Fn key

The symbol that is accessed through pressing Fn is often printed on the key in a smaller font, a box, or different colour (usually blue but sometimes orange).

Because the Control key is most frequently associated with OS and application shortcuts (such as Control+S to save a document, or Control+Shift+Escape to launch the Task Manager in modern versions of Microsoft Windows), altering its size and placement is often regarded as inconvenient for users accustomed to the larger left Control key on IBM PC-style keyboards commonly used for desktop computers.

Conversely, Lenovo currently arrange keyboards on their ThinkPad computers with the Fn key as the lowest-left, making Control the second-from-left on the bottom row.

IBM designers chose this arrangement at least in part because it allowed the laptop's ThinkLight to be turned on in the dark simply by feeling for the keys in two of the keyboard's corners.

This inconsistency between manufacturers, and the overall issue of Control key shrinkage, has long been a point of contention between laptop purchasers and users, which is aggravated by the fact that on most keyboards the Fn key is mapped at the hardware level and so cannot be remapped (that is, reconfigured or virtually "moved") at the OS level.

[8] Lenovo, however, have since circa 2011 allowed users to reverse the Fn and left Control key arrangement via a BIOS setting.

[10] This emulates the layout of the IBM Model F keyboard for the original IBM PC, which placed the Caps-Lock key where right Control is found on modern keyboards, a location that is favoured by some Vim and Emacs users because of its prominent location and long-time use on Unix workstations.

Fn key on a Dell Inspiron 1150 laptop
Fn key on a USB Raspberry Pi keyboard
Apple iBook compact layout (UK)
Apple iBook compact layout (UK)
Tilde Exclamation mark At sign Number sign Dollar sign Percent sign Caret Ampersand Asterisk Parenthesis Parenthesis Underscore Plus sign Backspace Backtick 1 (number) 2 (number) 3 (number) 4 (number) 5 (number) 6 (number) 7 (number) 8 (number) 9 (number) 0 Hyphen-minus Equals sign Backspace Tab key Q W E R T Y U I O P Curly bracket Curly bracket Vertical bar Tab key Q W E R T Y U I O P Square bracket Square bracket Backslash Caps lock A S D F G H J K L Colon (punctuation) Quotation mark Enter key Caps lock A S D F G H J K L Semicolon Apostrophe Enter key Shift key Z X C V B N M Bracket Bracket Question mark Shift key Shift key Z X C V B N M Comma (punctuation) Full stop Slash (punctuation) Shift key Control key Windows key Alt key Space bar Alt key thumb Menu key Control key