Chromebook Basics

Unlike the standard computers where you have the Caps Lock, Delete, and Function Row keys, etc., Chromebooks often lack such keys and instead includes other buttons that are not common in PC or Mac.

So how do you go about turning the caps lock on and off? Here a breakdown of how to go about it.

Method 1: Using ‘Search’ Key button

Simply press the Alt + Search keys on the keyboard. You will see a pop-up notification alert at the bottom right corner bar, showing a notification that the CAPS LOCK has been turned on.

To turn off the CAPS LOCK, press the Alt + Search again. Alternatively, you can press the Shift key button.

Method 2: Using a Shortcut Key

You can also set a specified key on the keyboard to function as a Caps Lock. Here is the step by step process:

Head over to the bottom right corner where your Google profile picture is.

At the notification bar, click on Settings then locate Device.

Proceed to click on the keyboard settings and then the Caps lock.

Next, click the drop-down menu and select the key of choice to set as the default Caps Lock Key on your Chromebook’s keyboard.

Once you find your default key, click OK and your shortcut key is set instantly.

Tips: when choosing a default key, select one that you do not use often.

With this method, you will first need to highlight the text/content you want to copy using a touchpad. The next step is to press the Ctrl+ C keys at the same time to copy the text.

Then, navigate to the section within the document where you want to insert your content. Position the cursor and press Ctrl + V keys at the same time to paste your content.

The initial step is to hover the cursor over the video. Then, right-click anywhere on the video or in case you are using a touchpad, tap with two fingers at the same time.

Proceed to copy your video by clicking on the copy video URL or copy embedded code on the launch menu. Either of these methods works the same way. However, the URL is ideal for pasting videos in a chat stream.

Locate where you want to paste your image and position the cursor. Then, press the Ctrl + V key buttons at the same time to paste the image.

A bookmark is a great tool that allows you to tag pages that you would want to revisit at a later time and go back to where you left off. It also allows you to track significant sources for research purposes.

Creating bookmarks is an easy task, and within no time, you will find that the bookmark bar or manager is full of bookmarked pages. When bookmarking, remember that the bookmarks do take up space on your Chromebook.

It’s time to free up some space on your hard drive by deleting the bookmarks. So how do you go about this?

Using a bookmark manager:

Open your chrome browser and then click on More at the top right end.

Proceed to select the bookmark and then bookmark manager.

The next step is to delete each unwanted bookmark single-handedly or multiple bookmarks at the same time in a folder.

You achieve this by right-clicking a specific bookmark or folder and then clicking delete.

The invest colors feature has the following benefits:

Reducing glare and hence relieving migraine-related symptoms.

Less strain on your eyes hence preventing associated medical conditions, especially on the eyes.

Inverted colors provide a clear contrast of screen background, images, and text. As such, visually impaired persons will find it easier to use a Chromebook with an inverted color screen compared to non-inverted one.

So, how do you invert colors on your Chromebook?

Using the high contrast mode:

Locate and click on your Google account picture. A new window will open, and it contains all the settings you will need.

Find the settings tab, click on it and proceed to the advanced settings.

Scroll down until you find Accessibility settings.

Just below the display section, you will find the “UseHigh Contrast Mode” option.

Turn on the switch beside it.

You will notice the change in the screen color immediately.

If it works, close the window by pressing Ctrl+W or click the Xclose button.

Alternative method

Alternatively, if the above process does not work, proceed to try this other method:

Simply press Ctrl + Search + H at the same time to achieve an inverted color scheme.

This works especially for Chromebooks with a Search key button.

Using shortcut keys:

Perhaps this is the simplest of them all.

Just press Ctrl+ Shift+ Refresh key buttons on the keyboard to rotate the keyboard to 90 degrees.

If you wish to rotate further, press again the Ctrl + Shift + Refresh buttons for another 90-degree turn until you achieve your desired screen orientation.

Using Chromebook settings:

Head over to the Chromebook settings icon.

Click on display, then orientation.

The next step is to choose your preferred orientation from a list of Standard, 90, 180 and 270.

To speed up Chromebook, free up the RAM by monitoring both the cog monitor system as well as the task manager. The cog system gives you an overview of what’s happening on your system.

On the other hand, check its task manager for any application that may be eating too much of your system’s resources. To do this, locate your chrome menu button, then click on more tools then task manager.

You will find that analyzing your task manager is a simple process. Check the memory usage, CPU usage, and others. Then, identify the extensions or applications that eat up the device’s hard drive memory.

In the same way, some chrome apps and extensions may consume a large amount of the device’s CPU.

To shut off such apps, you only need to click on the application and end the process.

Delete unused document files

It is a fact that Chromebooks have limited storage space in their hard drive. Therefore, keeping lots of document files in the hard drive fills up space quickly. Consequently, this slows down your Chromebook’s processing system.

To delete such files, just hover to download menu and you will find all your stored files. Select the files you do not need and delete to free up space.

An alternative option is to back up your files in an external SD card, USB drive or Google drive. In addition, you can set your external memory as the default storage to avoid the internal memory filling up so fast.

Delete unused extensions and apps

Going through your Chromebook laptop, you will be surprised at the many unused apps and old extensions that eat up your system resources in the background.

To get rid of such apps, head over and click on your menu button, find more tools and then extensions.

Scroll through the list of installed applications and extensions. Choose the ones that you don’t need, click on each of them and remove.

Powerwash Chromebook

Power-washing your Chromebook is advisable in case the above solutions haven’t worked.

Powerwash cleans up your Chromebook entirely but keeps the extensions and apps synced. Therefore, it is advisable to delete old extensions and apps before embarking on the powerwash process.

Powerwash works as follows: Locate your Chrome OS settings menu, click on the advanced button right at the bottom, and scroll down to the reset settings. Once there, click on the Powerwash to restart your Chromebook.

Locate the text or content you want to copy, either in a Google document file, email or a web-page.

The next step is to left-click at the edge of the text and drag the cursor so as to highlight the entire content to be copied.

Once highlighted, right-click anywhere on the selected text to bring in the context menu. If you are using a touchpad, hold the Alt key as you click on the touchpad. Alternatively, click the touchpad with your two fingers at the same time. If you are using a mouse, you only need to click the right-hand button.

Once the context menu pops out, click on the paste menu to insert the copied content to the desired location.

Highlight the text that you want to copy using a touchpad.

Click on the Google Chrome menu bar at the top-right corner of the Chromebook’s window to bring up the context menu.

Click on the copy menu.

Then, hover to the location you want to paste your copied content and locate the cursor.

The next step is to right-click the menu command at the top-right of the windows.

Click on the paste menu and your copied content will be pasted.

Using the traditional method

This method is a time-saver, and it works pretty well especially when selecting an entire document in a webpage or Google Docs file.

To do this, select the entire document by pressing the Ctrl+A buttons at the same time.

Then, copy the highlighted text by right-clicking the context menu or pressing the Ctrl + C buttons. However, note that with this method you will copy everything including the buttons, objects, and headers.

A new Chromebook is fast, and you will likely enjoy seamlessly fast speed when navigating through the various functions.

However, with continued use of the machine, it will start to slow down. That should not scare you! This is a normal occurrence, and it can result from the following factors or functions:

Document Files

Since Chromebook has limited space, downloading and storing lots of document files in its local space slows down its processing system.

Heavy web

With the continuous changes in technology, the web must also adapt to these changes. The powerful web is continuously growing and as such exerting pressure on the Chromebook’s system to work hard to render web pages.

Therefore, for older Chromebooks, this can become problematic hence the system slow.

Extensions

While chrome extensions make your browsing, downloading, and general functions easier, having too many extensions slows down your Chromebook.

Therefore, it is advisable to stick to a few must-have extensions such as Ad Block, Great Suspender, Save to Pocket, OneTab, etc.

Applications

Just like extensions, too many chrome applications slow your machine. These applications take up a lot of space on the hard disk, and this will affect the speed of the computer. Therefore, stick to basic applications.

But hey, don’t give up yet!

There are numerous solutions to counter the slow processing speeds of your Chromebook.

While the Chromebook features a default screen that is correctly sized, at times you may want to have a clear view of a page or even the entire desktop.

So how do you go about it?

How to zoom in, on a single page

Magnifying a single page is a straightforward process. Zooming in magnifies the page by say 10 percent and if you desire to zoom in further, the magnification rises to 25, 50 up to 100%.

There are two ways that you can use to zoom in your page. The first one entails having your two fingers positioned on the Chromebook’s trackpad. Then, move the fingers apart from each other until you achieve your desired magnification.

On the other hand, you can zoom in using the key buttons. It involves pressing the Ctrl+ plus (+) buttons at the same time. If you wish to further magnify the page, all you have to do is to continue pressing the Ctrl + Plus (+) keys until you achieve the right magnification for you.

Remember, a Chromebook basics allows magnification of up to 500 percent.

How to zoom in entire desktop 

Chromebook also allows you to zoom the entire desktop with ease. This is done by adjusting the display resolution using the key buttons or even the touchscreen.

When using the keys, you will need to press and hold the Ctrl + Shift buttons first without releasing them. The second step is to press the Plus (+) button to zoom in the entire desktop.

Press the Plus(+) button again until you achieve your desired magnification, then you can release the Ctrl + Shift keys.

Note that to reduce the zoom level, press Ctrl + Shift then Minus (-). On the other hand, if you would like to reset the zoom level, just press Ctrl + Shift then (O).

For the touchscreen, you can zoom in using your thumb and index finger by placing both on the screen as you spread them apart. You can also use the two fingers together to zoom out.

How to zoom in using the screen magnification tool.

Chromebooks feature a screen magnification tool that allows users to adjust the default size of specific portions of the screen. Zooming in using this tool is an easy process.

The first step is to press the keys Alt + Shift + S, and click on the hamburger menu. Then, select Advanced, then Accessibility, Manage accessibility features, and Enable dock magnifier. Proceed to the docked zoom level to adjust to your desired zoom level.

To turn off the magnification tool, go back and click the Enable dock magnifier.