The shortcuts I use most often are created to facilitate moving data between a database system and an e-mail system. For example, every month I need to send out a mailing to over 200 individuals, the content of which is customized based upon the content of a database I manage. Unfortunately, this is an old legacy database with no e-mail gateway. So I use the database to write the data out to a text file, and then use QuicKeys to automatically use it to create the mailing. The shortcut cuts out the text to be mailed, switches to our e-mail program, pastes the text, parses out the "To" address, inserts the subject text, marks the return receipt field, and mails the notice out to the user--all within about three seconds per mailing. This process used to take me the better part of a day. With QuicKeys, I can do the entire mailing in a matter of a half hour or less."

Copy text from a text editor into a database, switch to your database app, create a new record, paste the copied text, then go back to the text editor and delete the text just moved; all with a single keystroke. Additionally, pulling data from a spreadsheet can be handled in the same way, using tabs or arrow keys to walk through the spreadsheet cells, copy, switch to the database, paste, etc.

Alternately, you can copy a database record, paste it into a document and print without retyping a word. Using QuicKeys to automatically shuffle data between applications is quite simple and a great time saver!

Chris wrote:

> If I wanted 10 copies, I duplicated the record 10 times, then told it to just print all records...
> resulting in 10 copies of the same data being printed (FMP thinks it is 1 copy each of 10 different
> records, but the end result is the same).

jagermeister at localbar dot com wrote:
> i'd use quickeys, simple!

Thanks Chris and 'jagermeister' Unfortunately neither suggestion is completely suitable. QuicKeys might work (and I will investigate) but my gut feeling is there would be problems. Let me explain further:- There could be something like 200-300 records to be printed . The number of copies of each record could range between 10 and 500. Each record would contain a field that had the number of copies required but this field would not be on the layout being printed (hence my thought that QuicKeys would not be the solution).

----------

This is actually quite easily done with QuicKeys. The needed steps would look something like the following:

1. Starting with the print count field highlighted, do a Type Keystroke of Control+C to copy the contents.
2. Switch to the database that needs to be printed most likely using a menu selection.
3. Use a Type Keystroke of Control+P to bring up the print dialog.
4. Number of Copies should already be highlighted so just do another Type Keystroke of Control+V to paste in the print count number.
5. One more Type Keystroke of Enter should start the print process.

Details and specific solutions will vary, but this is exactly the sort of task QuicKeys was meant to tackle.