Suggestion: hotkey for calling external editor in Multi-rename tool

[MCorey]

First, please allow me to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation for the excellent software you have been providing over the decades. Total Commander has been an invaluable tool for me, my friends, and my colleagues for many years, both in personal and professional contexts.

One advanced feature I find particularly useful is the Multi-Rename Tool. Recently, I discovered even more productive ways to use it via the “Edit names…” function. Combined with an advanced editor such as MS Visual Studio Code, this feature becomes extremely powerful (thanks to regex search and replace, multi-cursor editing, etc.).

However, the current UI design makes the “Edit names…” function difficult to notice (which may cause many users to remain unaware of it) and also hard to access (currently it is realistically only accessible by mouse, which reduces productivity for keyboard-focused users like myself. Moreover, since it is available only through a dropdown menu and not as a direct button, it requires two mouse clicks).

With that in mind, I would like to suggest several UI/UX improvements, which could be implemented either individually or together:

1. Add a hotkey for the “Edit names…” function, available when the Multi-Rename Tool window is open. A natural choice could be F4, which currently seems unused in the Multi-Rename Tool window.
2. The "Configure editor..." option in the same dropdown menu as “Edit names…” also seems misplaced and hard to find. Although it pertains to program configuration, it is not available under "Configuration | Options" but hidden inside the Multi-Rename Tool window. Two possible solutions:
   • Remove this option entirely and always use the editor configured for F4 (set under "Configuration | Options"). Personally, this seems a reasonable solution, as I imagine few use cases for configuring a separate editor just for the Multi-Rename Tool.
   • Alternatively, if you prefer to keep it, move the editor selection setting to the "Configuration | Options" dialog. You could add a checkbox like “Use F4 editor for Multi-Rename Tool”, and if unchecked, allow specifying a different editor. In this case, the "Configure editor..." item could be removed from the dropdown to declutter it.
3. If suggestion No. 2 is implemented, consider removing the dropdown menu from the Multi-Rename Tool entirely. Instead, add two separate buttons: one for "Load names from file..." and one for "Edit names…", making these functions more visible and accessible. Alternatively, you could move only “Edit names…” out of the dropdown into a direct button, while keeping the dropdown for "Load names from file..." and adding another option such as "Load names from clipboard…".

Thank you very much for considering these suggestions, and for your continued work on this outstanding software!

[Fla$her]

1. This can be done using Autorun beta.

[sa16]

currently it is realistically only accessible by mouse, which reduces productivity for keyboard-focused users like myself

Doesn't that work?
F10 --> E

[petermad]

Moreover, since it is available only through a dropdown menu and not as a direct button,, it requires two mouse clicks

As sa16 points out and as it is mentioned in the Help:

The menu can be opened with F10.

[white]

As sa16 points out and as it is mentioned in the Help:

The menu can be opened with F10.

But it is listed at the end, like an afterthought. Perhaps it is better to mention it in the beginning, for example by changing the first line into:

Opens a context menu (also accessible via F10) with the following options:

This way, the information is presented prominently and less likely to be overlooked.

[Horst.Epp]

But it is listed at the end, like an afterthought. Perhaps it is better to mention it in the beginning, for example by changing the first line into:

The position is not important at all, using "F10 e" as suggested
and not the mouse.

[MCorey]

Thank you all for your helpful responses! I appreciate the clarification regarding the "F10 | e" keyboard sequence — I apologize for having overlooked it. It's great to know that there is already a way to access the feature without using the mouse.

That said, I still believe the suggestions in my original post could contribute to an improved user experience. In particular, a dedicated, single-key hotkey (such as F4) would streamline access even further, especially for power users who rely heavily on keyboard workflows.

Additionally, I feel the points about the visibility of the “Edit names…” function and the configuration of the external editor remain relevant. Making these elements more discoverable and keeping configuration more consistent could benefit both new and experienced users.

Thanks again for engaging with the suggestions!

[Dalai]

The position is not important at all [...]

It is important, primarily for users that are new to TC or its MRT. Providing a more prominent placement in the description might greatly increase the chance of this function being discovered. It's not just important that something is described/documented at all but it's equally important how it's written and where.

[Fla$her]

In particular, a dedicated, single-key hotkey (such as F4) would streamline access even further, especially for power users who rely heavily on keyboard workflows.

If you want a solution for yourself, and not waiting for it for many years, then I have already shown the way.
Only F4 is not suitable, because it has a system binding with the expansion of drop-down lists (comboboxes).

[xxxdo1]

2Fla$her
How to set a hotkey using Autorun? Can you give an example?
As the poster mentioned, set a hotkey in the multi-rename tool.

[Fla$her]

2xxxdo1

Code: Select all

LoadLibrary Plugins\Autorun_Tweaks.dll
LoadLibrary Plugins\Autorun_Runtime.dll

# F6 in MRT — Load names from file...
SetHotKeyAction /H:F6 /D /S MRT_HotKeys 1

# F7 in MRT — Edit names...
SetHotKeyAction /H:F7 /D /S MRT_HotKeys 2

# F8 in MRT — Configure editor...
SetHotKeyAction /H:F8 /D /S MRT_HotKeys 3

Func MRT_HotKeys(Num)
   Local MRT = WinFind(0, 'TMultiRename')
   If WinGetState(4, MRT) = 0 Then Return -1
   Local c, hMenu, Index = (AUTORUN_TCARCH = 32 ? 1 : 6), _
   Class = (AUTORUN_TCARCH = 32 ? 'TBitBtn' : 'Button'),  _
   lCtrl = WinGetFocusedCtrl(MRT)
   PostMessage(WinFind(MRT, Class, Index), 245, 1)
   For c = 1 To 5
      hMenu = WinFind(0, '#32768')
      If hMenu Then Break
      Sleep(20)
   Next
   If hMenu Then
      PostMessage(hMenu, 485, Num-1)
      PostMessage(hMenu, 256, 13, 1)
      PostMessage(hMenu, 257, 13, 0xC0000001)
   EndIf
   WinSetCtrlFocus(lCtrl)
EndFunc

[xxxdo1]

2Fla$her
Thanks, it works, this method is very convenient.

[Fla$her]

2xxxdo1
Good. Added return of focus to the current control.

[Sir_SiLvA]

The position is not important at all [...]

It is important, primarily for users that are new to TC or its MRT. Providing a more prominent placement in the description might greatly increase the chance of this function being discovered. It's not just important that something is described/documented at all but it's equally important how it's written and where.

Wrong! If a user is new to TC one can expects him to read not only the first three lines so the place is as Horst rightfully said it not important
If the User doesnt read the complete page its the Users fault.

[Sir_SiLvA]

Additionally, I feel the points about the visibility of the “Edit names…” function and the configuration of the external editor remain relevant. Making these elements more discoverable and keeping configuration more consistent could benefit both new and experienced users.

No they are not imho, new user can read the help, experienced users know where the edit is BUT you are right in proposing the F4 hotkey for the funktion, so for that +1 from me