Shortcuts for a better keyboard workflow

[WagnerGFX]

I'm creating this suggestion as a discussion because the subject is too broad for a feature request.

Affine is already very close to feature parity with Notion related to text, missing only a few small things like icons, emojis and callouts (while columns can be solved with edgeless). It already has some surprising features like Databases with Kanban view.

But the biggest deal breaker for me right now is the lack of some text transformation shortcuts. Requiring to switch between mouse and keyboard more frequently than necessary.

Some shortcuts already exists and are very helpful for simple text formatting (like bold and italic) and transformation (headings, normal text and list).

Below is a list of shortcuts that make the writing process much easier. They come from Affine itself, Notion, Obsidian and other text editors. Some are already implemented, others seem hidden, while a few don't work completely.

Subtitles

Item	Meaning
1	Feature is working?
2	Shows in [Settings > Keyboard Shortcuts]?
X	Works fine
!	Works, but not completely
How?	Suggestion on how it should work

Workflow shortcuts for current or selected code blocks

1	2	Name	Shortcut	Details
X		Select code block	ESC	Shortcut is hidden
X	X	Turn Into Text	CTRL+SHIFT+0
X	X	Turn Into Heading 1	CTRL+SHIFT+1
X	X	Turn Into Heading 2	CTRL+SHIFT+2
X	X	Turn Into Heading 3	CTRL+SHIFT+3
X	X	Turn Into Heading 4	CTRL+SHIFT+4
X	X	Turn Into Heading 5	CTRL+SHIFT+5
	X	Turn Into Heading 6	CTRL+SHIFT+6	Shortcut exists, but doesn't work
		Turn Into To-Do List	CTRL+SHIFT+7	The only list that has no shortcut
X		Turn Into Bulleted List	CTRL+SHIFT+8	Shortcut is hidden
X		Turn Into Numbered List	CTRL+SHIFT+9	Shortcut is hidden
		Turn Into Quote	CTRL+SHIFT+Q	"Don't quote me on that"
X	X	Turn Into Code Block	CTRL+ALT+C
		Turn Into Callout	CTRL+SHIFT+C	Shortcut reserved for the future
		Duplicate selected blocks	CTRL+D	How? The same as the floating menu button
		Create Linked Doc	CTRL+SHIFT+N	How? The same as the floating menu button
		Create Table	CTRL+SHIFT+N	How? The same as the floating menu button
X		Insert Horizontal Line	CTRL+SHIFT+D	I was surprised too...
!		Move Blocks Up	CTRL+SHIFT+UP	How? See below
!		Move Blocks Down	CTRL+SHIFT+DOWN	How? See below
		Collapse current or parent	CTRL+SHIFT+LEFT	How? See below
		Expand current or children	CTRL+SHIFT+RIGHT	How? See below

Workflow shortcuts for selected text

1	2	Name	Shortcut	Details
		Toggle Highlight	CTRL+SHIFT+H	How? See below
		Clear Text Formatting	CTRL+SHIFT+???	How? Remove only formatting, preserving the block type.

Details

Move Block Up/Down

Currently, it only works for a single block and its children.
It would be better if it also worked when selecting multiple blocks.

Collapse

This would allow to collapse any collapsible blocks the cursor (or selection) is in.

• Starts with itself on the first shortcut activation
  -Then collapses any parent recursively for each new shortcut activation.

Expand

The reverse effect of collapsing.

• Starts with any collapsed parent. (in case the cursor is still inside a collapsed block)
• Then expand itself.
• Finally move to children until there is no blocks to expand inside the selected block.

Highlight

1. Pressing the shortcut would show a floating menu to select colors (the same that already exists).
2. Pressing ENTER with nothing selected would automatically apply the last text and background colors.
3. Pressing ESC instead would clear any highlighting.
   Great for repetitive highlighting.

[Danie10]

This is really useful thanks, I did not know about the block moving ones nor the bullet and numbered list ones.