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In computing, a modifier key is a special key (or combination) on a computer keyboard that temporarily modifies the normal action of another key when pressed together. By themselves, modifier keys usually do nothing; that is, pressing any of the ⇧ Shift, Alt, or Ctrl keys alone does not (generally) trigger any action from the computer.
Most keyboard shortcuts require the user to press a single key or a sequence of keys one after the other. Other keyboard shortcuts require pressing and holding several keys simultaneously (indicated in the tables below by the + sign). Keyboard shortcuts may depend on the keyboard layout.
Thus, the Alt key is a modifier key, used in a similar fashion to the Shift key. For example, simply pressing A will type the letter 'a', but holding down the Alt key while pressing A will cause the computer to perform an Alt+A function, which varies from program to program. The international standard ISO/IEC 9995-2 calls it Alternate key.
A Control key (marked "Ctrl") on a Windows keyboard next to one style of a Windows key, followed in turn by an Alt key The rarely used ISO keyboard symbol for "Control". In computing, a Control keyCtrl is a modifier key which, when pressed in conjunction with another key, performs a special operation (for example, Ctrl+C).
IBM states that AltGr is an abbreviation for alternate graphic. [3] [4]Sun Microsystems keyboard, which labels the key as Alt Graph. A key labelled with some variation of "Alt Graphic" was on many computer keyboards before the Windows international layouts.
A common test for whether the computer has crashed is pressing the "caps lock" key. The keyboard sends the key code to the keyboard driver running in the main computer; if the main computer is operating, it commands the light to turn on. All the other indicator lights work in a similar way.
Flexible keyboards are a junction between normal type and laptop type keyboards: normal from the full arrangement of keys, and laptop from the short key distance. Additionally, the flexibility allows the user to fold/roll the keyboard for better storage and transfer. However, for typing the keyboard must be resting on a hard surface.
A typical 105-key computer keyboard, consisting of sections with different types of keys. A computer keyboard consists of alphanumeric or character keys for typing, modifier keys for altering the functions of other keys, [1] navigation keys for moving the text cursor on the screen, function keys and system command keys—such as Esc and Break—for special actions, and often a numeric keypad ...