Re: [README] Proposed list of new default keybindings

[Vegard Vesterheim <vegard vesterheim uninett no>]

On Thu, 12 Feb 2009 00:08:22 +0100 "Mihai T. Lazarescu" <mtlagm gmail com> wrote:

> On Wed, Feb 11, 2009 at 11:41:32PM +0100, zanghar freenet de wrote:
>
>> C-TAB -> Cycle Windows Backwards
>
> This may annoy the users since it clashes with Firefox's
> cycle-through-tabs default bindings (C-TAB forward, C-S-TAB
> backwards).

I have been pondering a bit on the subject on global vs. local
keyboard bindings, and I have come to realize that there are quite a
few levels to consider. Basic functionality like 'keyboard
navigation' takes place on several layers. One way to subdivide this
hierarchy is this:

 - Virtual Consoles (Alt-Fn in Linux)
 - Virtual desktops within a Console (window manager)
 - Windows within a virtual desktop (window manager)
 - Windows within windows (firefox tabs, terminals tabs, emacs frames)
 - Menues within a tab/window
 - Menu entries within a menu
 - Tabs within a window/form (GtkNotebook)
 - Fields within a form (X11, gtk, HTML forms, HREFs in webpage)
 - Values within a field (radiobuttons)
 - Characters within a Field (possibly multi-line/fullscreen, emacs)

I would like to see a clever suggestion on how to handle keyboard
navigation across these levels. Personally I have developed
muscle-memory for most emacs keybindings, so I keep trying to reuse
those in other applications. The extreme flexibility and extensibility
in sawfish is one of the reasons I am still using it.

I guess we need more modifiers on our keyboards...

 - Vegard V -