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  3. There are times when I wonder what MS developers are smoking...

There are times when I wonder what MS developers are smoking...

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  • V Vark111

    I wish they would separate that option to one for copy and one for cut. Because I agree that copying a blank line is just silly. Cutting however? When I'm rearranging code (commenting / moving similar methods/props next to each other, etc..., ergo, a lot of cutting/pasting), I use ctrl-x to cut (read: delete) blank lines all the time. Much easier to do with one hand on the mouse, and the other on ctrl-x. ctrl-delete requires me to leave the mouse or contort.

    _ Offline
    _ Offline
    _Vitor Garcia_
    wrote on last edited by
    #16

    Why won't you just press delete ?

    V 1 Reply Last reply
    0
    • _ _Vitor Garcia_

      Why won't you just press delete ?

      V Offline
      V Offline
      Vark111
      wrote on last edited by
      #17

      Because some(many) times the "blank" lines have extra spaces or tabs in them. Delete will only get rid of one of the characters. ctrl-x eliminates the whole line. And I think these faux-blank lines still count as blank as far as this option is concerned. Also: since this is usually in the midst of moving code, my hand is already over the ctrl-x keys.

      1 Reply Last reply
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      • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

        There's been a niggle with VS for me for a while: I use CTRL+C and CTRL+V to copy and paste, but they are close together and occasionally I get a Copy when I wanted a Paste. Normally I just sigh, and go back to copy it again - but it annoys me a little when I'm on a blank line with nothing selected, and the Paste operation copies the blank line to the clipboard. Why? Why do that? Well, it's deliberate: there's an option to specifically do that.

        Tools -> Options -> Text Editor -> All Languages -> General ... "Apply Cut or Copy commands to blank lines when there is no selection"

        And for whatever reason the default state is "Yes, copy a damn blank line to the clipboard when there is no selection". Why, Microsoft? Why? :doh:

        Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...

        D Offline
        D Offline
        DJ van Wyk
        wrote on last edited by
        #18

        That is the second setting I change when installing a new copy of any version of VS.

        My plan is to live forever ... so far so good

        1 Reply Last reply
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        • N newton saber

          Don't you know WordStar?[^] Ctrl-Insert for copy Shift-Insert for paste Works everywhere. Visual Studio messes it up. :D Solves that empty-line-copy problem too, from what I can tell. *** EDIT *** Oh, interesting, Ctrl-Insert and Shift-Insert are from the IBM Common User Acess (CUA)[^]

          D Offline
          D Offline
          DJ van Wyk
          wrote on last edited by
          #19

          That's the old school way of doing it. I can remember it from the DOS / Word Perfect / Quatro Pro days. Funny thing is, nobody ever considered copy/pasting an empty line back then. We did things more efficiently by using the huge [Enter] key on the keyboard.

          My plan is to live forever ... so far so good

          N 1 Reply Last reply
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          • V Vark111

            I wish they would separate that option to one for copy and one for cut. Because I agree that copying a blank line is just silly. Cutting however? When I'm rearranging code (commenting / moving similar methods/props next to each other, etc..., ergo, a lot of cutting/pasting), I use ctrl-x to cut (read: delete) blank lines all the time. Much easier to do with one hand on the mouse, and the other on ctrl-x. ctrl-delete requires me to leave the mouse or contort.

            D Offline
            D Offline
            DJ van Wyk
            wrote on last edited by
            #20

            In VS I prefer to use [Ctrl]+[Shift]+[L] to remove empty lines. That way I don't lose what's in the clipboard. It normally happens when I decide to move chunks of code around by cutting what I want to keep, removing all lines to clean up, then going to the new location and pasting. That way I don't have to scroll around or remember where to clean up again.

            My plan is to live forever ... so far so good

            1 Reply Last reply
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            • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

              IIRC, copy only ever did anything at all if there was a selection - and most apps work that way even today. The whole idea of copy working on non-selected data is bad, I think - but I wish it worked in MS error message boxes where you can't select anything anyway! :laugh:

              Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...

              C Offline
              C Offline
              Corneliu Tusnea
              wrote on last edited by
              #21

              Ctrl+C works in "most" error message boxes. It copies the complete contents + title + buttons as text. I love it. You don't need to "select" anything except to have the message box focused. Sample: --------------------------- Microsoft Visual Studio --------------------------- Cannot move 'RandomFile.Debug.config'. The destination folder is the same as the source folder. --------------------------- OK ---------------------------

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              • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

                There's been a niggle with VS for me for a while: I use CTRL+C and CTRL+V to copy and paste, but they are close together and occasionally I get a Copy when I wanted a Paste. Normally I just sigh, and go back to copy it again - but it annoys me a little when I'm on a blank line with nothing selected, and the Paste operation copies the blank line to the clipboard. Why? Why do that? Well, it's deliberate: there's an option to specifically do that.

                Tools -> Options -> Text Editor -> All Languages -> General ... "Apply Cut or Copy commands to blank lines when there is no selection"

                And for whatever reason the default state is "Yes, copy a damn blank line to the clipboard when there is no selection". Why, Microsoft? Why? :doh:

                Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...

                O Offline
                O Offline
                Oleg A Lukin
                wrote on last edited by
                #22

                Did you ever try Ctrl+Shift+V after that? Twice ;)

                Banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies. T.Jefferson

                OriginalGriffO 1 Reply Last reply
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                • N newton saber

                  Don't you know WordStar?[^] Ctrl-Insert for copy Shift-Insert for paste Works everywhere. Visual Studio messes it up. :D Solves that empty-line-copy problem too, from what I can tell. *** EDIT *** Oh, interesting, Ctrl-Insert and Shift-Insert are from the IBM Common User Acess (CUA)[^]

                  G Offline
                  G Offline
                  greldak
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #23

                  They were the ones shown on the menus in Win 3.1

                  N 1 Reply Last reply
                  0
                  • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

                    There's been a niggle with VS for me for a while: I use CTRL+C and CTRL+V to copy and paste, but they are close together and occasionally I get a Copy when I wanted a Paste. Normally I just sigh, and go back to copy it again - but it annoys me a little when I'm on a blank line with nothing selected, and the Paste operation copies the blank line to the clipboard. Why? Why do that? Well, it's deliberate: there's an option to specifically do that.

                    Tools -> Options -> Text Editor -> All Languages -> General ... "Apply Cut or Copy commands to blank lines when there is no selection"

                    And for whatever reason the default state is "Yes, copy a damn blank line to the clipboard when there is no selection". Why, Microsoft? Why? :doh:

                    Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...

                    S Offline
                    S Offline
                    Simon ORiordan from UK
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #24

                    Why? Retentive code reviews.

                    1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • O Oleg A Lukin

                      Did you ever try Ctrl+Shift+V after that? Twice ;)

                      Banking establishments are more dangerous than standing armies. T.Jefferson

                      OriginalGriffO Offline
                      OriginalGriffO Offline
                      OriginalGriff
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #25

                      Nope, never heard of that one! :sigh: There are times, Microsoft...and inventing a cure for a problem you cause without actually curing the problem...

                      Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...

                      "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
                      "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

                      O 1 Reply Last reply
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                      • C Corneliu Tusnea

                        Ctrl+C works in "most" error message boxes. It copies the complete contents + title + buttons as text. I love it. You don't need to "select" anything except to have the message box focused. Sample: --------------------------- Microsoft Visual Studio --------------------------- Cannot move 'RandomFile.Debug.config'. The destination folder is the same as the source folder. --------------------------- OK ---------------------------

                        G Offline
                        G Offline
                        grralph1
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #26

                        You have hit the nail on the head. This is the reason why copying non-selected makes you shoot blanks, but it lets you copy the un-selectable. Sort of nice. I am a bit pissed off about this as I didn't know about this until your post. So Thanks Corneliu. There is always a reason.

                        "Rock journalism is people who can't write interviewing people who can't talk for people who can't read." Frank Zappa 1980

                        1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

                          There's been a niggle with VS for me for a while: I use CTRL+C and CTRL+V to copy and paste, but they are close together and occasionally I get a Copy when I wanted a Paste. Normally I just sigh, and go back to copy it again - but it annoys me a little when I'm on a blank line with nothing selected, and the Paste operation copies the blank line to the clipboard. Why? Why do that? Well, it's deliberate: there's an option to specifically do that.

                          Tools -> Options -> Text Editor -> All Languages -> General ... "Apply Cut or Copy commands to blank lines when there is no selection"

                          And for whatever reason the default state is "Yes, copy a damn blank line to the clipboard when there is no selection". Why, Microsoft? Why? :doh:

                          Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...

                          M Offline
                          M Offline
                          MikeTheFid
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #27

                          I know well the annoyance when I too miss the "v" key and press the "c" key instead. Indeed, WTF were they thinking!?! I started using BRIEF (Basic Reconfigurable Interactive Editing Facility) in the late 80's and it's keyboard shortcuts have stuck with me ever since. Cut-Copy-Paste are such fundamental operations they demand a single key all their own; none of this rubbish multi-finger pinky-x, pinky-c, and pink-v! Insert ==> Edit|Paste Keypad + ==> Edit|Copy Keypad - ==> Edit|Cut Simple, intuitive, and since I do far more copying than cutting, they used the enlarged "+" key on the numeric keypad to give your finger an ample target. Brief was (is) a brilliant editor and it's ideas have stood the test of time IMNSHO.

                          Cheers, Mike Fidler "I intend to live forever - so far, so good." Steven Wright "I almost had a psychic girlfriend but she left me before we met." Also Steven Wright

                          OriginalGriffO E 2 Replies Last reply
                          0
                          • M MikeTheFid

                            I know well the annoyance when I too miss the "v" key and press the "c" key instead. Indeed, WTF were they thinking!?! I started using BRIEF (Basic Reconfigurable Interactive Editing Facility) in the late 80's and it's keyboard shortcuts have stuck with me ever since. Cut-Copy-Paste are such fundamental operations they demand a single key all their own; none of this rubbish multi-finger pinky-x, pinky-c, and pink-v! Insert ==> Edit|Paste Keypad + ==> Edit|Copy Keypad - ==> Edit|Cut Simple, intuitive, and since I do far more copying than cutting, they used the enlarged "+" key on the numeric keypad to give your finger an ample target. Brief was (is) a brilliant editor and it's ideas have stood the test of time IMNSHO.

                            Cheers, Mike Fidler "I intend to live forever - so far, so good." Steven Wright "I almost had a psychic girlfriend but she left me before we met." Also Steven Wright

                            OriginalGriffO Offline
                            OriginalGriffO Offline
                            OriginalGriff
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #28

                            And it had multiple source "windows", and mouse support, and... I loved it to death - for the first time, you could look at several parts of your code at the same time (Microsoft, are you listening?) I think I still have the original disks and manual in the spare room - but they'll be on 360K floppies (possibly 720, I can't remember) and I don't have anything to read them any more!

                            Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...

                            "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
                            "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

                            D M 2 Replies Last reply
                            0
                            • G greldak

                              They were the ones shown on the menus in Win 3.1

                              N Offline
                              N Offline
                              newton saber
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #29

                              greldak wrote:

                              They were the ones shown on the menus in Win 3.1

                              You're right. That's how I learned them and I've never forgotten them. They work in places the other hotkeys don't.

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • D DJ van Wyk

                                That's the old school way of doing it. I can remember it from the DOS / Word Perfect / Quatro Pro days. Funny thing is, nobody ever considered copy/pasting an empty line back then. We did things more efficiently by using the huge [Enter] key on the keyboard.

                                My plan is to live forever ... so far so good

                                N Offline
                                N Offline
                                newton saber
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #30

                                DJ van Wyk wrote:

                                old school way of doing it

                                best way... :D

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

                                  And it had multiple source "windows", and mouse support, and... I loved it to death - for the first time, you could look at several parts of your code at the same time (Microsoft, are you listening?) I think I still have the original disks and manual in the spare room - but they'll be on 360K floppies (possibly 720, I can't remember) and I don't have anything to read them any more!

                                  Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...

                                  D Offline
                                  D Offline
                                  DJ van Wyk
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #31

                                  OriginalGriff wrote:

                                  (Microsoft, are you listening?)

                                  No

                                  My plan is to live forever ... so far so good

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • M MikeTheFid

                                    I know well the annoyance when I too miss the "v" key and press the "c" key instead. Indeed, WTF were they thinking!?! I started using BRIEF (Basic Reconfigurable Interactive Editing Facility) in the late 80's and it's keyboard shortcuts have stuck with me ever since. Cut-Copy-Paste are such fundamental operations they demand a single key all their own; none of this rubbish multi-finger pinky-x, pinky-c, and pink-v! Insert ==> Edit|Paste Keypad + ==> Edit|Copy Keypad - ==> Edit|Cut Simple, intuitive, and since I do far more copying than cutting, they used the enlarged "+" key on the numeric keypad to give your finger an ample target. Brief was (is) a brilliant editor and it's ideas have stood the test of time IMNSHO.

                                    Cheers, Mike Fidler "I intend to live forever - so far, so good." Steven Wright "I almost had a psychic girlfriend but she left me before we met." Also Steven Wright

                                    E Offline
                                    E Offline
                                    englebart
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #32

                                    I loved B.R.I.E.F. It was made my Underware Software (seriously). The thing I really miss about the old editors was that they could edit HUGE files that would not fit into all available memory. I needed that just yesterday! Notepad refused to load a 1.9gig text file on a 64bit OS with 4gigs of free memory! BRIEF had a great macro language as well. I wrote a macro to provide popup context menus for the different C structs <-> DB mappings we used on a series of projects. It was like intellisense 0.1. Somewhere along the way, they converted the macro language from a LISP-like prefix syntax to more of a C syntax. Then the IDEs started coming out and eclipsed* the single purpose editors... *bad pun

                                    P 1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • OriginalGriffO OriginalGriff

                                      And it had multiple source "windows", and mouse support, and... I loved it to death - for the first time, you could look at several parts of your code at the same time (Microsoft, are you listening?) I think I still have the original disks and manual in the spare room - but they'll be on 360K floppies (possibly 720, I can't remember) and I don't have anything to read them any more!

                                      Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...

                                      M Offline
                                      M Offline
                                      MikeTheFid
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #33

                                      http://www.briefeditor.com/download.htm[^] Free.

                                      Cheers, Mike Fidler "I intend to live forever - so far, so good." Steven Wright "I almost had a psychic girlfriend but she left me before we met." Also Steven Wright

                                      OriginalGriffO 1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • M MikeTheFid

                                        http://www.briefeditor.com/download.htm[^] Free.

                                        Cheers, Mike Fidler "I intend to live forever - so far, so good." Steven Wright "I almost had a psychic girlfriend but she left me before we met." Also Steven Wright

                                        OriginalGriffO Offline
                                        OriginalGriffO Offline
                                        OriginalGriff
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #34

                                        Get thee behind me, Satan! I've got too used to Intellisense, and I'm trying not to install too much old stuff - I still have QuickC for DOS installed, and had to force myself not to install Ami Pro '97 on this PC (because it was a much, much better work processor than Word is, even now...) Nooooo.....I won't do it....I won't....I'll just download it in case I need it later, honest....

                                        Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...

                                        "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
                                        "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

                                        1 Reply Last reply
                                        0
                                        • E englebart

                                          I loved B.R.I.E.F. It was made my Underware Software (seriously). The thing I really miss about the old editors was that they could edit HUGE files that would not fit into all available memory. I needed that just yesterday! Notepad refused to load a 1.9gig text file on a 64bit OS with 4gigs of free memory! BRIEF had a great macro language as well. I wrote a macro to provide popup context menus for the different C structs <-> DB mappings we used on a series of projects. It was like intellisense 0.1. Somewhere along the way, they converted the macro language from a LISP-like prefix syntax to more of a C syntax. Then the IDEs started coming out and eclipsed* the single purpose editors... *bad pun

                                          P Offline
                                          P Offline
                                          Private Dobbs
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #35

                                          TextPad ... :doh:

                                          E 1 Reply Last reply
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