Creating Your Own Keyboard Shortcuts.

This chapter explains how to create your own keyboard shortcuts. A keyboard shortcut maps a key press (e.g. F5) to a particular menu (e.g. "This Design" - "Room Settings"). You can only use the function keys (F1 though to F12). Some of these keys already have shortcuts assigned to them.

Creating a Shortcut

Shortcuts are stored in C:\articad\accelerators.txt. By default it should open in "Notepad", though you can use any text editor.

NOTE - Exit from ArtiCAD before editing the accelerators.txt file. You should also make a backup copy of the original version supplied.

Below is the standard accelerators.txt supplied with ArtiCAD:


c67 = 5025Ctrl+C to copy selection in drag drop
c88 = 5024Ctrl+X to cut selection in drag drop
c86 = 5026Ctrl+V to paste selection in drag drop
c87 = 6009Ctrl+W to run a wizard
c90 = 7500Ctrl+Z to undo
sc90 = 7501Shift+Ctrl+Z to redo
46 = 7506Delete to delete
120 = 7507F9 to duplicate
39 = 7508Right arrow to move along
37 = 7509Left arrow to move back
38 = 7510Up arrow to go up a level
40 = 7511Down arrow to go down a level
112 = 7512F1 to edit
114 = 7513F3 for measurement cursor

A shortcut consists of three parts:

key code = menu code     description

Key Code
The number corresponding to the key you press e.g. pressing "F5" generates the number 116. See the Key Codes table below.
Menu Code
The number corresponding to a menu within ArtiCAD e.g. "Mode" - "Drag and Drop" has the number 7054.
Description
Anything after the menu code is treated as a description. Can be left blank.

As an example we will create a shortcut for "F6" to be the equivalent of clicking "View" - "3D Perspective" - "Normal View". From the key code table we see the number for "F6" is 117, and from the menu code table we see the code for "Normal View" is 7009.

Putting this information together, we would add the following line to accelerators.txt:

117 = 7009       F6 for normal view

Should you need more keys than F1 through F12, you can specify a key pressed with "Control"/"Ctrl", "Shift" or both.

For Example:

s117 = 7010       Shift + F6 for back against selected wall

sc117 = 7011       Shift + Control + F6 for bird's eye view

NOTE - F1 and F3 are already defined in the standard accelerators.txt.

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Key Codes

Key Code
F1 112
F2 113
F3 114
F4 115
F5 116
F6 117
F7 118
F8 119
F9 120
F10 121
F11 122
F12 123

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Menu Codes

Code Menu
6000 File - New
6001 File - Open
6002 File - Save
6003 File - Save As
6004 File - Save Unit Group
6005 File - Printer Setup
6006 File - Select Room System
6007 File - Select Manufacturer’s Codes
6008 File - Exit
6050 Edit - Use Keyboard
6051 Edit - Use Buttons
6052 Window - Browse Images
6053 Window - New Window
6100 This Design - Room Settings
6101 This Design - Door Type
6102 This Design - Client Details
6103 This Design - Attachments
6106 This Design - Photo\Virtual Realism Colours
6150 Reports - Parts List
6151 Reports - Configure Parts List
6152 Reports - Attachments
6350 Help - Contents
6351 Help - Keyword Search
6352 Help - About
7000 View - Zoom Normal
7001 View - Zoom 2X
7002 View - Zoom 4X
7003 View - Zoom 8X
7004 View - Plan
7005 View - Plan Options
7006 View - Elevation
7007 View - Elevation Options
7008 View - 3D Perspective - Set Position
7009 View - 3D Perspective - Normal View
7010 View - 3D Perspective - Back Against Selected Wall
7011 View - 3D Perspective - Bird’s Eye View
7012 View - 3D Perspective - Set Up Multiple Views
7013 View - 3D Perspective - Standard View
7014 View - 3D Perspective - Save Camera
7015 View - 3D Perspective - Load Camera
7016 View - 3D Options
7017 View - Store Image
7018 View - Previous Image
7050 Mode - Normal
7008 Mode - Set Up 3D View
7012 Mode - Set Up Multiple 3D Views
7051 Mode - Page Layout
7052 Mode - Edit Lighting
7053 Mode - Edit Dimensions and Labels
7054 Mode - Drag and Drop
7500 Edit - Undo
7501 Edit - Redo
7502 Edit - Cut
7503 Edit - Copy
7504 Edit - Paste
7505 Edit - Insert
7506 Edit - Delete
7507 Edit - Duplicate
7508 Edit - Forward
7509 Edit - Backward
7510 Edit - Up Level
7511 Edit - Down Level
7513 Edit - Set Measurement Cursor
7609 Edit - Edit Selected Item
7610 Edit - Delete Selected Item

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