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Usually, I use the following shortcuts on macOS:

  • Ctrl + a: Go to the beginning of the line
  • Ctrl + e: Go to the end of the line
  • Ctrl + f: Go to the next character
  • Ctrl + b: Go to the previous character

Recently these shortcuts stopped working. I don't know why. When I press Ctrl + a, some apps show nothing, some apps just show a. Is there any way to find out the reason and fix it?

P.S.: I'm sure Ctrl works because all other shortcuts with the Ctrl key work.

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6
  • Welcome to Ask Different :) Can you list some examples of app where you have been using the said shortcuts?
    – Nimesh Neema ♦
    Commented Oct 25, 2021 at 7:19
  • Can you check the output of plutil -p /System/Library/Frameworks/AppKit.framework/Resources/StandardKeyBinding.dict | grep moveToBeginningOfParagraph ?
    – Mateusz Szlosek
    Commented Oct 25, 2021 at 7:46
  • @NimeshNeema These are several examples: 1. When I press ctrl + a in the address bar of chrome, I get a. 2. When I press ctrl + a in the system's built-in Notes, I also get a.
    – Searene
    Commented Oct 25, 2021 at 8:54
  • @MateuszSzlosek Here is the output of the command: "^a" => "moveToBeginningOfParagraph:" "^A" => "moveToBeginningOfParagraphAndModifySelection:" 1 => "moveToBeginningOfParagraph:"
    – Searene
    Commented Oct 25, 2021 at 8:54
  • What keyboard layout are you using -- US. or something different?
    – Tom Gewecke
    Commented Oct 25, 2021 at 14:46

1 Answer 1

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Generally in MacOS, Cmd is used where Windows and Linux use Ctrl. But it depends on the app. You didn't say which app you are expecting these functions in. In most macOS apps, Cmd-a is "select all" and Cmd-f is "find."

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3
  • The OP's key combos work fine in such as TextEdit - they may not in Terminal-style apps
    – Tetsujin
    Commented Oct 25, 2021 at 7:21
  • 2
    The shortcuts listed by OP work in all native text fields/view by default. They're EMACS-style navigation keybindings.
    – DarkDust
    Commented Oct 25, 2021 at 7:36
  • More info about those keybindings here: developer.apple.com/library/archive/documentation/Cocoa/…
    – Mateusz Szlosek
    Commented Oct 25, 2021 at 7:49

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