Re: Patch for Delete key behavior (for dia-0.96.1)

["Sameer Sahasrabuddhe" <sameerds gmail com>]

On 9/26/07, Ondrej Mikle <ondrej mikle gmail com> wrote:
> Maciej Jaros wrote:
> > BTW I think that a nicer workaround would be to have a working Delete
> > key for removing any objects unless some text is active. If some text is
> > active (a cursor is visible) then use delete normally and Ctrl+Delete
> > for removing objects.
>
> I could make such patch, it is not so hard; though lots of objects have
> text in them, so most of the time you'd be using Ctrl+Del (since
> clicking an object with text gives focus to the text immediately) and
> Delete just a few times. Which is IMHO more confusing.

Just to clue people in, the proposed solution is a actually a "text
editing" mode, that over-rides all Dia key bindings, not just Delete.
When you are editing the text in some object, the operation is "modal"
... which means nothing else works until you somehow signal the app
that you have stopped editing the text.

As an analogy, recall what happens when you are renaming a file in the
file browser ... Explorer in windows, or Nautilus in Gnome. While you
are editing the name of the file, how often do you really think about
deleting that file or others altogether? All editor commands only
affect the name of the file in that mode. Other actions start working
only when you press escape or enter, or maybe click somewhere else,
thus leaving the name editing mode.

Lars is currently working on implementing that mode, and I am sure he
will appreciate help in terms of patches if people are interested. Why
spend time on workarounds when we could get the real fix in, instead!

Sameer.
-- 
Research Scholar, Department of CSE, IIT Bombay
http://www.it.iitb.ac.in/~sameerds/