Handy internet browsing skills!

(5 min read)

Given the frequency with which we interact with internet browsers such as Google Chrome, Internet Explorer or Edge, Safari and Firefox, it might be tempting to think you’re a browser-using master. In truth, very few of us are. People do not spend a lot of time in browser functionality forums so we thought we’d compile a list of absolutely handy to know skills to learn on how to optimally use your internet browser – after all – it is the tool you use to access Storman Cloud.

Some of the skills are just time saving and some are just brilliant for productivity, but are handy browser skills that’ll help you use the Internet like pro!

1. Create more space in your Storman Cloud browser window

If you need more space in your screen to see the Storman Cloud app just use the 3 bars to collapse the side menu. Click on the video below to see how it works:

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2. Zoom in or out

You can quickly zoom in or out of the content in your browser by simply holding Ctrl + scroll your mouse wheel (up for zoom in or down for zoom out),  alternatively use the keyboard with Ctrl + or – (plus key to zoom in or minus key to zoom out). I find the keys a bit more suitable and not so fast to go too far, but you can decide what works best for you.

3.Open links in their own tab

Opening links in a new tab means you can switch between 2 places or more much faster, holding the original page open while you open another in a new tab. You can have many tabs open at once!

With most browsers, right click on any element on the page, that will usually give you options to do one of the following:

Also, if you hit Ctrl and click on any link, it will always open that link a new tab.

4. Keyboard Shortcuts

Keyboard shortcuts increase your productivity in any application and can often be faster than using a mouse.

Some of us know the commands for cut (Ctrl + X), copy (Ctrl + C), and paste (Ctrl + V), but here is a few other great ones to add to your skills:

• Press Ctrl + L to automatically select and highlight the current site’s URL. It’s really useful for quickly sharing links or copying them into a new tab.
• Shift + Ctrl + T  = Reopen the last closed tab
• Shift + Ctrl + N  = Incognito Browser – this mode of Google Chrome will disregard your browsing history for that browser to a degree.

5. Restore a tab

We’ve all closed a tab by accident. It’s annoying, especially if you’d gone down an Internet-sized rabbit hole and weren’t sure what site you were even on. In the past, you’d have to navigate to your browser’s history and reload it from there, though most browsers at least now offer a “Recently Closed Tabs” list.

Did you know there is an even faster way? Just press Ctrl + Shift + T and the tab will magically reappear. You can use the shortcut multiple times to open a succession of your closed tabs.

6. Cycle between tabs

ALT + Tab is one of the most common keyboard shortcuts on Windows, it will let you flick between the various programs that are currently open.

Did you know that browsers have a similar function for cycling between you open tabs? Ctrl + Tab will move you one tab to the right, while Ctrl + Shift + Tab will move you one tab to the left.

On Chrome and Firefox you can also use Ctrl + 1-8 to jump straight to a tab, with the number used corresponding to the order of tabs on the top of your screen.

7.  Bookmark your favourites

You can create a bookmark by clicking the star in your browser’s address bar? (Highlighted below on the right).

You can also drag the lock next to the address one line below the address bar to save the site as a tab in your quick view bar next to the Apps icon. (This is highlighted below on the left.)

8. Clear the cache

“Cache” can refer to many things in computing, but in Internet terms it applies to the temporary storage of web pages and images; it helps to reduce bandwidth usage, server load, and lag. Sites can be loaded from the cache as long as certain conditions are met.

Cached files can take up a lot of bytes. While dedicated tools can help you free up disk space, they might not clear it all. We show you how to manually release storage space.

Sometimes, a cache can get corrupted. If this is the case, you can easily delete the cache and reload the proper version of the page by hitting Ctrl + Shift + R. (Also called hard refresh.)