Create Your First Menu!

Kando comes with an example menu which you can use to get started. However, you should soon adapt the menu to your needs and create your own menus.

The Menu Editor

Kando comes with a graphical menu editor which allows you to create and edit your own menus. There are four ways to open the menu editor:

1. Click the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen when a menu is shown.
2. Press Ctrl / Command + , when a menu is shown.
3. Right-click the Kando tray icon and select “Show Settings”.
4. Run kando --settings from the command line.

In the editor, you can create new menus, and edit existing menus. Drag new items from the toolbar to the menu preview, reorder them, and change their properties on the right side of the screen.

^{Once you configured some menus, the editor may look like this.}

Organizing Menus

In Kando, you can create any number of menus. All your menus are shown in the menu list on the left side of the editor. Here you can add new menus, reorder your menus, group them in collections by using tags, and more.

With a menu selected, you can edit its properties in the menu properties panel on the right side of the editor. Here you can change the menu’s name, icon, and more.

Adding Menu Items

To each menu, you can add any number of menu items. A menu item is a single entry in the menu which can either be a submenu or a so called “button item”. New menu items can be added by dragging them from the toolbar at the bottom of the menu preview to the desired position in the menu.

The first menu item type in the toolbar is the submenu item. All other item types are button items with some predefined example workflows.

Creating Workflows

Each menu item offers several workflows which are executed when certain events happen, e.g. when the item is selected. You can edit these workflows by clicking on the corresponding tabs in the item properties panel on the right side of the editor.

Submenu Items

For instance, submenu items have a “Open Workflow” (which is executed when you select the submenu), a “Hover Workflow” (which is executed when you hover over the submenu before selecting it), and a “Center-Click Workflow” (which is executed when you click the center of the submenu when it is open).

Button Items

Button items have only two workflows: a “Select Workflow” and a “Hover Workflow”. You can add any number of actions to these workflows, and compose complex sequences of actions which are executed when you select or hover over the item.

You can reorder the actions in a workflow by dragging and dropping them in the workflow editor.

You can compose your workflows from a variety of action types. Below you can find a list of the most commonly used actions. For a list of all available action types, checkout Available Actions in the navigation on the left.

Execute CommandCan be used to open applications or run shell commands.

Open FileCan be used to open files, websites, and more.

Simulate HotkeySimulates a simple keyboard shortcut.

Execute MacroSimulates a complex sequence of keyboard shortcuts.

Open URIUse this to open files, websites, and more.

Focus WindowSwitches focus to a specific window.

Backup your Menus and Settings!

It’s a good idea to backup your menus and settings regularly, especially if you have spent a lot of time customizing them. All of Kando’s settings, including your menus, are stored in two JSON files. You can either backup these files manually, or use the corresponding buttons in the general settings dialog.

Tips for Efficient Menu Layouts

Just like with any other user interface, the layout of your menus is crucial for a good user experience. Here are some tips to help you create efficient and user-friendly menus!

Avoid too many items in a single menu!

Instead, create submenus. Eight items per menu is a good rule of thumb, and you should never have more than twelve items in a single menu. Else, the menu will become too cluttered and hard to navigate.

Deeply nested menus are not a problem!

Kando is designed to handle deeply nested menus well. Prefer depth over width! Selecting items nested in submenus is easy and fast. You can use the marking mode to quickly select items which are in subsubsubmenus.

Use the fixed-angle locks to create a clean layout!

Even if you have an odd number of items, you can use fixed angles to lock items to the top, bottom, left, or right side of the menu. This way, you can control the shape of the gesture you have to draw to select an item. Try to create easy-to-remember gestures!