Pretty much in the title, the only time I interact with the windows key in its standard operating condition is getting pissed off that the start menu opened. I use it in other capacities such as taking screen shots and other key commands but I got to wondering if anyone, ever actually uses it to access the start menu.
Also if anyone comes here and posts “dOnT uSe wINdoWs,” you really are cute.
Edit: I am more curious if anyone actually gets utility out of its default behavior (opening the start menu). I am aware that it is used in a number of key commands (although some are new to me).
With Internet searching disabled, the start menu is decent enough as a quick launcher and so I find myself hitting the Windows key quite often for that purpose.
On Linux there are better launchers that I’m too lazy to set up so still just hit Super and use the Application Launcher to find and run programs.
Also if anyone comes here and posts “dOnT uSe wINdoWs,” you really are cute.
Don’t use windows?
🥺👉👈
You really are cute.
Yeah, 100%. I hit the windows button and immediately just continue typing the name of the program I’m looking for. It’s extremely convenient.
Windows Key + a lot of other keys are super useful shortcuts.
But I don’t even use the start menu at all. It’s rather pointless these days and also full of garbage.
Win+M minimises everything.
Win+(arrow key) moves windows around.
Win+S for screenshot.
Win+C (with PowerToys) opens a color pipette tool.
Win then type the name of the program or setting brings those results up (well, after windows has a network connection or realises it isn’t gonna get one. Which is stupid)Win+P allows you to quickly change how your windows works. Win+K brings up the menu to connect to a wireless monitor. Win+L will lock the screen. Win+R will call the “Run…” window.
KDE Plasma also inherits a lot of the shortcuts Windows has. AFAIK MATE/Cinnamon do also share some of the keybinds, but for some reason they use CTRL+ALT instead.
Also fun fact: the Windows key is also called the SUPER key.
How else would you open a program?
Yes since I use a lot of windowed fullscreen programs and it’s the easiest eay to access the taskbar when I need it.
Yes, it’s one of the most useful keys. I haven’t used file explorers for applications in forever. Hit the Windows key, type a couple letters of the program you want, hit enter.
Also you can do Win+E to open the Windows Explorer.
Sometimes it works better for tabbing out of a game than alt-tab does. Not sure why. Also it depends on the game.
In Ubuntu I use the command key as my main way to launch applications.
All the time. For shortcuts and opening programs.
Rarely used it in Windows (though my last home Windows was xp, pre-2010).
Use it often in Debian offshoot (xubuntu) to bring up the menu. {And type three or four first letters of a program to bring up}
Irony is silly.
Do you mean super key? Yea, All the time for moving Windows, opening programs, etc.
Don’t you have a Penguin sticker on yours ? It doesnt have to be a Windows logo.
Yea, I bought a penguin sticker paste it on my Windows keys.
Well once upon a time xp through 7 at least clicking start menu and starting to type the name of an app worked really well rather than resulting in some weird as web search opened in edge searching for no reason for what you had typed. I’m 100% sure there is some 3rd party launcher that still works as well as the start menu did before they ruined it. If I still used it I would probably install that.
The App menu in Cinnamon (Linux Mint) Also has the same binding and like older windows actually works well too.
Use it constantly, as others have said windows -> type is the best way to use windows, and I do the same thing on my linux machines, actually a lot of the ones I use regularly are the same or similar in KDE (can’t recall if it’s out of the box or if I configured that)
CTL+windows+arrows to swap desktops (which have been in windows for a while now and I swear no one else uses), lots of ones around those are super useful. https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/keyboard-shortcuts-in-windows-dcc61a57-8ff0-cffe-9796-cb9706c75eec for reference.
can’t recall if it’s out of the box or if I configured that
That’s out of the box. No configuration necessary. The default behaviour in Plasma when pressing the Windows key is to open the application menu where you can start typing to find what you want. In fact it’s kind of a pain to disable that, and will sometimes re-enable itself randomly as I recently found out (I prefer WIN+D to open the app menu from my i3 days, and I work in an RDP connection to a windows machine where I would prefer to be able to just press WIN to open that menu and not KDEs menu.)
I do, I prefer it as my method to escape full screen, idk why but I like it more than alt tab
Also use it for searching start menu quickly, eg; win + “settings”, enter to get to settings quickly
I use it to get to AppData folder pretty often too, win + r, “%appdata%”, enter
Also maximising windows (win + up arrow), and snapping windows left/right (and transitioning between dual screens)
Last use I can think of is to record, win + g opens the game screen thing, which has a handy record feature (win + shift + r is a quick way to instantly start recording)
