B4. Menus, Toolbars & Shortcuts

This lesson outlines how to use menus, toolbars, and keyboard shortcuts in FLEx for efficient navigation and task execution. Here's a summary:

Objective:

• Learn to use FLEx's menus, toolbars, and shortcuts, understanding multiple ways to execute the same commands.

Key Components:

1. Bars in FLEx:
   Title Bar: Displays the project and application name.

   • Menu Bar: Contains 11 menus (e.g., File, View, Tools) with context-sensitive options depending on the area/view.

   • Toolbar: Quick access icons for common commands, changing based on context.

   • Information Bar: Displays details about the active area and view.

   • Status Bar: Shows parser status, record counts, sorting filters, and progress.

2. Menus:
   Commands may include visual cues:

   • • "..." indicates a dialog box will open.

     • Small triangles open submenus.

     • Keyboard shortcuts are often shown next to menu items.

   • Example: File → "Back Up This Project…" opens a dialog box to configure backup options.

3. Toolbars:
   Icons provide quick access to commands. Hovering over an icon shows its tooltip.

   • Example: In the Lexicon Edit view, the magnifying glass icon opens the "Find a lexical entry" dialog.

4. Keyboard Shortcuts:
   Common shortcuts:

   • • Ctrl+O: Open Project

     • Ctrl+P: Print

     • Ctrl+F: Find

     • Ctrl+Z: Undo

     • F1: Open Help

   • Shortcuts may function differently across areas.

Activities:

• Practice using menus, submenus, toolbars, and shortcuts in various views (e.g., Lexicon Edit, Lists area).

• Use commands like "Find" via toolbar icons and shortcuts.

• Create and edit entries in the sample database.

Additional Resources:

• FLEx Help System (F1) for in-depth guidance.

• Videos on FLEx basics and layout navigation.

Completion:

• A quiz (80% passing score) is included to assess understanding, with feedback options for improvement.

OpenAI. (2025). ChatGPT [Large language model]. https://chatgpt.com