I'm trying to communicate over text the Windows keyboard shortcuts. For the ones that use the Windows key, I don't want to type "Windows key +" each time.
Is there a unicode character for the Windows key?
asked Sep 4, 2017 at 21:09
7 Answers
For non-techies on Facebook, use workaround seen on Wikipedia: ⊞ Win.
Since you want to display the character on the Facebook where you have no control over fonts and there is no such character in Unicode at the moment, you can use mathematical operator Squared Plus (code point 229E) to imitate Windows logo as Wikipedia does in article on Windows key and in other keyboard-related articles.
Excerpt from the article:
⊞ Win opens the Start Menu
⊞ Win+D shows the desktop (hiding even non-minimizable windows), or restores hidden windows when pressed a second time.
⊞ Win+Tab ↹ cycles through taskbar buttons. This key combination is reassigned in Windows Vista.
I am doing it that way.
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9Tip: The Unicode name for ⊞ is
SQUARED PLUS, and it's intended to be used in math equations for example. Commented Feb 28, 2019 at 2:37 -
4FYI a website used your answer and the others below without giving you credit: Is there a unicode character for the Windows key? I emailed the website to let them know they didn't give you credit. Commented Dec 12, 2021 at 22:22
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2@WinEunuuchs2Unix Looks like that website is violating both of the key terms of CC BY-SA 4.0 - they're not giving attribution, and they have placed a copyright notice on the page, with no reference to the CC BY-SA license. I'd imaging the site probably has committed more such violations than just this one. I wonder if there's a way to alert SE of this so they can issue a cease-and-desist? Commented Jun 9, 2022 at 19:38
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You have two options: you can use the character available in the Marlett icon font, which is the font that Windows itself uses to draw its icons, and is therefore the most authentic way to render the symbol, or you can use Win to symbolise the key.
Win is the most commonly-used due to its convenience, especially inside of the industry, but since you say your audience is likely to be technologically illiterate, it would be more safe to go for the former and render the actual symbol like Windows does.
Using the Marlett Windows symbol in Microsoft Word
If you're using MS Word, you can insert the icon directly into your document.
Click the Insert tab.
Click the Symbol button.
Select the Marlett font by typing it in or selecting it in the dropdown.
- In the Character code field, type 87, then press Insert.
Using the Marlett Windows symbol in other applications
If you're using something other than Word, you can use Windows' native Character Map to copy the icon to the clipboard and then directly into the program you're using.
Search for the Character Map in the Start menu's search bar. Once it's open, select the Marlett font from the dropdown. In case you don't notice the Windows key instantly, search for a character code of 0x57.
answered Sep 4, 2017 at 22:18
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5"there are no Unicodes for modifier keys" is false though. As for standard representations in print and as seen on menus, Shift has ⇧ (U+21E7 upwards white arrow), Control/Ctrl has ⌃ (U+2303 up arrowhead), Alt/Option has ⌥ (U+2325 option key). Additionally macOS's command key has ⌘ (U+2318 place of interest sign). The Windows key seems almost unique in not having a good code point to stand in for it. (The Apple key too, but that's long gone.)– HakanaiCommented Nov 3, 2019 at 6:59
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3IIRC unicode have a policy of not allocating codepoints for trademarked symbols and this is why neither the windows or apple logos are in, despite their (historic and current) use on keyboards and in vendor fonts.– plugwashCommented Nov 11, 2019 at 17:22
I like ❖ (U+2756 - BLACK DIAMOND MINUS WHITE X)
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22That looks entirely different to the Windows key, and is only likely to confuse users. Commented Jul 9, 2019 at 20:42
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2I believe I've seen this used either on keyboards of machines that are shipped with neither MacOS nor Windows, or on some cheap generic keyboards sold in Asia. Commented Oct 25, 2019 at 6:13
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2@Prometheus although I agree with you, but I decided to use this symbol all the same. In a terminal with small fonts the squarred plus character is resembling too much a lowercase m for me. This one does the job better in that case. I don't think I would do that on a web page though, and I'd rather use the squarred plus there. Commented Jul 31, 2020 at 11:42
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For those who have seen Windows 3.1 back in the days ❖ is more similar to the real Windows logo than ⊞– exebookCommented Nov 28, 2022 at 8:41
You could use 🪟 as a workaround. As of Unicode 13.0 (2020), the window emoji is present at code point U+1FA9F.
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3That doesn't render on my system. I only see an empty square.– cst1992Commented Jun 28, 2022 at 14:59
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In windows 10 there is a new on-screen keyboard.
- Display the keyboard :
⊞ Win. - Select the symbol tab
Ω - Select the math symbol page
∞ - In the middle of that page you'll find a window
⊞
I works with pretty much any application, here in the google search bar:
Use Character Map to view font Wingdings character 0255 and insert/copy the old fashioned windows logo (from the windows 3.1).
Look for the "HoloLens MDL 2 Assets" font. It contains not only the Windows 8/10 logo key, but other useful system symbols as well.
Is there a unicode character for the Windows key?If the Unicode Consortium added a code-point for the Windows logo, then it would set a precedent for every company to request a character for their companies' logos and their products' logos. It'll never happen. The only option is to use a specialized font, but that only works when using that font; it'll look different when using a different font.