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IOS Tip(s)

Avatar Rick Churchill
Some time ago while typing text on iPads and iPhones, placing your finger on the text, you were able to move the cursor easily because of an enlarged cursor (and characters?) appeared above your finger. This feature disappeared. Only recently I found it has been replaced by a different but slightly slower technique which I was completely unaware of (not bothering to run through laborious introductions every time Apple update their O.S.)

By tapping in the vicinity of where you want the cursor then holding "down' the spacebar, the keycaps lettering disappears. Moving your finger you then control the position of the cursor above and can easily place it between the required characters. "Releasing" the spacebar the keycaps reappear.

Anymore new features I've missed.

Re: IOS Tip(s)

Avatar Mick Burrell
It's been like that for quite some time Rick! The only downside is that as the spacebar is at the bottom of the screen, it's tricky to move it down from where you place it. Often helps to place it just below as moving up (and left or right) is a doddle.

Re: IOS Tip(s)

Avatar Andrew Kemp
Other methods of moving the cursor:

* On an iPad (iOS 11+?), place two fingers anywhere on the onscreen keyboard and drag. This has the same effect as holding down on the space bar.

* In iOS 13 (iPhones and iPads), hold down and drag directly on the cursor in the text field.

Re: IOS Tip(s)

Avatar Andrew Kemp
A couple more text editing shortcuts added in iOS 13:

* Swipe left with three fingers to undo. Swipe right with three fingers to redo.

* Pinch with three fingers to copy the selected text. Make the opposite three finger gesture (spread?) to paste.

These are implemented on iPhones as well, although they are almost impossible to execute correctly there.

Re: IOS Tip(s)

Avatar Rick Churchill
Andrew my cursor (IOS 13) sometimes enlarges and moves but most times it selects several words. It may be the extra millisecond that I hold my finger on the screen.

Re: IOS Tip(s)

Avatar Tony Still
Thanks Rick: I suggested a talk on this some months ago and Mick told me then that it was all old-hat. I'm pleased not to be the only one who hadn't noticed it.

I think it's far inferior to the old system with the little magnifying glass that showed what was otherwise underneath your finger. However, it does work except that I find the selection of arbitrary blocks of text (with the two pins) to be very hit and miss. They have a great tendency to rush off up the display!

I haven't tried the new mouse and keyboard drivers but, regardless, I think all this still needs improvement.

Re: IOS Tip(s)

Avatar Trevor Hewson
I too find text editing more difficult with the later versions of iOS. It seems that sometimes I can no longer do the basic things (like positioning the cursor) without accidentally triggering unwanted 'advanced' features.

A talk on this would be good, but of course we'd have to be able to see the finger of the demonstrator, not just what was happening on the screen.

I'm also plagued by spurious capitalisation. For example, if I try to type i.e. the i gets capitalised. And as for numbering paragraphs (i), (ii) etc. . . . . .

Maybe I should now go back to bed and try to get out on the positive side!

Re: IOS Tip(s)

Avatar Tony Still
I think the capitalisation is all a part of the enhanced spellcheck. It annoys me too (years of intimidation by command-lines and compilers make me usually type what I mean) but I think you lose more than you gain by turning it off.
 
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