Default keybindings conflict with gtk menu shortcuts

[Ben Bergman]

Some of the key bindings (aka. accelerators) for pcb conflict with the menu shortcuts in the GTK HID. For example, Alt+S is supposed to change the drill size, but it will instead open the Settings menu. There are a few ways that this might be resolved.

1. Change the accelerators/menu shortcuts to remove conflicts
2. Change pcb to prefer the accelerators over the menu shortcuts (currently this is reversed) - perhaps this should be a toggleable setting
3. Add a setting that allows disabling the menu shortcuts
4. Remove the menu shortcuts all together

Option 1 would be simple, but would mean changing default shortcuts that people are already used to.
Option 2 would be simple for existing users, but might not be something the GTK HID can do.
Option 3 is similar to 2
Option 4 would again remove functionality that some users might be used to.

It looks like the main menu shortcuts were added in this commit: http://git.geda-project.org/pcb/commit/src/gpcb-menu.res.in?id=acf8d00db4a90b555d768341a97453914b7b4aec

Any recommendations for how to fix this issue?

[Uhm Gawa (004cs2xj9)]

This breakage is really annoying. Hard to believe it hasn't arisen as more of an issue in the
intervening time as it nixes the ability to interactively tweak pin/via sizes. I'd vote to
abolish it (#4) which I've done locally -- I really don't see a compelling use case for this
behaviour. At a bare minimum it should have been checked in as a disabled, optional feature.

The latest git build at ab6ebc701d8ab6fbc67c5232215d28a1fa3eae0a still exhibits the
breakage.

[Bert Timmerman (bert-timmerman)]

Patch for option #4.

Kind regards,

Bert Timmerman.

[Akos Mate (mateakos1)]

Still not fixed in version 20140316

[David Baird (dhbaird)]

Still not fixed in Ubuntu 20.04.

[David Baird (dhbaird)]

Progress! Looks like a documentation "bug" now, because there's an old set of keybindings and a new set of keybindings (see git data below).

Googling for "gnu pcb shortcuts" takes me here, which has the old shortcuts only:
http://wiki.geda-project.org/geda:pcb-quick_reference

Old shortcut --> New shortcut
=====================================================
Shift-Alt-A --> Shift-Ctrl-A Unselect all
Alt-A --> Ctrl-A Select all visible
Alt-S --> Ctrl-D ChangeDrill +5 mil
Alt-Shift-S --> Ctrl-Shift-D ChangeDrill -5 mil
Alt-V --> Ctrl-L Via Tool drill +5 mil
Alt-Shift-V --> Ctrl-Shift-L Via Tool drill -5 mil

git blame src/gpcb-menu.res.in
# >>>
c75676e1b src/gpcb-menu.res.in (Charles Parker 2019-04-28 18:17:26 -0400 443) {"ChangeDrill +5 mil" a={"Ctrl-D" "Ctrl<Key>d"} ChangeDrillSize(Object,+5,mil)}
c75676e1b src/gpcb-menu.res.in (Charles Parker 2019-04-28 18:17:26 -0400 444) {"ChangeDrill -5 mil" a={"Ctrl-Shift-D" "Ctrl Shift<Key>d"} ChangeDrillSize(Object,-5,mil)}
...
c75676e1b src/gpcb-menu.res.in (Charles Parker 2019-04-28 18:17:26 -0400 449) {"Via Tool drill +5 mil" a={"Ctrl-L" "Ctrl<Key>l"} SetValue(ViaDrillingHole,+5,mil)}
c75676e1b src/gpcb-menu.res.in (Charles Parker 2019-04-28 18:17:26 -0400 450) {"Via Tool drill -5 mil" a={"Ctrl-Shift-L" "Ctrl Shift<Key>l"} SetValue(ViaDrillingHole,-5,mil)}

git log -p c75676e1b
# >>>
- {"Unselect all" Unselect(All) a={"Shift-Alt-A" "Shift Alt<Key>a"}}
- {"Select all visible" Select(All) a={"Alt-A" "Alt<Key>a"}}
+ {"Unselect all" Unselect(All) a={"Shift-Ctrl-A" "Shift Ctrl<Key>a"}}
+ {"Select all visible" Select(All) a={"Ctrl-A" "Ctrl<Key>a"}}
...
- {"ChangeDrill +5 mil" a={"Alt-S" "Alt<Key>s"} ChangeDrillSize(Object,+5,mil)}
- {"ChangeDrill -5 mil" a={"Alt-Shift-S" "Alt Shift<Key>s"} ChangeDrillSize(Object,-5,mil)}
+ {"ChangeDrill +5 mil" a={"Ctrl-D" "Ctrl<Key>d"} ChangeDrillSize(Object,+5,mil)}
+ {"ChangeDrill -5 mil" a={"Ctrl-Shift-D" "Ctrl Shift<Key>d"} ChangeDrillSize(Object,-5,mil)}
...
- {"Via Tool drill +5 mil" a={"Alt-V" "Alt<Key>v"} SetValue(ViaDrillingHole,+5,mil)}
- {"Via Tool drill -5 mil" a={"Alt-Shift-V" "Alt Shift<Key>v"} SetValue(ViaDrillingHole,-5,mil)}
+ {"Via Tool drill +5 mil" a={"Ctrl-L" "Ctrl<Key>l"} SetValue(ViaDrillingHole,+5,mil)}
+ {"Via Tool drill -5 mil" a={"Ctrl-Shift-L" "Ctrl Shift<Key>l"} SetValue(ViaDrillingHole,-5,mil)}

[David Baird (dhbaird)]

Note affected versions. New (non-conflicting) key-bindings released here:

commit 53579ac6946a6c084c1cd7d0f336aac83f9f3e15 (tag: pcb-4.2.1-RELEASE, origin/pcb-4.2.1)
Date: Tue Dec 31 13:49:09 2019 +0100
...
commit c75676e1b24ad25beb17356fa9c9a277414ce7fc
Date: Sun Apr 28 18:17:26 2019 -0400

Conflicted key-bindings released here:

commit bd56b7522660fe695e5ca2ffaae1d793db7d035d (tag: pcb-20110918-RELEASE, origin/pcb-20110918)
Date: Sun Sep 18 16:05:24 2011 -0400
...
commit acf8d00db4a90b555d768341a97453914b7b4aec
Date: Sun Aug 28 23:45:21 2011 -0700

Version in Ubuntu 20.04: 4.2.2 <-- de-conflicted
Version in Ubuntu 18.04: 4.0.2 <-- conflicted
Version in Ubuntu 16.04: 20140316 <-- conflicted

So there was a ~8 year period of broken keybindings :( This is probably a moot point: is there any interest in going back to the original key-bindings (which are mnemonically easier to remember, and are documented), or just go forward with the current new keybindings?