IBM Planning Analytics Tips & Tricks: Rule Editor Keyboard Shortcuts

December 15, 2020

Are you an “old school” keyboard person that still presses Ctrl-S to save your Excel workbooks? Do you flip through windows by pressing Alt-Tab? Do you remember Lotus backslash macros that used commands such as /FS for File, Save? If so, did you know that you can still do things like this within the new IBM Planning Analytics rules editor?

The easiest way to get started with keyboard commands is to press Ctrl-K within a rules window. This will open an area that shows a list of keys that can be used within the rule.

Here are some of the combinations that I use regularly when writing rules:

Ctrl-F then Ctrl-G: Ctrl-F will find a specific word or phrase and Ctrl-G will then allow you to scroll through the rule to find the next instance of that phase. This is helpful when you have a long rule and want to go directly to a section (example: quickly go to the FICA calcs in a comp model).

Ctrl-Shift-R: Ctrl-Shift-F will allow you to find and replace a single instance of text, but Ctrl-Shift-R allows you to do a find and replace within the entire rule (example: I have ‘Plan’ in the left side of many rules, but I want to replace it with ‘Plan2’).

Ctrl-Home and Ctrl-End: These combinations allow you quickly navigate to the start or the end of the rule. It’s an easy way to look for your SKIPCHECK command or go directly to your feeders section.

Ctrl-Z and Ctrl-Y: Ctrl-Z is the equivalent of the undo button and Ctrl-Y is the undo of the undo (or a redo). I sometimes get careless with Ctrl-Z and undo too much. This is where Ctrl-Y comes into play.

Ctrl-A: This will select the entire rule. I used this a lot with Perspectives since I often had to bring my rule into another text editor, but PA’s new formatting and line numbering has minimized the amount of times I use this combination.

If you are a keyboard person then it is good to know that Planning Analytics’ rule editor still allows you to use these combinations. And if you are not a keyboard person then maybe some of these will help improve your efficiency.

IBM Planning Analytics, which TM1 is the engine for, is full of new features and functionality. Not sure where to start? Our team here at Revelwood can help. Contact us for more information at info@revelwood.com. And stay tuned for more Planning Analytics Tips & Tricks weekly in our Knowledge Center and in upcoming newsletters!

Author

Lee Lazarow

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