I was aware of the Auto-Complete, but had never thought really thought about using it, so yesterday I added a load of character names to it, but still have some questions about it.
QUESTIONS
Is there any way of keeping the Auto-Complete Window open while I am clicking around in the Binder checking on / looking for phrases I might want to add to the Auto-Complete list?
Every time I click in the Binder, the Auto-Complete Window closes.
(I know I can select and right-click on the word or phrase to get the context window, and choose âAdd Selection To Auto-Complete Listâ from there, but I have also been adding with the Auto-Complete Window open, and have wanted it to remain open).
If there is not a way of keeping the Auto-Complete Window open while clicking in the Binder, I will add that to the Wish List.
Similarly, is there a keyboard, rather than mouse-based, way of moving to the next Auto-Complete item and saving it (in the Auto-Complete Window)?
For example, I would like to be able to use Tab, or another key, to move to the next place in the list, and then when I have added the word/phrase, would like to Tab again to simultaneously save the word I have just entered, and move to the next place on the list.
Thanks for any replies.
UPDATE / EDIT
Either things have changed since I originally posted my message yesterday, or - more likely - I described what was happening wrongly.
Specifically, when I go to Project - Project Settings - Auto-Complete List, and then add a word to the list, and click âOKâ to confirm the addition, the Auto-Complete List window closes, and I would like that window to remain open while I click around in the Binder to see if there are other words / phrases I want to add to the List.
Just to be clear, are we talking about Projects > Project Settings > Autocomplete here â and you want the ability once youâre in the window to use the keyboard only to add new items?
In that case, you should just be able to press Enter/Return to add a new line, then the same key twice to save it and move to the next new line. No need for the mouse, except if you need to change the type of the individual entry.
As least, thatâs how it works for me (Scrivener on Windows 11, VMWare Fusion).
Sorry if Iâve misunderstood what youâre afterâŠ
As for question 1, I think the answer is no: you canât have the window open at the same time as editing the main text, at least, as far as I understand it.
Yeah, and just as an aside, that command is also available for adding a shortcut to, which is what I do.
Otherwise, there is a bit off about this; if clicking anywhere outside of the Project Settings window is automatically closing it. It should be a modal dialogue that you must confirm or cancel changes from (as it can change project window UI, like adding or remove custom metadata fields, it needs to be this way). So something doesnât sound right thereânot that it being modal as it should be really helps in what youâre wanting of itâbut maybe it is a terminology thing and youâre talking about something else (like the menu that drops down while you type)?
Similarly, is there a keyboard, rather than mouse-based, way of moving to the next Auto-Complete item and saving it (in the Auto-Complete Window)?
Iâve added some documentation on this, as it looks like Appendix C.6 doesnât really have much to say about keyboard access. In most list/table views like this, we have gone to lengths to make sure these basics are available, so this pretty generally applicable:
â: confirm editing or add a new row below the selected one.
â & â: move the selection between rows.
Home & End: jump to the top or bottom of the list, respectively.
F2 (Win) to edit the selected row.
Esc cancels editing on Windows (confirms editing on Mac).
The Tab key, in most cases, is going to navigate the UI focus around within the dialogue box itself, so we donât want to interfere with that core behaviour too much, as it is used by accessibility tools and macros.
Yes, that was what I was talking about - under Project - Project Settings - Auto-Complete List, and somehow I either neglected to try Enter (I also am on Win 11), or it was not working for me yesterday.
I feel rather embarrassed.
Many thanks for helping me with this - at least pressing Enter will allow me to add new words to the List, while saving previous ones, although I would also like to be able to click around in the Binder to find new words to add the to the List, without the Auto-Complete List window closing.
I actually was mis-describing what was happening, or what was happening has changed (see UPDATE / EDIT at the end of my original post for more information).
And I probably (he said, with a red-face) had not tried simply hitting the Enter key to move on to the next item and save the previous one in the Auto-Complete List (although I can not think why I would not have tried that before posting).
As for making it a floating list or similarâitâs stuck in a bit of an awkward place. It is definitely under the umbrella of project settings, to the point that moving it elsewhere would be strangeâbut at the same time this panel does need to be modal. Itâs even modal on the Mac, which has as a design ethos an overall resistance to modal settings windows whenever possible.
There is certainly some utility in making the list more accessible though, and, like Project Keywords, capable of being an auxiliary tool rather than merely a database that drives a dropdown while you type.
So itâs worth some thought, but coming up with a solution that is not awkward is the main thing. Itâs nice having a âone stop shopâ for project settings by and large, and not having to know that X goes here and Y there.
I take your point that any adjustment to Auto-Complete (or any Scrivener feature) needs to avoid the feature in use not being awkward.
And many of the times I ask or make a request about something like this (and sometimes when I see others doing so), I feel somewhat guilty because Scrivener really is (to me, at least) so good already that it is kind of an embarrassment of riches, and really, how difficult is it to click around a bit more to get something done?