IDE - Add/Remove Space usage?

[StuartBruff]

The Mathcad Prime Documentation tab contains two dropdowns for adding and removing space, respectively.   The Add Space button allows the addition of a single line or a page.  The Remove Space button allows the deletion of a single line or all empty space down to the next region (if any).

I frequently add extra pages to allow plenty of leeway for adding new regions in between existing ones.  I always find it a bit of a nuisance having to press the Add/Remove buttons twice to tidy up the worksheet afterwards.

I don't think I've ever used the single line option for either adding or removing spaces.  It is almost trivially easy to carry out these tasks using the Enter or Delete/Backspace keys, switching to Draft Mode if necessary to ensure the correct cursor position (which is almost certainly necessary to use the single-line button options, anyway).

So, I was wondering if anybody makes use of the single line options, or would miss them terribly if the drop-downs were replaced by buttons for just Add Page and Remove Empty Space?

Stuart

[Perez]

Here’s my take as a heavy Prime user:

How I use them

• 95% of the time I’m with you: Add Page and Remove Empty Space do the job. I rarely click “Single line.”

• Keyboard nudging or dragging regions usually covers the fine-tuning.

When “Single line” is actually handy

• Tight print layout: When I’m trying to bump a heading/plot to the next page without collapsing all spacing above it, removing/adding one tick is safer than “Remove Empty Space,” which can over-compact a section.

• Templates with strict alignment: If a team template relies on the grid (e.g., section headers at fixed vertical positions), single-line gives a predictable one-grid-step move instead of a freehand drag.

• Working around collapsed Areas: When an Area is collapsed/locked and I need just a sliver of space above or below, a one-line insert avoids having to expand/reposition the whole group.

• Hidden grid / mouse-only workflows: With the grid hidden (or for users who don’t like Draft mode), a deterministic “+1 line” is less error-prone than creating/deleting dummy regions.

UX suggestions that would help everyone

• Make both Add Space and Remove Space split buttons: click = last-used action; dropdown = choose (Single Line / Page or Empty Space). That removes the “two clicks every time” complaint.

• Add simple hotkeys (e.g., Ctrl+Enter = Add Page, Ctrl+Backspace = Remove Empty Space; Alt+Enter / Alt+Backspace = single line).

• Scope option for “Remove Empty Space (selection/current page)” to avoid collapsing more than intended.

If the ribbon became just Add Page and Remove Empty Space, I personally wouldn’t suffer—but a small cohort would miss the precision tool. The split-button + hotkeys compromise keeps power and speed without clutter.

[StuartBruff]

All good points.  Thanks.

Stuart

[Werner_E]

How about using the right click menu?

"Remove Space" seems to default to 'Empty Space'  - there is no option to just remove a single line.

I must admit that I have never used the menu for this purpose—probably because I was unaware that this option even existed in the menu until today. 😉

And because of this - no, I would not miss the single line options.

[StuartBruff]

Hi Werner,

I was aware of the context menu option, but it just seems more awkward, requiring a bit more mouse movement and then taking care to select the right option ... which can be difficult with my screen resolution, leading to frequent use of Ctrl-Z.  It's the same with other functions, such as cut, copy, and paste.  I either use the keyboard shortcuts or the ribbon buttons.

But, as Perez's reply indicates, horses for courses. But certainly worth noting.

Stuart

[DJNewman]

I think I exclusively use the right-click mouse button menu for removing empty space (which often acts like delete page for me) and add page.

I think I also do that exclusively for add page and add page break.

I agree that removing and adding a single line is fairly trivial with backspace and enter keys.

[SPaulis]

Hey @StuartBruff 

I totally agree that the Add/Remove space was not implemented very well (they had one job to do! 😉  I WOULD NOT MISS IT.  You know, there is no Insert/Delete line button in Word, Iand I don't see the world collapsing... yet.

I use Enter and Delete exclusively for adding a removing lines and only use Add Page on blue moons.  I find page breaks are the worst offender for being consistent so I do use Remove Space option occasionally.

But I never use them from the Ribbon (too slow), always from the right-click menu.  Usually I can target the line with the mouse and select the option—all in only two clicks and without loosing my focus or switching between ribbon panels.

Yeah, the ribbon and many options are still in their infancy with Prime.  Me and my pocketbook are looking forward to the next upgrade that will custom shortcut key definitions.  And I hope they include all the formatting options, even font size up/down, digits +/-, number format, etc.  I use these way, way more than needing a shortcut key for partial derivatives (barf).

[StuartBruff]

Hi Shawn,

This goes to further show that there is no one solution that fits all.  My mouse knows where the appropriate buttons are on a tab, whereas it hasn't yet learned where they might be on a context menu.   Consequently, I (usually) have less cognitive load using the Ribbon,

This is probably compounded by running a high-res display on my laptop (3840x2160, 16"), which makes mouse movement more a matter of precision (and luck!) than hitting a Ribbon button.  OTOH, I find that running at lower resolutions gives me less of a visual feel overall than running at high-res does.

Stuart

Well, I'll see your Omer W Blodgett and raise you one Paul Dirac ...

"The research worker, in his efforts to express the fundamental laws of Nature in mathematical form, should strive mainly for mathematical beauty. He should take simplicity into consideration in a subordinate way to beauty ... It often happens that the requirements of simplicity and beauty are the same, but where they clash, the latter must take precedence."

French interwar aircraft are what happens when you stick to engineering decisions only and don't design with beauty in your heart!

(By Swissair - This image has been extracted from another file, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=73007286)

By Bundesarchiv, Bild 102-12156 / CC-BY-SA 3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5480350