text: who invented ctrl+alt+del...?   control-alt-delete (often abbreviated to ctrl-alt-del) is a computer keyboard command on ibm pc compatible systems that can be used to reboot the computer.this keyboard combination was designed by david bradley, a designer of the original ibm pc. bradley originally designed control-alt-escape to trigger a soft reboot, but he found it was too easy to bump the left side of the keyboard and reboot the computer accidentally. he switched the key combination to control-alt-delete, a combination impossible to press with just one hand (this is not true of later keyboards, such as the 102-key pc/at keyboard or the maltron keyboard). more advanced operating systems use its status as a "reserved" combination for various purposes, but often retain the ability to trigger a soft reboot in certain configurations or circumstances. david bradley is also known for his good-natured jab at bill gates, at that time the ceo of microsoft, and also the creator of many of microsoft's programs: "i may have invented control-alt-delete, but bill [gates] made it famous", alluding to the perceived instability of microsoft operating systems.