The full-sized PC keyboard is an aircraft carrier! It's one huge boat! The PC keyboard is big because it sports a lot of keys - 105 of them, to be specific. You use pretty much all the keys, too, which means you have to be able to find them on a laptop's keyboard, and therein lies the rub. A laptop can't have a huge, honking keyboard! So designers devised sacrifices and work-arounds.
The general keyboard layout
As with a desktop keyboard, you should be able to identify the following basic items on your laptop keyboard:
- Alphanumeric, or "typewriter," keys. These keys are the basic typing keys, each of which is labeled with a character (a letter, number, or punctuation symbol). When typing on the computer, pressing a key produces its character on the screen.
- Shift keys. The keyboard sports various shift keys that you use either alone or in combination with other keys. These keys include Shift, Alt, Ctrl, and the special Windows keys, Win and Context. Also note the Esc, or Escape, key, which you can find at the beginning of the top row of keys.
- Function keys. These keys are labeled F1 through F12, and you can find them on the top row of the keyboard, right above the number keys.
- Cursor control keys. You may find these keys anywhere around the keyboard. They include the four directional arrow keys, usually found in an inverted "T" pattern, as well as the Insert (or Ins), Delete (or Del), Home, End, PgUp (or Page Up), and PgDn (or Page Down) keys.
- Numeric keypad. Check out the next section in this article to find out about the laptop's keypad.
Note that the alphanumeric keys are generally the largest, often the same size and with the same travel, or feel, that a desktop computer keyboard offers.
Some keys are small, Chiclet-sized keys. These are the less important and not often used keys, such as the function keys and the cursor control keys.
The text on some keys is color coded. That generally tells you which keys are used in conjunction with each other. For example, if the Alt key is green and the Num Lock key is green, that means that you have to use the Alt+Num Lock key combination to use Num Lock.
In Windows, the function keys have specific functions. For example, F1 is the Help key.
You use the cursor control keys to move the text cursor when editing text in Windows. You can also use them to help navigate through the Web. The keys may take on other functions in other programs, as well.
Some keys are labeled with images or icons instead of text. For example, some laptops have the Caps Lock key labeled with the letter "A" and a padlock symbol.
Where did the numeric keypad go?
The first thing the laptop designers decided to sacrifice on their keyboards was the numeric keypad. But rather than just saw off that end of the keyboard, laptops use a combination numeric keypad/alpha keyboard.
You can see this combination on your laptop by examining the 7, 8, and 9 keys. These keys are also the top three keys found on the numeric keypad. Because of this dual purpose, the right side of the alpha keyboard creates a shadow keypad, which you can see in Figure 1. The trick, of course, is knowing how to turn the thing on and off.
Figure 1: The hidden numeric keypad.
Try these steps to turn the Num Lock on or off:
1. Open a program that you can type in, such as Notepad.
You can find Notepad by choosing Start --> All Programs --> Accessories --> Notepad.
2. Type I just love Kimmy into Notepad.
3. Find the Num Lock light on your laptop's strip of lights.
The light confirms that you're in Num Lock mode and can use the embedded numeric keypad.
4. Find the Num Lock key on your laptop's keyboard.
Somewhere on your keyboard is a Num Lock key. It may be called NumLock, or NumLk, or Num, or it may even be labeled with a symbol. Locate that key.
5. Attempt to activate Num Lock.
Press the Num Lock key. If nothing happens, then try Shift+Num Lock.
If the text "Num Lock" is listed in a different color, find the matching color key, such as Alt or Fn. Then press that key in combination with Num Lock.
You're successful when the Num Lock light comes on (if your laptop has such a light). At that point, the keyboard has switched into numeric keypad mode.
6. Try to type I just love Kimmy again.
It doesn't work. You get something like: 14st 36ve 500y. That's because most of the keys on the right side of the keyboard now have their numeric keypad abilities activated. It works well for entering numbers or working a spreadsheet, but you may find it rather frustrating at other times.
7. Deactivate Num Lock.
Press whatever key combination you used to turn Num Lock on.
8. Close Notepad.
You don't need to save the document.
