# Tech question (cursor behavior)

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tech-question-cursor-behavior/1006599>\
**Category:** Site Feedback\
**Created:** [September 2, 2024, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tech-question-cursor-behavior/1006599 "2024-09-02T02:38:38Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\
**Post date:** [September 2, 2024, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tech-question-cursor-behavior/1006599/1 "2024-09-02T02:38:38Z")

</div>

I browse this board on iOS. I’ve noticed that when I attempt to tap the screen to move my cursor while composing a post, the default behavior is to highlight the closest word instead. Because of this, it takes significantly more effort than I’m used to to just place the cursor in the middle of existing text. I have not noticed this behavior anywhere else on the web or in apps.

Is this a Discourse thing? If so, can I suggest that setting be tweaked so I’m not having to repeatedly tap exactly to insert a word in the middle of a sentence? I fully believe that it wouldn’t make actual highlighting any harder.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\
**Post date:** [September 2, 2024, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tech-question-cursor-behavior/1006599/2 "2024-09-02T06:23:41Z")

</div>

All I have to say is that it happens to me too. My work-around is to tap and **hold** in order to place the cursor at a specific spot rather than highlighting a word.

Yeah, it’s annoying but that seems to help me at least.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![DorkVader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@DorkVader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DorkVader)\
**Post date:** [September 3, 2024, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tech-question-cursor-behavior/1006599/3 "2024-09-03T12:42:19Z")

</div>

I deal with that too, but for me it’s not limited to these boards. It’s pretty universal across websites on my iphone, so I wonder if the tech-folks in charge of that stuff here at discourse could do anything about it.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\
**Post date:** [September 3, 2024, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tech-question-cursor-behavior/1006599/4 "2024-09-03T15:35:13Z")

</div>

Hmm, I tap and hold my space bar, which then allows me to move the cursor to wherever I choose.