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From: young@hamavnet
Newsgroups: comp.windows.x
Subject: Re: Ncd keyboard num-lock
Message-ID: <1991Feb15.082849.30@hamavnet>
Date: 15 Feb 91 16:28:49 GMT
References: <18034@memqa.uucp> <1991Feb12.193608.27897@convex.com> <18285@memqa.uucp> <52027@cornell.UUCP>
Organization: Avnet Computer - CTC Group; Culver City, CA
Lines: 40

In article <52027@cornell.UUCP>, parmelee@wayback.cs.cornell.edu (Larry Parmelee) writes:
> On the NCD keyboards, I don't believe you can use either of the lock
> keys as general purpose keys, due to the hardware design.
> 
> To see what I mean, use "xev", position the cursor in it's window, then
> try a few keypresses of the num lock key, and compare the events seen with 
> those seen when some other "ordinary" key is pressed.
> 
> Generally, when you type an "A" (or any other key on the keyboard),
> two events should be seen: a "keypress" event when you first push
> the key down, followed by a "keyrelease" event when you let go of the
> key.  The exact timing of these events relative to the actual physical
> actions occuring vary with different hardware designs, in particular,
> key "auto repeat" can be handled in several different ways, "Shift"
> keys (like "shift", "control", "meta", "hyper", etc) may have special
> behaviour, "Lock" keys...
> 
> Most of the NCD keys generate both a keypress and keyrelease event,
> but the num lock (and I believe the caps lock) are "special" (broken :-)
> and generate only one event for each for each actual physical press/
> release cycle.  Apparently by design, the hardware contains a toggle that
> keeps track of wheither the last event generated by the press/release
> of a lock key was either a "keypress" or "keyrelease" event, and generates
> the other type of event when the key is pressed/released again.
> 
> I suspect NCD was forced to use this design in order to have the nifty
> "caps Lock" and "Num Lock" LEDs on the keyboard.
> 
> Attempts to redefine the NCD lock keys are probably doomed to fail,
> unless the new key is supposed to have a similiar locking type of
> function.
> 
> -Larry Parmelee
> parmelee@cs.cornell.edu

I have sucessfully remaped the keyboard. Especially the Num Lck key.
-- 
Brian A. Young       | young@hamavnet.com               | Who gives a rip!
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