Quick-reference and Keyboard Template Generator

Problem: Every editor, video game, and drawing program has a hard to learn short-cut system.

Solution: Make a generic system for printing out the keyboard shortcuts.

Every program has keyboard shortcuts, and usually a keyboard diagram is a good way to describe them. The VI Cheat Sheet shows commands using a stylized keyboard and color groupings of commands, resulting in a high information density. Putting together this cheat-sheet took appreciable effort; while Emacs is about the same age as VI, Emacs has no such diagram online.

There have been dozens of commercial companies selling preprinted keyboard templates. This shareware claims to generate keyboard templates, though it is old and limited. What is needed is a good open source program that will grow to accommodate an increasing number of needs.

At a minimum the software would accommodate:

• Command sets would store the key information for an application. For example, the VI template worries about the entire keyboard, color modifiers by group, and multiple commands per key by understanding modifiers such as control, alt, or an internal mode. Icons could be attached to each command, and icon libraries could be managed.
• Print layouts would store information about printing out the commands. Some outputs are generic PDFs, such as a printed quick reference in order of key or by grouping, or a diagram of a keyboard like the above VI Cheat Sheet. Print layouts would also understand about printing template strips for function keys based on the specific type of keyboard, cutout strips for complex templates, or small labels to put on the keys.

This separates the commands for a particular program from the way it is printed. That is, once I add the keyboard commands for Emacs to a public site, I can then print various quick reference cards and a keyboard template that fits my specific keyboard. Also, I can add a new print layout for my spiffy new laptop and then print templates for my favorite programs. This pair of use cases would make development self-sustaining.