Block marking, handling and editing

There are two types of Block that can be marked in StrongED - the standard one and the Freeblock which is a rectangle including corresponding bits of the file on different lines: this is very useful of anything that is in columns.

In standard mode the special feature is that StrongED will edit every line in a marked block - unless you have turned off the option.

Marking, adjusting and clearing - Standard Block

This can be done in two ways: with the mouse or with the keyboard,

Mouse

• To mark a new block: use Select.
  • Click and drag. Release Select when you have marked the required block
  • Or click Select at the start of the required block, then click Adjust at the end..
• To adjust a block: use Adjust.
  • Click inside the marked block. The nearest end on the marked block will shrink to where you click.
  • Click outside the marked block. The block will adjust to where you click.
  If you keep Adjust pressed, the end of the marked block is held and may be moved as you wish.
• To mark a word: click Select twice on the word.
  A word may also be the whitespace (spaces and TABs).
• To mark a line: click Select three times.
  Keep Ctrl down if you don't want the first Select-click to move the caret.
• To clear a marked block: double click Select on an area in the window which is clear of text.

Keyboard

• To mark a new block:
  • Press F6 at one end of the desired block.
  • Navigate to the other end of the required block.
  • Press F6
  Or
  • Press and hold ESC: this will clear any marked block.
  • Use the cursor keys to adjust the marked block.
  • Release ESC when finished.
• To mark a word: Ctrl-A
• To mark a line: Ctrl-AA
• To mark the whole text: Ctrl-AAA
• To clear a marked block: press Shift-F6 or ESC.
• To mark to start of line: Ctrl-Shift-left cursor key
• To mark to end of line: Ctrl-Shift-right cursor key
  A second press of these keys will delete the marked block.

FreeBlock - Marking, adjusting and clearing

Marking a Freeblock

A Freeblock is a rectangular area of text. What you can do with this block is slightly more limited than what you can do with a normal block, but basic copying and moving works. Copying/moving can be a little startling if you copy/move to the wrong place, but F8 will undo any damage!

Freeblock is specially useful to move or copy columns of text.

• To mark a freeblock,
  • hold down ALT.
  • Click Select where you want te block to start.
  • Drag to where you want the block to end.
  • Release ALT and Select
  or
  • Click Seleclect where you want te block to start.
  • Hold down ALT
  • Click Adjust where you want the block to end.
  • Release ALT
• To adjust a Freeblock, move the caret (by mouse or keys) and press F6
  Or use Adjust

Editing a marked block

Ctrl-C	Copy block
Ctrl-V	Move block
Ctrl-X	Delete block
F7	Copy block
Shift-F7	Move block
Shift-F8	Delete block
Ctrl-Shift-X	Cut to clipboard.
Ctrl-Shift-C	Copy from text to clipboard
Ctrl-Shift-V	Paste from clipboard to text.
Ctrl-Shift-Z	Clear the clipboard.

Features that change within a block

Many of StrongED's functions are 'block sensitive'. That is, they behave differently when the caret is inside a block F2F3Shift-F4Ctrl-UCtrl-S

Ctrl-Shift-X	Opens ListOfFound dbox, with search limited to block
Ctrl-Shift-C	Opens savebox for block
Ctrl-Shift-V	Opens Search/Replace dbox, with search limited to block
Ctrl-Shift-Z	Shifts block to uppercase
Ctrl-Shift-Z	Swaps case of block.

The most useful feature is that, while inside a block, standard editing (typing text and deleting) happens simultaneously on all the text lines in the block.

Block Editing choices

Many of the block editing features can be turned off (or back on) via the Icon Bar menu. Choices -> Block -> "Editing