The keyboard shortcuts I use most in my genealogy research

There are certain keyboard shortcuts I use all the time when I’m doing genealogy research. They save time and effort. I bet you’re using some, if not all, of them too. The list below is Mac-specific, but the ⌘ key (the Command key on a Mac) is the same as the Control key in Windows in most of the browser and text functions described below. I thought I’d share them here in case they’re helpful. I figure everyone can use some time-saving tips!

In Finder:

⌘-D: Duplicates the selected file

⌘-delete: Deletes the selected file without having to confirm

⌘-I: Opens the Get Info window, giving me a backend look at the selected file. (This is where I paste the source citation I’ve created for this document, in the Comments section. See step 5 of this post for more information on that.)

Spacebar: Uses Quick Look to preview the selected file

⌘-N: Opens a new finder window (very handy when you want to drag a file into another folder)

In a browser:

⌘-T: Opens a new browser tab

⌘-N: Opens a new browser window

⌘-F: Find text

When dealing with text (in Pages or Reunion or elsewhere):

⌘-C: Copies the selected text

⌘-X: Cuts the selected text

⌘-V: Pastes the selected text

⌘-B: Bolds the selected text

⌘-I: Italicizes the selected text

⌘-Z: Undoes the last command (on a Windows computer, it’s Ctrl-Y)

Shift-⌘-Z: Redo the last undone command

⌘-K: Opens a pop-up window to add a link to the selected text

fn-delete: Deletes one character to the right

I think I used half of these while writing this post! If I’ve missed any favorites, please share in the comments.