<s>
The	O
Command	B-Device
key	I-Device
(	O
sometimes	O
abbreviated	O
as	O
Cmd	B-Device
key	I-Device
)	O
,	O
,	O
formerly	O
also	O
known	O
as	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
key	I-Device
or	O
open	B-Device
Apple	I-Device
key	I-Device
,	O
is	O
a	O
modifier	B-Device
key	I-Device
present	O
on	O
Apple	B-Device
keyboards	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Command	B-Device
key	I-Device
's	O
purpose	O
is	O
to	O
allow	O
the	O
user	O
to	O
enter	O
keyboard	O
commands	O
in	O
applications	O
and	O
in	O
the	O
system	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
"	O
extended	O
"	O
Macintosh	B-Device
keyboard	O
—	O
the	O
most	O
common	O
type	O
—	O
has	O
two	O
command	B-Device
keys	I-Device
,	O
one	O
on	O
each	O
side	O
of	O
the	O
space	B-Device
bar	I-Device
;	O
some	O
compact	O
keyboards	O
have	O
one	O
only	O
on	O
the	O
left	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
symbol	O
(	O
the	O
"	O
looped	O
square	O
"	O
)	O
was	O
chosen	O
by	O
Susan	O
Kare	O
after	O
Steve	O
Jobs	O
decided	O
that	O
the	O
use	O
of	O
the	O
Apple	O
logo	B-Device
in	O
the	O
menu	O
system	B-General_Concept
(	O
where	O
the	O
keyboard	O
shortcuts	O
are	O
displayed	O
)	O
would	O
be	O
an	O
over-use	O
of	O
the	O
logo	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Apple	O
's	O
adaptation	O
of	O
the	O
symbol	O
—	O
encoded	O
in	O
Unicode	O
at	O
U+2318	B-Device
—	O
was	O
derived	O
in	O
part	O
from	O
its	O
use	O
in	O
Nordic	O
countries	O
as	O
an	O
indicator	O
of	O
cultural	O
locations	O
and	O
places	O
of	O
interest	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Apple	O
's	O
computers	O
up	O
through	O
the	O
1979	O
Apple	O
II	O
Plus	O
did	O
not	O
have	O
a	O
command	B-Device
key	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
first	O
model	O
on	O
which	O
it	O
appeared	O
was	O
the	O
1980	O
Apple	B-Device
III	I-Device
,	O
where	O
there	O
are	O
two	O
monochrome	O
Apple	B-Device
keys	I-Device
,	O
both	O
to	O
the	O
left	O
of	O
the	O
space	B-Device
bar	I-Device
on	O
the	O
lowest	O
row	O
of	O
the	O
keyboard	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Two	O
other	O
early	O
Apple	O
computers	O
,	O
the	O
1982	O
Apple	B-Device
IIe	I-Device
and	O
the	O
1984	O
Apple	O
IIc	O
,	O
also	O
had	O
two	O
such	O
keys	O
,	O
one	O
to	O
the	O
left	O
and	O
one	O
to	O
the	O
right	O
of	O
the	O
space	B-Device
bar	I-Device
;	O
in	O
these	O
models	O
,	O
they	O
mapped	O
to	O
the	O
first	O
two	O
fire	O
buttons	O
of	O
an	O
attached	O
joystick	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
allowed	O
for	O
flexible	O
combinations	O
of	O
a	O
modifier	B-Device
key	I-Device
and	O
base	O
key	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
Open-Apple	B-Device
with	O
C	O
for	O
Copy	O
)	O
with	O
just	O
a	O
few	O
extra	O
wires	O
and	O
no	O
ROM	O
changes	O
,	O
since	O
the	O
Apple	O
II	O
could	O
only	O
register	O
one	O
key	O
press	O
at	O
a	O
time	O
(	O
Shift	O
and	O
Control	B-Device
keys	I-Device
were	O
handled	O
in	O
the	O
keyboard	O
encoding	O
hardware	O
which	O
generated	O
ASCII	O
codes	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
all	O
these	O
cases	O
,	O
the	O
left	O
Apple	B-Device
key	I-Device
had	O
an	O
outlined	O
"	O
open	O
"	O
Apple	O
logo	B-Device
,	O
and	O
the	O
one	O
on	O
the	O
right	O
had	O
an	O
opaque	O
,	O
"	O
closed	O
"	O
or	O
"	O
solid	O
"	O
Apple	O
logo	B-Device
key	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Apple	B-Device
Lisa	I-Device
had	O
only	O
the	O
closed	O
Apple	O
logo	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
the	O
Macintosh	B-Device
was	O
introduced	O
in	O
1984	O
,	O
the	O
keyboard	O
had	O
a	O
single	O
command	B-Device
key	I-Device
with	O
a	O
looped	O
square	O
symbol	O
( ⌘	O
,	O
U+2318	B-Device
)	O
,	O
because	O
Steve	O
Jobs	O
said	O
that	O
showing	O
the	O
Apple	O
logo	B-Device
throughout	O
the	O
menus	O
as	O
a	O
keyboard	O
shortcut	O
was	O
"	O
taking	O
 [ it ] 	O
in	O
vain	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Thus	O
,	O
the	O
⌘	O
symbol	O
appears	O
in	O
the	O
Macintosh	B-Device
menus	O
as	O
the	O
primary	O
modifier	B-Device
key	I-Device
symbol	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
original	O
Macintosh	B-Device
also	O
had	O
an	O
Option	B-Device
key	I-Device
,	O
which	O
was	O
used	O
primarily	O
for	O
entering	O
extended	O
characters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1986	O
,	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
IIGS	I-Device
was	O
introduced	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Like	O
the	O
newer	O
Macintosh	B-Device
computers	I-Device
to	O
come	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
Macintosh	B-Device
SE	I-Device
,	O
it	O
used	O
the	O
Apple	B-Device
Desktop	I-Device
Bus	I-Device
for	O
its	O
keyboard	O
and	O
mouse	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Apple	O
changed	O
the	O
keys	O
on	O
the	O
IIGS	B-Device
's	O
keyboard	O
to	O
Command	O
and	O
Option	B-Device
,	O
as	O
on	O
Mac	B-Device
keyboards	O
,	O
but	O
added	O
an	O
open-Apple	B-Device
to	O
the	O
Command	B-Device
key	I-Device
,	O
for	O
consistency	O
with	O
applications	O
for	O
previous	O
Apple	O
II	O
generations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
The	O
Option	B-Device
key	I-Device
did	O
not	O
have	O
a	O
closed-Apple	O
,	O
probably	O
because	O
Apple	O
II	O
applications	O
used	O
the	O
closed-Apple	B-Device
key	I-Device
much	O
more	O
rarely	O
than	O
the	O
open-Apple	B-Device
key	I-Device
;	O
thus	O
there	O
was	O
less	O
need	O
to	O
keep	O
it	O
around	O
.	O
)	O
</s>
<s>
Because	O
any	O
ADB	B-Device
keyboard	O
could	O
be	O
used	O
with	O
the	O
IIGS	B-Device
,	O
all	O
of	O
Apple	O
's	O
ADB	B-Device
keyboards	O
—	O
even	O
those	O
intended	O
for	O
the	O
Mac	B-Device
—	O
also	O
required	O
the	O
open-Apple	B-Device
,	O
and	O
it	O
stuck	O
for	O
more	O
than	O
twenty	O
years	O
,	O
causing	O
confusion	O
long	O
after	O
the	O
Apple	O
II	O
series	O
went	O
out	O
of	O
production	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
keyboard	O
of	O
the	O
NeXT	B-Device
Computer	I-Device
that	O
key	O
was	O
marked	O
in	O
green	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
menus	O
were	O
not	O
marked	O
with	O
a	O
symbol	O
denoting	O
the	O
command	B-Device
key	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Besides	O
being	O
used	O
as	O
a	O
modifier	B-Device
key	I-Device
for	O
keyboard	O
shortcuts	O
it	O
was	O
also	O
used	O
to	O
alter	O
the	O
function	O
of	O
some	O
keys	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
Left	O
)	O
--	O
triggers	O
a	O
non-catchable	O
hardware	O
reset	B-General_Concept
thereby	O
hard	O
rebooting	O
the	O
computer	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
Contrary	O
to	O
on	O
a	O
PC	O
compatible	O
computer	O
which	O
triggers	O
only	O
a	O
software	O
reset	B-General_Concept
.	O
)	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
NeXT	O
ADB	B-Device
keyboard	O
,	O
the	O
Command	B-Device
keys	I-Device
were	O
replaced	O
by	O
keys	O
labeled	O
and	O
the	O
Command	B-Device
key	I-Device
morphed	O
into	O
a	O
wide	O
Command	O
bar	O
in	O
front	O
of	O
the	O
space	B-Device
bar	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
purpose	O
of	O
the	O
Command	B-Device
key	I-Device
is	O
to	O
allow	O
the	O
user	O
to	O
enter	O
keyboard	O
shortcuts	O
in	O
applications	O
and	O
in	O
the	O
system	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
have	O
always	O
recommended	O
that	O
developers	O
use	O
the	O
Command	B-Device
key	I-Device
(	O
and	O
not	O
the	O
Control	O
or	O
Option	B-Device
keys	I-Device
)	O
for	O
this	O
purpose	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
If	O
an	O
application	O
needs	O
more	O
shortcuts	O
than	O
can	O
be	O
obtained	O
with	O
the	O
twenty-six	O
letters	O
of	O
the	O
Latin	O
alphabet	O
,	O
double	O
modifiers	O
such	O
as	O
Command+Option	O
are	O
used	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
One	O
advantage	O
of	O
this	O
scheme	O
,	O
as	O
contrasted	O
with	O
the	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
mixed	O
use	O
of	O
the	O
Control	O
and	O
Alt	B-Device
keys	I-Device
,	O
is	O
that	O
the	O
Control	B-Device
key	I-Device
is	O
available	O
for	O
its	O
original	O
purpose	O
:	O
entering	O
control	O
characters	O
in	O
terminal	B-Application
applications	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
(	O
Indeed	O
,	O
the	O
very	O
first	O
Macintosh	B-Device
lacked	O
a	O
Control	B-Device
key	I-Device
;	O
it	O
was	O
soon	O
added	O
to	O
allow	O
compatible	O
terminal	B-Application
software	I-Application
.	O
)	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Macintosh	B-Device
keyboard	O
's	O
other	O
unusual	O
modifier	B-Device
key	I-Device
,	O
the	O
Option	B-Device
key	I-Device
,	O
serves	O
as	O
a	O
modifier	O
both	O
for	O
entering	O
keyboard	O
shortcuts	O
and	O
for	O
typing	O
text	O
—	O
it	O
is	O
used	O
to	O
enter	O
foreign	O
characters	O
,	O
typographical	O
symbols	O
,	O
and	O
other	O
special	O
characters	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
⌘	O
symbol	O
came	O
into	O
the	O
Macintosh	B-Device
project	O
at	O
a	O
late	O
stage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
development	O
team	O
originally	O
went	O
for	O
their	O
old	O
Apple	B-Device
key	I-Device
,	O
but	O
Steve	O
Jobs	O
found	O
it	O
frustrating	O
when	O
"	O
apples	O
"	O
filled	O
up	O
the	O
Mac	B-Device
's	O
menus	O
next	O
to	O
the	O
key	O
commands	O
,	O
because	O
he	O
felt	O
that	O
this	O
was	O
an	O
over-use	O
of	O
the	O
company	O
logo	B-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
only	O
a	O
few	O
days	O
left	O
before	O
deadline	O
,	O
the	O
team	O
's	O
bitmap	O
artist	O
Susan	O
Kare	O
started	O
researching	O
for	O
the	O
Apple	O
logo	B-Device
's	O
successor	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
She	O
was	O
browsing	O
through	O
a	O
symbol	O
dictionary	O
when	O
she	O
came	O
across	O
the	O
cloverleaf-like	O
symbol	O
,	O
commonly	O
used	O
in	O
Nordic	O
countries	O
as	O
an	O
indicator	O
of	O
cultural	O
locations	O
and	O
places	O
of	O
interest	O
(	O
it	O
is	O
the	O
official	O
road	O
sign	O
for	O
tourist	O
attraction	O
in	O
Denmark	O
,	O
Finland	O
,	O
Iceland	O
,	O
Norway	O
,	O
and	O
Sweden	O
,	O
and	O
the	O
computer	O
key	O
has	O
often	O
been	O
called	O
—	O
ancient	O
monument	O
—	O
by	O
Swedish	O
Mac	B-Device
users	O
and	O
—	O
landmark	O
signs	O
—	O
by	O
Danish	O
users	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
she	O
showed	O
it	O
to	O
the	O
rest	O
of	O
the	O
team	O
,	O
everyone	O
liked	O
it	O
,	O
and	O
so	O
it	O
became	O
the	O
symbol	O
of	O
the	O
1984	O
Macintosh	B-Device
command	B-Device
key	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
symbol	O
was	O
included	O
in	O
the	O
original	O
Macintosh	B-Device
font	O
Chicago	O
,	O
and	O
could	O
be	O
inserted	O
by	O
typing	O
a	O
key	O
combination	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
Unicode	O
and	O
HTML	B-Language
it	O
is	O
encoded	O
as	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
USB	B-Protocol
keyboards	O
,	O
the	O
keys	O
are	O
mapped	O
to	O
standard	O
keycodes	O
reserved	O
for	O
GUI	B-Application
functions	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
When	O
using	O
a	O
Macintosh	B-Device
computer	I-Device
with	O
a	O
keyboard	O
without	O
keys	O
,	O
the	O
keys	O
used	O
on	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
oriented	O
keyboards	O
,	O
or	O
the	O
keys	O
used	O
on	O
Sun	O
and	O
other	O
Unix	O
keyboards	O
,	O
can	O
be	O
used	O
in	O
place	O
of	O
the	O
Command	B-Device
keys	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
Conversely	O
,	O
when	O
an	O
Apple	O
USB	B-Protocol
keyboard	O
is	O
used	O
with	O
other	O
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
,	O
the	O
Command	B-Device
keys	I-Device
function	O
as	O
Windows	B-Device
keys	I-Device
or	O
Meta	O
keys	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
a	O
Windows	B-Application
keyboard	O
the	O
position	O
of	O
the	O
and	O
keys	O
are	O
swapped	O
compared	O
to	O
the	O
position	O
of	O
and	O
keys	O
on	O
an	O
Apple	B-Device
keyboard	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
macOS	B-Application
this	O
can	O
be	O
configured	O
in	O
the	O
keyboard	O
preferences	O
(	O
Modifier	B-Device
Keys	I-Device
...	O
)	O
so	O
that	O
the	O
Windows	B-Application
key	O
(	O
next	O
to	O
the	O
space	B-Device
bar	I-Device
)	O
becomes	O
the	O
Mac	B-Device
key	O
and	O
vice	O
versa	O
so	O
that	O
users	O
do	O
not	O
have	O
to	O
change	O
their	O
motor	O
learning	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
All	O
the	O
modifier	B-Device
keys	I-Device
,	O
along	O
with	O
the	O
,	O
can	O
be	O
remapped	O
to	O
whichever	O
modifier	B-Device
key	I-Device
function	O
the	O
user	O
wishes	O
,	O
so	O
users	O
of	O
traditional	O
Unix	O
style	O
keyboards	O
may	O
choose	O
to	O
use	O
the	O
key	O
as	O
a	O
key	O
or	O
other	O
modifier	O
.	O
</s>
