Mail strike through keyboard shortcut

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Level 1

21 points

Mail strike through keyboard shortcut

For years I'm trying to find a keyboard shortcut for 'strikethrough' or 'struck through' or however you want to call text with a horizontal line through it in OS X Mail. You'd think it is a popular feature since the strikethrough style has been on text editors since the earliest days of the Mac, well at least for decades I can remember and on the other hand it's easy to implement in HTML email since there's a HTML tag for it, <s>triketrough, just like there is for <b>old and <i>talic.

I did manage to add a shortcut for strikethrough by adding a style to 'favorite styles' via the 'system wide' styles menu.

(You can do this by making a text selection strikethrough and then add this style to the styles menu via, for example, using the right mouse button or CTRL-clicking on a text selection and choosing Fonts, submenu Styles. I named it Struck though (or maybe it was already there, I'm not sure).

Then I added a shortcut for it in System Preferences / Keyboard / Shortcuts

(Select Applications in the bottem of the left colomn, click the + sign below the second column, choose 'All applications' else it won't work in Textedit for some reason, name it EXACTLY after your menu item, for example in my case Struck through — and choose a keyboard shortcut that is not already in use. Watch out: somehow it doesn't warn you any more for used shortcuts. If I recall correctly it did warm me in older versions of OS X.)

This shortcut is working in Textedit but still not in Mail. I really hoped this new version of Mail 5.2 would finally have a fix for this. Is there really no way to use a shortcut for strikethrough in Mail?

MacPro3,1 (2008), Mac OS X (10.6.4), working with Macs since 1992

Posted on May 20, 2012 5:00 PM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Tuttle

Level 7

29,541 points

Apr 30, 2013 2:03 PM in response to Leon Buijs

Command-T brings up the Fonts window and strike-through is available there.

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Answer 2

Leon Buijs Author

Level 1

21 points

May 22, 2012 8:50 AM in response to Tuttle

I appreciate the effort of making an image of it but this way it's not a keyboard shortcut and you still have to take your hand from the keyboard and use the mouse to get a strikethrough.

Maybe I should look into Automator. I never use it but maybe I can script it via Automator?

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Answer 3

Aug 20, 2012 5:50 AM in response to Leon Buijs

The shortcut is Apple, Shift and X

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Answer 4

Leon Buijs Author

Level 1

21 points

Aug 22, 2012 3:51 AM in response to landmark_london

No it's not. It doesn't work in either Mail or TextEdit. What are you using and what version?

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Answer 5

XDreX

Level 1

0 points

Sep 25, 2012 2:46 AM in response to Leon Buijs

Hi there! I implemented the shortcut, just as Leon suggested, and it works just as he said: in TextEdit, but not in Mail (or Notes, where I would actually like to have it). Anyone know of a way to get the strike-through shortcut working in Notes?

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Answer 6

Feb 3, 2013 8:44 AM in response to Leon Buijs

As with Leon the original poster, I've searched for a keyboard shortcut in Mail for Strike-through for years. I can say with fair certainty, it doesn't exist 🙂.

I've tried using Macro programs (such as QuicKeys) and a couple other hacks for creating keyboard shortcuts in Lion and Mountain Lion. It's absolutely a no go.

The only way is still manual: going into the Fonts window and hand-selecting the strike-through each time.

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Answer 7

Leon Buijs Author

Level 1

21 points

Feb 4, 2013 3:54 AM in response to braintoniq

braintoniq wrote:

As with Leon the original poster, I've searched for a keyboard shortcut in Mail for Strike-through for years. I can say with fair certainty, it doesn't exist 🙂.

Well, that's a relief to hear. 😉

braintoniq wrote:

I've tried using Macro programs (such as QuicKeys) and a couple other hacks for creating keyboard shortcuts in Lion and Mountain Lion. It's absolutely a no go.

I was thinking of giving AppleScript / automator a try, or did you try it yet?

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Answer 8

Feb 4, 2013 7:19 AM in response to Leon Buijs

I was thinking of giving AppleScript / automator a try, or did you try it yet?

What is this sorcery to which you speak?

I wish I knew AppleScript, but don't. I'm just a lowly user, thus the reliance on things like QuickBooks. Even Automator baffles me.

If you come up with a solution, definitely post it. I'd love to hit a keystroke to create a strike-through.

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Answer 9

May 2, 2013 7:02 AM in response to braintoniq

Try this:

⌘ + Shift + -

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Answer 10

May 2, 2013 7:09 AM in response to DickBronder

⌘ + Shift + - doesn't work on my Mac (in Mail or Pages). That shortcut makes the text size smaller.

What does that ⌘ + Shift + - do on your Mac, DickBronder?

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Answer 11

May 2, 2013 7:23 AM in response to braintoniq

Hi, sorry didn't test it.

I use Scapple as a notepad / ledger for my to do's and list and so on. I was looking for a strikethrough shortcut for that. And there it works :-).

Actually it does different things in different apps, funny.

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Answer 12

DUNKYD

Level 1

9 points

Feb 3, 2014 10:15 AM in response to Leon Buijs

And the winner is........Tuttle !

Thanks, was also looking.

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Answer 13

Jul 17, 2014 7:51 PM in response to Leon Buijs

I came here searching for an answer to the same problem. This thread was the first hit in Google. Fortunately, the second result has the answer. See this thread: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4250591?answerId=19432338022#19432338022

A user named paikinator posted this:

-------------------------------------

Make your strikethrough a simple keystroke:

1. Create a word with a strikethrough using Format->Font->Show Fonts to bring up the font inspector as Marko said. Highlight a word and apply the desired strikethrough.

2. Next, using the highlighted word you used the strikethough on..... Select Format->Font->Copy Style (option-command-C)

3. Apply your strikethrough as often and wherever you want to using the simple keystroke (option-command-V)

Note: This doesn't preclude you from copying and pasting text too and from the clipboard at will.

The Style will remain in the clipboard until you. Any text you copy paste can be changed without interfering with the style.

sidenote: not sure if the style will stay if you close notes, but I always have mine open so strikethrough is always available by keystroke. No more surfing through menus every time.

I can even apply strikethough to other text such as in stickies after copying the style!!! Haven't tested it with all apps however.

-------------------------------------

I've tried it and it worked in Notes and Mail.

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Answer 14

Leon Buijs Author

Level 1

21 points

Jul 18, 2014 7:34 AM in response to timeshifter

It's the next best thing (so I'll give it a +1) and it's workable if you need to only do a number of strikethroughs after one another, but you can't use any other styles in between.

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Answer 15

Mudflap

Level 1

68 points

Nov 14, 2014 10:52 AM in response to timeshifter

Time shifter—thank you. That truly is the next best thing. I can't understand why the Mac—the one platform that was made for copy writing, editing, design and all things creative—doesn't have a global keyboard shortcut for strikethrough, or a way to make it so.

But this will work for the time being, because as much as I use CMD-V and CMD-SHIFT-OPT-V, for some reason I never used CMD-OPT-V before. This will do nicely.

Thanks again!

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