Command Palette (Cmd+K / Ctrl+K)

The command palette is the fastest way to get anywhere in Aeon. Press Cmd+K (Mac) or Ctrl+K (Windows/Linux) from any screen and a search box opens over the page. Start typing and Aeon searches your requests, users, and activities at the same time; type a transaction number and press Enter to jump straight to that request; type a prefix character and the palette switches into a focused mode for one kind of thing.

Most staff reach for it dozens of times a day instead of clicking through menus. If you know what you want — request #12345, the user jdoe, the "Item Retrieval" queue, the "Check Out" action — the palette gets you there in a couple of keystrokes without leaving the page you're on.

When you'll use this

• You know a transaction number and want to open that request now — type it and press Enter.
• You want to find a request, user, or activity but only have a name or keyword — just start typing.
• You're on a request and want to run a workflow step (Check Out, Place on Hold, Route) without hunting for the toolbar button.
• You want to jump to a destination — the dashboard, a queue, Custom Search, or the Customization Manager — by typing / to browse the ones your permissions let you reach.

Opening and closing the palette

There are two ways to open it:

• Keyboard: press Cmd+K (Mac) or Ctrl+K (Windows/Linux). This works from anywhere in Aeon. Pressing it again closes the palette, so the same keystroke toggles it on and off.
• The Search button: in the top navigation bar, click the Search... button (it shows a ⌘K hint). On a narrow or mobile screen this collapses to a search icon.

To close the palette without doing anything, press Esc or click outside it.

When it opens, the input is focused and ready. The placeholder reminds you of your options:

Search active items, or > # @ ! * / ? for commands...

Below the input, a hint row spells out what each prefix does. The footer shows the basic keys: ↑↓ to move through the list, ↵ (Enter) to select the highlighted item, Esc to close.

The fast path: just start typing

If you type without a prefix, the palette runs a unified search across requests, users, and activities at once and groups the results under Requests, Users, and Activities headings. Each result is tagged so you can tell them apart at a glance.

By default this searches active items only — the day-to-day common case. The results header reads "Search results — Active items only — type * to include closed" to remind you. (To include completed and cancelled records, use the * prefix described below.)

1. Press Cmd+K.
2. Type a few characters — for example, a researcher's last name or a word from an item title (minimum two characters).
3. Pick a result with the arrow keys and press Enter, or click it. Aeon opens that request, user, or activity.

A View all … results row appears at the top of the results; selecting it opens the full search results page for the type with the most matches, carrying your search text with it. With a single match the row reads View result instead, and when there are more matches than the palette will count it reads as a total with a plus — View all 50+ results.

Typing a transaction number

If you type only digits (for example, 12345), Aeon recognizes it as a possible transaction number. Once it confirms the request exists, an Open request #12345 row appears at the top with a ↵ hint. Press Enter to go straight there. If no request matches that number, a toast reports "Request #12345 not found".

Focused modes: the prefix characters

Typing a prefix character as the first character switches the palette into a focused mode. A small badge appears on the right (for example, REQUEST or USER) so you always know which mode you're in. Delete the prefix to return to the default search.

One mode has no prefix: choosing Route to Queue on an open request puts the palette into ROUTE, with the placeholder "Search queues to route to...". You reach it through the action rather than by typing.

Type this first	Mode	What it does
>	ACTION	Search and run actions — create a new request/user/activity, or workflow steps for the open request.
#	REQUEST	Search requests, or type a number to open that request directly.
@	USER	Search users, or type a username to open that user directly.
!	ACTIVITY	Search activities by name.
*	SEARCH ALL	Unified search that includes closed/completed/cancelled records.
/	NAVIGATE	Jump to a destination — Home Dashboard, Appointments, Custom Search, Customization Manager, or a queue.
?	HELP	Opens the Aeon documentation in a new browser tab.

A few examples:

• #12345 — opens request #12345 directly.
• #civil war — searches requests for the text "civil war".
• @jdoe — opens the user jdoe directly (a toast reports "User @jdoe not found" if there's no match).
• !orientation — finds activities named "orientation".
• *smith — searches everything for "smith", including closed requests.
• /dashboard — jumps to the home dashboard.

note

Direct-open vs. search in # and @ modes

In REQUEST mode, a plain number opens that request — press Enter to go straight there (a toast reports "Request #12345 not found" if there's no match); any non-numeric text runs a request search instead. In USER mode, what you type is treated as a username, and an Open user @… row appears that you can select (or press Enter) to open it directly; Aeon also lists matching users as you type (two characters or more), so you can pick one from the list instead.

Search-field operators (title:, author:, and more)

When you search requests or users, you can target a specific field by prefixing your term with an operator and a colon — for example title:diaries or author:lincoln. As soon as Aeon recognizes an operator it shows a Filtering: row of chips beneath the input confirming what was understood. Anything Aeon doesn't recognize is searched as plain text (no chip appears). Combine operators with spaces, and wrap multi-word values in quotes — for example author:"mark twain" title:letters.

Which operators apply depends on what you're searching:

• Searching requests — title, subtitle, author, call, ref, ead, isbn, issn, itemnumber, email, username, firstname, lastname, plus the bundles name and id.
• Searching users (@ mode) — the person-related ones only: username, firstname, lastname, email, name, and id. An operator like title: isn't recognized here and is searched as plain text.

Running actions on the open request

When you have a request open, the palette becomes context-aware. With no text typed, it shows a Next Steps for #12345 group listing only the workflow actions that are valid for that request's current status — for example Check Out, Place on Hold, Reshelve Item, or Route to Queue — alongside always-available actions like Cancel Request. Selecting one runs it just as if you'd clicked the matching toolbar button.

You can also type > to browse the full ACTION list (Print Callslip, Send Email, Clone Request, and so on) and the Create actions (New Request, New User, New Activity). Actions that need an open request are disabled with a "Select a request first" note when you're not on one.

When a request is selected but not open

You don't have to open a request to act on it. If you've clicked a request in a queue or in search results so it's the selected row, the palette shows an Actions for #12345 group with the first few of that request's actions — the same ones you'd get from its toolbar. It's the shortcut for working down a list without opening each record.

Actions for #12345 and Next Steps for #12345 are different groups: the first follows the row you have selected in a list, the second appears when the request is open in front of you.

Recent items and commands

In the default view with no text typed, the palette also lists your Recent items (requests, users, and queues you opened) and Recent Commands (workflow actions you ran), so you can jump back to recent work in one keystroke. These are remembered per browser.

Bulk actions live on the selection bar, not in the palette

When you checkbox-select several requests in a queue or in search results, the actions for that selection appear in the bar along the bottom of the screen. See Bulk Selection and Bulk Actions.

What you can do depends on your permissions

The palette only shows what your role allows, and the prefix hints adjust to match:

• The # (requests), @ (users), and ! (activities) modes require View access to that area. Without it, that prefix is ignored and its hint is hidden.
• Running workflow actions on a request requires Edit access to Requests; Route to Queue and Cancel Request require Full access. Send Email requires Edit access to Email. Actions you can't perform are filtered out or disabled.
• New User, New Request, and New Activity require Edit access to the matching area.
• The / Navigate list only shows Customization Manager if your role has some configuration access, and Appointments only if you can view appointments.