Computer Keyboard Key Guide

(Example of a keyboard - This is the popular QWERTY keyboard for Latin-script alphabets. The name comes from the order of the first six keys on the top left letter row of the keyboard.)

Computer Keyboard Keys

Listing of non-alphanumeric keys
Key/symbol    Explanation
 

Windows: PC keyboards have a Windows key that looks like a four-pane, wavy window.
Command: Apple Mac computers have a Command with a symbol resembling a cloverleaf.
Menu: PC keyboards also have a Menu key that looks like a cursor pointing to a menu.
Esc: Esc (escape) key.
F1 - F12: Function Keys
F13 - F24: F13 through F24 keyboard keys.
Tab: Tab key.
Caps lock: Caps lock key.
Shift: Shift key.
Ctrl: Control key.
Fn: Function key.
Alt: Alternate key (PC only; Mac users have an Option key).
Spacebar: Spacebar key.
Arrows: Up, down, left, right Arrow keys.
Back Space: Back space (or Backspace) key.
Delete: Delete or Del key.
Enter: Enter key.
Prt Scrn: Print Screen key.
Scroll Lock: Scroll Lock key.
Pause: Pause key.
Break: Break key.
Insert: Insert key.
Home: Home key.
Page up: Page up or pg up key.
Page down: Page down or pg dn key.
End: End key.
Num Lock: Num Lock key.
~: Tilde.
`: Acute, back quote, grave, grave accent, left quote, open quote, or a push.
!: Exclamation mark, exclamation point, or bang.
@: Ampersat, arobase, asperand, at, or at symbol.
#: Octothorpe, number, pound, sharp, or hash.
£: Pound Sterling or Pound symbol.
€: Euro.
$: Dollar sign or generic currency.
¢: Cent sign.
¥: Chinese/Japanese Yuan.
§: Micro or section.
%: Percent.
°: Degree.
^: Caret or circumflex.
&: Ampersand, epershand, or and symbol.
*: Asterisk, mathematical multiplication symbol, and sometimes referred to as a star.
(: Open or left parenthesis.
): Close or right parenthesis.
-: Hyphen, minus, or dash.
_: Underscore.
+: Plus.
=: Equal.
{: Open brace, squiggly brackets, or curly bracket.
}: Close brace, squiggly brackets, or curly bracket.
[: Open bracket.
]: Closed bracket.
|: Pipe, or, or vertical bar.
\: Backslash or reverse solidus.
/: Forward slash, solidus, virgule, whack, and mathematical division symbol.
:: Colon.
;: Semicolon.
": Quote, quotation mark, or inverted commas.
': Apostrophe or single quote.
<: Less than or angle brackets.
>: Greater than or angle brackets.
,: Comma.
.: Period, dot, or full stop.
?: Question mark.

Special Keyboard Keys
A special key or media key, or multimedia key is a keyboard key that performs a special function not included with the traditional 104-key keyboard. Special keys are found on keyboards often referred to as multimedia keyboards.

Some keyboards may also have special keys that perform more than one function with the use of an FN key. With the second four buttons shown in the picture above, you can see that they are the function keys F9 to F12. However, they also have orange icons that perform the special functions of controlling music. To use special keys with a dual purpose like these keys, press Fn and the special key at the same time. For example, if you wanted to press F12, you would press F12. If you wanted to skip an audio track, you would press Fn and F12 at the same time.

Note: Toggle keys, like the Print Screen and Scroll Lock, are not special keys because they are on all keyboards.

Because these keys are special, they require software and drivers that are included with the keyboard. The included software may also allow you to choose how these keys function on your keyboard. For example, if you have an e-mail special key, you may want the key to open Mozilla Thunderbird instead of Microsoft Outlook. If you have an OEM (short for Original Equipment Manufacturer) computer, such as a HP (Hewlett Packard) or Dell, the software and drivers are available on the computer manufacturer's website. In this case, visit the keyboard manufacturer's website for software and drivers.

More examples of special keys
Below is a list of some of the special keys and the functions they are intended to perform. Some keyboards also allow you to program keys to perform other various actions.

Application: Open applications, such as the calculator, Microsoft Excel, or Microsoft Word.
Audio controls: Turn up and down the volume, mute, and open a media player and control it using play, pause, and skip tracks.
Folder control: Open folders, like the My Documents folder and My Pictures folder.
Internet controls: Open Internet browser, homepage, e-mail, favorites, or search.
Window control: Show open windows, cascade windows, or switch between windows.

How many special keys are on a keyboard?
There are no computer technology standards that dictate the number of special keys to be included on a keyboard. On average, most keyboards have between 12 and 20 special keys.