Open Radar

 
This is a suggestion related to text editing and text selection, that applies systemwide to iOS and iPadOS.

When you are using a iOS or iPadOS device with a keyboard, you can press Command+A to select all text in the current text area or field.

However, it is not possible to perform this action (select all text) without a keyboard.

So, I suggest you to add a quadruple tap gesture to select all text when using the touchscreen as an input method.

I suggest to use the quadruple tap gesture because the triple tap gesture is already used for different but related action: select a paragraph.

The current method for “select all text” can be difficult to perform for some users, especially for people with disabilities or people with low dexterity.

According to the iPhone User guide, to select a block of text you have to double/tap and hold the first word in the block, then drag to the last word. Which can be more complicated when the text area needs scrolling to display the first and the last words.

Thank you.