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One of the first things new users of Chromebooks notice is that the keyboard’s Caps Lock key isn’t really a Caps Lock key. Google replaced it with a Search key on Chromebooks, which is also referred to as the Launcher key or, as of late last year, the Everything button. Why? Because a lot of people use search more often than all-capital-letter strings these days. It all makes sense since Google is quite well-known for its search capabilities.
Without a doubt, there are situations in which you may still like to express your feelings in all capitals, in which case you will need to hold down the Shift key while typing. However, things don’t have to be that way. This article explains how to use a keyboard shortcut to change the Search key to a Caps Lock key.
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Go to Settings on your Chromebook.
Step 1: Chromebook Caps Lock Switch PNG
To access the Settings menu, press the Search button one last time.
CNET’s Josh Goldman
You may access your Chromebook’s Settings menu in a few different ways. Using the Search key you want to switch functions for is, ironically, one of them. When you reach the letter O, you’ll see an option for shortcuts (I’ll discuss them in a moment) at the top, followed by an option to view the keyboard settings. Press the Search key and begin typing on the keyboard.
By clicking on the time in the bottom right corner of your screen, you can also access the Settings menu. This brings up the fast settings panel. You can access the complete options menu by clicking on the sprocket symbol at the top of the panel. From there, you can either utilize the navigation on the left side of the Settings to get directly to the Device choices or scroll down to your Device settings. Simply choose Keyboard once you’re there.
Caps Lock and more: Swap Search chromebook-caps-lock-switch-step-2.png
In Settings, you have more options than just the Search key.
CNET’s Josh Goldman
A drop-down box at the very top of the Keyboard settings allows you to modify the Search key’s function. You just need to click the drop-down menu, choose Caps Lock, and you’re done. You may now use your social media accounts or do whatever else you required a full-time Caps Lock key for without using the Search key.
You may adjust the function of the Ctrl, Alt, Esc, and Backspace keys while you’re in the Keyboard settings. You can also make a few additional adjustments that may make using your Chromebook simpler. A lengthy variety of keyboard shortcuts, including one for turning on and off caps lock, are also accessible from this page.
Take a look: Here are some reasons why a Chromebook may be your only laptop need.
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You have chosen to retain your search key, then.
Step 3: Chromebook Caps Lock Switch PNG
You may access caps lock by simply pressing the Alt key.
For good reason, Google changed the name of the Search/Launcher button to the Everything button: It gives you a lot of online and offline access. It may be used to search the web, locate a local file, launch an email in Gmail, launch programs, and much more. Keyboard shortcuts are used for many of the Search key operations. Go to Settings>Device>Keyboard>View keyboard shortcuts to see a list of them. Naturally, you can toggle on and off the caps lock there as well.
Caps lock will be activated if you press the Alt key and the Search key. When enabled, it will show up in the notification area at the bottom right of the screen as an icon with an up arrow and a line below it. Both clicking the Shift key and hitting those two keys once more will disable caps lock.
That’s it. These are the two simplest methods for activating caps lock. You now know how to get your Caps Lock key back where it belongs, but I find the Search key to be really helpful for speeding up tasks on a Chromebook.
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