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Copy and Paste Implementation, Exchange Support for iPhone?
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I don't know if anyone has said this before, but I have a great solution, and its quite simple!
If you press and hold over text for about 2 seconds, a magnifying glass pops up to enable cursor selection (as it does now). If you move your finger within the next 2 seconds you are moving the text cursor. If you hold for another 2 seconds without moving, a contextual menu pops up.
So 4 seconds reveals the contextual menu, this can be used anywhere, even Safari.
If you press and hold over text for about 2 seconds, a magnifying glass pops up to enable cursor selection (as it does now). If you move your finger within the next 2 seconds you are moving the text cursor. If you hold for another 2 seconds without moving, a contextual menu pops up.
So 4 seconds reveals the contextual menu, this can be used anywhere, even Safari.
I found your cynicism quite amusing
. It raises a serious point though - you were paying for the apps for your touch (which included moving icons around) but if extra features are bundled with apps you may not want but have to pay for iPod touch owners could end up out of a few quid.Re: sandboxed applications - the sandboxing environment will interact with the system clipboard so that applications can cut-and-paste to-and-from other applications.
Re: difficulty of cut-and-paste - Apple could restrict it to text only, and some of the demos seem like a good idea for how it could be done. However I'm sure that they're considering rich content cut-and-paste as well. Apple will want to avoid interfaces with operating modes - so no "Select Mode" button - so they're stuck trying to find the best finger actions for select, copy, paste (cut is select, copy, delete possibly).
It will all centre around the magnifying glass for fine-tuning the cursor position. That's single finger. Add a second finger (tap and hold and then move) to select a block of text. Lift the second finger to end the select *and auto-copy the selection* (alternatively pop up some options around the magnifying glass for cut, copy, delete, paste). Add an (X) icon to the top-left of the selected text to delete. Second finger tap in magnifying mode pastes.
Bet there's a whole ramp of UI issues in the idea above though when it comes to actually being used.
Re: difficulty of cut-and-paste - Apple could restrict it to text only, and some of the demos seem like a good idea for how it could be done. However I'm sure that they're considering rich content cut-and-paste as well. Apple will want to avoid interfaces with operating modes - so no "Select Mode" button - so they're stuck trying to find the best finger actions for select, copy, paste (cut is select, copy, delete possibly).
It will all centre around the magnifying glass for fine-tuning the cursor position. That's single finger. Add a second finger (tap and hold and then move) to select a block of text. Lift the second finger to end the select *and auto-copy the selection* (alternatively pop up some options around the magnifying glass for cut, copy, delete, paste). Add an (X) icon to the top-left of the selected text to delete. Second finger tap in magnifying mode pastes.
Bet there's a whole ramp of UI issues in the idea above though when it comes to actually being used.
You need copy/cut paste exactly like you do on your computer. Copying web page snippets to a notepad, filenames, rearranging text in emails, notes, etc etc etc
do you not use copy and paste all the time on your computer?
exchange addresses from itunes 1.6
Regarding exchange support...
has anyone noticed that itunes 1.6 now puts exchange user paths into the iphone when syncing with an exchange server?
i am using itunes 1.6 with Exchange 2007 (via Outlook 2007), and this happens with 1.1.1 and 1.1.2. Haven't upgraded to 1.1.3 yet, but I'm assuming this will hide the exchange path.
It is problematic, because iphone will not send mail to these addresses.
example: (the email address appears as follows)
/o=first organization/ou=exchange administrative group (*code*)/cn=recipients/cn=user.name
could be a hint of what's to come...?
Regarding exchange support...
has anyone noticed that itunes 1.6 now puts exchange user paths into the iphone when syncing with an exchange server?
i am using itunes 1.6 with Exchange 2007 (via Outlook 2007), and this happens with 1.1.1 and 1.1.2. Haven't upgraded to 1.1.3 yet, but I'm assuming this will hide the exchange path.
It is problematic, because iphone will not send mail to these addresses.
example: (the email address appears as follows)
/o=first organization/ou=exchange administrative group (*code*)/cn=recipients/cn=user.name
could be a hint of what's to come...?
"swiping across the text".. Are you not using the zoom bubble then? I think that has been the whole problem so far.. You need to be able to use the zoom bubble on both the beginning and end. besides the conflict with touch-and-drag scrolling/panning...
I believe my idea is simple and straightforward:Copy/Cut:
1) Using the zoom bubble, position the cursor where you want to start the highlighting, keeping your finger held down.
2) Tap once (anywhere) with your middle finger to start highlighting.
3) move the cursor to the end of your desired text and let go.
4) choose from subsequent pop-up menu with copy/cut/delete options
Paste:
1) Again, use the zoom bubble to position the cursor at the "paste" point, keeping your finger held down.
2) double tap with your middle finger.
To me, the single tap with your middle finger to start the highlight feels intuitive in the sense that it acts as an "option" key of sorts..
edit: As a few mentioned, a slightly modified concept would be to hold the second (middle) finger down throughout the highlight instead of a tap.
I'd love copy & paste, but the #1 reason why I'd like Apple to add it, is so that all the people that can't appreciate anything else until its added can stop posting comments like "OMG WTF!!!" after every update. Sigh. It'd be really nice, but I'd actually prefer the SDK, speech synthesis or even Bluetooth stereo headphone support WAaaaaaaaY before "cut & paste". But, to satisfy the complainers... yeah, please Apple... make the pain go away.
~ CB
~ CB
I use the Notes app to make simple lists. What I can do with it is limited, as I can't re-order items in the list without deleting one and typing it again somewhere else. That's not practical, and severely restricts the usefulness of the Notes app.
Also, when replying to emails I often like to grab specific lines from the quoted text and reply to them point by point; deleting other text I'm not commenting on. That's a royal pain in the ass to do at the moment on the iPhone.
SMS is another. Sending text to multiple users was a much needed feature. But I still can't forward texts I receive from one person onto someone else. If I could select/copy the text from one message thread and paste that into a new message, then that would give me the functionality I need.
You may also be right about app sandboxing. But there's no reason that Apple can't provide hooks into a global cut 'n paste buffer that would get around that. Imagine for example being able to select text from an SMS message and pasting it into a Note, or an Email.
3rd party apps are bound to make better use of this too. As it stands, many superb OS X apps (e.g. VoodooPad) would be great candidates for an iPhone port after the SDK is released. But without cut 'n paste they would be crippled.
Those are just the examples I can think of off the top of my head.
That probably works well if you're right handed, but for lefties like me it would be very awkward as when selecting text from the far left, my middle finger isn't over the top of the iPhone. Using my thumb instead feels unnatural.
For me a better solution would be to:
1) position the cursor using the zoom bubble and release.
2) tap once (anywhere on the screen) with two fingers to turn on select.
3) position the cursor using the zoom bubble highlighting the text, then release
On release, the iPhone would display a dialogue box asking me to cut, copy or cancel.
4) tap on cut, copy or cancel
To paste text from the buffer I would:
1) position the cursor using the zoom bubble and release
2) tap once (anywhere on the screen) with two fingers. The iPhone would display a dialogue box.
4) Select paste or cancel from the dialogue box.
Experimenting with this in Notes and imagining the result seems to work. Though it may be better to have a second double finger tap in the middle to prompt for cut/copy/cancel, especially if you have to scroll down to get to the end of the select area you're after.
Wow, it's like macrumors read my mind. I had a conversation with somebody in the subway today heading to work in Boston that had an iPhone. I told them I would get one (a jailbroken one, of course) if it had the ability to conduct a copy/cut/paste, and be able to sync with exchange servers (even better, over my $5.99 t-zones like my Nokia E61i does right now)
How about a simple, Triple tap and hold on third... drag a selection (if needed), then a button for "Copy" would appear, after copy is selected, you would make an insertion point somewhere and "Paste" would appear.
Am I wrong... is this not the simple answer?????
Am I wrong... is this not the simple answer?????
two needed features indeed
these two basic features will enhance the iphone so much . . . can't wait to get mine sometime very soon, but will eagerly be anticipating exchange.
a work around i have for the exchange is to have gmail pull in my work emails and then i have mail.app pull in gmail. it even mails out through exchange via gmail. pretty slick, but not what i'd like for a permanent workaround.
these two basic features will enhance the iphone so much . . . can't wait to get mine sometime very soon, but will eagerly be anticipating exchange.
a work around i have for the exchange is to have gmail pull in my work emails and then i have mail.app pull in gmail. it even mails out through exchange via gmail. pretty slick, but not what i'd like for a permanent workaround.
I think once you start getting into triple tapping it gets counter intuitive. Even more so for triple tap and hold. At what point does it stop? 5 taps?
I think the simplest answer is to put a button on the keyboard to change the cursor to selection mode.
I understood that the iPhone is a multitouch device, so using the same 'gestures' as the iGesture Numpad or TouchStream of Fingerworks is may be a solution... The guys from Fingerworks are working at Apple so I don't see a problem...
For Select see: Gesture Guide Mouse
Do a Copy and Paste see: Gesture Guide Editing
How nice it would be if Apple came with a keyboard like the TouchStream, or even beter build into a MacBook (Pro)...
Greetings...
For Select see: Gesture Guide Mouse
Do a Copy and Paste see: Gesture Guide Editing
How nice it would be if Apple came with a keyboard like the TouchStream, or even beter build into a MacBook (Pro)...
Greetings...
There are time when names & phone numbers or web addresses show up in emails or web pages and are not clickable. I agree its infrequent.
i don't know what to say about this. i understand that Apple will have some difficulties trying to put copy paste and simple text editing features in the iPhone, but they are telling me that a team of Apple's engineers, the ones that made the iPhone Ui to begin with can't implement some form of copy and paste.
i don't want to sound too negative but come on! They should at least be able to give us the complicated approach, then make it simple in future revisions.
p.s. the keyboard i am typing on is jacked up, hence the lack of capital i's and question marks.
And yes joshcampbell115, i am holding out for the iPhone 3 or 4, the one that isn't locked into the AT&T network, and one that gives me as much options as my HTC Touch.
i don't want to sound too negative but come on! They should at least be able to give us the complicated approach, then make it simple in future revisions.
p.s. the keyboard i am typing on is jacked up, hence the lack of capital i's and question marks.
And yes joshcampbell115, i am holding out for the iPhone 3 or 4, the one that isn't locked into the AT&T network, and one that gives me as much options as my HTC Touch.
I am happy you don't work for the iPhone interface team
. Adding a button to (an already small) keyboard on a small screen will only make things worse when it comes to data entry.I am 100% confident copy/cut/paste will implemented via a special finger(s) gesture.
I am happy you don't work for the iPhone interface team
I am 100% confident copy/cut/paste will implemented via a special finger(s) gesture.
what are you talking about? There is a nice big space between "next" and "done" use that and it wouldn't make the keyboard any more cramped.
Using gestures like swipe and pinch make sense in a real world metaphor. Using gestures totoggle a select mode wouldn't make much sense to your average person. The more abstract gestures that are introduced, the greater the difficulty of using the phone becomes.
I was thinking of the same thing. Only thing would be how to implement paste & undo.
It would help if all apps were able to go into landscape mode, too. That way, the keyboard could be a bit bigger.
The Next and the Done only appear when you are doing data entry into a text field. Attempting to do copy/paste using the mechanism you propose won't work in an HTML webpage with just text.
On a normal computer you use the mouse to select text, and expecting a finger gesture to do the same is logical (after all, your fingers replace the mouse on the touch-sensitive device).
That's not a bad solution. Tho I could see where 4 seconds could start to feel like a long time (which is sad, I know). AT this point, I'd be happy with almost any solution.
While I'm surprised we still don't have an Apple-supported Copy & Paste (shocking), I would prefer a useful way to view pix that non iPhone users SMS me. How hard is it to make the default "view this message go to viewmymessage.com" an active link I can simply touch to take me to the page with their image? Apparently, more complicated than I think.