what’s this secret shortcut that unlocks all hidden keyboard shortcuts? Shift + /. Or, of course, ?.
This button combo is your ticket to see the hidden list of keyboard shortcuts for your favorite websites. I first stumbled upon it while browsing YouTube: Somehow, I accidentally hit Shift + /, and, all of a sudden, I was presented with this complete collection of keyboard shortcuts for the site. Many of these shortcuts I already knew, as you might already know: K plays and pauses a video, J and L rewinds and fast forwards, respectively. However, other shortcuts might come as a surprise: You can rewind and fast forward frame-by-frame using , and . while paused. You can also slow down or speed up playback speed using < and > (Shift + ,) and (Shift + .).
It’s worth scanning the full list to see if any of these keyboard shortcuts are new to you, and whether some of them might actually be helpful during your next YouTube binge. As someone who takes screenshots on YouTube as part of his job, the frame-by-frame scanning is particularly useful.
Screenshot: Jake Peterson
Many websites hide their keyboard shortcuts from users, too
It’s not just YouTube: Other popular websites you use every day hide keyboard shortcuts behind Shift + /. Twitter, for example, taught me that g + m launches DMs, while u and x can mute and block an account, respectively. Facebook also has a list of keyboard shortcuts: You might know that L likes a post, but did you know you can use / to search Facebook, or that you can pin keyboard shortcuts to the bottom right corner of the window that change depending on what you’re doing? That’s the most helpful option I’ve seen so far.
