A few days ago, I realized that Gmail has the best keyboard UI among all of the Google products. Its keyboard amenability is a highly desirable feature among users who like performing tasks without frequently switching over to the mouse.
So today I was telling a friend about this, and about how even Google Web Search does not have such a keyboard-friendly interface. I opened a Google Web Search window to demonstrate how one couldn't navigate up and down the searches with "j" and "k", and how one could not open a search result with "o". But then I thought maybe it was navigable with arrow keys. So I tried it, and sure enough, it works!!! Steps here:
- Search for something on Google.
- Press [TAB] to remove focus from the main search text box.
- Press [UP] and [DOWN] to move up and down the search results!
- Press [ENTER] to open that search result! This also replaces your current browser tab. OR...
- Press [Command]-[ENTER] to open the search result on a new tab! I imagine it works with [Ctrl]-[ENTER] on Windows machines.
Now I'm curious to see what other Google products I can find keyboard shortcuts for. I've noticed Google Play is notoriously lacking in these, but maybe YouTube and Maps have matured to the point of keyboard interactivity.
And... ENJOY!!
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