60% keyboards: Text Editing Shortcuts

[Giorgio]

Dear 60% users, what is the optimal way to deal with these text editing shortcuts? These shortcuts work nearly everywhere: in the text editing field of a browser, in word, in excel...
I plan to program just one layer, so I'm wondering what equivalent key combinations do you use for these frequently used shortcuts, which work perfectly on a size >=75%.
I'm planning to get a pok3r or a gon, or maybe a winkeyless.kr, who knows....
The pok3r will have one main layer and three programmable layers. It has been said that it stays on the same layer after each reboot.

60% Text-Editing Keyboard Shortcuts
arrows
home
end
ctrl+L,R = move the cursor by one word
shift+U,D,L,R = select text by char- by row
shift+control+L,R = select text by word
shift+end=select all text until the end of the row
delete char on the right
ctrl+PgUp,PgDown

When possible I use vim, so my caps lock is mapped to esc.

other shortcuts
https://support.office.com/en-nz/article/Select-text-5ae24034-1c93-4805-bc2d-00aaf6235c97#bm2
http://www.howtogeek.com/115664/42-text-editing-keyboard-shortcuts-that-work-almost-everywhere/

[Oobly]

Arrows: Fn+IJKL
Home / End: Fn+U / O
PgUp / PgDn: Fn+Y / H
Del: Fn+Backspace

Then use Shift and Ctrl with them as needed for all the shortcuts.

If you map Fn to OS/GUI/WIN position, you can do all the modifiers including Fn with the left hand while "navigating" with the right.

That's just my favourite layout, but you can move the arrow cluster to wherever you feel is best and map Home, End, PgUp and PgDn to places that make sense to you. I'm still faster on a TKL, though, since I don't have to move my hand to press Fn and think about when to press and release it. Also, habit of 20+years of using arrow and edits in their usual spots.

I found the GON software to be really good and easy to program the layouts. Pok3r will be more work to do it and still have a few more limitations.

[davkol]

Use a better text editor. ^_~

GNU Emacs defaults, used in Bash and partially in OS X text editing components (it's possible to setup in KDE too, no idea about MS Windows):

arrows … C-[fbpn]
home … C-a
end … C-e
move the cursor by one word … M-[fb]
select text by * … C-space and move the cursor as required
delete char on the right … C-d
presumably moving view … C-v, M-v

Then there's obviously Vim (or vi-like controls for other editors, Emacs included). Both options offer superior buffers, among other things.

[Giorgio]

This is a General question, it's not specific to some text editor...

Use a better text editor

[Giorgio]

Not to criticize your suggestion, I'm just trying to understand if it is practical. Suppose that you have to select a word, it seems quite impossible to press at the same time fn+ l + ctrl + shift? Looking at the shortcuts of my original post, I'm starting to think that it is not possible to use the poker with the same speed allowed by a tkl?

Thanks :-)

Arrows: Fn+IJKL
Home / End: Fn+U / O
PgUp / PgDn: Fn+Y / H
Del: Fn+Backspace

Then use Shift and Ctrl with them as needed for all the shortcuts.

If you map Fn to OS/GUI/WIN position, you can do all the modifiers including Fn with the left hand while "navigating" with the right.

That's just my favourite layout, but you can move the arrow cluster to wherever you feel is best and map Home, End, PgUp and PgDn to places that make sense to you. I'm still faster on a TKL, though, since I don't have to move my hand to press Fn and think about when to press and release it. Also, habit of 20+years of using arrow and edits in their usual spots.

I found the GON software to be really good and easy to program the layouts. Pok3r will be more work to do it and still have a few more limitations.

[davkol]

This is a General question, it's not specific to some text editor...

Use a better text editor

I suppose text editing shortcuts are usually used in a text editor…? Besides, GNU Emacs is much more than a text editor, and these shortcuts work by default in shell (bash) and a subset works or can be set up to work desktop-wide.

[Giorgio]

I'm happy that you like emacs, but I've asked about the best way to replace some specific shortcuts that are software agnostic, because they work nearly everywhere: in a browser text field, in the browser url bar, in excel, in word, while renaming files in a file manager et cetera. Now, if you could please contribute to this thread, I would really appreciate it. 

This is a General question, it's not specific to some text editor...

Use a better text editor

I suppose text editing shortcuts are usually used in a text editor…? Besides, GNU Emacs is much more than a text editor, and these shortcuts work by default in shell (bash) and a subset works or can be set up to work desktop-wide.

[davkol]

It's possible to set up these shortcuts more or less system-wide, as I posted. For example,

• KDE System Settings allow remapping all listed shortcuts, and it's applied to all apps that use toolkit-provided UI widgets;
• it's possible to create desktop-wide modal bindings in X.Org (see angelic_sedition's thread);
• web browser is a platform for running apps nowadays, and vi-/Emacs-like shortcuts are provided by common addons, such as Vimperator (yes, emacs-like bindings work by default then in text areas and even, say, the address bar );
• GNU Emacs is sometimes called an operating system for a reason—it can run a pretty good [file manager, e-mail client, PDF viewer, you name it].

Changing the workflow might be much more efficient, because otherwise, you know, if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Even running SpaceFN is less than perfect here and there. Most importantly, chording gets quite awkward. The CUA/Windows bindings often require something like Ctrl-Shift-Fn-key in that case. How do you do that without (a) repositioning the whole hand, or (b) an awkward finger stretch/curl/cramp? Arguably, it's better to get a keyboard with a 65+ % layout at that point.

[Oobly]

Not to criticize your suggestion, I'm just trying to understand if it is practical. Suppose that you have to select a word, it seems quite impossible to press at the same time fn+ l + ctrl + shift? Looking at the shortcuts of my original post, I'm starting to think that it is not possible to use the poker with the same speed allowed by a tkl?

Thanks :-)

Arrows: Fn+IJKL
Home / End: Fn+U / O
PgUp / PgDn: Fn+Y / H
Del: Fn+Backspace

Then use Shift and Ctrl with them as needed for all the shortcuts.

If you map Fn to OS/GUI/WIN position, you can do all the modifiers including Fn with the left hand while "navigating" with the right.

That's just my favourite layout, but you can move the arrow cluster to wherever you feel is best and map Home, End, PgUp and PgDn to places that make sense to you. I'm still faster on a TKL, though, since I don't have to move my hand to press Fn and think about when to press and release it. Also, habit of 20+years of using arrow and edits in their usual spots.

I found the GON software to be really good and easy to program the layouts. Pok3r will be more work to do it and still have a few more limitations.

I have 2 Fn keys, one right of the spacebar, one in place of Win on the left side. So it's easy to hit Fn+Shift+Ctrl with left hand while hitting L with the right. Or Fn+L with the right and just Shift+Ctrl with the left.

If I were to design a 60% from scratch, though, I'd use a split spacebar with the left half mapped to Fn.

[Giorgio]

Thanks for your world-wide suggestions, but I need to limit this thread to keyboard-wide suggestions. I use many computers, and many of them have administrative restrictions.

It's possible to set up these shortcuts more or less system-wide, as I posted. For example,

• KDE System Settings allow remapping all listed shortcuts, and it's applied to all apps that use toolkit-provided UI widgets;
• it's possible to create desktop-wide modal bindings in X.Org (see angelic_sedition's thread);
• web browser is a platform for running apps nowadays, and vi-/Emacs-like shortcuts are provided by common addons, such as Vimperator (yes, emacs-like bindings work by default then in text areas and even, say, the address bar );
• GNU Emacs is sometimes called an operating system for a reason—it can run a pretty good [file manager, e-mail client, PDF viewer, you name it].

Changing the workflow might be much more efficient, because otherwise, you know, if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. Even running SpaceFN is less than perfect here and there. Most importantly, chording gets quite awkward. The CUA/Windows bindings often require something like Ctrl-Shift-Fn-key in that case. How do you do that without (a) repositioning the whole hand, or (b) an awkward finger stretch/curl/cramp? Arguably, it's better to get a keyboard with a 65+ % layout at that point.