Music, Programming and a Cat

Shortcuts // Ghost In The Shell style typing

Notation Symbols are made as a placeholders for various musical events. However, there are many symbols for many events. Different music requires different symbols. On the other hand you have shortcuts, keypresses that activate menu functions ("insert Clef") or do just something obvious without a menu(Arrow Keys). Any program should use these for often used commands so that the user is spared to browse through menus and sub-menus every time he wants to insert a note.

So far so Wikipedia.

Laborejo is still in pre-alpha state and there are already hundred(s) of possible (menu commands). And remember there is no "optimal" set of shortcuts/functions. Any user and music style wants a different one. Before I tell you how awesome Laborejo is one warning: Notation is complex and so is this software. Not complicated, you just have a massive amount of options. There is a learning curve which cannot be skipped. But learning is made as easy as possible, even if you are not Stephen Hawking.

Here are the principles which lead to enlightenment.

• Navigational keys and some really obvious keys (like Escape for "No, stop! iiaaaa....!" to stay in the Anime mood) are not in menus, only in the manual and tutorials if you don't find them directly anyway.
• Everything else is in the menu and has its shortcut written directly beneath it. You COULD use your mouse for every action, but this is slow. Don't do it. Just use it for seldom commands ("Undress while Playing") and to look up shortcuts.
• For very common commands there are single-key shortcuts. Just press it. Pressing it again deletes it. That is called a Toggle. ** "," - Staccato On/Off ** "T" - Triplet On/Off
• For variants or the reverse effect the Shift key is used as modifier: ** 1) "W" - Shift Tone Up. "Shift+W" - Shift Octave Up. ** 2) "C" - Chord Symbol. "Shift+C" - Clear Chord Symbol
• For otherwise related commands we use (only) the Alt Key as modifier. Very often the Alt Key triggers the Gui-Variant of a command or offers customized options: ** "Alt+C" - Start Mass Entry of Chord Symbols ** "Alt+T" - Any tuplet (instead of only Triplets on C)

All commands follow these patterns. And more:

• Every Ctrl+Key combination is only for controlling the non-music functions, the GUI itself. Open and Save files, Switch parts of the GUI (e.g. Track Properties) on and off etc.
• The Function Keys (F1 to F12) are for anything that is used often but does not affect the music items or properties. For example F3 is PDF Preview and F5 is Start Playback.

Last but not least there are two kinds of specialties.

• Shortcut Sequences for group of commands which are used sometimes but to give each of them a seperate key would be too much: ** Voice Presets ("Voice 1 Stems Up", "Voice 2 Stems Down") are all on Alt+V, followed by a number key to indicate the voice number. The sequence for voice 2 is: Alt+V, 2.
• Session-Shortcuts or Temporary Shortcuts. Just hover your mouse over a menu command which has no shortcut and press a free key (with modifiers like Shift) and you get that Shortcut until you restart Laborejo. Nothing gets changed, nothing destroys your config file. Clean and handy. And don't worry, I'll leave some keys free exactly to use them with hover shortcuts. You want this if you expect to use a command more often for your current session (read: More than twice). You expect some Instrument Changes? Just hover-shortcut it and you don't have to browse the menu each time.

And if all this is not enough you still have the options to just use your own config and rebind every key. But I assure you my keybindings are better than anything in "Vim Style".

Next time: Modal Number Keys to insert Notes without Midi Hardware or adding Fingerings to notes - your mode, your choice. If you liked this post and want to read more don't leave a comment because you can't, thank you Spammers. Instead send this link around and spread the word. I will see if the visit counter goes up and feel motivated.