Bug 123490 - Keyboard-alternative to selecting various dispersed cells in Calc
Summary: Keyboard-alternative to selecting various dispersed cells in Calc
Status: NEW
Alias: None
Product: LibreOffice
Classification: Unclassified
Component: Calc (show other bugs)
Version:
(earliest affected)
4.2.8.2 release
Hardware: All All
: medium enhancement
Assignee: Not Assigned
URL:
Whiteboard:
Keywords:
Depends on:
Blocks: Cell-Selection
  Show dependency treegraph
 
Reported: 2019-02-15 16:00 UTC by oss
Modified: 2019-06-13 14:33 UTC (History)
3 users (show)

See Also:
Crash report or crash signature:


Attachments
Imperfect macro solution (654 bytes, text/plain)
2019-02-16 09:53 UTC, Buovjaga
Details
Perfect macro solution (888 bytes, text/plain)
2019-02-17 08:01 UTC, Buovjaga
Details

Note You need to log in before you can comment on or make changes to this bug.
Description oss 2019-02-15 16:00:35 UTC
Description:
There seems to be no way of selecting (or deselecting) cells with keyboard, only alternatives seem to be Ctrl+click and clicking while in Add Selection Mode. ( https://help.libreoffice.org/Calc/Selecting_Multiple_Cells#Select_various_dispersed_cells )

It would be nice to be able to do this on the keyboard as well (similarily to many file browsers having the option of ctrl, arrow keys and space toggling the selection). Maybe Space could do this while in the add selection mode?

(It might also solve this question: https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question/99120/calc-selecting-multiple-dispersed-cells-using-the-keyboard-only/ )


Reproducible: Always


User Profile Reset: No



Additional Info:
Comment 1 Buovjaga 2019-02-16 09:53:20 UTC
Created attachment 149326 [details]
Imperfect macro solution

This macro would be perfect, if there was a way to focus into a specific cell without losing the selection. I have created a request for this functionality: bug 123496

The macro is intended to be used in Adding selection mode, bound to a keyboard shortcut.
Comment 2 Buovjaga 2019-02-17 08:01:02 UTC
Created attachment 149337 [details]
Perfect macro solution

Hooray, I came up with a perfect macro solution! It was produced by macro recording and there was no need for editing.

I remembered our IRC discussion, where you mentioned Shift-down-arrow-and-back-up being a fairly good workaround. Now I recorded the action and it works fine with the Adding selection mode!
Comment 3 Heiko Tietze 2019-02-18 11:02:55 UTC
The idea is basically to have a "sticky" mode where focusing another cell (go up/down, click anywhere) doesn't change the previously selected cells. It could end by pressing escape or by toggling the function off (e.g. "Edit > [ ] Cell Selection Mode"). Sounds like a good idea to me.
Comment 4 Buovjaga 2019-02-18 11:10:16 UTC
(In reply to Heiko Tietze from comment #3)
> The idea is basically to have a "sticky" mode where focusing another cell
> (go up/down, click anywhere) doesn't change the previously selected cells.
> It could end by pressing escape or by toggling the function off (e.g. "Edit
> > [ ] Cell Selection Mode"). Sounds like a good idea to me.

To be clear, with Adding selection mode, we already have "where focusing another cell (go up/down, click anywhere) doesn't change the previously selected cells". With a mouse click it selects/unselects a cell.

The desire is only to "simulate mouse clicks" with keyboard in Adding mode.
Comment 5 Heiko Tietze 2019-02-18 11:19:38 UTC
(In reply to Buovjaga from comment #4)
> ...we already have "where focusing another cell...
Right, it is at the status bar two panels right of the language. "Adding selection" makes any click count whether ctrl is pressed or not.

https://help.libreoffice.org/6.2/en-US/text/scalc/guide/mark_cells.html?DbPAR=CALC#bm_id3153361

> The desire is only to "simulate mouse clicks" with keyboard in Adding mode.

Wouldn't call it simulate but yes, that's what we need. Perhaps assigned to ctrl+<plus>. 

Now it smells like an easyhack.