What is a Scroll Lock on a Keyboard?

On standard computer keyboards in the upper right corner, next to the block of numbers, there are 3 LED indicators. They turn on and off with the same buttons. And if everything is clear with Caps Lock and Num Lock, then the third element is more mysterious. Why a key is needed and what it means will be discussed in the article.

Features of the Scroll Lock key on the keyboard

The name of the key is associated with the concept of "scrolling", that is, scrolling pages when reading in a browser or text editor. However, Scroll Lock is practically not used by modern users. Where did it come from, what does it do and why is it needed?

Button History

The presence of Scroll Lock on the keyboard is a legacy of the harsh era of text-based operating systems. They were used before Windows became the digital standard for offices and home PCs. The user performed operations using special commands. The results were displayed in the form of arrays, and by default the machine showed the entire block, to the very last line. If all the information did not fit the screen, the image automatically scrolled down.

The top lines disappeared from the field of view, below all the new data arrived - and so on until the operation was completed. To make life easier for the user, who was forced to return to the beginning of the text block with large volumes, the creators came up with the Scroll Lock button, which could stop this automatic scrolling. Pressing it again started this process again. Cap Lock works in a similar way, which allows you to change the case of letters.

Reference! The advent of a graphical interface and a device such as a computer mouse has greatly simplified the work. However, for Scroll Lock came up with a new appointment.

Scroll Lock Key Functionality

How can I apply this key in modern programs?

Important! It should immediately be noted that its use is possible only in the Windows system. For most Linux-based operating systems, it is useless.

The application method most known to the average user is associated with the Microsoft Excel spreadsheet editor. Here, this button performs the function of a switch between navigation modes. In the normal state, the cursor buttons move the selection in the selected direction. If you click Scroll Lock, the selection will remain on the desired cell, and the sheet itself will shift. This feature is also valid in many other table creation programs.

In the Opera browser, this button is included in the combination for executing voice commands. However, this feature has not gained popularity among ordinary users.

In the useful service program Punto Switcher, pressing this key together with the Alt button allows you to turn Cyrillic text into transliteration.

In older versions of Windows, this button was part of the restart restart combination, an alternative to the well-known Ctrl + Alt + Del. The latter took root faster, so over time it became the only option.

Attention! Some game developers include Scroll Lock in special key combinations. In this case, it allows you to expand the list of commands.

In addition to standard functions, each user is able to come up with their own work for this key. In most programs, you can independently set combinations for certain actions. In addition, an interesting feature is the ability to use not only the button itself, but also the indicator associated with it.

Now it’s clear what this button means. With all of the above, the lion's share of the functionality of Scroll Lock was taken away by computer mice with a special scroll wheel. Now this button is a bit of a thing of the past, keyboard models are on sale for which it can no longer be found.