What is scroll lock , pause break, prtsc sysrq, ins, end and other buttons on my laptop?

i have a laptop , use it daily but never use the following buttons , nor do i have a clue what they are for


INS


DEL


PAUSE BREAK


PRTSC SYSRQ


END


ALT GR


FN


HOME





when i press them they seem to do nothing , i dont want to sound thick but what are these keys for ? surely tey must have some use
What is scroll lock , pause break, prtsc sysrq, ins, end and other buttons on my laptop?
INS-Insert, it allows you to write over what you've already typed.


DEL-Delete. HIghlight what you've written then press it-make sure it's not important work though.


PAUSE BREAK-Not sure. Sorry.


PRTSC SYSRQ-WEll, the prtsc is print screen, I presume that's all it is. It takes a screen shot of your current screen.


END-End, takes you to the end of a line.


ALT GR-Same as Alt in some cases, others it's different.


FN-Use it as the shift button on a computer. Like for Number lock and stuff.


HOME-Home, takes you to the beginning of a line.
What is scroll lock , pause break, prtsc sysrq, ins, end and other buttons on my laptop?
INS - is insert, it will overwrite characters while in a text editor if on.


DEL - delete


Break - sends a stop command to a current process


Prtsc - Print Screen - takes a screenshot of your computer and copies it to the cache.


End - will move the cursor to the end of the line


Alt - many functions, like Control, opens the menu for one.


Fn - function, will do the action indicated in the off-color image on certain keys.


Home - moves cursor to the front of the line.





Most all the keys are actually defined by which ever program you are running, for example, when playing a video game 'e' may be to move forward, but in a text editor it enters the character 'e'.
Reply:They are partly historic and partly still usable:


INS = insert (any word processor, this will insert characters where you put the cursor; if this is off it will overtype instead)


DEL = delete (will delete characters to the right of the cursor like bakcspace will delete to the left; will also delete any text currently highlighted)


PAUSE BREAK = used to pause data coming from a mainframe computer to a terminal (still useful for stopping macros in Word or Excel or other macro-running programs)


PRTSC SYSRQ= PRTSC is Print Screen, will copy what is on your screen to the Clipboard; SYSRQ used to call the mainframe system, no longer in use


END = takes you to the end of a line in any word processor (including Yahoo text boxes) to save going blip blip blip blip with the arrow keys. Used with the CTRL key held down, will take you to the end of the whole document


HOME = the opposite of END; takes you to first character of a line, or top of document when used with CTRL key


The next two are only on laptops, which have fewer keys


ALT GR = the top row and a few other keys on a laptop have two markings on them, one lot in green or grey . Pressing this key changes those keys to act according to the coloured markings. This lets the same keys have two functions.


FN = FUNCTION, pressing this together with a number is the same as pressing Function keys on a fullsize keyboard (F1, F2, through to F12) which are often used to get help, go full-screen, switch game screens and other such extras)





You might also have a key SCROLL LOCK. This changes how the cursor afffects scrolling. In one position, arrowing down moves the cursor. In the other (it is a toggle switch) the cursor stays still and the whole page moves from the up or down arrow.


Play around with the text ones in Notepad or Wordpad to get a feel for how they work.





Cats jumping onto these keys are responsible for a fair few sudden behaviour changes in computers, as they are rarely used so the owner doesn't think to check their status.