Idea Keeper allows you to quickly and easily indent lines in ideas (via the addition of tabs at the beginning of a new paragraph/line), with or without bullets, using the Auto Indent features. These features are enabled and selected in the Auto Indent submenu from the Preferences in the Edit menu.
To use the features described below, you must first turn Auto Indent on in the Auto Indent window.
Two Auto Indent modes
1. "Use Bullets" means that, in addition to inserting tabs at the start of a new paragraph, Idea Keeper looks for any defined bullet character or bullet string at the start of the current line (or following one or more tabs) , which it then copies to the start of the next line, along with the preceding tabs.
Definitions
A Bullet Character is any printable character you want which is within a set of characters you define by pressing the Edit Bullet Char Set button in the Auto Indent Preferences window.
A Bullet String is any string of printable characters (e.g. a word or a phrase) within the set of strings you define by pressing the Edit Bullet Strings button in the Auto Indent Preferences window.
For example in the following, Idea Keeper automatically copied 2 tabs and four bullets ("--" and two spaces) from one line to the next:
-- text...
-- more text...
To start indenting with bullet characters, one has to type a string of bullet characters (as defined by using "Edit Bullet Char Set" in the Auto Indent Preferences window). Idea Keeper copies bullets from one line to the next by comparing the characters at the start of a line with all of the defined bullet characters and bullet strings and, if it finds a string which contains nothing but bullet characters or is a defined bullet string, it copies it.
Idea Keeper first looks for any predefined "Bullet String" (which you can modify via the Edit Bullet Strings button in the Auto Indent Preferences window), which it will copy to the next line. If it doesn't find one it will copy any string of characters from one line to the next, just so long as all the characters are a contiguous string and all belong to characters contained in the "Bullet Character Set" (as defined by using the Edit Bullet Char Set button in the Auto Indent Preferences window). NOTE: Bullet Strings may contain any printable characters, regardless of whether a given character is in the Bullet Character Set.
2. "Only Indent" is the simplest mode. It copies the tabs at the start of one line to the next when you hit Return. This option copies only tabs, nothing else.
Additional features
Checking "Require Control Key" in the Auto Indent Preferences window means that even though "Auto Indent On" remains checked in the Auto Indent Preferences window, you turn the Auto Indent feature on or off at will by using the Control key. Unchecking "Require Control Key" in the Auto Indent Preferences window has the opposite effect. Auto Indent is then normally on - it is operative whenever Return is pressed. Holding the Control key down while pressing Return temporarily disables the Auto Indent feature.
To change the number of tabs at the beginning of a line (regardless of whether the insertion bar is at the beginning of the line), use Control-tab to add a tab, and Control-Shift-tab to remove a tab.
You can add a bullet string to the start of a line simply by pressing Control-tab (or Control-Shift-tab). If you have defined a "default bullet string" (in the "Edit Bullet Strings" dialog), then the default bullet string is automatically inserted at the start of a line (after any tabs). If you do not have a default bullet string defined, nothing is inserted. NOTE: Inserting the default bullet string via Control-tab only works if there isn't any bullet (string of bullet characters or defined bullet string) already present.
Special Behavior When Using Bullets
Idea Keeper looks for and treats certain cases in special ways when applying the Auto Indent feature. These features are designed to simplify the use of Auto Indent.
These cases are as follows when hitting the Return key:
• When the insertion bar is at the start of a line, no Auto Indent is applied when Return is pressed. This allows you to enter "empty" lines.
• When the insertion bar is at the end of "bullet characters" or a "bullet string" (no text, characters after the insertion bar), an "empty" line is inserted before the line you are editing. This is very helpful is if you are typing a paragraph that starts with a bullet, and you want a blank line before starting a new paragraph with the same bullet. All you have to do is press Return twice (if you desire more blank lines, just keep pressing Return), and start typing the new paragraph.
• When the insertion bar is at the end of "bullet characters" or a "bullet string", and there is text following the insertion bar, the bullet is added to the previous line and the insertion bar is placed at the end of the previous, now "empty", line. This makes it easy to add an extra line (with the same bullet) before the present line.
