Comment by simonsarris | Hacker News Reader

Comment by simonsarris | Hacker News Reader

Edit: Apparently there are shortcuts that are not typical on Windows that apply to the Cr-48. I was a dope with my chromebook all this time! I should have known better.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Table_of_keyboard_shortcuts#Tex...

Original comment:

Unfortunately these laptops still have the same problem as the original Cr-48. None of these keyboards are suited for basic text editing as they lack the home/end/delete keys, which would be a minimum for a lot of people, and the entire 6-key cluster still-in-place would be much preferred.

This is the keyboard, by the way, which is identical my old Cr-48:

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/815Dnur3O6L._AA1500_.j...

Making blog posts, using google docs, jsfiddle, Ace, StackOverflow, etc. All of these are a frustrating experience after a while if you are used to using a normal keyboard and are then forced to forego the home/end cluster.

If the difference between a tablet and a Chromebook is a keyboard, why can't they take writing seriously?

Troll? if not:

These keys are easily replaced by ctrl-a ctrl-e or alt-arrow keys. Moving your hand all the way over there to the arrows and 6key cluster is for the birds.

That said, I agree, google seems dead set on making these machines for "normal people", and that they are lacking in a few ways that keep the "normal" folks away (not the least of which is that you can't just walk into a best buy and pick one up), but not having home/end/delete is probably low on that list. Not a single Mac laptop has those on single keys and they seem to be selling ok.

Not a troll, sorry to not be clear. I would think a lot of people would prefer the 6key cluster, but thats very possibly just my own bias.

I've honestly never heard of ctrl-a ctrl-e or alt-arrow keys to do those tasks. They certainly don't work on Windows Chrome or Sublime Text 2 in Windows so I've never used them in my daily routine.

I haven't used a chromebook personally, but:

ctrl-a (home)

ctrl-e (end)

ctrl-n (next line)

ctrl-p (previous line)

ctrl-f (forward/right)

ctrl-b (back/left)

are all traditional Emacs key-bindings, and they're supported throughout all of OSX; it's one of the very few features I actually miss when I'm on other OSes...

How does that interact with Ctrl+a being select all?

Since macs rely mostly on the 'command'/'apple' key for that stuff (instead of Ctrl), on OSX Select All is just cmd+a, like how Copy/Paste are cmd+c/cmd+v respectively, so it doesn't interfere.

And on Emacs you start getting into multi-key combo finger dances for that (e.g. "Ctrl+x h" = highlight all), which OSX doesn't emulate for various reasons I'm sure...

I did an image search and it doesn't look like the chrome books have the extra meta/command/apple/super/windows key on them. Do they just not have a select all?

Macs don't have home/end/delete. Personally I don't miss them.

They kinda do, actually - fn+left/right is home/end, fn+up/down is pageup/down, fn+backspace ("delete") is forward delete.

I like the way you said kinda - sometimes they aren't as you would expect.

I absolutely love the home and end shortcuts. The one thing that does look odd with the Chrome shortcuts is the reliance on the Function keys - that as a touch typist - I find hard to get on with.

http://img.diytrade.com/cdimg/425436/9396978/0/1245127440/10...

???

Sorry, I was being lazy. I meant on the comparable devices to a Chromebook - small macbooks.

Really? They must be mislabeled on my keyboard then.

I don't know if they've disabled it in their distribution, but Ctrl-A (beginning of line) and Ctrl-E (end-of-line) work in my version of Chrome. Not sure if this is a default or something I've set system-wide.

default, at least it's true for me to, and I never set anything

Hmm... my MacBook doesn't have a home/end cluster and I seem to function fine on all those sites. CTRL-A & CTRL-E (handy if you're an Emacs fan).

I use Chromebook a lot and I never really thought about the home/end/delete keys.

Your argument falls apart when you realize that Macs don't have any of those keys and most people have no issues using them for "basic text editing".

Not really. I have a Macbook Air, and the main reason I don't use it more often is the lack of those keys.

Notice that all the replacements for those keys in the Mac world require a two-key combo. Two keys from two separate hands in most cases (fn + arrows accounting for 4 of them and fn+delete being the fifth).

That means you can't poke at it with one hand while walking past with a cup of coffee, use it while keeping a mouse in one hand, or otherwise interact with it casually. It's a small annoyance, but one that simply doesn't exist in the Windows experience.

All other things being roughly equal between those two worlds, I find myself using the old XP box in favor of the Mac most of the time. Mostly for the reason the grandparent mentions.

I must admit I was a little disappointed to not see an even more simplified keyboard. A three finger combo (chord) is just ridiculous.

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