Hotkeys for subscript & superscript

Sean00 wrote:
I'm using the hotkey "Shift-Apple-+/-"

On my machine, it's "ctrl-Apple-+/-", it's not Shift 😉

In the Menu they are correctly spelled: ^⌘+ & ^⌘-, not ⇧⌘+ & ⇧⌘-

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE dimanche 12 octobre 2008 16:34:40)

Type a sample piece of text and add "2" after it.

Select it and hit *control command -* the 2 shrinks in size and drops down as it should with a subscript.

Hit *control command -* again and it goes back to normal.

hit *control shift command +* and it shrinks in size and moves up as it should with a superscript.

To undo that, do it again.

You seem to have missed the vital shift key for the superscript and have merely been flipping between subscript and non subscript.

Apple has been quite literal with the "-" key which is lowercase and the "+" key which is uppercase. Bad GUI in my humble opinion. Another example of some of the more shambolic aspects of OSX.

Which is the language used by the operating system ?

Which kind of machine are you using?

The described shortcut apply to machines whose keyboard has a numeric keypad.

If you have not such keypad, you must use the "main" keyboard.

On a French one, I must use crtl - shift - Apple - + to get the superscript because the + character is got with shift - +

I get the subscript with ctrl - Apple - - because the - character is got with a single -.

You must adjust given the used keyboard layout but it seems that the behavior is the same with the American layout.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE dimanche 12 octobre 2008 16:51:49)

The shortcuts may be edited from the System Preferences Pane entitled Keyboard & Mouse.

But, as far as I know, the shortcuts don't change with no human action, except if you installed a third party component modifying them but it's also a manual action because the odd comonent doesn't enter the system by itself.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE dimanche 12 octobre 2008 17:06:46)

You may have installed something that also uses the same keyboard shortcuts, but you did not mention whether you tested this next to normal text so you can see the effect. Also whether you used the shift in the supersize option.

Keyboard shortcuts can be altered in:

+System Preferences > Keyboard & Mouse > Select "Application Keyboard Shortcuts > Application: > Other > Pages > Menu Title > Keyboard Shortcut+

Try and pick something logical to you that doesn't clash with something else.

Yvan,

You do need the shift for superscript, on the key "+" is above the equal sign ie it is uppercase.

Sean,

Reread my post in detail, I edited it after you first looked at it.

I didn't read you message at all so, I described what I must do on my machine.

I repeat, that on a French keyboard, I must press

ctrl - Apple - shift - + to get the superscript.

It's required because when the shift lock is not pressed, on French keyboard we must press shift & + to get the character + from the main keyboard.

For info, on a French keyboard, the + symbol is on the same key than the = one, not the - one

The - one is on the same key than the _ one.

When I apply the american layout, on this physical French keyboard, I must use two different physical keys but once again I need a simple key to get = and a complementary shift to get the +

Same thing for the - (single key) and the _ which requires the shift.

Using this keyboard since more than 15 years, I know what I say.

In French we say: "Quand on ne sait pas, on se tait" (I used the polite way) 😉

You may look at:

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2841?viewlocale=en_US

for check.

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE dimanche 12 octobre 2008 17:28:22)

Yvan,

We are not disagreeing (unless you insist we do). The 2nd part of my previous post was addressed to Sean.

The behavior of the keyboard is the same on both our machines and systems.

You DO need to press shift to get the superscript.

In your 1st post you did not mention the shift, that is all.

PeterBreis0807 wrote:
Yvan,

We are not disagreeing (unless you insist we do). The 2nd part of my previous post was addressed to Sean.

That's right, I missed it.

The behavior of the keyboard is the same on both our machines and systems.

You DO need to press shift to get the superscript.

NO, I need them _only if I uses the main keyboard_ , not if I uses the numerical keypad.
And it's what I added in my second message !

+Which is the language used by the operating system ?+

+Which kind of machine are you using?+

+The described shortcut apply to machines whose keyboard has a numeric keypad.+

In your 1st post you did not mention the shift, that is all.

In the 1st message, I thought that it was clear that I gave what is given in the MENUS.
Given the OP's response I completed in my second message.

_I may perfectly get superscript and subscript with no action on the shift key as far as I uses the numeric keypad._
There is no law forcing some one to use a small keyboard with no keypad. 😉

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE dimanche 12 octobre 2008 17:49:23)

I did not know that there was a difference between the main keyboard and numeric keypad, but it is always best to assume the user only has the minimum present.

In any case you did not say that you had used the numeric keypad in the 1st post.

The fact that the 2 behave differently is even worse GUI, adding to the confusion.

PeterBreis0807 wrote:
I did not know that there was a difference between the main keyboard and numeric keypad, but it is always best to assume the user only has the minimum present.

Have you already see a numeric keypad requiring a shift key for a character ? I didn't 😉

In any case you did not say that you had used the numeric keypad in the 1st post.

because, as I will detail soon, there is no logical reason to add that.

The fact that the 2 behave differently is even worse GUI, adding to the confusion.

I already wrote:

_In the 1st message, I thought that it was clear that I gave what is given in the MENUS._
_Given the OP's response I completed in my second message._

It's only because the OP was unable to get the correct behavior that I guessed that maybe he didn't took care that, on the main keyboard, to get the + we must press two keys.

I really don't understand why it's worse.

In the Menu they are correctly spelled: ^⌘+ & ^⌘-, not ⇧⌘+ & ⇧⌘-

which means press the control key, the cmd key and what send the + or the - character.

On the keypad, we get + and - with no complementary key.
On the main keyboard, we get - with no complementary key and we get + with the shift key.

I always saw that since I uses Apple machines and was never surprised.

But, we all know that from your point of view, the Mac OS GUI is foolish 😉

Yvan KOENIG (from FRANCE dimanche 12 octobre 2008 18:37:10)