Reference

Keyboard shortcuts

Every key Walden answers to, grouped by where you are. Most have a button or a menu item too; writing an idea down from anywhere is the one that lives only on the keyboard.

This page writes ⌘ for the Command key on a Mac. On Windows and Linux, use Ctrl wherever it says ⌘.

Anywhere in Walden

⌘ K: Write an idea down without leaving what you’re doing. It doesn’t open while you’re typing in a page or a field, or while a dialog is open. In the box, Enter saves the line and keeps the box open for the next one; Esc closes it. See Finding your way around.
⌘ \: Close or open the sidebar, even while you’re typing.
⌘ B: Close or open the sidebar too, when you’re not typing. While you’re typing it makes text bold.
↑ ↓ Enter Esc: In any menu, and in search: move, choose, close.

Writing on a page

Typed at the start of a line, then a space:

# or ##: A heading.
###: A smaller heading.
-, * or +: A bulleted list.
1.: A numbered list.
>: A quote.
? then Enter: Start a line with “?”, write the question and press Enter at its end: it becomes an unknown. See Unknowns and Not doing.

Around words as you type, two asterisks or underscores on each side make them bold, one makes them italic, and backticks make them code. A web address you type becomes a link.

⌘ B / I / U: Bold, italic, underline.
⌘ Z: Undo.
⌘ Shift Z: Redo. On Windows, Ctrl Y also redoes.
Enter: In the idea’s title or a page’s name, go to the page’s first line. On an empty last line of the Problem, Worth or Approach, leave the part and start a line below it.
Enter in a list: In Unknowns or Not doing, add the next item; on an empty item, leave the box. In a flow, Enter in a place’s name goes to its first action, and in an action adds another below it.
Backspace on an empty item: Remove it.
Shift Enter: A new line inside a field, and in a question in the margin. Esc leaves the field.

/: At the start of an empty line, open the menu of blocks. It doesn’t open inside the Problem, Worth or Approach.
Letters: Narrow the list by name.
↑ ↓ Enter: Move, and insert the block.
Esc: Close it. It stays closed for that line.

What’s in the menu is on Formatting and the / menu.

Boards

A letter picks a tool, as long as you aren’t typing:

V: Select.
H: Move the board.
S T R O: Note, text, box, ellipse.
A M: Line, marker.
F I: Section, picture.
1 2: Open or close the Thinking tray, the Systems tray.
/: Add anything by name: type to narrow the list, Enter to add.

With something selected:

Enter: Edit its words.
Delete or Backspace: Remove it.
← → ↑ ↓: Nudge it. With Shift, ten times as far.
Q: Ask a question about it. Anyone who can read the board can do this.
⌘ D: Duplicate it.
⌘ C, ⌘ V: Copy it, and paste. A picture on the clipboard is pasted where the pointer is.
⌘ A: Select everything except sections, boundaries and groups.
⌘ Z, ⌘ Shift Z: Undo, redo.
Esc: Let go of it, close the tray and go back to Select. While you’re typing on the board, Esc finishes.

Looking around, which works even when you can only read the board, and while presenting:

Hold Space and drag: Move the board. The middle mouse button, the scroll wheel and two fingers on a trackpad move it too.
⌘ and the wheel, or pinch: Zoom where the pointer is.
⌘ =, ⌘ -, ⌘ 0: Zoom in, zoom out, back to actual size.
Shift 1, Shift 2: Fit the whole board; zoom to what’s selected.
Esc: Stop following someone.

With the mouse: drag the background to select what’s inside (with Shift, add to the selection); Shift-click adds or removes one thing; Alt-drag pulls off a copy; hold ⌘ while dragging to place something freely, without snapping; hold Shift while resizing a picture to keep its proportions; double-click to edit the words. See Boards.

Presenting

→ or Page Down: Next page.
← or Page Up: Previous page.
Esc: Stop presenting. With the list of pages open, Esc closes the list instead.

On a UI sketch, the arrows step through the flow’s screens first, then go on to the next or previous page. On a board, the keys for looking around work too. See Presenting.

UI sketches

← →: The place before or after, once you’ve clicked into the drawing.
Esc: Stop picking a part, when you’re annotating one or pointing chat at one.
Enter: Keep the annotation you’ve written.

See Changing a sketch.

Chat

Enter: Send. On Home, start the idea with chat drafting it.
Shift Enter: A new line.
@: In an idea’s chat, at the start or after a space: open the list of files to read with your message, when the idea has files or its project has a repository. Type to narrow it.
↑ ↓, Enter or Tab, Esc: In that list: move, add the file, close the list.

See Chat.