Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Lion Edition

Keyboard Differences

Mac and PC keyboards are subtly different. Making the switch involves two big adjustments: Figuring out where the special Windows keys went (like Alt and Ctrl)—and figuring out what to do with the special Macintosh keys (like and Option).

Where the Windows Keys Went

Here’s how to find the Macintosh equivalents of familiar PC keyboard keys:

• Ctrl key. The Macintosh offers a key labeled Control (or, on laptops, “ctrl”), but it isn’t the equivalent of the PC’s Ctrl key. The Mac’s Control key is primarily for helping you “right-click” things, as described earlier.

  Instead, the Macintosh equivalent of the Windows Ctrl key is the key. It’s right next to the space bar. It’s pronounced “command,” although novices can often be heard calling it the “pretzel key,” “Apple key,” or “clover key.”

  Most Windows Ctrl-key combos correspond perfectly to key sequences on the Mac. The Save command is now -S instead of Ctrl+S, Open is -O instead of Ctrl+O, and so on.

  Note

  Mac keyboard shortcuts ...