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Author's profile photo Joachim Rees

How to use AdT solely with a keyboard => navigation in eclipse

Coding AdT is great, and not having to touch a mouse also is.
So I’ll list some cool shortcuts I use.

But not knowing how to do something (with the keyboard), makes me feel bad, powerless, and  frustrated.
So I’ll also list some things I don’t know yet, but (hopefully) will find out!

Let’s go:

Highly useful AdT shortcuts

ctrl+shift+n = new object

ctrl+shift+a = open object

F3 = open definition

shift+F3 = activate
ctrl+shift+F3 = activate all inactive

shift+f1 = pretty printer

alt+shift+w = open with
+ arrow down + enter = project explorer -> get the focus to project explorer, e.g. to navigate through source-hierarchy

Ctrl+Shift+L => show all shortcuts “That’s where I hope to find answers to the following!)

What I dearly miss (not know yet)

[Edit: meanwhile, some of them are known, see edit at the end of this blog!)]

How do I:

* Set the focus back to the editing area, when I lost it somehow
* Navigate to problems-view tab ” -> bind ctrl+P to it;
* and set focus on the error-line, so I can unfold it “-> just use arrows then
* How do I move through tabs?
* 1 by 1 “-> ctrl+tab
* direct, e.g. 1st, 2nd, last (=n);
if possible also: n-1, n-2, n-m.

This blog is part of a learning-strategy:
(or is it a #LearHack?! ;-))

If I don’t know something, I write it down. (+publish, in this case).
Then I keep on trying to find out.
If I do find out I’ll add answers to my question.

best
Joachim

 

EDIT:

Here’s the answers we (=the SAP Community) have found so far:

* Set the focus back to the editing area, when I lost it somehow “-> ctrl+Q (last edit location)
* Navigate to problems-view tab ” -> map to Ctrl+P, see comment from Sandra Rossi
* and set focus on the error-line, so I can unfold it -> just use arrow-down then
* move through tabs: 1 by 1 “-> Ctrl + PageDown / PageUp

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      18 Comments
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      Author's profile photo Sandra Rossi
      Sandra Rossi

      Navigate to problems-view tab:

      I use CTRL+P as configured in menu Window -> Preferences

       

      Expand the error line: I don't know

       

      How do I move through tabs?

      1 by 1 : Ctrl + PageDown or Ctrl + PageUp

       

       

      Author's profile photo Joachim Rees
      Joachim Rees
      Blog Post Author

      Oh, thank you very much!

      I added the Ctrl+P binding as shown in your screenshot and it works very nicely!
      Also, expanding/navigating the error lines I can then do just via arrow-keys.

      Author's profile photo Joachim Rees
      Joachim Rees

      > Navigate to problems-view tab: -> map Ctrl+P to it

      Just what I needed today! (and happy I could find it fast by searching for my own blog...) . Nice!

      Author's profile photo Michelle Crapo
      Michelle Crapo

      Is there a way to highlight several lines of code and comment the lines?  I miss that feature.

      Author's profile photo Joachim Rees
      Joachim Rees
      Blog Post Author

      Do you mean as in “comment out” those lines?! Then yes:

      1. I’d highlight them via shift+arrow down
      2. ctrl+< to comment them out!  (comment back in: ctrl+shift+<)
      Author's profile photo Michelle Crapo
      Michelle Crapo

      That is what I meant.

      Thank you - I've been looking for that one.

      Author's profile photo Scott Lawton
      Scott Lawton

      These shortcuts seem to be inconsistent. On my ADT installation, it’s Ctrl+Shift+< to comment and Ctrl+Shift+> to uncomment. In most of the “official" ADT guides I’ve seen from SAP, they state Ctrl+< to comment and Ctrl+> to uncomment (just like in SE80). I’m guessing they must vary based on other shortcut key combinations already defined in your Eclipse installation or something.

      Author's profile photo Joachim Rees
      Joachim Rees
      Blog Post Author

      Thanks for you comment, I looked into it and can confirm that indeed the binding for 'remove comment' is: ctrl + >

      So sorry that I got that wrong!

      The explanation is simple: on the German keybord layout I haven, you get to the '>' by pressing shift + < .
      So in this case those are the same keybord cobinations:
      ctrl+shift + <
      ctrl + >

      Author's profile photo Joachim Rees
      Joachim Rees
      Blog Post Author

      > * Set the focus back to the editing area, when I lost it somehow

      Got it!: Crtl+Q: -> last Edit location

      Author's profile photo Bärbel Winkler
      Bärbel Winkler

      Thanks for starting this discussion, Joachim!

      I'm not really using AdT/Eclipse a lot and one reason for that is, that I just cannot wrap my head around the many different keyboard "short"cuts! I put the "short" into scare quotes because I always need quite some time to look them up on a cheat-sheet, so there's nothing "short" about them time wise. There also doesn't seem to be even just some rudimentary logic to the different combinations of numbers or function keys and CTRL/Alt/Shift. It's as if they've been randomly pulled out of a hat in a draw.

       

      Author's profile photo Joachim Rees
      Joachim Rees
      Blog Post Author

      Thanks a lot for your feedback, Bärbel!

      I can understand exactly what you describe about beieng overwhelmed by all those key-combinations.

      That's why I went for this blog:
      1. writing down what I already know and use
      2. also writing down what I would like to use (but don't know yet).

      And I really took the time to do this writing down before going off searching for solutions.

      For remembering all those combinations:
      - I think it's "just" learning, like with vocabulary (not much logic to that, too)
      - it's probably a good idea to create your own cheat-sheet, with exactly the knowledge important to you!
      (Of course, by all means, if possible with:
      -- taking inspiration from others.
      -- sharing your results)

      best
      Joachim

      Author's profile photo Andrea Clöß
      Andrea Clöß

      CTRL+ALT+ Cursor down or up   => Duplicate line or block down or up to the line or block.

      CTRL + ALT + A   => Block mode on/off

      Author's profile photo Dominik Ritter
      Dominik Ritter

      Good Morning,

      have you seen the ADT Cheat Sheet already?

      https://blogs.sap.com/2017/07/12/abap-in-eclipse-keyboard-shortcuts-you-cannot-miss-cheat-sheet/

       

      BR,

      Dominik

      Author's profile photo Joachim Rees
      Joachim Rees
      Blog Post Author

      I had seen it before, yes, but had probably forgotten about it.
      I will not look at it again! Thanks for the reminder!

      Author's profile photo Joachim Rees
      Joachim Rees
      Blog Post Author

      Found another one: ctrl+shift and E - switch to editor.

      It does double duty for those cases:

      * How do I move through tabs?
      * Set the focus back to the editing area, when I lost it somehow

      select desired source with up/down arrwos;
      tab + enter to get there!

      Author's profile photo Florian Henninger
      Florian Henninger

      Why are the comments grey.. these need to be red.. just to see what is not necessary:-)

      What does that now mean to the part I look atm

      Author's profile photo Joachim Rees
      Joachim Rees

      I am back into trying to do things keyboard-only (yes, also this comment - but it takes a whole lot of tab-strokes to get down to this "Add Comment" button @usability @accessability !).
      Right now I'm thinking: I can open a source file (e.g. a report) with ctrl+shift+a, but how could I take this tab, and have it be it's own window?!
      -> With mouse, it's just drag+drop, but keyboard-only?

      If you know, let me know, and if I find out, I#ll post it here! 🙂

      best
      Joachim

      PS:
      Q: why would I want that?
      A: Then I could switch between code I look at (copy from) and code I write (copy to) via alt+tab .

      Author's profile photo Michał Biegun
      Michał Biegun

      Hi Joachim.

      I know that topic is old, but I use it a bit as a compendium, so I'll add something from me:

      • ctrl+F6, then arrow up/down - switch between editors (it's a worse version of shift+ctrl+e)
      • ctrl+F7, then arrow up/down - switch between views.