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Using Left/Right Arrow Keys in Mathematical Text

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Paul Libbrecht commented that there’s more to selection in math text than discussed in my first post on this subject. As usual, Paul is right. That post explains how one or more characters and/or math objects are selected. In addition the topic of selection includes insertion-point behavior, which by definition selects no characters or objects. The insertion point simply indicates where the next character you type or the next thing you paste will be inserted.

The present post describes how the left and right arrow keys work in and next to math zones. These keys traverse the logical backing store, generally moving one character at a time. For example typing the right arrow key successively starting at the left of the equation E = mc2 moves past (1) E, (2) =, (3) m, (4) subscript-object start delimiter, (5) c, (6) subscript-object separator, (7) 2, and (8) subscript-object end delimiter. Successive Shift right arrows starting at the left of E = mc2 also move past the first three characters while including them in the current selection. Step (4) is different for Shift right arrow, since it selects the whole object, i.e., up through (8).

Now consider a substantially different behavior, namely what these arrow keys do at the edge of a math zone. Math zones are represented by a character formatting attribute like bold. Math zones don’t begin and end with delimiter characters the way math objects do. Nevertheless, it’s desirable to make it seem as though they do, so that you can easily insert something immediately before and after a math zone, and at the beginning and end of a math zone.

To illustrate how this works, suppose the insertion point (IP) is at the start of a line immediately following a displayed equation. Typing the left arrow key moves the IP before the ASCII CR (U+000D) that terminates the displayed equation. But the nice acetate rectangle that surrounds an equation when the IP is inside the equation does not appear. Even though the IP immediately follows the math zone, it’s not in the math zone. At this point if you type a character, it won’t be in the math zone and the displayed equation will be converted to an inline equation with correspondingly compressed typography.

Typing the left arrow key another time moves the IP into the math zone and the acetate rectangle appears. This left arrow key didn’t bypass any character; it only changed the selection IP to have the math zone character formatting property. Consequently if you now type a character it will be inside the displayed equation and be formatted according to math-zone rules. In summary, to move the IP from outside a math zone to inside the zone or vice versa, type the appropriate arrow key, but no character is bypassed. Only the selection’s math-zone property is changed. So it feels as though math zones have start and end delimiters even though they don’t.

Implementation advantages to using the math-zone character formatting effect include automatic merging of adjacent math zones and prevention of nested math zones. On the other hand, it complicates the arrow-key logic. I suspect the code might have been simpler if math zones had start and end delimiters, just the way math objects do.

Comments

  • Anonymous
    September 29, 2007
    PingBack from http://www.artofbam.com/wordpress/?p=3883

  • Anonymous
    September 29, 2007
    Very interesting post! Just a stupid simple question: I use inline math zones a lot now (i.e. equations just within a paragraph), given that the keybord combination Alt+= is really quick and easy. In particular I use this a lot when I refer to a variable in text, for example, because it gets automatically formatted properly. Same for say a variable with a superscript, with previous versions of word I did that with the normal Word options for super/subscript and then formated those 2 or 3 characters as italic, now I just start a new math zone and everything looks great. The only thing that breaks the flow of it a bit is that I have to press right arrow to end the math zone. The arrow keys are located such that I cannot use them really with then finger typing... Starting math zones works well and feels very natural, but right now the "flow" is broken whenever I end one. Is there another way to indicate that an inline math zone is done, that can be accessed with keyboard shortcuts that are in the area where one normally has ones hands?

  • Anonymous
    October 22, 2007
    Hey can you tell me please what version of RichEdit do Works versions use? Works 2000, 7, 8 and 9?

  • Anonymous
    October 28, 2007
    In answer to David Coder's question, Alt+= is a toggle. So to turn on a math zone, you type Alt+= and then to end the math zone, you can type Alt+= too. That's the way I enter math into documents. In answer to the previous question, Microsoft Works has its own editing engine and doesn't use RichEdit as far as I know.

  • Anonymous
    November 23, 2007
    I found a bug in Word 2007 Equation Editor.

  1. press Alt+=
  2. Type v_d^–jv_q^-
  3. But, as soon as i type v_d^–jv_ word view goes to draft mode
  4. Now, i try to go to original print layout display setting, but couldn’t go to that view anymore
  5. It also make my document un-editable and I need to close that file. Aslo, I couldn’t see my previously saved equation formats in the drop-down list. I have given some screenshots in my blog http://freetimeblog.awardspace.com/?p=49

  • Anonymous
    January 12, 2012
    Under section 3.20 Math Zones in "Unicode Nearly Plain-Text Encoding of Mathematics" (v3) you mention that the characters U+2045 and U+2046 exist to identify the begin and end of a math zone. So I guess those are only used to store the math zones in the various Office formats, or is there another reason for having them in the linear format?

  • Anonymous
    March 24, 2013
    I'd be interested too. MurrayS3 I do not understand what they ⁅ (U +2045) and ⁆ (U +2046) as described in 3.20. could you explain if he is alt + =, thanks for everything.