2-D Math Shortcut Keys and Hints

Shortcut Keys

Action

Shortcut Key

Command/Symbol Completion

• 

Command + Shift + Space, Macintosh®

• 

Ctrl + Space, Windows®

• 

Ctrl + Shift + Space, most UNIX® platforms

Enter/Exit 2-D Math

F5

Superscript

^ (caret)

Subscript

_ (underscore key)

Fraction

/

Underscript

Ctrl+' (Command+', Macintosh)

Overscript

Ctrl+Shift+" (Command+Shift+", Macintosh)

Pre-Superscript

Ctrl+^   (Command+^, Macintosh)

Pre-Subscript

Ctrl+_ (For best results, position the cursor before the base)  (Command+_, Macintosh)

Greek Mode (Next Character Entered As Greek)

Ctrl+Shift+G   (Command+Shift+G, Macintosh)

Escape Next Character (For entering "^", "_".)

\

Scope Out*

Ctrl+[  (Command+[, Macintosh)

Scope In*

Ctrl+]  (Command+], Macintosh)

Return Cursor to Baseline

Ctrl+/   (Command+/, Macintosh)

Navigating 2-D Mathematical Expressions

 Return to Baseline ( Ctrl+/ ) returns the cursor to the top-level baseline after the structure at the current location. For example, if the cursor is several levels up in a superscript of a superscript, Return to Baseline places the cursor after the entire structure.

• 

Scope In and Scope Out move the cursor in or out of a nested structure.

– 

Scope In* descends to the first logical position within a structure, and continues deeper with further key presses.

– 

Scope Out* moves the cursor to the first logical position outside of the current structure. For example, to just before a fraction.

Entering Greek Characters

The shortcut key combination Ctrl+Shift+G  (Command+Shift+G, Macintosh)  places the editor in a Greek mode, which makes the next character entered a Greek character. When Greek mode is entered, the status bar mode indicator switches to 2-D Greek.

Greek Mode Keymap

Key

Greek

Uppercase Key (Shift+key)

Greek

a

A

b

B

c

C

d

D

e

E

f

F

g

G

h

H

i

I

j

J

N/A

k

K

l

L

m

M

n

N

o

O

p

P

q

Q

N/A

r

R

s

S

t

T

u

U

v

V

N/A

w

W

x

X

y

Y

z

Z

Escaping Characters that are Shortcut Keys

Characters that are shortcut keys in 2-D Math must be escaped. To enter a character corresponding to a shortcut key, such as ^, first press the backslash (\) key, then the character. For example, to display the ^ in a 2-D Math mode region, press \, and then ^.  

Command Completion and Entering Symbols

Enter the name or partial name of a symbol, for example, Del (the first three characters in Delta), and then press:

• 

Command + Shift + Space, Macintosh

• 

Ctrl + Space, Windows

• 

Ctrl + Shift + Space, most UNIX platforms

Alternatively, use the palette by clicking the corresponding palette symbol.

Entering Rationals

A rational can be entered by pressing the forward slash key (/). For example entering a / b produces  

Entering the Right Arrow

The right arrow can be entered as follows.

• 

Using the right arrow in the Arrows palette

• 

Entering the name RightArrow and using Command/Symbol Completion

• 

Entering the dash and right chevron symbol (- + >), which automatically forms a right arrow

Selecting Versus Inserting Expressions

Using the forward slash (/ )symbol to create a rational or the caret ( ^) symbol to create a superscript has different results when a mathematical expression is selected.

 

Example: Inserting

Enter abcd, and then insert the cursor between b and c. Press the ^ symbol and enter 2. A superscript is added to ab.


Example: Selecting Expression

Enter abcd, and then select ab. Press the ^ symbol. As a result, cd is now is the superscript position.