Keyboard Bar

On iPhone, the keyboard bar is always enabled to compliment the on-screen keyboard. If you are working with a connected keyboard you can enable the keyboard bar in Settings → Editor → Hardware Keyboard In standard configuration (iOS 16 shown) you’ll see a row of keys above the on-screen keyboard.

Functions

Standard:

Key	Function
Quick Search	Search for other documents and Markdown formatting options. Press and hold to show Find and Replace function.
Move Caret	Use < and > to move the caret in your document
Dismiss Keyboard	Hides on-screen keyboard
Undo & Redo	Undo or Redo recent input. Redo key will be replaced with a ‘Go To’ button when the caret is within or adjacent to any link.
Lightning	Quickly access Markdown formatting (Headers, Lists, etc.) or enable features like Style Check and Focus Mode

Double-tap Shift (⇧) key:

Key	Function
Indent	Indent or outdent current line or list item
Move Text	Current line or selected block of text can be moved up or down

💡 Within a document, press and hold on the loup to access Find and Replace.

On iPad, the keyboard bar is always enabled to compliment the on-screen keyboard. If you are working with a connected keyboard you can enable the keyboard bar in Settings → Editor → Hardware Keyboard In standard configuration (iOS 16 shown) you’ll see a row of keys above an on-screen keyboard. With a connected keyboard and Keyboard Bar setting enabled: The keyboard bar lives at the bottom of the Editor as long as your hardware keyboard remains connected. Language switcher and iOS Dictation buttons are also shown in this keyboard bar. 💡 Take advantage of keyboard shortcuts when working with a connected keyboard. Press and hold on the ⌘ key to show a list of all shortcuts. For more please see this article: Shortcuts

Functions

Standard:

Key	Function
Quick Search	Search for other documents and Markdown formatting options. Press and hold to show Find and Replace function.
Move Caret	Use < and > to move the caret in your document
Dismiss Keyboard	Hides on-screen keyboard
Undo & Redo	Undo or Redo recent input. Redo key will be replaced with a ‘Go To’ button when the caret is within or adjacent to any link.
Lightning	Quickly access Markdown formatting (Headers, Lists, etc.) or enable features like Style Check and Focus Mode

Double-tap Shift (⇧) key:

Key	Function
Indent	Indent (or outdent) current line or list item
Move Text	Current line or selected block of text can be moved up or down

Note: On devices running iOS 14 or lower, you will see the Command Keyboard button (⌘ ) in place of the Lightning menu. Users on iOS 15 and above can use the Command Keyboard side by side with the Lightning menu by enabling this in samp>Settings → Editor → Command Keyboard 💡 Within a document, press and hold on the loup to access Find and Replace.

On Android devices with an on-screen keyboard, you can enable the keyboard bar in Settings → Editor → Keyboard Extension

Functions

The additional row of keys in iA Writer’s keyboard bar allows you to search for other documents, navigate and quickly add Markdown formatting.

Key	Function
Quick Search	Search for other documents and Markdown formatting options
Caret Navigation	Use < and > to move the caret in your document
Dismiss Keyboard	Hides on-screen keyboard
Undo & Redo	Undo or Redo recent input*
Lightning	Quickly access Markdown formatting (Headers, Lists, etc.) or enable features like Style Check and Focus Mode
Find & Replace (via Quick Search)	Find and/or replace specific terms inside the current document

* Changing to a different app or quitting Writer will reset your Undo/Redo history.