Essential Gmail and Google Apps keyboard shortcuts

Bill Detwiler: Keyboard shortcuts can save you time andreduce your dependence on the mouse.

I'm Bill Detwiler, and during this episode of TR Dojo, I'llshow some of the most useful shortcuts for Gmail and other Google Apps.

Whether you need to copy and paste text or navigate throughyour inbox, keyboard shortcuts can often make the process more efficient. Andalthough many shortcuts, like ctrl c (or command c for Mac users) are standardacross operating systems and applications, not every key combination isuniversal.

In past TR Dojo episodes, I've covered keyboard shortcutsfor Windows and Word. I've even shown you how to create custom shortcuts withthe AutoHotkey utility. Today, I'll turn my attention to three of the most widely-usedGoogle Apps. We'll cover Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Docs.

Now, there's no way I can demonstrate every shortcut forthese apps during a single TR Dojo episode, so I've picked several shortcutsthat I consider essential, for Google Apps users. At the end of the episode,I'll show you to find larger lists for each application.

Also, there are two things you need to know before usingGoogle Apps shortcuts. First, you may need to turn them on under Settingsbefore they will work. And second, some shortcuts, particularly the single keyones, will not work if the cursor is located within a text field.

With those caveats out of the way, let's start with Gmailand let's look at the inbox.

To quickly move between conversations use the j and k keys.j moves you to the next conversation, while k move you to the previous one.

To open the conversation where the pointer currently is, usethe o or Enter key.

To select, but not open a conversation, use the x key.

To compose a new message, use the c key.

To delete the selected message or messages, use the #(pound) key or Shift 3.

Along with these inbox shortcuts, Gmail has a few reallyhandy ones for working within a message. For example,

the u key will take you back to the list from which youentered the message -- such as the inbox, search results, or a label.

The Shift i and Shift U keys let you mark message read andunread respectively.

use r to reply to a message

a to reply-all

and f to forward

You can also move through a message's text fields, links,and buttons using the tab key.

With Gmail out of the way, let's look at Google Calendar.

To create an event you can use the c key to open the fullevent input screen or you can use the q key to open a quick add box.

Using the number keys 1 through 5 you can cycle through thevarious views for Day, Week, Month, 4 Days, and Agenda.

You can also you the keys j and k to moved back and forththrough each view period.

With Gmail and Calendar down, the last app on our list isGoogle's word processor--Google Docs.

While all the standard Word text shortcuts (such as Ctrl Cor Command C) work, there are several others. Just remember that OS Ten userswill need to substitute Command for Ctrl.

To moved the focus to the menu bar and access menus such asFile, Edit, and View, you can use Shift + Alt + F.

Ctrl \ (backslash) clears the formatting of the selectedtext. This is incredibly useful when you're copying and pasting text from outGoogle Docs.

Ctrl K allows you to insert an embedded hyperlink.

You can apply the various heading styles to selected text byusing Ctrl Alt and a number between 1 and 5.

Lastly, you can change a the text alignment by using CtrlShift and either L for left, E for center, or R for right.

Well, that's about all I have time for during this video,but it's only a portion of the available shortcuts.

For more, check out TechRepublic's list of 40 importantGoogle Apps keyboard shortcuts--put together by our Google in the Enterpriseblogger, Kevin Purdy. I'll link to in from the TR Dojo blog.

And as always, for more teachings on YOUR path to becomingan IT Ninja, visit trdojo.techrepublic.com, sign-up for our newsletter, orfollow me on Twitter.

Thanks for visiting the TR Dojo.