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Using TextEdit with VoiceOver Mac OS 10.12 Sierra

TextEdit is an application included in MacOS 10.12 Sierra. It is a text editor that can be used to open, read, create, modify, and save text documents in various formats such as Microsoft Word format (".doc" or ".docx" extension), RTF format (".rtf" extension), HTML format (".htm" or ".html" extension), or Text format (".txt" extension). In particular, TextEdit may be used as a HTML editor. The compatibility of TextEdit with VoiceOver is very good.

Important: for the instructions below, it is assumed that VoiceOver is on and that Quick Nav is off.
To toggle VoiceOver on or off, press Cmd + F5.
When VoiceOver is on, press simultaneously the Right and Left arrows to toggle Quick Nav on or off.

To create a new file:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "New" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar.

To save a newly created file in the current folder:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Save…" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Type the file name, then
Press the Return key.
The file is then saved in the current folder in the default format (RTF with extension ".rtf" or Plain Text with extension ".txt", depending on the settings, see below).

To save a newly created file in a folder that is not the current folder:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Save…" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Type the file name, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Right Arrow twice until the checkbox "cdisclosure", then
If this has not already been done, press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar to check the disclosure checkbox, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Right Arrow (7 times) until the radio button "column view", then
If this has not already been done, press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar to check the column wiew radio button, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Right Arrow (3 times) until hearing the name of the current folder followed by "pop up button", then
Select a parent folder of the wanted folder by moving with the Up and Down Arrows, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Right Arrow (4 times) until hearing "browser", then
Move with the Arrows to select the wanted folder , then
Press the Return key.

To open a recently used file:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to the submenu "Open Recent" with the Down Arrow, then
Press the Right Arrow, then
Select the file with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar.

To open a file contained in the current folder:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Open…" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Select the file by using the Up and Down Arrows, then
Press the Return key.

To open a file that is not contained in the current folder:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Open…" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Left Arrow a few times until reaching the radio button "column view", then
If this has not already been done, press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar to check the column wiew radio button, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Right Arrow a few times until hearing the name of the current folder followed by "pop up menu", then
Select a parent folder of the wanted file in the pop up menu by using the Up and Down Arrows, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Right Arrow a few times until hearing "column view browser", then
Use the Arrows to select the file, then
Press the Return key.

to open a file from Finder:
Select the file in Finder (see Using Finder), then
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to the submenu "Open with" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Go to "TextEdit" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar.

To open a HTML source file:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Open…" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Press several times Ctrl + Opt + Right Arrow until hearing "Options", then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Left Arrow and then three times Ctrl + Opt + Right Arrow until hearing "Ignore rich text commands", then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar to select the checkbox, then
Open the HTML file as explained above

To switch from Rich Text to Plain Text:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "Format" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Make Plain Text" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar.

To switch from Plain Text to Rich Text:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "Format" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Make Rich Text" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar.

To create a HTML source document:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "New" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
If this has not been already done, switch to Plain Text as explained above, then
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Save as…" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Type the file name with the extension ".html", then
Press the Return key (a dialog box will open), then
Press again the return key to confirm you want to use the extension ".html" instead of ".txt"
. Remark: the file will be saved in the current folder (see below for saving in another folder).

To create a Word document:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "New" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
If this has not been already done, switch to Rich Text as explained above, then
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Save as…" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Type the file name, then
Press a few times Ctrl + Opt + Right Arrow until hearing "Format RTF (Rich Text Format)", then
Select a Word format with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Press the Return key.
Remark: the file will be saved in the current folder (see below for saving in another folder).

To save a file that has been modified:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Save" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar.
The file keeps its name and extension unchanged.

To rename a file:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Rename…" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Type the new file name, then
Press the Return key.

To know the name of the current file:
Press Ctrl + Opt + F2 (with Macbook Fn + Ctrl + Opt + F2).

To select a part of the text:
Use the Arrows while keeping the Shift key pressed.

To read the part of the text that has been selected:
Press Ctrl + Opt + F6 (with Macbook Fn + Ctrl + Opt + F6).

To copy the part of the text that has been selected:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "Edit" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Copy" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar.

To paste the part of the text that has been copied:
Place the cursor where you want to paste the text, then
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "Edit" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Paste" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar.

To find a word in the text:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "Edit" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Find" with the Down Arrow, then
Go to "Find…" with the Right Arrow, then
Type the word, then
Press the Return key.

Another method to find a word:
Press Ctrl + Opt + f, then
Type the word, then
Press the Return key.
VoiceOver find the first occurrence of the word,
Press Ctrl + Opt + a to read the sequel of the file.
Press Ctrl + Opt + g to find the next occurrence of the word.
Press Ctrl + Opt + Shift + g to find the previous occurrence of the word.
Remark : instead of typing a word, one may select a word used in a previous search by using the Up and Down Arrows.
Press Cmd + del to supress a word used in a previous search.

To go to the beginning of the text:
Press Cmd + Up Arrow.

To go to the end of the text:
Press Cmd + Down Arrow.

To go one page backward:
Press Opt + Page Up (with MacBook Fn +Opt + Up Arrow).

To go one page foreward:
Press Opt + Page Down (with MacBook Fn +Opt + Down Arrow).

To go to the beginning of the current line:
Press Cmd + Left Arrow.

To go to the end of the current line:
Press Cmd + Right Arrow.

To read all the contents:
Press Ctrl + Opt + a.

To read the current word:
Press Ctrl + Opt + w.

To spell the current word:
Press twice Ctrl + Opt + w.

To read the curent line:
Press Ctrl + Opt + l.

To read the current sentence:
Press Ctrl + Opt + s.

To read the current paragraph:
Press Ctrl + Opt + p.

To complete automatically a word:
Press F5 (with macbook Fn + F5), then
Select a word in the list of suggestions by using the Up and Down Arrows, then
Press Spacebar.

To use the spellchecker:
Press Cmd + Semicolon (VoiceOver read the first uncorrect word), then
Type the correct word.
One may use a list of suggested word by pressing Ctrl + Opt + Shift + m, then use the Up and Down Arrows to select a word in the list of suggestions, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar.
One may spell the uncorrect word or a suggested word by pressing twice Ctrl + Opt + w.

To save a document as a PDF file:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Save as PDF…" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Press the Return key.

To print:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "File" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "Print…" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Press the Return key.

Some shortcuts

To save : Cmd + s
To select all the text: Cmd + a
To select the text from the beginning of the document to the current position of the cursor: Cmd + Shift + Up Arrow
To select the text from the current position of the cursor to the end of the document: Cmd + Shift + Down Arrow
To copy: Cmd + c
To cut: Cmd + x
To paste: Cmd + v
To undo: Cmd + z
To make Plain Text/Rich Text: Cmd + Shift + t
To open a document: Cmd + o
To open a new document: Cmd + n
To print…: Cmd + p
To go to the next open window: Cmd + `
To close the current window: Cmd + w
To close all windows: Cmd + Opt + w
To quit TextEdit: Cmd + q

Some verbosity settings of VoiceOver suggested for using TextEdit:
Press Ctrl + Opt + v to open the Verbosity Rotor, then
Go to "Typing Echo" with the Right Arrow, then
Select "Character" with the Down Arrow, then
Go to "Punctuation" with the Right Arrow, then
Select "All" with the Down Arrow, then
Go to "Text attributes" with the Right Arrow, then
Select "Do nothing" with the Down Arrow, then
Go to "Capitals" with the Right Arrow, then
Select "Play tone" with the Down Arrow, then
Press the Escape key to quit the Verbosity Rotor.

VoiceOver Commands

To find out the version of TextEdit in your computer:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "TextEdit" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "About TextEdit" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then

To know the version of TeXShop that is currently used:
Go to the Menu bar by pressing Ctrl + Opt + m, then
Go to "TeXShop" with the Right Arrow, then
Go to "About TeXShop" with the Down Arrow, then
Press Ctrl + Opt + Spacebar, then
Move with Ctrl + Opt + Left arrow and Ctrl + Opt + Right arrow until hearing the TextEdit version.

TextEdit Version: 1.12 (329)

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Using TextEdit with VoiceOver Mac OS 10.12 Sierra

Some shortcuts

Last Update: August 13, 2017