Re: [gentoo-user] OT: keys that don't create keycodes

[Patrick Börjesson]

On 05/07/19 17:31, Petr Kocmid wrote:
> On Tuesday 19 of July 2005 08:56, Iain Buchanan wrote:
> > It seems that every multimedia keyboard out there (especially the usb
> > ones) have some or all "extra" keys that just aren't visible outside of
> > Winblows.
> >
> > I have a couple of them!  I've tried all the usual ways of detecting
> > them - xev and others that do a similar thing but they just don't
> > register as keypresses in any standard way.
> >
> > I would like comments on why, and what methods, if any, may be available
> > to detect such keys.  Surely with the plethora of cheap multimedia
> > keyboards out there, there is some way.
>
> In X, once you analyze scan codes generated by those keys with xev, you can
> assign keycodes locally wih xmodmap. In keyboard maps, you can reuse some
> exotic Fn key names available from historical mainframe terminals, unused on
> PC platform, such as F26 and Shift+F26 and so, I can't now remember the exact
> number limit for function key names, depends on how x libraries built. Works
> great for KDE, which recognizes these names well for shortcuts.

I think the originator is rather pointing out the problem that the newer
keyboards (e.g. those with the F-Lock key) doesn't even generate a
scancode. So xev for example won't even register a keypress when one of
those extra multimedia keys is pressed by the user... 

I had the same problem when I bought a new keyboard, but I just couldn't
find a solution for it so I returned it and went back to one of my old
IBM-clicky-click keyboards ;)

-- 
Regards,
  Patrick Börjesson

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