Customizing Shortcuts
Open Settings → Keyboard (the keyboard icon, between the Editor and Transcription tabs). The view contains two sub-tabs:
- Editor Shortcuts — all rebindable timeline and editing commands
- Recording & Global — system-wide hotkeys that require Accessibility permission
Settings window open on the Keyboard tab showing the Editor Shortcuts sub-tab with all 8 section headers and the shortcut list
Rebinding an editor shortcut
- Click the shortcut badge on any row. The badge switches to recording mode, showing "Type key…" in your accent color with a matching border.
- Press the key combination you want to assign.
- The new binding is saved immediately to
UserDefaultsunder the keycom.screenkite.editor.shortcut-bindings.
A shortcut row in recording mode showing the 'Type key…' prompt with an accent-color border
To remove a binding entirely, click the trash icon that appears to the right of the badge when a shortcut is set. The badge then reads Unbound. To restore the factory default, click the reset arrow (↺) that appears when you have overridden a shortcut.
Conflict detection
If the key combination you type is already claimed by another action, a Shortcut Conflict alert appears with two choices:
- Cancel — discards the new binding and leaves both shortcuts unchanged.
- Replace — assigns the combo to the new action and clears it from any conflicting ones.
Shortcut Conflict alert dialog with Cancel and Replace buttons
Reset All
Click Reset All in the top-right corner of the Editor Shortcuts view to restore every binding to its factory default. A confirmation alert ("Reset All Shortcuts?") asks you to confirm before changes are applied.
Reset All Shortcuts confirmation alert with Cancel and Reset All buttons
Global Shortcuts
These shortcuts work system-wide. Configure them in Settings → Keyboard → Recording & Global. They require Accessibility permission.
Recording & Global sub-tab selected, showing the two-sub-tab segmented control at the top and the list of global hotkey recorders below
| Shortcut Name | Function |
|---|---|
| Show Main Panel | Opens the Recording Hub |
| Stop Recording | Stops the current recording |
| Pause / Resume | Pauses or resumes an active recording |
| System Audio | Starts audio-only recording immediately |
| Current Screen | Starts recording the display under your cursor |
| Topmost Window | Records the frontmost application window |
| Select Area | Opens the area selection overlay |
| Toggle Screen Magnifier | Shows/hides the screen magnifier overlay |
Editor Shortcuts Reference
All shortcuts below are rebindable in Settings → Keyboard → Editor Shortcuts unless noted otherwise.
Playback
| Action | Default Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Play / Pause | Space |
| Step Back One Frame | ← |
| Step Forward One Frame | → |
| Jump to Previous Edit | ↑ |
| Jump to Next Edit | ↓ |
| Jump to Start | Home |
| Jump to End | End |
Timeline Editing
| Action | Default Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Split at Playhead | ⌘B |
| Toggle Blade Mode | B |
| Select Arrow Tool | A |
| Cancel Blade Mode | Escape |
| Trim Start to Playhead | ⌥[ |
| Trim End to Playhead | ⌥] |
| Nudge Clip Left | , |
| Nudge Clip Right | . |
Selection
| Action | Default Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Delete Selected Clips | Delete |
| Ripple Delete | ⇧Delete |
| Select All Visible Clips | ⌘A |
| Deselect All | ⇧⌘A |
| Duplicate Selected Overlays | ⌘D |
Tools
| Action | Default Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Toggle Snapping | N |
| Toggle Ripple Editing | Unbound |
| Toggle Grouped Editing | Unbound |
View
| Action | Default Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Zoom In | = or + |
| Zoom Out | - or _ |
| Fit Timeline to View | ⇧Z |
| Toggle Resource Panel | Unbound |
Project
| Action | Default Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Import Media… | ⌘I |
| Export… | ⌘E |
Chrome
| Action | Default Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Command Palette | ⌘⇧P |
Edit History
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Undo | ⌘Z |
| Redo | ⌘⇧Z |
Keyboard Focus & Embedded Panels
Several shortcuts require the editor surface to own keyboard focus (editorFocused). Shortcuts with a broader focus requirement (Play/Pause, Delete, Ripple Delete) also fire when the timeline is not the focused control — but only when no modal sheet is presented and the first responder is not a text field or web view.
All editor shortcuts are suppressed when any of the following embedded web-view panels has focus:
- AI chat panel — click anywhere outside the chat web view to return focus to the editor.
- DSL inspector (layout code editor) — click the canvas or timeline to restore editor shortcuts.
- Screenshot editor — editing a screenshot frame suppresses timeline shortcuts; close or dismiss the editor to re-enable them.
Clicking an action in the editor (for example, pressing the playhead or a timeline clip) automatically reclaims keyboard focus from an embedded panel.
Recording Control Pill
During an active recording, the floating control pill provides quick access to:
- Stop (red button) — ends the recording
- Pause / Resume — pauses capture without ending the session
- Restart — discards and restarts
- Cancel — discards the recording (trash icon)