Quickly Access System Preferences Using Option & Function Keys
If you want to quickly access the Mac OS X System Preferences, you can do so with an indirect keyboard shortcut trick by holding down the Option key and then hitting various function keys. This jumps directly to the System Preference panel corresponding to the function key.
For example, Option+Brightness pulls up the Display preference pane, Option+Expose brings up the Mission Control / Expose preferences, Option+Volume controls bring up the Sound preferences, and so on.
These are the function keys we’re talking about here, they’re across the top row of modern Mac keyboards including portable Macs and external Apple keyboards. Pressed in conjunction with the “Option” (alt) key on the keyboard will launch into the relevant system preference panel: