What keyboard tools are you using with the affinity apps on ipad?

[MoonaticDestiny]

I dont know if this is the right place to post this. I wanted to know what keyboard tools are you guys using with the affinity designer ipad apps?

I was thinking about getting a keyboard for my ipad to do shortcuts in the app and improve my workflow but i didnt want to have a keyboard next me. I also didnt want to press the keys on my board based on the keyboard shortcut. I want something more at my finger tips. 

I started looking online and found this little device that lets you map keyboard shortcuts. its called the 8bitdo micro. You hold it in your hand and you have all your shortcuts at your finger tips. I just bought it the other day. I havent received it but im super excited to be able to switch between tools and easily do shortcut with the press of a button in my hand. I know some artist use this device for other art apps like procreate and clipstudio. 

I was just curious if anyone is using any keyboard tool devices to improve their workflow. Are you using the 8bitdo micro for the ipad apps? how is it? how has it improved your workflow? do you know of any other devices that let you map shortcuts to your fingertips? im curious how everyone is working with the ipad. 

[walt.farrell]

iPad Questions would be the correct place to ask a question. As the header of Resources says:

Quote

Share your custom brush, textures and other resources with the Affinity community.

So, it's not the place for questions.

A moderator will probably move it for you.

[walt.farrell]

I don't use a device like that, so I can't help answer your question. However, to save some possible disappointment I will mention that there are some logged and unfixed issues with keyboard shortcuts on the iPad, anyway. And those bugs would also apply to a device like you describe. So if you get one before the bugs are fixed it probably won't help you.

[Bound by Beans]

It actually looks really interesting – I hope you'll share your experiences here.

As Walt mentioned, though, there are some annoying shortcut limitations in Affinity for iPad. For example, there are no shortcuts for undo/redo, so you can't assign those to the 8BitDo Micro, which is almost too bad to be true — and you probably shouldn't count on those ever being added. But do let us know how it works in practice, and whether it’s a good companion for the iPad overall.

[MoonaticDestiny]

14 hours ago, walt.farrell said:

However, to save some possible disappointment I will mention that there are some logged and unfixed issues with keyboard shortcuts on the iPad, anyway. And those bugs would also apply to a device like you describe. So if you get one before the bugs are fixed it probably won't help you.

Oh, thats disappointing to hear. I was so excited. I was ready to improve my workflow. I mainly use designer v1 on ipad. Not sure if there are bugs there but Ill see how it works for v2. Thanks for the heads up. 

[MoonaticDestiny]

8 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

For example, there are no shortcuts for undo/redo, so you can't assign those to the 8BitDo Micro, which is almost too bad to be true

but on the keyboard shortcuts guide on the ipad there are shortcuts for undo and redo.... command Z & shift command Z. 

8 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

But do let us know how it works in practice, and whether it’s a good companion for the iPad overall.

It hasnt arrived in the mail yet but Ill be sure to share my experience. Thank you. 

[Bound by Beans]

54 minutes ago, MoonaticDestiny said:

but on the keyboard shortcuts guide on the ipad there are shortcuts for undo and redo.... command Z & shift command Z. 

My mistake, it seems to be text input in Publisher for iPad that's having the issue.

[MoonaticDestiny]

Friends, 

I just got my 8bitdo micro in the mail and it works with affinity designer v1 & v2 on the iPad! Its so cool! You can map all your shortcuts to this little device and all your shortcuts are at your finger tips. 

I bought this because I wanted to improve my workflow. I didnt want to toggle between tools by tapping on the screen with my finger tip. Thats one thing I hated about affinity designer v1 on the ipad. I would work with the node tool and then have to go to the top left corner to toggle into my move tool. Now, with the press of a button, I can toggle between tools and actions really fast. Its super easy. I love it, and I recommend it. 

My only issue is that affinity designer v1 never got a shortcut for delete. Which sucks so bad because thats all I need. How does an ipad app not have a shortcut for the simple action of delete? Now, that we have v2, we'll get more shortcuts down the road allowing us to improve our workflow on the ipad

 

[MoonaticDestiny]

I just found out that affinity designer v2 on the iPad doesnt have a shortcut for the action of delete either. 😅

 

[walt.farrell]

10 hours ago, MoonaticDestiny said:

I just found out that affinity designer v2 on the iPad doesnt have a shortcut for the action of delete either. 😅

 

The Delete key works fine for me in V2.

[Bound by Beans]

22 hours ago, MoonaticDestiny said:

I just found out that affinity designer v2 on the iPad doesnt have a shortcut for the action of delete either. 😅

Are you saying that you can't assign the delete action to any other key than the delete key itself in the iPad versions? No, strangely enough, you can't. But is that a requirement for getting 8BitDo to map a key to delete in Affinity?

I honestly don't know what the folks at Serif in Nottingham are thinking. They seemed very busy assigning shortcuts to every single layer blend mode, but not to much more commonly used actions. Their choices have definitely made the iPad versions... less.

But I'm genuinely happy you're enjoying your little handy helper. Have fun with it, and thanks for getting back!

[MoonaticDestiny]

3 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

Are you saying that you can't assign the delete action to any other key than the delete key itself in the iPad versions?

Im saying that I cant assign the delete action to my 8BitDo because affinity designer v1 & v2 on the ipad dont have a delete shortcut. What is going on? 😱

3 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

But is that a requirement for getting 8BitDo to map a key to delete in Affinity?

Yes, it is a requirement. Every action available in the app has a keyboard shortcut next to it. Because theres no delete action, theres no keyboard shortcut. Because theres no keyboard shortcut for delete, I can not map any keyboard short cut to my 8BitDo. Its so disappointing. 

3 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

I honestly don't know what the folks at Serif in Nottingham are thinking. They seemed very busy assigning shortcuts to every single layer blend mode, but not to much more commonly used actions. Their choices have definitely made the iPad versions... less.

I know! How of all actions do you not have a keyboard shortcut for delete? But hey, lets give you a shortcut for layer blend modes. 😂

3 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

But I'm genuinely happy you're enjoying your little handy helper. Have fun with it, and thanks for getting back!

Thank you! I'm having so much fun. This little device is amazing, and Im so happy I invested in it. 

[Bound by Beans]

Ah, I just read this. You are right:
"In Affinity Designer for iPad, version 2 added support for deleting via the physical Delete key, but it’s not a customizable shortcut. That means you can't remap delete to another button, like one on the 8BitDo controller. 8BitDo devices can send keypresses, but to map an action like delete, it must exist as a shortcut in the app — and it doesn’t. So, sadly, it's not possible."

So, Serif and Canva, it's time for you to focus on the purpose of keypresses in light of the above, and make sure they can be added and customized to better support the increasingly popular tools like 8BitDo and others for more serious and ambitious workflows. In short, look at your customers' real-world workflows.

[MoonaticDestiny]

Im going to leave this here for anybody whos interested in using this 8BitDo Micro device for affinity apps on the iPad. I went ahead and shared my shortcuts based on how I would use affinity designer v1 & v2 on the ipad. I hope it helps. 

[MoonaticDestiny]

3 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

In Affinity Designer for iPad, version 2 added support for deleting via the physical Delete key, but it’s not a customizable shortcut.

Oh, I see. That explains why it works for @walt.farrell Such a shame that its not a keyboard shortcut. 

 

3 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

but to map an action like delete, it must exist as a shortcut in the app — and it doesn’t. So, sadly, it's not possible."

Exactly and this is the only action I needed to be fully happy with my device. I just needed the delete shortcut. 😩

 

3 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

So, Serif and Canva, it's time for you to focus on the purpose of keypresses in light of the above, and make sure they can be added and customized to better support the increasingly popular tools like 8BitDo and others for more serious and ambitious workflows. In short, look at your customers' real-world workflows.

Yes! I need to make a new post on the forums about this delete keyboard shortcut issue because it should have existed since the app was created. 

[Bound by Beans]

@MoonaticDestiny

It doesn't totally make sense to me — can't you assign a button to Backspace in your configuration program for 8BitDo? Wouldn't that give you roughly what you're looking for?

[MoonaticDestiny]

6 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

can't you assign a button to Backspace in your configuration program for 8BitDo?

Yes. I can configure one of my 8BitDo buttons to have the backspace shortcut but pressing that button is not going to delete my object in the app because the app doesnt have a shortcut for delete. So pressing delete does nothing in the app because Serif never gave users nor the app the delete shortcut to delete objects. So the app recognizes the backspace command as doing nothing in the app. 

 

Look at the photo below. Under commands, theres no delete command to be able to delete objects and no shortcut for it. So because theres no shortcut you cant press the backspace to delete objects.   

[Bound by Beans]

OK, but I'm thinking that if 8BitDo sends a regular Backspace keyboard signal, then it should at least work in version 2 of Affinity, where Backspace from a Bluetooth keyboard works exactly like Delete. It's not a customizable shortcut, but the Backspace key is supported, just hardcoded. That's why it doesn't appear in the shortcut overview.

[walt.farrell]

22 minutes ago, Bound by Beans said:

OK, but I'm thinking that if 8BitDo sends a regular Backspace keyboard signal, then it should at least work in version 2 of Affinity, where Backspace from a Bluetooth keyboard works exactly like Delete. It's not a customizable shortcut, but the Backspace key is supported, just hardcoded. That's why it doesn't appear in the shortcut overview.

My iPad keyboard (Apple Magic Keyboard) doesn't have a Backspace key; it has Delete. And I know Delete works in Affinity V2, as it's a hardcoded shortcut.

I'm not sure, on keyboards for Mac universe, whether Backspace usually exists, nor whether it's the same operation as Delete. (Or whether it's a different keystroke, as on Windows.)

[MoonaticDestiny]

6 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

OK, but I'm thinking that if 8BitDo sends a regular Backspace keyboard signal, then it should at least work in version 2 of Affinity, where Backspace from a Bluetooth keyboard works exactly like Delete. It's not a customizable shortcut, but the Backspace key is supported, just hardcoded. That's why it doesn't appear in the shortcut overview.

Im confirming with you that configuring the "backspace" shortcut to a button on my 8BitDo DOES allow me to delete my object in v2. It didnt work before because I had set the keyboard shortcut to "delete." Not "backspace" and and thats why it wasnt working in v2. Now, I can delete my objects in v2 using my 8BitDo. 

However, it doesnt work in v1. This is an issue for me because Im a v1 user, not a v2 user. I dont use v2 at all, so I cant delete my objects in v1. 😔

[MoonaticDestiny]

5 hours ago, walt.farrell said:

I'm not sure, on keyboards for Mac universe, whether Backspace usually exists, nor whether it's the same operation as Delete. (Or whether it's a different keystroke, as on Windows.)

Walter, Im confirming with you that the shortcut was"backspace." Not "delete." I had it set to "delete" and thats why I couldnt delete in v2. Setting it to "backspace" allows me to delete my objects now. Thank you to both of you. 

[Bound by Beans]

6 hours ago, MoonaticDestiny said:

Im confirming with you that configuring the "backspace" shortcut to a button on my 8BitDo DOES allow me to delete my object in v2. It didnt work before because I had set the keyboard shortcut to "delete." Not "backspace" and and thats why it wasnt working in v2. Now, I can delete my objects in v2 using my 8BitDo. 

However, it doesnt work in v1. This is an issue for me because Im a v1 user, not a v2 user. I dont use v2 at all, so I cant delete my objects in v1. 😔

Hm, but can you map CMD + X then, cut? Better than nothing? 

[Bound by Beans]

10 hours ago, walt.farrell said:

My iPad keyboard (Apple Magic Keyboard) doesn't have a Backspace key; it has Delete. And I know Delete works in Affinity V2, as it's a hardcoded shortcut.

I'm not sure, on keyboards for Mac universe, whether Backspace usually exists, nor whether it's the same operation as Delete. (Or whether it's a different keystroke, as on Windows.)

On the Magic Keyboard without numpad, there's no labeled "Delete" key. The key above Return, with a left-pointing arrow, acts as Backspace. To perform a 'real' Delete (forward delete), you can press Fn + Backspace. Apple has prioritized Backspace over Delete on compact keyboards, since it's probably the one most commonly used by people who choose small keyboards anyway.

[walt.farrell]

21 minutes ago, Bound by Beans said:

On the Magic Keyboard without numpad, there's no labeled "Delete" key. The key above Return, with a left-pointing arrow, acts as Backspace. To perform a 'real' Delete (forward delete), I press Fn + Backspace. Apple has prioritized Backspace over Delete across keyboard sizes, since it's probably the one used the most.

My iPad's Magic Keyboard has Delete, not Backspace, and has no Fn key.

I suspect we're talking about different things that are called "Magic Keyboard"  

 

[MoonaticDestiny]

6 hours ago, Bound by Beans said:

Hm, but can you map CMD + X then, cut? Better than nothing? 

OMG! That didnt even cross my mind! Wow. LOL. Thats perfect! Im so dumb! 😆

Youre right! Use the shortcut for "cut" to delete your objects.

I just configured the cut shortcut to my 8BitDo button and it works. I can now delete objects....or cut.

Thank you so much for this work around. Im so happy now. My shortcuts on my 8BitDo are complete.