Typing shortcuts

Some characters change what a thing is as you type them, so you never stop to pick a type.

Why you'd care#

The fastest formatting is the kind you do without noticing. Typing a dash and a space is quicker than opening a menu and choosing "dash", and it keeps your hands where they were.

What converts#

• A leading dash and space becomes a dash thing.
• A leading bullet character becomes a bullet.
• A leading number and a full stop becomes a numbered thing, after which numbering maintains itself.
• Three dashes on their own line become a divider.
• A leading space indents the thing under the one above it.

Going further#

Numbering is computed after conversion. Once a thing is a numbered one, do not keep typing numbers. Insert, delete and reorder freely and the numbers fix themselves. See thing types.

Indenting by spacebar is the one people miss. Pressing space at the very front of a thing indents it. It is much faster than any menu, and it is how most nesting gets done.

Conversion is undoable. If a conversion was not what you wanted, undo returns the literal characters rather than fighting you.

Tips#

• Learn the leading space. It is the single most useful typing shortcut in the product.
• If you want a line to literally start with a dash, undo immediately after it converts.

Related#

• Thing types
• Slash commands, for types the characters do not cover