- Introduction
- Optimizing Photoshop
- Setting General Preferences
- Setting File Handling Preferences
- Setting Interface Preferences
- Changing Sync Settings Preferences
- Setting Cursors Preferences
- Controlling Transparency & Gamut Preferences
- Working with Units & Rulers
- Working with Guides, Grid & Slices
- Setting Plug-Ins Preferences
- Selecting Scratch Disks
- Allocating Memory & Image Cache
- Setting Type Preferences
- Managing Libraries with the Preset Manager
- Using and Customizing Workspaces
- Building Specialized Workspaces
- Creating a Customized User Interface
- Defining Shortcut Keys
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
Defining Shortcut Keys
A wise man once wrote “time is money,” and Photoshop is a program that can consume a lot of time. That’s why the Photoshop application uses keyboard shortcuts. Keyboard Shortcuts, as their name implies, let you perform tasks in a shorter period of time. For example, if you want to open a new document in Photoshop, you can click the File menu, and then click New, or you can abandon the mouse and press Ctrl+N (Win) or 
+N (Mac) to use shortcut keys. Using shortcut keys reduces the use of the mouse and speeds up operations. In fact, a recent study in the American Medical Journal suggested that the use of shortcut keys significantly cuts down on repetitive stress, and reduces instances of carpal tunnel syndrome. Photoshop raises the bar by not only giving you hundreds of possible shortcut keys, but also actually allowing you to define your own shortcuts.
Create a Keyboard Shortcut
Click the Edit menu, and then click Keyboard Shortcuts.
Click an arrow (left column) to expand the menu that contains the command for which you want to create a shortcut.
Select an item from the Commands list.
Use the keyboard to create the new shortcut. For example, press Ctrl+N (Win) or +N (Mac).
Click Accept.
Click OK.
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