Go to beginning
Posted: Mon Feb 25, 2019 5:37 pm
For a while now I have been mildly irritated by the behaviour of the Ctrl-Home combination. Has it always behaved thus? I seem to recall a time when it would take me consistently to the beginning of the document, but perhaps I am thinking of some other program. Anyway, today I decided I would see if I could do anything about it.
First I looked up the key binding, which was to "To Beginning of Document". Then I looked for the the function itself. I could not find it, although I found "To End of Document" under "Navigation", where I expected it to be. I looked through all categories, including macros, without success. This seems peculiar, and I wonder, if I were to bind some other macro to that combination how easily would I be able to restore the original, and also, could I bind that function to a different key combination? But these are side issues.
I then recorded a macro in which my only action was to press Ctrl-Home. The generated code concluded by invoking the method "GoToStartOfDoc". If I bind this to another key then it behaves exactly as Ctl-Home does.
Now, while I accept that there are occasions for temperate and diplomatic language, this, I feel, is not one them. This is design stupidity worthy of MicroSoft and the idiot responsible should be thrown out of the project and shunned by polite society. Not because I bear him (or her, of course) any personal malice, although I would like to retain that option, but to indicate that a person responsible for a decision that will affect a large number of other people should make it intelligently.
First, that a public method called GoToStartOfDoc should do anything other than go to the start of the document is indefensible. If it behaves differently then this should be reflected in the name. Viz GoToStartOfBlock or some such.
However, I see no need for the function at all. A better approach would have been to use existing functions to create a macro to implement the more complex function which could be bound to Ctrl-Home. This would be a useful sample for users creating their own macros and indicate clearly how anyone who prefers the "go directly to the beginning" behaviour could implement it.
First I looked up the key binding, which was to "To Beginning of Document". Then I looked for the the function itself. I could not find it, although I found "To End of Document" under "Navigation", where I expected it to be. I looked through all categories, including macros, without success. This seems peculiar, and I wonder, if I were to bind some other macro to that combination how easily would I be able to restore the original, and also, could I bind that function to a different key combination? But these are side issues.
I then recorded a macro in which my only action was to press Ctrl-Home. The generated code concluded by invoking the method "GoToStartOfDoc". If I bind this to another key then it behaves exactly as Ctl-Home does.
Now, while I accept that there are occasions for temperate and diplomatic language, this, I feel, is not one them. This is design stupidity worthy of MicroSoft and the idiot responsible should be thrown out of the project and shunned by polite society. Not because I bear him (or her, of course) any personal malice, although I would like to retain that option, but to indicate that a person responsible for a decision that will affect a large number of other people should make it intelligently.
First, that a public method called GoToStartOfDoc should do anything other than go to the start of the document is indefensible. If it behaves differently then this should be reflected in the name. Viz GoToStartOfBlock or some such.
However, I see no need for the function at all. A better approach would have been to use existing functions to create a macro to implement the more complex function which could be bound to Ctrl-Home. This would be a useful sample for users creating their own macros and indicate clearly how anyone who prefers the "go directly to the beginning" behaviour could implement it.