Google Apps Hacks

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HaCK 46:

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Want to work even faster in Gmail? Consider switching from

mouse to keyboard for certain repetitive tasks.

Although browsers offer a range of default keyboard shortcuts, for quite some time it wasn’t

common for web applications to make use of their own advanced shortcuts. That was the realm

of desktop software—the kind of software that ships in a box and requires you to install it, but

that also has a traditionally much richer interface. But as time progressed, so did the richness of

web applications. Google is one of the companies stretching the limits of what’s possible in online

interfaces. Sometimes that results in longer waiting times for your application to load, or other

accessibility hurdles. At other times, it may allow you to get your work done faster . . . as is the

case with keyboard shortcuts.

What follows is an overview of the most important Gmail shortcuts, shown in Table 5-1. Before

you use them, make sure that you have shortcuts enabled. In Gmail, go to Settings, check the

“Keyboard shortcuts on” option, and click the Save Changes button. Note that in order to avoid

HaCK

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  - KNOW YOUR GMAIL KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS

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

Compose a new email message. Use Shift-c to open the current message in a

new window. Opening a new window may take a few seconds.



Reply to a message that you’ve opened. Use Shift ...