Photoshop: Pressing the Esc key to exit 'text mode' negates all the changes in the text box

The [Esc] key is like hitting the cancel button to cancel all changes you've just made and exit text editing mode.

Instead, use Cmd/Ctrl + Return/Enter to accept the changes you've made and exit text editing mode.

Additionally, you can use Opt/Alt + Return/Enter to add a line break while in text edit mode.

Howdy folks,

This is not the first time we have heard this complaint, both internally and externally. We've talked about it quite a bit. And, while I completely agree with Chris in principle, we have gotten this request too many times to ignore. As a result, we have heard your feedback and will be adjusting the behavior in the future accordingly.

Thanks,
David

Photoshop CC 2015 now has a preference for how you want ESC to act in the text tool, and prompts you for how it should behave the first time you use the ESC key in the text tool.

Dear Adobe Gripes
#5756, #3027 & #8338

"Please make an keyboard shortcut to deselect the type tool, when typing in
the type tool. Right now you have to click on another tool in the palette
to get out of the type tool. Try doing this when the tool palette is
hidden, you must hit esc, the lose all your changes, then bring back the
palette, then select another tool."

"why can't you escape out of the text tool without negating everything you just did? You figured this out in your other apps."

"I need some sort of shortcut to select a new tool when a text box is active. Also, spacebar for Hand Selection tool doesn't work. Beat."

Text editing mode needs to be modal to some degree. It would be silly if typing letters or using the space bar didn't type letters or create spaces. Per the official response, use one of the keyboard shortcuts to exit text editing mode. If you need to pan around the image while in text edit mode, use the document scroll bars or the Navigator panel which are both available in text edit mode.

This is a follow up of:
http://feedback.photoshop.com/photosh...

The reason for that behaviour is inconsistent. There are many reasons to remove that behaviour from Photoshop, and it doesn't seem that they are going to be weighted properly. I took the freedom to collect them from the numerous topics on the web and here:

1. Illustrator uses ESC to commit changes.

2. InDesign uses ESC to commit changes.

3. Basically: all the other apps in the CS suite use ESC as commit for that kind of interaction.

4. Cmd+Enter isn't a viable alternative, because it's WAY SLOWER, forcing users to use both hands or move them from the mouse/pen.

5. Photoshop is inheriting that from the time when that thing was modal: at the beginning of time it was a modal box. Now it isn't anymore, there's no reason to be inconsistent by providing a WYSIWYG visual experience paired with the keyboard commands of something that doesn't exist anymore.
http://0.tqn.com/d/graphicssoft/1/0/m...

6. There's already a standard behaviour for that, and it's called Undo.

7. Every other app existing on Mac uses "esc" as "get me out of edit mode" for that specific kind of interaction (i.e. Pixelmator, Acorn, Omnigraffle), not "erase changes" (either that, or nothing at all like Keynote). Photoshop is the *only* exception.

This reply was created from a merged topic originally titled
Pressing the Esc key to exit 'text mode' negates all the changes in the text box, should COMMIT instead.

Great David! I was writing my complain about this issue but I've just seen that you are listening our voices. I'm Agree with all the folletto concern.

Thanks for listening.

I can't tell you how much time I've spent kerning, baseline shifting, and resizing text only to watch it all go down the drain because my muscle memory from Illustrator and InDesign kicks in and I hit ESC. Just make it a preference option.

From a recent Adobe partner session...

Kevin O'Connor: It would be great if we could make typography behavior as similar in PS to Illustrator and InDesign as possible. For example, In InDesign and in Illustrator, when you are typing, you can stop typing and get the selection arrow by hitting the Escape key.In Photoshop, when you are typing, and you want to end your typing, if you hit the Escape key, it DELETES what you typed.There is NO UNDO, and you have to do it over again.If you have spent 10 minutes carefully crafting a typographic element in Photoshop, kerning, adjusting the size and leading, and getting it perfect, and then you hit Escape, you then utter unprintable words.

THIS!!!
Compare how often you:

A: make a textframe and then thinks "ARGH THIS IS TEXT BAD, MUST DESTROY IT"
B: ok I write text and then switch to another tool.

If it's A, USE CTRL+Z like the rest of the world! :)

Seriously, there are no valid reasons to change the function of ESC if you look at it from a usability perspective, pleease change it back or make at least a switch in settings.

Holy Cow, can we just make it a preference and everyone's happy?

Here, this simple:

http://cl.ly/image/3N403t1h3l23

CC would have been a perfect opp to add this; I"m way disappointed not seeing it.

This is even more annoying since ESC exits the text box in InDesign without destroying changes. I spent a lot of time in ID, and everytime I create a text box in PS I end up typing the text two or three times.

Okay, so, this thread's existed for more than two years now. When exactly will this fix be available?

Aaron, this change has been implemented in CC 14.2 (and we have as expected other threads complaining about this change)

I just hit Esc and ALL of my changes erased. how can i bring them back??? Ahhhhh!