Data Entry; The Alpha Wheel; The Plus/Minus Buttons; The Alphanumeric Pad - Kurzweil PC3A User Manual

Data Entry

The data entry section of the front panel includes the Alpha wheel, the Plus/Minus buttons, and
the 14-button alphanumeric pad.

The Alpha Wheel

The Alpha Wheel is especially useful because it can quickly enter large or small changes in value.
If you turn the Alpha Wheel one click to the right, you'll increase the value of the currently
selected parameter by one increment. One click to the left decreases the value by one increment.
If you turn it rapidly, you'll jump by several increments. You can also use the Alpha Wheel to
enter names when you're saving objects.

The Plus/Minus Buttons

These buttons are located just under the Alpha Wheel. The Plus button increases the value of the
currently selected parameter by one, and the Minus button decreases it by one. These buttons are
most useful when you're scrolling through a short list of values, or when you want to be sure
you're changing the value by one increment at a time. One press of the Plus or Minus button
corresponds to one click to the right or left with the Alpha Wheel. These buttons will repeat if
pressed and held.
Pressing the Plus and Minus buttons simultaneously will move you through the current list of
values in large chunks instead of one by one. Don't confuse these buttons with the +/- button on
the alphanumeric pad. This button is used primarily for entering negative numeric values and
switching from uppercase to lowercase letters (and vice versa).

The Alphanumeric Pad

As its name implies, this set of 14 buttons lets you enter numeric values, and to enter names one
character at a time. Depending on where you are, the PC3A automatically enters letters or
numerals as appropriate (you don't have to select between alphabetic or numeric entry).
When you're entering numeric values, press the corresponding numeric buttons, ignoring
decimal places if any (to enter 1.16, for example, press 1, 1, 6, Enter). The display will reflect your
entries, but the value won't actually change until you press Enter. Before pressing Enter, you can
return to the original value by pressing Cancel. Pressing Clear is the same as pressing 0 without
pressing Enter.
When entering names, you can use the Left/Right cursor buttons or the <<< / >>> soft buttons to
move the cursor to the character you want to change. Use the labels under the alphanumeric
buttons as a guide to character entry. Press the corresponding button one or more times to insert
the desired character above the cursor. The Cancel button is equivalent to the >>> soft button,
and Enter is the same as OK. The Clear button replaces the currently selected character with a
space. The +/- button toggles between uppercase and lowercase letters.
There's also a convenient feature called keyboard naming, which lets you use the keyboard to
enter characters in names. See page 5-5.
User Interface Basics
Navigation
3-9