Scrolling for Durations

• May 23, 2020 - 17:44

This is an improved idea of something I had posted a bit ago... middle click stuff COUGH. So... When you are in note input mode, instead of pressing the 1,2...etc keys to get a note duration, you can instead scroll the mouse wheel for that: if you scroll it in one way the duration you get it smaller than the last and if you scroll the other it will be wider. This may make doing the job faster, because having to check what button you press to get the right duration (or selecting one duration with the mouse) is ... fine but I believe my suggestion makes it faster.


Comments

Not a bad idea per se, but it does break navigation..

Note that there are already double/half duration shortcuts as well as add/remove dots.

In reply to by jeetee

:o I didn't know actually. Though generally when somebody is using the keyboard they will not ,usually, press only the numbers and it's tiring to move your hand around, and the other hand from mouse to board and then mouse again... I also checked that it ruins navigation, so... Maybe right click could be used to navigate? (By the way I think when somebody navigates by scrolling, the movement should smoother, like when you navigate in pages on web)

In reply to by [DELETED] 32872726

Oh by the way, I just thought that when I want to change between rests and notes it's a bit tiring too: either press the shortcut (don't remember it) or go press the button. So what if we pressed middle click to change between notes and rests? Would that be faster? ( I'm just trying ways to find more uses for the mouse buttons because you don't need to make big movements, unlike in the board. Yes I'm bored to move my hands XD

In reply to by [DELETED] 32872726

When I use keyboard entry I don't use the mouse at all.
Left hand is near the note names and thus also near the duration half/double shortcuts (which I hardly ever use because...) my right hand is on the numeric pad, handling duration and rest input (0 button).

I hardly ever have to use the mouse during that step. I then use the mouse for a second entry pass, in which that scroll wheel is used intensively for moving around the score, and clicking a(n / range of) element in the score, followed by a click on a palette item.

In reply to by [DELETED] 32872726

Alt-Up/Down works too for changing between voices/staves.

Adding stuff from the palettes and inspector I usually do use the mouse, but all that is possible with the keyboard too. It's not as good as it should be yet, but keep in mind that using a mouse is quite difficult for blind people for example.

In reply to by jeetee

@jeetee
I think maybe you have redefined those. My shortcut list says Alt+up/down are "Go to higher/lower pitched note in chord". Unless I redefined those myself sometime of course.

Anyway, whatever the short cut is, the point is that there is a long list of commands that are exposed to allow a shortcut to be defined so that keyboard-skilled users can avoid having to resort to the mouse. And let's hope that list of exposed commands gets longer.

In reply to by jeetee

I often use left hand on keypad, right hand on mouse. But indeed the mouse is not needed at all, MuseScore is capable of almost entirely to be driven by keyboard, current exception is the palettes I think. But note entry doesn't need a mouse at all, if you know the names of the notes

In reply to by [DELETED] 32872726

" isn't mouse required to input notes on the score?"

No. In stepwise note input mode, select the duration, hit the note name key (i.e. press A for an A, B for a B, etc.). Then adjust the pitch if necessary using the arrow keys to move a semitone on each press or CTRL + arrow to adjust by an octave. I have found it convenient to set up shortcuts to enter accidentals so I use # before the note name key to add a sharp for exsmple but that is not necessary. After some practice it is pretty much possible to touch type during note entry - much faster than faffing with a mouse.

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