Introduction to Pro Tools : Keyboard and Mouse Shortcuts : Keyboard Focus

Keyboard Focus
The Keyboard Focus in Pro Tools determines how the alpha keys function. Depending on which Keyboard Focus is enabled, you can use the keys on your computer (alpha) keyboard to select clips in the Clip List, enable or disable groups, or perform an edit or play command.
You can only enable one of the three Keyboard Focus modes at a time. Enabling a Keyboard Focus will disable the one previously enabled.
There are three types of Keyboard Focus:
Commands Keyboard Focus
When selected in the Tracks pane in the Edit window or in the Notes pane of any MIDI Editor window, this provides a wide range of single key shortcuts from the computer keyboard for editing and playing. The frontmost Edit or MIDI Editor window always receives Commands Keyboard Focus when it is enabled.
With Commands Keyboard Focus disabled, you can still access any of its key shortcuts by pressing the Start key (Windows) or Control (Mac) along with the key. See the Shortcuts Guide for a complete list of Commands Keyboard Focus shortcuts.
Clip List Keyboard Focus
When selected, audio clips, MIDI clips, and clip groups can be located and selected in the Clip List by typing the first few letters of the clip’s name.
Group List Keyboard Focus
When selected, Mix and Edit Groups can be enabled or disabled by typing the Group ID letter (in either the Mix or Edit window).
To set the Keyboard Focus, do one of the following:
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Click the a–z button for the focus you want to enable.
– or – 
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While pressing Command+Option (Mac) or Control+Alt (Windows), press one of the following keys: 1 (Commands), 2 (Clip List), or 3 (Group List).
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Although multiple plug-in windows can have a keyboard focus enabled, only the front-most window receives any keyboard input.