Useful hints for editing Foundation

Many shortcut keys are displayed in the pull-down menus and the context menu of the Source Code Editor. Most of them are configurable via the Tools-> Customize dialog. This section outlines some common tasks during editing and explains how to achieve the task using the keyboard rather than the mouse. Some of the tasks rely on a configuration switch of the editor that is available via the Tools-> Editor Optionsdialog.

Changing between windows of the Source Code Editor

It is common that multiple source code files are loaded into the Source Code Editor, each of which occupies its own tabbed editor window. You can change the current editor window by clicking the tab or use the following keys:

Ctrl+Tab

Brings the next editor window to front.

Ctrl+Shift+Tab

Brings the previous editor window to front.

Ctrl+F11

Displays the File List dialog from where you can select the file you want to have in front. This option is also available via View-> File List.

Marking text

Like most other editors, the Xbase++ Workbench Source Code Editor uses the combination of Shift plus navigation keys, like Cursor Up or Page Down, for text marking.

Column marking

When Alt+Shift is pressed, navigation keys are used for column marking instead of row marking. Note that the configuration switch Tools-> Editor Options-> Editor Tab-> Cursor beyond EOL should be selected for proper column marking.

Tab Stops

The Tab key is often used for indentation, although some developers prefer spaces instead of tabs. The Source Code Editor is equipped for both groups of developers and lets you configure how to interprete the Tab key. This is configured via Tools-> Editor Options-> Editor. The setting Use tab character specifies whether to use tab or spaces. The Tab stops entry field contains a comma separated list of column numbers for pre-define tab stop positions.

Auto indentation

When the configuration switch Tools-> Editor Options-> Editor Tab-> Auto indent mode is set, the Enter key positions the cursor not at the beginning of the next line, but in that column where the first character of the current line is located.

Block indentation

You can indent entire blocks of source code at pre-defined Tab Stop positions when you mark multiple lines and press the Tab key. Shift+Taboutdents multiple marked lines.

Dragging source code

You can drag & drop entire blocks of source code with the mouse. To accomplish this, mark the code you want to move, press the left button on the marked text and move the mouse pointer to the desired position in your file. Then release the left button. You can disable this feature by setting the configuration switch Tools-> Editor Options-> Editor Tab-> Disable dragging.

End of Line character

When you prefer to see the End of Line in the editor, you can enable its display via the configuration setting Tools-> Editor Options-> Display Tab-> Draw Special Symbols.

Class navigation

When your file contains source code for a class, you can jump between METHOD declaration and METHOD implementation by pressing Ctrl+Shift+Down.

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