Like other graphical user interfaces XaAES mainly uses two devices to allow for user input, a pointing device (usually a mouse) and a keyboard. The user interface utilizes icons and controls to provide means for user input and the pointing device is used to manipulate these objects on screen. The keyboard is essentially just offering shortcuts to some of the functions offered through the graphical interface and to allow for text input.
XaAES supports mice with two buttons and can also handle scroll wheel input. Even older GEM applications may respond to the mouse wheel, since XaAES translates wheel movements into simulated mouse clicks to arrow widgets (See 5.3.2). Scroll wheel mice are supported directly by XaAES, without the need for external software. Just make sure that you have the right version of the mouse driver installed. (See installation notes in 7.2)
| Mouse event | Action |
| Single click | The left mouse button is clicked and immediately released. |
| Right click | Same as a single click, but using the right mouse button. |
| Double click | A normal single click, immediately followed by a second click. If
nothing else is noted, the left mouse button is assumed. |
| Click-hold | The mouse button is clicked and then held down. |
| Drag | A click-hold operation followed by mouse movement, often used to
move objects on screen. |
| Drag&drop | Basically the same as drag, but normally meaning the situation where an
object is picked up and placed on top of another object or the desktop. |
| Shift-click | This operation involves both the mouse and keyboard. A single click is
performed while the keyboards SHIFT key is pressed down
|
| Ctrl+alt-click | This operation involves both the mouse and keyboard. A single click is
performed while the keyboards CTRL and ALT keys are pressed down
|
| Mouse wheel | •Rotating the vertical mouse wheel towards you triggers a downwards
scrolling operation if there is an active scroll area present.
•Rotating the vertical mouse wheel towards the screen triggers a
downwards scrolling operation if there is an active scroll area present.
You will find scrollable areas in GEM windows with sliders (See 5.3)
as well as in scroll lists (See chapter 4.)
|
Since there can be a plethora of windows open at a time, there has to be a way to decide which window should receive user input from the keyboard. In the past, graphical user interfaces on the Atari has directed keyboard input to the window that is currently on top. XaAES offers a different solution, where keyboard input is directed to the window that is beneath the mouse pointer. This approach is sometimes called point-to-type.
| Key combo | Action |
| CTRL+ALT+CLRHOME | Redraw screen |
| CTRL+ALT+A | Terminates all applications (A list of exceptions can be specified) |
| CTRL+ALT+D | Open the screenshot dialog (XAAESNAP.PRG is required. See 6.6.2) |
| CTRL+ALT+H | Halt the system |
| CTRL+ALT+L | Open task manager |
| CTRL+ALT+P | Restore palette in colour depth of 8-bits or less |
| CTRL+ALT+Q | Quit XaAES |
| CTRL+ALT+R | Change resolution |
| CTRL+ALT+V | Unhide all applications |
| CTRL+ALT+W | Global window cycling |
| CTRL+ALT+X | Hide all except the currently focused application |
| CTRL+ALT+Y | Hide currently focused application |
| CTRL+ALT+DELETE | Reboot computer |
| CTRL+ALT+SPACE | Open main menu bar |
| CTRL+ALT+SHIFT+SPACE | Open menu in current window if it has one, else open main menu bar |
| CTRL+ALT+TAB | Cycle open applications |
| ESC | Clear text input field
Cancel menu |
| UNDO | Same as pressing CANCEL in Alerts and File Selector |
| ALT+<X> | When file selector is open, this shortcut will change current drive to the drive identified with letter |
| ALT+<ARROW KEYS> | Move the mouse pointer 16 pixels |
| ALT+SHIFT+<ARROW KEYS> | Move the mouse pointer 1 pixel |
| ALT+INSERT | Simulate a click on the left mouse button |
| ALT+CLRHOME | Simulate a click on the right mouse button |
As the first and so far only AES on the Atari platform, XaAES introduces a thorough concept for manoeuvring GEM dialogs by using strictly the keyboard. While some of the old Atari OS’s have offered limited possibilities to control some things, users have sooner or later had to resort to using the mouse to toggle a setting in a checkbox or a radio button. As seen on other platforms, XaAES now indicates the active/focused object of a dialog by surrounding it with a red rectangle, using a dotted line type. This rectangle is referred to as the focus caret. The object currently owning the focus can be selected/unselected through the SPACE button, which means that any object in a GEM dialog now is accessible without the need to learn ALT+<key> combinations.
NOTE: The keyboard navigation should work with any application that makes proper use of the calls form_button() and form_keybd(), which are the proper functions to use when building a custom form_do() function for non-modal GEM dialogs.
| Key combo | Action |
| ARROW-UP | Go to object above current focus |
ARROW-DOWN | Go to object below current focus |
ARROW-LEFT (+CTRL) | Go to object to the left of current focus |
ARROW-RIGHT (+CTRL) | Go to object to the right of current focus |
TAB | Go to the next object |
TAB+SHIFT | Go to previous object |
CTRL+CLRHOME | Go to topmost editable field |
CTRL+SHIFT+CLRHOME | Go to bottommost editable field |
If the left or right arrow key is targeted when a text input field has focus, this will of course affect the text cursor, not the focus caret. To move the focus caret in such a case, hold down CTRL when navigating the focus caret with the arrow keys.
| Key combo | Action |
SPACE | Simulating a mouse click to the focused object |
RETURN | Simulates a mouse click to the default object |
ALT+<key> | Simulates a mouse click to the button/check box where the <key> character is underlined |
