Copy and paste

Categories: Human-computer interaction

This page is about computer text editing. For rheological properties of pastes such as toothpaste or putty, see Paste (rheology).

In computing, copy-and-paste is a popular, simple method of reproducing text or other data from a source to a destination.

Copying can be performed on most graphical user interface systems using the key combinations Ctrl+C or Ctrl+Ins (the former being more widely supported), or by using some other method, such as a context menu or a toolbar button. Once data have been copied into the area of memory referred to as the clipboard, they can be pasted into a destination using the key combinations Ctrl+V or Shift+Insert, or methods dependent on the system. Macintosh computers use the key combinations Command+C and Command+V. In the X Window System, selecting text copies it to a clipboard, while middle-clicking pastes.

The popularity of this method stems from its simplicity and the ease with which data can be moved between various applications without resorting to permanent storage.

Moving is done with cut and paste.

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Copy and paste

See also