Learning the Basics

85

Using the keyboard

Character keys

Typing with the character keys is very much like typing on a typewriter, except that:

❖The space bar creates a space character instead of just passing over an area of the page.

❖The lowercase letter l (el) and the number 1 are not interchangeable.

❖The uppercase letter O and the number 0 are not interchangeable.

Making your keyboard emulate a full-size keyboard

Although your computer’s keyboard layout is compatible with a standard full-size keyboard, it has fewer keys.

Astandard full-size keyboard has two Enter, Ctrl, and Alt keys; editing keys; cursor positioning keys; and a numeric keypad. Pressing the Fn key simultaneously in combination with one of the specially marked keys allows you to emulate a full-size keyboard.

Your computer’s keyboard has only one Enter and one Ctrl key. Most of the time, this does not matter. However, some programs assign separate functions to the right and left Ctrl and Alt keys, or to the regular and numeric pad Enter keys on the full-sized keyboard. Using the Fn key, you can simulate these separate keys, as follows:

❖Press Fn and Ctrl simultaneously to simulate the Ctrl key on the right side of the enhanced keyboard.

❖Press Fn and Enter simultaneously to simulate the Enter key on the numeric pad of the enhanced keyboard.