Tips N Tricks : Keyboard Shortcuts

You know when you're typing on the keyboard and you have to stop and take your hand off so you can move the mouse and click somewhere - it takes some time. This is true if you're lucky enough to be a touch typist, but it's also true for the "hunt and peck"crowd too - you need to takes your *eyes* off the keyboard! :-) Dive Log Manager/Dive Log DT has lots of keyboard shortcuts for you so that you don't need to use the menu items to do things, as well as conforms to many of the Mac-isms in this area.

First, when you're in Edit mode on any screen, tab will take you from field to field. And did you know there was a "reverse tab" - just keep the Shift key held down and hit tab and you'll go in the reverse direction.

One of the most used keyboard shortcuts is to get in and out of "Edit Mode" in the first place. Just use "Command-E" (⌘E) to toggle in and out of Edit mode instead of clicking on the Edit button. Way faster.

When you're working on any of the "Items" found in the Logbook list on the left side of the applications, these keyboard short cuts work to manipulate an "Item", such as a Dive, a Buddy, a Dive Site, a City, a Country etc.

Down Arrow - Next item
Up Arrow - Previous item
Command-M (⌘M) : New
Command-D (⌘D) : Duplicate or Copy
Command-delete (⌘delete) : Delete
Command-P (⌘P) : Print

(Note: Delete actually takes two key presses because you need to confirm that you meant to do it. You can click "OK" or hit return on the keyboard)

When you're working on "Logbooks" or essentially files, you can use keyboard short cuts to manipulate them as well.

Command-N (⌘N) : New
Command-O (⌘O) : Open
Command-W (⌘W) : Close
Command-Shift-S (⌘⇧S) : Backup

You've got those memorized right? They do conform to the very loose Apple guidelines, but no, you don't have to memorize them. If you look at the characters next to the menu item, it will show you what the keyboard shortcut is. You just need to memorize what symbol means what key for the meta-keys, and you just need to get used to using them. Then it becomes "muscle memory" and you'll wonder how you got by without them!