Shortcut Keys

Note

The Shortcut Keys preferences application has been removed following the switch to KWin, which comes with kglobalaccel. This area still needs work.

The Shortcut Keys preferences application lets you view and edit system-wide keyboard shortcuts.

Note

The left Ctrl and Alt keys are swapped in helloSystem by default to make shortcuts feel welcoming to switchers coming from the Mac.

A shortcut is a key or key combination you can press to invoke a defined action on your computer. Shortcuts can be defined by applications (per-application shortcuts), or can affect the whole system (system-wide shortcuts).

Note

The Shortcut Keys preferences application lets you view and edit system-wide keyboard shortcuts only, not per-application shortcuts. Some applications contain similar functionality inside the respective application to view and edit per-application keyboard shortcuts.

The ⌘ key

The ⌘ key, also known as Command, is the key left to the spacebar on helloSystem, unless you have configured your system differently.

Note

Non-native software may refer to the Command key as “Ctrl”. This is a known cosmetic issue.

Default shortcuts

Open the Shortcut Keys preferences application to view the default system-wide shortcuts.

Notable default shortcuts include:

  • Press ⌘ + Space to search in the Menu (e.g., to launch applications or to execute commands in the frontmost application)

  • Press Ctrl + ⌘ + Esc and click on an application window to forcefully quit an application that is malfunctioning

  • Press ⌘ + ⇧ + 3 or the PrtScn key on your keyboard to take a screenshot

  • Press ⌘ + ⇧ + H to go to the Home folder

  • Press ⌘ + ⇧ + A to go to the Applications folder

  • Press ⌘ + ⇧ + U to go to the Utilities folder

  • Press Ctrl + ⌘ + T to open a Terminal

  • Press Ctrl + ⌘ + I to open the internet browser

This list is not exhaustive.

Viewing shortcuts

For a complete list of system-wide shortcuts, please open the Shortcut Keys preferences application to view the default shortcuts.

Editing shortcuts

Use the buttons in the Shortcut Keys preferences application to add, remove, and modify system-wide shortcuts.