the
keyboard. In this section, we go over
the numbers and symbols above the
numbers at the top of the keyboard.
Using the 10-key keypad is covered
later.
The numbers 1 through 0 at the top of
the keyboard each have two
functions, the number and the
symbol. The number key alone enters
the number, and if you hold
down Shift while pressing the number,
its symbol is entered. For example,
pressing 2 enters "2" on the screen.
Holding down Shift and
pressing 2 enters the at sign (@).
Below is a list of each number key and
the symbols on a US keyboard.
Clicking any of the links opens a page
with full information about each of the
symbols with their uses.
 1 (!) exclamation mark
 2 (@) at sign
 3 (#) hash
 4 ($) dollar sign
 5 (%) percent
 6 (^) caret
 7 (&) ampersand
 8 (*) asterisk
 9 (() open parenthesis
 0 ()) close parenthesis
Practice entering numbers and symbols
Type the following text by pressing
the number 1 when typing "1st" and
ending the sentence with an
exclamation mark by holding
down Shift and pressing 1.
My 1st test!
Next, type the following sentence
containing a dollar value. To type the
dollar sign, press and
hold Shift and 4 at the same time.
The fish cost me $10.00.

Finally, type the following sentence

containing parentheses. To type the
open parenthesis, press and
hold Shift and press 9. To type the
close parenthesis, press and
hold Shift and press 0 (zero).
This text is the final (last) example.

Copy and paste text using the keyboard

Copying and pasting text is something
every computer user is going to do
more than once. Knowing how
to copy and paste text using the
keyboard can save you a lot of time
on the computer.
Practice copying and pasting text using
the keyboard
Click in the below text box, and then
using the steps we learned earlier,
highlight either part of the below
sentence or the whole sentence. Once
the text is highlighted,
press Ctrl+C or Command+C to copy
the highlighted text.
The quick brown

Once the text is copied to the

clipboard, click in the box below or
press Tab to move the cursor to the
below box and paste text by
pressing Ctrl+V or Command+V on the
keyboard.
 Tip
You can also cut the text instead of
copying the text if you want to move
the text from one box to the other
box. To cut text, you use
the Ctrl+X or Command+X keyboard
shortcut.
Further steps and information on
copying and pasting text using the
keyboard, mouse, or touch screen on
any device is also on the link below.
 How to copy and paste text to a
document or another program.
Using the 10-key
If your keyboard has a numeric
keypad, it can save you a lot of time
when you're typing numbers in a
calculator or spreadsheet.
Before using the 10-key, make sure
your right hand is properly positioned
on the keypad. The home row for the
numeric keypad is 4, 5, 6, and Enter.
Your index finger on your right hand
should be on the number 4. Your
middle finger should be on 5, your
ring finger on 6, and your pinky rests
on the plus (+) key.
Tip
There is usually a small bump on the
five key to help position your right
hand without looking.
After your hand is in the position, you
can use the below practice to practice
using the keypad.
Keyboard 10-key practice
Note
If your keyboard has a Num Lock key,
the Number lock must be turned on
for the numbers to work on the
keypad.
456+654

123*987
159/357

159/357

Tip
Another good way to practice using
the 10-key is to open the calculator on
your computer and enter numbers
using the calculator. Pressing Enter on
the 10-key with your pinky after
entering a math formula gives you the
total.
Keyboard shortcuts
One of the best methods of becoming
more efficient with your computer is
to learn and memorize as
many keyboard shortcuts as possible.
As mentioned above, your typing
becomes much faster if you don't
have to move your hand to the
mouse. So, keyboard shortcuts help
increase the speed at which you can
use your computer.
Computer Hope has hundreds of
keyboard shortcuts for popular
programs and operating systems.
Below are a few links to our keyboard
shortcuts to help get you started.
 Top 10 keyboard shortcuts
everyone should know.
 A full list of computer keyboard
shortcuts.
Additional practice sentences
Practice makes perfect, and the only
way to increase your speed and
become better at typing is to practice.
Below are some more sentences to
practice that also relate to everything
you learned on this page. Not only is
doing the below practices going to
help you learn to type, but it also
helps reinforce everything you learned
on this page and teach you a little
more.

Exam:
A keyboard has alphanumeric keys,
function keys, control keys, and
arrow keys.

The "asdf" keys are on the left hand,

and the "jkl;" keys are on the right
hand.

Press Tab to move between boxes or

Shift+Tab to move backwards.

Using the arrow keys, I can move up,

down, left or right to correct that
error.

Use the backspace to remove a

character to the left and the delete
key to delete to the right.
Use the Caps Lock to type IN ALL
CAPS or the Shift key to capitalize
one letter.

I can use the Shift key to highlight

text and the Ctrl key to move one
word at a time.

I can use the keypad to type the

numbers quickly.

I don't need the mouse to copy and

paste because I know the keyboard
shortcuts. (what are the short cut key
for copy & paste)
Using Computer Hope, I can find any
other computer questions I have.
(What is the short cut key for find.)