Limelight
What is Keyboard Shortcut Overlay?
A keyboard shortcut overlay is an on-screen layer that shows the keyboard shortcuts you press, helping viewers learn the combinations behind your workflow.
A keyboard shortcut overlay is a visual layer over your screen that surfaces the keyboard shortcuts you use as you use them. It focuses on combinations like ⌘Z or ⌃⌥1 rather than individual letters, which makes it especially helpful in tutorials and demos where the audience wants to learn the commands behind your actions.
A keyboard shortcut overlay should not be confused with a shortcut help menu, the panel some apps show to list available shortcuts. The overlay is viewer-facing and live, reflecting what you actually press, whereas a help menu is a static reference you open on demand.
For screen presenting and teaching, a keyboard shortcut overlay lets your audience see and adopt the shortcuts that make you efficient. Limelight provides one on macOS through its menu bar: press ⌃⌥2 and the shortcut combinations and special keys you press appear as clean badges, while normal typing is hidden to keep recordings tidy.
Why Limelight
- ▸Shows the keyboard shortcuts you press as on-screen badges
- ▸Concentrates on key combinations rather than ordinary characters
- ▸Helps audiences learn and adopt efficient shortcuts
- ▸Limelight's keyboard shortcut overlay is toggled with the global hotkey ⌃⌥2
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FAQ
- Is a keyboard shortcut overlay the same as an app's shortcut help menu?
- No. The overlay shows shortcuts live as you press them; a help menu is a static list you open. Limelight provides the live overlay.
- Will it display my normal typing?
- No. Limelight's keyboard shortcut overlay shows shortcuts and special keys only, keeping ordinary typing off screen.