Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

jmt356
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Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by jmt356 »

Is there a keyboard shortcut to launch IE through Windows 8?
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HansV
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Re: Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by HansV »

As far as I know, there is no built-in keyboard shortcut for Internet Explorer, but you can easily create one: right-click the shortcut to Internet Explorer, select Properties from the context menu, click in the Shortcut box, then press the desired keyboard shortcut. Finally, click OK.
For apps, see Create keyboard shortcuts to open apps.
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jmt356
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Re: Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by jmt356 »

Thank you.

Surprisingly, Windows icon plus many letters (Q, W, E, R, I, etc.) were already pre-programmed, so I chose ctrl + alt + I.
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jmt356
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Re: Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by jmt356 »

Ctrl + alt + I worked the first few times but now does not do anything. Even after restarting, the shortcut remains programmed in IE's property window but is ineffective. Why?
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HansV
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Re: Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by HansV »

I have no idea. I'd clear the keyboard shortcut, then create it again. Perhaps it will "take" better...
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Rudi
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Re: Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by Rudi »

My 2 cents:
Maybe there is another app/function currently running or recently activated with a similar shortcut key, causing ambiguity?

Some extra info I came across:
See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/134552
Shortcut keys work only for shortcuts on the desktop or in the Start menu hierarchy.

Make sure that the shortcuts for which you want to use shortcut keys are on the desktop, on the Start menu, or in the Windows\Start Menu\Programs folder.

Shortcut keys work differently depending on the location of the shortcut. If the shortcut is on the desktop or in the Start menu hierarchy, you can use its shortcut key to start the assigned program, or switch to the program if it is already running.

If the shortcut is not on the desktop or in the Start menu hierarchy, you cannot use its shortcut key to start the assigned program, but you can use its shortcut key to switch to the assigned program if it is already running.

NOTE: Shortcut keys may not work for some programs. For example, shortcut keys do not work for items on the Quick Launch bar.
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Rudi

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jmt356
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Re: Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by jmt356 »

I cleared and then reset the shortcut. I have found that it now only works to launch IE if there are no current sessions open. If IE is already open, ctrl + alt + I does nothing.

I guess this keyboard shortcut does not work to open new sessions of IE. Is there a different method for programming a shortcut to open a new IE window of if IE is already running? I am already aware of ctrl + N if IE is currently the active program, but what if it's in the background? Is there still a way to launch a new IE window?
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JMT

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Re: Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by Rudi »

You could press CTRL+ALT+I, and then CTRL+N :grin:

If you have pinned IE to your taskbar (say its in the first position on the taskbar), then you can use the:
[Win]+[1] hotkey to open it (or bring it to focus) and the
[Win]+[SHIFT]+[1] hotkey to start a new session

Obviously change the number in the hotkey to correspond to the numerical position of IE on the taskbar.
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HansV
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Re: Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by HansV »

If Internet Explorer is shown in the Windows task bar, either because it is pinned there or because it is currently running, you can do the following. Let's say the Internet Explorer icon is the 3rd application icon in the task bar.

Windows key+3 will open IE if it is not running, and activate it (bring it to the front) if it is already running.
Shift+Windows key+3 will open a new instance of IE, regardless of whether IE is already running or not.

Note: Shift+Windows key+3 will *not* create a new tab in an already running instance of IE. It creates a new instance.

This works for the other icons in the task bar too (if they allow multiple instances to be run).
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Re: Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by Rudi »

HansV wrote:If Internet Explorer is shown in the Windows task bar, either because it is pinned there or because it is currently running, you can do the following. Let's say the Internet Explorer icon is the 3rd application icon in the task bar.

Windows key+3 will open IE if it is not running, and activate it (bring it to the front) if it is already running.
Shift+Windows key+3 will open a new instance of IE, regardless of whether IE is already running or not.

Note: Shift+Windows key+3 will *not* create a new tab in an already running instance of IE. It creates a new instance.

This works for the other icons in the task bar too (if they allow multiple instances to be run).
Great minds think alike... :grin:
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Rudi

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jmt356
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Re: Shortcut to launch IE in Windows 8

Post by jmt356 »

Windows key + 1, 2, 3, etc. and shift + Windows key + 1, 2, 3, etc. are brilliant and useful shortcuts--thank you.

On another note, I found that when I changed the shortcut from ctrl + alt + I to ctrl + shift + E, new sessions of IE open even if IE is running. So there must have been something about the shortcut ctrl + alt + I that Windows did not like.
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JMT