Type to search when adding nodes
The Add node menu (Shift-A in the Shader Editor) should start searching automatically when you start typing.
As it is, the only keyboard keys with any effect are the menu hotkeys (the underlined letters). i.e. To get a MixRGB node, you type C and then M. The problem is, I don't think anybody actually uses this method. Because it sucks!
In the videos I've seen, users invariably search for nodes. If searching is the most popular method of getting a specific node, it would save everyone a lot of clicks and custom hotkeys and brainspace to just switch to searching as soon as the user begins to type.
To put it another way: If I open the Add menu and type "Mix" (for MixRGB or Mix Shader), a Texture Coordinate node is created. (Input->Texture Coordinate)
![2021-10-22 20_00_22-Blender_ [C__Users_Dom_Documents_fdsfsdf.blend].png](/media/94/94176bf589b3850f8c88e12049470e5e/94176bf589b3850f8c88e12049470e5e.png)
![2021-10-22 20_10_39-Blender_ [C__Users_Dom_Documents_fdsfsdf.blend].png](/media/d4/d452ebce9224ef8cbb25b70ca5f0b353/d452ebce9224ef8cbb25b70ca5f0b353.png)
Typing Mix should just search for Mix.
![2021-10-22 20_02_28-Blender_ [C__Users_Dom_Documents_fdsfsdf.blend].png](/media/8e/8e191d3504a7fbaa735574de7325362c/8e191d3504a7fbaa735574de7325362c.png)
8 Comments
Menu items autoassigned hotkeys is general feature working same in any menu in Blender. You are not right when asking to remove this system from ''add' menus. I'm sure that there is users who prefer to do this via
Shift+A + +auto assigned hotkeys (eg.Shift+A+T+Tto add image texture).Instead of asking to make exceptions for "add" menu - just use straight search hotkey ( put this node.add_search into field to make things work). I am one of those who like straight search so I use this alternative for long time, but I never asked to change default search menu.
Nice one, will try it. Thanks for sharing.
You solved my problem... while telling me I was wrong to bring it up? But if I hadn't asked, you would never have said anything, so go figure.
I show you that you can call straight search without changing current add menu behavior, what to do with this knowledge is up to you.
Here you ask it to work in different behaviour and to make it work it need to chnge general for Blender auto menu hotkeys mechanic. What if someone else OK with current add menu and don't want it to be changed? Just tell them to f*** off?
If you want to "solve anything" maybe better to propose to add new shortcut for straight search (already exist, just don't have shortcut) where you can just type node name right from start. Some
Shift+S- currently not occupied by anything and stay right next toShift+A. Then both, you and someone else, will be OK and auto menu hotkeys mechanic will stay untouched.I, too, think that typing should start searching. I actually got used to hitting "S" immediately after Shift A so that I can actually search, but I would prefer a search right away.
Didn't knew that Shift+A+S trick, seems fast enough to me now that I know it... Thanks!
Came here to say this is how it should work out of the box. It's called Context, and in most modern applications when you open a command palette, you just start typing and it auto-filters down to what you want. This is exactly how this should work as it's faster, and doesn't limit it you to binding hotkeys to specific notes, but instead offers access to all. It's common in Figma, VS Code, Chrome, Firefox, and just about every other modern app.
Let me know if you use the menu hotkeys. I think that's fine for, say, a file menu. But for a menu with a dozen submenus, where the options you use most frequently are sparsely distributed, I find the "commit underlined letters to muscle memory" methodology uselessly silly and and convoluted. It seems like an old-fashioned carryover from Windows-style file menus, where at least the options are more or less consistent between programs.