Taking off
Keyboard shortcuts
Every shortcut the editor listens for, in one list.
Where this list lives in the app
Press ? while a drawing is open, or choose Shortcuts in the editor toolbar. The same list is in the help menu under Shortcut keys. Everything below is that panel, word for word.
Choosing a tool
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| Shift + V | Pan. Drag anywhere to move the sheet, including over measurements |
| V | Select. Click to select, drag empty sheet to pan |
| Shift + T | Select text. Drag across the drawing's own text to select it, then copy |
| Ctrl / Cmd + C (Select text) | Copy the selected text |
While you are drawing
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| Click | Place a count / add a length or area point |
| Click first / last point or Enter (Length / Area) | Save the current shape in place |
| Esc (Count) | Save placed counts and return to Select |
| Esc (Length / Area) | Cancel the current shape, then deselect and return to Select |
| Backspace / Ctrl / Cmd + Z (drawing) | Remove the last point |
| W | Add a curve bend at the cursor (curve mode) |
| Q | Undo the pending curve bend |
| Shift (drawing) | Lock a line to 15° increments |
| Shift (count) | Smart guide, evenly space and align symbols |
| Shift (label rotate) | Snap rotation to 45° increments |
| Alt + R / Alt + E | Rotate the selected count symbol by 45° |
Selecting and undoing
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl / Cmd + Click | Add/remove from the selection |
| Drag on empty plan | Pan the view |
| Shift + Drag on empty plan | Lasso-select |
| Delete | Delete the selected measurement |
| Ctrl / Cmd + Z / Y | Undo / redo saved editor changes |
Moving around the sheet
| Keys | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ctrl / Cmd + + | Zoom in |
| Ctrl / Cmd + - | Zoom out |
| Alt + Q | Rotate the plan counter-clockwise |
| Alt + W | Rotate the plan clockwise |
| ? | Open keyboard shortcuts |
The six tips the editor shows you
An orange tip strip runs along the top of the editor and rotates through six pointers. They are worth reading once, because between them they cover most of what makes a takeoff fast:
1. “Set the sheet scale before taking off. Count, length and area stay disabled until a scale is set.”
2. “In Length or Area Curve, choose a start point, a point on the curve, and an end point. In Area, repeat the last two steps to chain curves.”
3. “Hold Shift while placing counts to evenly space and align them along a smart guide.”
4. “Toggle the magnet in the bottom bar to snap to your own measurements, plus plan lines and corners on vector (PDF) plans.”
5. “Shift-drag across empty canvas to lasso-select (a plain drag pans); Ctrl / Cmd-click adds or removes individual items.”
6. “Ctrl / Cmd + Z and Ctrl / Cmd + Y undo and redo measurement and markup edits.”
The first one only appears while the sheet has no scale, so the counter reads 1 of 6 before you calibrate and 1 of 5 after.
Turning the tips off
Open the help menu and untick Enable editor tips. They are on by default, and you can turn them back on the same way.
Next
Your measurements are already waiting to be priced. Go and price your takeoff.