I just found this backspace shortcut...

**pastorich1** · 07/15/2010, 08:29 AM

I haven't seen this anywhere but that doesn't mean it isn't there.

It has been very frustrating and time consuming to backspace to remove text one character at a time, but I thought that was all I could do.

This morning I accidentally got the caps lock on and when I noticed the word I was typing was all caps I just hit the backspace several times and instead of three characters going away, whole words were going away.

So...

Shift + backspace = deletes one whole word with each press
Sym + backspace = deletes one whole word every second press

Hopefully this will be the first time some of you have seen it as well.

**loopytee** · 07/15/2010, 08:40 AM

nice!

**Mikey47** · 07/15/2010, 08:52 AM

What editor were you doing this in? I just tried in memo app and text message and this did not work on my Pre...

**gapost** · 07/15/2010, 09:17 AM

Doesn't work in text messaging for me!

**GuyFromNam** · 07/15/2010, 09:17 AM

Originally Posted by Mikey47

What editor were you doing this in? I just tried in memo app and text message and this did not work on my Pre...

Shift uh. Not orange/silver.
Works for me anywhere.

**chowd** · 07/15/2010, 09:22 AM

Great find! I haven't seen this posted before. This worked for me everywhere I tested it: universal search, browser, messaging and email.

**pastorich1** · 07/15/2010, 09:25 AM

Originally Posted by Mikey47

What editor were you doing this in? I just tried in memo app and text message and this did not work on my Pre...

Text messaging app is where I found it but it works universally on my Pre, even in Scratch Word Processor.

**Mikey47** · 07/15/2010, 09:29 AM

Originally Posted by pastorrich1

Text messaging app is where I found it but it works universally on my Pre, even in Scratch Word Processor.

Strange, it must be one of two things: 1) It is the result of a patch that you added that defines this functionality, or 2) A patch that I added that removes this functionality.

It doesn't work for me anywhere....

**pastorich1** · 07/15/2010, 09:32 AM

Originally Posted by Mikey47

Strange, it must be one of two things: 1) It is the result of a patch that you added that defines this functionality, or 2) A patch that I added that removes this functionality.

It doesn't work for me anywhere....

If it is the result of one of my many installed patches then it is an unintended consequence or unpublished feature.

Are there any unpatched users out there who can check this out and report back?

**morrison0880** · 07/15/2010, 09:46 AM

Originally Posted by pastorrich1

I haven't seen this anywhere but that doesn't mean it isn't there.

It has been very frustrating and time consuming to backspace to remove text one character at a time, but I thought that was all I could do.

This morning I accidentally got the caps lock on and when I noticed the word I was typing was all caps I just hit the backspace several times and instead of three characters going away, whole words were going away.

So...

Shift + backspace = deletes one whole word with each press
Sym + backspace = deletes one whole word every second press

Hopefully this will be the first time some of you have seen it as well.

Way too funny! A while back in a different thread someone commented about the ability to CTRL+Backspace on a PC to go back a word at a time, and that it worked with ORG+Back with the Pre. For as long as I've een a PC user I had never heard about it before then! Looks like I wasn't the only one!
Makes life a lot easier, doesn't it?

**Subversive Asset 2.0** · 07/15/2010, 09:50 AM

I don't know if I have any patches that do this (i don't think I do), but I can confirm that shift+backspace goes back an entire word. Orange/gray + backspace indeed goes back an entire word with two presses.

**vza33** · 07/15/2010, 09:53 AM

Originally Posted by Mikey47

What editor were you doing this in? I just tried in memo app and text message and this did not work on my Pre...

Hold the shift key as you hit backspace and it should work.

**rhinoishere** · 07/15/2010, 09:59 AM

Yeah, works for me, too.

Now can someone please tell me how to move around text on the Pre without deleting? Let's say I'm at the end of a sentence and just want to change the first word. How do I do that without backspacing and deleting words?

**gapost** · 07/15/2010, 09:59 AM

Ok, shift + backspace deletes a word. Nice.

**lenmac08** · 07/15/2010, 10:01 AM

this is great but I've been using this method for a while so it must have been mentioned somewhere because I am certainly not Pre cutting edge. See #13 at below link...

http://forums.precentral.net/palm-pr...shortcuts.html

**staedtler** · 07/15/2010, 10:03 AM

Originally Posted by rhinoishere

Yeah, works for me, too.

Now can someone please tell me how to move around text on the Pre without deleting? Let's say I'm at the end of a sentence and just want to change the first word. How do I do that without backspacing and deleting words?

Hold Orange/Silver, then gesture right or left on the screen itself (not in the gesture area!). It's pretty finicky, but as you move your finger right or left, the cursor will move as well. Also, don't place your finger on the text field itself; that will work, but you'll just cover up the text area and you won't be able to see where the cursor is.

Similarly: hold Shift and do the same thing to highlight text in an entry box. Use the technique above to place the cursor, then hold Shift and move your finger to extend the highlight in either direction.

**igobytony** · 07/15/2010, 10:04 AM

i'm pretty sure it's not a patch, it's just the way it's supposed to work. mine does it everywhere, and always has. i have 50 patches at the moment, and it still works fine.

never knew about the sym+backspace part though, thanks!

**pastorich1** · 07/15/2010, 10:04 AM

Originally Posted by subversiveasset

Orange/gray + backspace indeed goes back an entire word with two presses.

I think you mean Sym instead of Orange/Gray.

Orange/Gray + backspace doesn't do anything but normal backspace for me.

**igobytony** · 07/15/2010, 10:06 AM

Originally Posted by Staedtler

Hold Orange/Silver, then gesture right or left on the screen itself (not in the gesture area!). It's pretty finicky, but as you move your finger right or left, the cursor will move as well. Also, don't place your finger on the text field itself; that will work, but you'll just cover up the text area and you won't be able to see where the cursor is.

Similarly: hold Shift and do the same thing to highlight text in an entry box. Use the technique above to place the cursor, then hold Shift and move your finger to extend the highlight in either direction.

installing one of the patches to reduce the drag radius makes this work so much better! it takes away having to move your finger so far before it is recognined as a drag. the default is like 25, or something, and i have tried all of the reduce patches. i like 10 pretty well, but i think the smallest one, 8, is the sweet spot.

**shadavis08** · 07/15/2010, 10:10 AM

it's been known for a while now . A short cuts thread was around last year.

hold caps key and hit backspace = one whole word deleted

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