Click on the Preferences button in the main toolbar to access the preferences screen. On the HotKeys page, you can configure keyboard shortcuts to quickly activate AceText while you are working with another application.
The shortcuts or hotkeys will only work while AceText is active in the background. Check if the AceText icon is visible next to the system clock. If not, you need to start AceText first. In the Operation Preferences you can make AceText start up automatically when you start your computer.
Since the hotkeys are system-wide, you need to make sure to choose key combinations that are not also used by other software that you use. Otherwise, AceText's hotkey will take precedence, and you can no longer use that key combination in the other software. The default key combinations all use the Windows key in combination with a Letter. The Windows key is usually only used for a few system-wide hotkeys, so the defaults should not cause any conflicts.
To enable one of the hotkeys, mark its checkbox in the hotkey preferences. To change the shortcut, mark the checkboxes of the modifier keys you want to be part of the hotkey, and select a letter or function key from the drop-down list. Combinations including the Windows key or both the Ctrl and Alt keys are good choices. Few applications use the Windows key or Ctrl+Alt keyboard shortcuts, so these combinations are unlikely to cause conflicts.
With this key combination, Win+Ctrl+A by default, you can quickly switch from the application you are using to AceText, without removing your hands from the keyboard. Without this key combination, you need to click on the AceText taskbar button or system tray icon (next to the system clock) to activate AceText. To close AceText, press Alt+F4, which is the standard Windows shortcut for closing a window.
When enabling this hotkey, you can also turn on the option to hide AceText with the same hotkey if you press it when AceText already has keyboard focus (i.e. it's already in front). This way you can quickly pop up and dismiss AceText at any time.
AcePaste is a special AceText feature that enables you to quickly paste a clip into an application, and continue working with that application after pasting. The default hotkey is Win+Ctrl+V. When you press this hotkey, AceText will pop up. Select the clip you want to paste, either by double-clicking on it, pressing Ctrl+Enter, or pressing the AcePaste hotkey again. The clip is then pasted directly into the application that was active when you pressed the AcePaste hotkey. If you change your mind, press the Escape key to cancel AcePaste. Either way, AceText will bring to front the application that was active when you pressed the AcePaste hotkey, so you can continue working straight away.
By default, AceText will try to paste into the target application by placing the clip on the clipboard and simulating the Ctrl+V key combination. If you want to use AcePaste with an application that pastes differently, or can only accept keyboard input, you can configure that application in the Applications Preferences.
AceType works just like AcePaste, except that you select the clip to be pasted by typing in its AceType abbreviation, and pressing Enter on the keyboard. If you took the time to assign abbreviations to clips, this is the fastest way to paste. Once you get the habit of using AceType, you will be able to paste blindly.
See Look up and Reuse Text to learn how to efficiently reuse text stored in AceText.
If you turned off automatic capture in the Operation Preferences, you can enable a hotkey to manually capture text into the ClipHistory. When you press this hotkey, AceText will add the text held by the Windows clipboard to the top of the ClipHistory. To transfer text from an application into AceText, first copy the text in the application, and then press the ClipHistory capture hotkey. You can also enable the option to bring AceText to front after capturing. That way, you can immediately move or duplicate the captured clip into a collection.
See Capture, Enter and Store Text to learn about other ways to get text from an application into AceText.
AceEdit is a special AceText feature that enables you to quickly edit some text in another application with AceText, and continue working with that application when you're done editing. The default hotkey is Win+Ctrl+X. When you press this hotkey when working with an application other than AceText, AceText will pop up. It will show the Clipboard tab, ready to edit the text that you selected in the application you're working with.
When you're done editing, press the AceEdit hotkey again, or press Ctrl+Enter, or click with the mouse to activate the target application. AceText will then send the modified text back to the application you were working with. If you change your mind, press the Escape key to cancel AceEdit. Either way, AceText will bring to front the application that was active when you initiated AceEdit, so you can continue working straight away.
By default, AceText will try to extract the text from the application by simulating a Ctrl+C keystroke, and paste it back by simulating the Ctrl+V key combination. If you want to use AceEdit with an application that copies or pastes differently, you can configure that application in the Applications Preferences.