What’s the quickest way to enter a note like this?
At the moment, I enter the semibreve, then the dotted minim, then come out of input, select the semibreve and click ‘Tie’.
I suppose I could enter a breve, and then backtrack by one beat, though that does require some forethought.
Any other tips?
8 notename T 7 . notename
in other words, do the tie during note entry, rather than after.
Or 8 . notename Shift-Alt-RightArrow Shift-Alt-RightArrow (assuming your grid value is eighths/quavers)
Slightly o/t edit: When I’m at home I have a Logitech G13 under my left hand, on which I’ve set up single-key shortcuts for frequently-used functions etc. Shorten and lengthen note durations are some of the shortcuts I’ve mapped to single keys. I know that other people use Metagrid on iPads, but I don’t see any time-saving in programming shortcuts on a device that one has to LOOK at. For me, tactile response - feeling the keyboard layout under one’s hand - is the only way to save time here.
I’m struggling with the fact that ties are added ‘backwards’ to the previous note, rather than getting added to the current one.
OOOOOOOOOOOOH !!! 
This shouldn’t happen if you’re actually in note input mode, with the caret present (double-click or hit Enter before you start).
Yes, it does! 8 T just gives me a semibreve with no tie. If I follow that with 7 T , I get a minim with a tie going back to the semibreve.
If I’m NOT in Note Entry mode, I can select a note and press T to add a tie forward from that note.
You didn’t read my instruction properly.
8 pitch T 7 . pitch (my instruction)
is not the same as
8 T pitch 7 T pitch (what you say you’re doing)
Ah. T 7 makes slightly more sense than 7 T , though really it’s still part of selecting the next note’s attributes, rather than the previous one’s.
But this is all useful stuff. Thanks.
I still think you’re confused.
Enter
Note1duration Note1pitch Note1tie Note2duration Note2pitch
Esc
You can also use alt-shift-arrow tool to lengthen/shorten note values — it can be VERY efficient. Especially with complicated values (this one is very simple), it depends on the grid value so you can notate very quickly almost any value. Here, with a grid of a crotchet, you could enter 9 and then strike once alt-shift-left arrow. Just to let you know there are different ways… but Leo’s method works flawlessly, of course!
Marc, the OP posted your suggestion in the original post…
No, I understand it: it’s just different to what I’m used to.
Pressing T is part of the options for Note 2, like a dot, or an accidental. If I don’t add Note 2, I don’t get a tie!
Ah ok. This topic has kind of arisen in the past couple of days, anyway: Dorico doesn’t draw nonsensical items, such as slurs or ties attached to single notes. If you want an l.v. tie there’s a completely separate option for that (in the properties panel). Not that you do, in this instance.