Function key

A function key is a key on a computer or terminal keyboard which can be programmed so as to cause an operating
system command interpreter or application program to perform certain actions. On some keyboards/computers,
function keys may have default actions, accessible on power-on.
Function keys on a terminal may either generate short fixed sequences of characters, often beginning with the escape
character (ASCII 27), or the characters they generate may be configured by sending special character sequences to
the terminal. On a standard computer keyboard, the function keys may generate a fixed, single byte code, outside the
normal ASCII range, which is translated into some other configurable sequence by the keyboard device driver or
interpreted directly by the application program. Function keys may have (abbreviations of) default actions printed
on/besides them, or they may have the more common "F-number" designations.

Enter key
On computer keyboards, the enter key (or the return key on Macs
[1]
and mostSun Workstations
[2]
) in most cases
causes a command line, window form, or dialog box to operate its default function. This is typically to finish an "entry"
and begin the desired process, and is usually an alternative to pressing an OK button.
The "return" key is often also referred to by many American groups
[who?]
(and even marked) as the "enter" key, and
they usually perform identical functions; however in some particular applications (mainly page layout, word
processing and intypewriting), "return" operates specifically like the carriage return key from which it originates. It
typically has an arrow pointing down and left ( or ), which is the symbol for carriage return. In contrast, the "Enter"
key is commonly labelled with its name in plain text on generic PC keyboards, or with the symbol (U+2324 UP
ARROWHEAD BETWEEN TWO HORIZONTAL BARS) on many Apple Mac keyboards.
[3]
)
The enter key is typically located on the lower right of the numeric keypad, and the return/enter key on the right edge
of the main alphanumeric portion of the keyboard, between backspace and the right-hand shift (and/or control) key (as
well as below the backslash key on keyboards using a standard ANSI / US-International layout).


Shift key
The shift key is a modifier key on a keyboard, used to type capital letters and other alternate "upper" characters.
There are typically two shift keys, on the left and right sides of the row below the home row. The shift key's name
originated from thetypewriter, where one had to press and hold the button to shift up the case stamp to change to
capital letters; the shift key was first used in the Remington No. 2 Type-Writer of 1878; the No. 1 model was capital-
only.
[1]

On the US layout and similar keyboard layouts, characters that typically require the use of the shift key include
the parentheses, the question mark, the exclamation point, and the colon.
When the caps lock key is engaged, the shift key can be used to type lowercase letters on many operating systems,
but not Mac OS X.

Backspace
Backspace is the keyboard key that originally pushed the typewriter carriage one position backwards, and in modern
computer systems moves the display cursor one position backwards,
[note 1]
deletes the character at that position, and
shifts back the text after that position by one position.

Space bar
The space bar, spacebar, blank or space key,
[1]
is a key on a typewriter oralphanumeric keyboard in the form of a
horizontal bar in the lowermost row, significantly wider than other keys. Its main purpose is to conveniently enter
a space, e.g., between words during typing.
A typical space bar key is large enough so that a thumb from either hand can use it, and is almost always found on the
bottom row of standard QWERTY or Dvorakkeyboard layouts.


Caps lock
Caps Lock is a lock key found on many computer keyboards, depending on the local keyboard layout they implement.
It is located in the position of a similar Shift lock key (and sometimes a Ctrl key) found in some other keyboard layouts.
The actual Caps Lock behaviour depends on the operating system and driver as well as the chosen local keyboard
layout. On non-IBM compatible computers it may also depend on the keyboard hardware itself.


Num lock
Num Lock or "Number Lock" () is a key on the numeric keypad of most computer keyboards. It is a lock key,
like Caps Lock and Scroll Lock. Its state (on or off) affects the function of some of the keys, and is commonly
displayed by an LEDbuilt into the keyboard.
The Num Lock key exists because earlier 84-key IBM PC keyboards did not have arrows separate from the numeric
keypad. Num Lock would be used to choose between the two functions. On some laptop computers, the Num Lock
key is used to convert part of the main keyboard to act as a (slightly skewed) numeric keypad rather than letters. On
some laptop computers, the Num Lock key is absent and replaced by the use of a key combination.

Arrow keys (Cursor Control Keys)
Cursor movement keys or arrow keys are buttons on a computer keyboard that are either programmed or
designated to move the cursor in a specified direction.
[1]
The term "cursor movement key" is distinct from "arrow key"
in that the former term may refer to any of various keys on a computer keyboard designated for cursor movement,
whereas "arrow keys" generally refers to one of four specific keys, typically marked with arrows.
[2]


Delete key
When struck on a computer keyboard during text or command editing, the delete
key ( Delete or Del , known less ambiguously as forward delete) discards the character ahead of
thecursor's position, moving all following characters one position "back" towards the freed
letterspace. The key appears on IBM-compatible PC keyboards labeled as 'Delete' or 'Del'. On
some Mac keyboards, the key that performs the forward delete function is labeled 'del',
[1]
or
with a special right arrow glyph enclosing an 'x' with the word del or delete above or to the left
of it,
[2]
since the full word delete by itself is reserved for labelling the key known on other
keyboards as Backspace.



Tab key
Tab key (abbreviation of tabulator key
[1]
or tabular key
[2]
) on a keyboard is used to advance
the cursor to the next tab stop.
The word tab derives from the word tabulate, which means "to arrange data in a tabular, or
table, form." When a person wanted to type a table (of numbers or text) on a typewriter, there
was a lot of time-consuming and repetitive use of the space bar and backspace key. To
simplify this, a horizontal bar was placed in the mechanism with a moveable lever stop for
every position across the page, called a tab stop. Initially these were set by hand, but later tab
set and tab clear keys were added. When the tab key was depressed, the carriage advanced
to the next tab stop. These were set to correspond to the particular column locations of the
table, hence tab, being worked on.