Some people might say that copy/paste is the easiest thing in computing, but there are still many people who don’t know how to do it or at least, how to do it conveniently. Copy/paste is basically a process of making a “copy” of a content such as Text, Image, File or Folder, and move it to another area without tempering with the original Content.
All platforms come with the ability to copy and paste and make it quite easy to do it as well. You can easily copy almost anything, including Text, Files, Folders and even text within an Image! In this Tutorial, we are going to show you different methods to copy and paste in Windows, Android and iOS. Links to Android and iOS solutions down the page.
Copy and Paste in Windows
Windows provides the most control over the copy and pasting feature, you can copy/paste via different methods and can even copy/paste Folders and Files, unlike Android or iOS. All you have to do is highlight the text or File and copy/paste it using any method you like mentioned below.
Highlight the Content
Before going deep into how to copy and paste content, you first need to know how to highlight the content in order to copy it. To highlight text anywhere, whether it is a MS Word document or Text on a webpage and even PDF files, even though they are hard to edit, just click and hold at the start of the text and then move your mouse to highlight the area. Highlight all the area which you would like to copy and release the click, this will highlight all the specified area.
To highlight files and folders, just click once on a file or folder and it will be highlighted. If you need to highlight multiple files/folders, press and hold “Ctrl Key” and then click each file/folder which you would like to highlight and when you are done, release the “Ctrl Key”.
You can also Highlight all the text or Files/Folder at once with a simple keyboard shortcut. Just Press Ctrl+A keys on the area which you would like to highlight all and it will be highlighted. This will highlight everything, this means if you are on a webpage, it will highlight all the content on the page including menus and buttons.
Method #1: Copy/Paste Content Using the Context Menu
Now, the most basic method of copy/pasting is from the context menu. Once you have highlighted the content like we have shown above, right-click on the “Highlighted” content to open the context menu. From the context menu, click on “Copy” and your text will be copied.
Although, there will be no direct confirmation that it has been copied, you will just have to trust that it is copied.
Go to the area where you would like to paste the content and right click on a blank area. If it is text, you will have to move your cursor to the exact area where you would like to paste the text and then Right click. This will open a context menu, just click on “Paste” in there and the content will be pasted.
If the “Paste” option is not available, then it means the content was not copied and you will have to try again.
Method #2: Copy/Paste Content Using Keyboard Shortcuts
You can also copy/paste content using the keyboard shortcuts. They are faster to use and convenient in many situations. Once the content is highlighted, press Ctrl+C and that’s it, all the highlighted content will be Copied.
Now, just go to the area where you would like to paste the content and press Ctrl+V. This will paste all the content in the specific area. However, if the content is “Text” then you will have to first “Click” on the exact area where you would like to paste the text and then press Ctrl+V.
Method #3: Drag and Drop Content to Copy/Paste
You can also drag and drop content from one area to another and it will be copied. However, this method may not work in all situation, unlike the above two methods. In such situations, you will have to use the above two methods.
Drag and Drop Text
Highlight the area which you would like to copy and make sure the area where you would like to paste is opened in the “Taskbar” or in a tab. Now, left click and hold to grab the text, you should be able to drag the text freely.
Move the text to the area where you would like to paste. If it is in another tab or minimized to “Taskbar” move it over it and the area will open up. Just leave the text where you would like to paste it and it will be copied there without changing the original text.
Drag and Drop Files and Folders
You can drag and drop files and folders to a drive or another folder and it will be copied there. However, you will have to open the drive or folder first where you would like to paste and minimize it in the “Taskbar” or make sure both File/folder and destination folder are located next to each other.
Before dragging, press and hold the “Ctrl Key”, and then click and hold on the File/folder to grab and drag it freely. Pressing “Ctrl Key” will copy the file/folder, otherwise, the original file/folder will be grabbed and moved.
Now, move the file/folder over the Destination folder and leave to paste it there.
If the destination folder is not located next to the copied file/folder and it is minimized in the “Taskbar”, then drag it to the “Taskbar” icon and the destination folder will open up, leave it there and it will be pasted.
Copy and Paste in Android
Android doesn’t actually provide as many options to copy/paste as Windows does, but it gets the job done perfectly. All you have to do is open the text which you would like to copy and tap and hold on it.
This will open up some new options and two adjustable bars, which you can use to highlight text. Move both bars by tapping and dragging across the screen to highlight all the area which you would like to copy.
Once highlighted, tap on “Copy” located at the top of it. If “Copy” option is not available, then you should see an icon of Two pages (this is the copy button), tap on it to copy the highlighted text.
Now, move to the area where you would like to paste the text (area must be editable) and tap and hold. After a short delay, you will see the option of “Paste”, tap it to paste the text in the desired area.
Here is a Video as well:
Copy and Paste in iOS
The process of Copy/Paste is same in iOS just like it is in Android, and like Android it doesn’t offer many Copy/Paste options as well.
Just tap and hold on the text which you would like to copy, and after a short delay you will see two adjustable bars and “Copy” option above it.
Move the bars to highlight the required text and when you are done, Click on “Copy” and the text will be copied.
Now, move to the area where you would like to copy the text (it must be an area where you could actually type) and tap and hold. You will see the option of “Paste” after a short delay, just click on it and all the text will be pasted.
Here is a Video showing how you can Copy/Paste on an iOS device:
If you have any questions or would like to add further information, let us know in the comments below.