I Kept Accidentally Closing All My Browser Tabs. So I Changed My Keyboard to Stop It

I've memorized all my favorite Mac shortcuts , so I typically open new tabs, copy text and paste without having to look at my keyboard. Sometimes, though, my finger slips and I hit the wrong key. And there's one instance where that mistake isn't always easy to undo.

By default, Command-W on a Mac closes the current tab in your browser. I use this shortcut often to help me manage my many, many open tabs. (Hey, I need them for emotional support .) But every now and then, my finger strikes Command-Q instead, which performs a very different function.

Command-Q closes all my windows and quits the app I'm using. Since the Q and W keys are right next to each other, I've triggered this function by mistake on multiple occasions. Imagine my horror when dozens of my Safari tabs suddenly disappear. 

I can always restart my browser or the app that I accidentally closed. But sometimes I'll find myself logged out of my bank account while I'm in the middle of filling out a form, erasing my progress. Or worse, I'll return to a Google Doc and find that my work wasn't automatically saved.

I can't stop myself from triggering the wrong key combination by mistake. But I've found an easy solution to the problem: Remap my Ctrl-Q keyboard shortcut. Here's how I did it.

How to remap your keyboard shortcuts in MacOS

Remapping is a quick way to make your keyboard shortcuts follow your own preferences. 

Maybe you're a lifelong Windows user navigating a Mac for the first time , and some of the default shortcuts don't feel intuitive. 

Or maybe you're like me, and you have a habit of mistyping certain key combinations. I fixed my Command-Q issue by assigning the shortcut to do something that doesn't interfere with my current app. 

After opening my Mac  Settings, I navigated to  Keyboard >  Keyboard Shortcuts >  Accessibility. I toggled on Invert colors. Then, I double-clicked in the key combination field and typed in Command-Q.

Voilà. Now, when I type Command-Q, all that happens is my screen's colors invert. It's a little jarring visually, but the function has no effect on the app I'm currently using. I can simply hit the same shortcut again to change colors back to normal.

You can remap key combinations or disable them to suit your workflow. In the Keyboard Shortcuts sub-menu, you'll see options to change key combinations for screenshot captures, accessibility features and more. One thing to note: You need to use the Control, Option or Command keys or a combination of those keys for any new shortcuts you want to create.

How to remap your keyboard shortcuts in Windows

Windows users can also remap their default keyboard shortcuts through a free set of system utilities called Microsoft PowerToys . If you don't already have PowerToys, you'll need to install it via the  Microsoft Store , GitHub , or a Windows package manager like Chocolatey or Scoop.

Once you have PowerToys installed, open the Settings page, go to Keyboard Managerand select Remap a keyor Remap a shortcut. 

Click the +(plus sign) to assign a new shortcut to a key or combination of keys. Then click OKto save the changes.

Your machine has many hidden keyboard shortcuts, and not all users will find them intuitive. If you're frequently mistyping a combination of keys, you don't necessarily need to unlearn the habit -- instead, you can make your machine learn yours.

CNET and Yahoo may earn commission from links in this article.