Can someone please confirm, or deny I guess, that there are "normal" laptop type keyboard functions, like copy and paste, alt+tab, etc.
Thank you
I don't think all the usual shortcuts are mapped. Ctrl+ works in e.g. browser. Atl tab does not. Search this forum, there is a running list of shortcuts.
edit: here it is
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1071739&highlight=shortcut
Thank you very much
Related
can someone please tell me were to get the htc software keyboards from!!
i put 6.5 on my phone but there are no software keyboards but the windows 1..i need them please please help!
the default HTC keyboard is called "EzInput". Searching for that will yield you better results.
Also check out the new "FingerKeyboard" I find it works alot better then the default one. It is one I use currently.
Another keyboard I found worked very well was Spb Keyboard. It allows finger gestures for backspace and space. Helps alot.
Also PocketCM Keyboard is REALLY sweet if you can get it set up properly. This keyboard allows for "sloppy" typing. Using this keyboard, you don't have to press the keys exactly. It references your taps against a dictionary and is pretty accurate.
I like the look and feel of FingerKeyboard but find the way PocketCM Keyboard works simply amazing. Both keyboards allow skinning. A mix of the two would be amazing.
Hello! Colemak typist here.
Can you change the layout of the keyboard? I don't mind about the physical layout, just the software mapping. I have no idea how he keyboard is handled so could someone kindly work out if this is possible? And if Colemak is available?
Thanks!
Nobody with a keyboard who can quickly check this out for me?
If you don't get a reply shout me tonight and ill give it a go.
hmmmm. cant see anything that allows keyboard remapping in the settings.... which is a shame as my @ and " are not as per the layout ... which is odd .....
Could always try button remapper beta off the market. I don't know if it will work on the dock keyboard but I could remap some of the keys using a usb keyboard on my viewsonic g tab. Something to try at least.
kiz said:
Hello! Colemak typist here.
Can you change the layout of the keyboard? I don't mind about the physical layout, just the software mapping. I have no idea how he keyboard is handled so could someone kindly work out if this is possible? And if Colemak is available?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
One way to do it is go to this website to get a general idea about remapping. Then download the KeyTest.apk from the author.
When you start the app you can see which scancodes are created. Now go to /system/usr/keylayout (most likely requires root) and change the keyboard layout that is associated with your keyboard. If you don't know, download aLogCat from the market. When you connect a keyboard it will show up in the log. For special characters and shortcuts modify the appropriate keychar table in /system/usr/keychars.
Hope that helps. It worked on my XOOM for a generic BT keyboard that had lots of Apple keys.
Wonderful. Thankyou all for your helpful posts! Very glad to know there is a way to do this, even if it is not an official option.
Thanks again.
wilbur-force said:
hmmmm. cant see anything that allows keyboard remapping in the settings.... which is a shame as my @ and " are not as per the layout ... which is odd .....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You need to change the software keyboard to the ASUS one in order to get correct layout on dock keyboard.
As a follow up post - I got a transformer with dock. Downgraded to 8.2.3.9, rooted and found the keyboard layout in /usr/xt9/keylayout/qwerty-en_GB.kl. I edited by hand (thankfully it's a lovely human readable text file) and now am enjoying colemak! Woot!
I might write a little how-to so that anyone can do it quickly and easily.
So I was wondering what is the best shell access app out there, connect bot seems to be pretty nice but it seems to work a bit weird with the keyboard dock (tab is actualy shift, control keys don't work etc.) is there a better alternative?
And by better I mean something that works well with the keyboard dock. Having to work with a lot of unix servers it's really annoying to get used to new key bindings.
any suggestions would be greatly appreciated
I don't know about a better one, but Hacker's Keyboard (install via market) is designed with connectbot in mind.
isn't that just another software (touchscreen) keyboard?
i need something to work with the keyboard dock
android terminal, or connectbot
and hacker keyboard
try switching out of the default asus keyboard. connectbot was weird for me too, but then i switched my softkeyboard to thumbkeyboard and weirdly enough, the hardware keyboard works normally now.
I don't need a signature.
finalhit said:
try switching out of the default asus keyboard. connectbot was weird for me too, but then i switched my softkeyboard to thumbkeyboard and weirdly enough, the hardware keyboard works normally now.
I don't need a signature.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's quite weird but that seems to work lol...
BTW many thanks, this will make my life (or rather work) much easier
I wasn't able to get it working with ThumbKeyboard (my favorite for non-dock keyboard use), but after looking into various tablet optimized variants, I found out someone modified ConnectBot for the Transformer already:
https://github.com/lorantkurthy/connectbot
https://github.com/downloads/lorantkurthy/connectbot/ConnectBot.apk
Everything works for me with this except alt and escape, but search sends escape, so hurrah. (You have to go into options and turn on Transformer keyboard.) It's even tablet-optimized.
I'm using Irsii. It's a kind of connectbot fork.
Tab works directly on keyboard, I just find that the onscreen control button could be bigger...
I use Better Terminal Emulator Pro https://market.android.com/details?id=com.magicandroidapps.bettertermpro&feature=search_result
It's the best I've found so far and includes the bash shell with working tab complete, esc chars etc. Also includes a fully working ssh client.
Hi,
do you know some app terminal which can select text with characters shift+arrow?
THX
Edit Aug, 16: I have found out that the XT9 subsystem is used for specifically our docking stations. If you go to Settings -> Languages & Input -> ASUS Keyboard -> About, you'll see the big stupid XT9 icons. Therefore, our keyboards have to be using the XT9 database files and the only way to procure different languages seems to be via ASUS (that's what Nuance's site said anyway). The manipulation of the keyboard dock layout mentioned below seems to be our only way until 1) we procure these additional language files from a different source (might require tweaking), 2) someone with an XT9 license makes the files for us, 3) we find an editor that we can use to create / edit the XT9 files, or 4) we find out how to rework the keyboard framework to use different altogether.
Because of the way our system uses the XT9 subsystem, the JB keyboard update itself won't help us. Officially, it all depends on what ASUS gives us to enable additional langs/layouts for our keyboard docks.
---- Original
All right. Here is what I have collected thus far regarding the way that Androids handle keyboard layouts. I put it here in development as I'm sure only the people in this area would really have an interest/use for it. As I still have yet to satiate my own curiosity and preference for a different keyboard layout, I do hope that somehow someone can figure out how to get us proper alternative keyboard layouts.
----
Our keyboard layouts are spread into 2 separate data form categories: the buttons and the characters. The buttons are the real buttons (physical keyboard or virtual) that have a specific numerical identifier. The characters are the glyphs and their various states that can occur when using character modifier buttons (shift, control, alt, etc) when the associated key number button is pressed.
All of these values are found in "/system/usr" with those found in the "keychars" directory being for the glyphs and the "keylayout" for the arrangement of button number with associate character represented. Both types of files (".kcm" for characters and ".kl" for layours) are really just text documents and seeing the association between the two is easy during comparison:
Example: 'A'
in the "Generic.kcm", it is defined as
Code:
key A {
label: 'A'
base: 'a'
shift, capslock: 'A'
ctrl, alt, meta: none
}
while in the "Generic.kl", it is defined as
Code:
key 30 A
Therefore, Key 30 is Mapped to Key 'A' that can have the states 'a' or 'A'.
Unfortunately, these two files that constitute a layout are combined in the XT9 subsystem and not totally used "as is". There is a configuration text file for the XT9 database that can be found at "/system/usr/xt9/config/databases.conf" and in there you can see mappings of languages to database files (also note that all are derived from QWERTY format). You'll notice that the databases are of type ".kdb", ".ldb", or ".dat". A quick search on the 'Net will tell you that the ".kdb" is a keepass file and ".ldb" is a Microsoft Access file. These are wrong! I suspect they are both the same file type but I do not know of what type they are so I cannot view nor edit them. I have tried the "suggested" programs and I tried SQLite since that format is used for our "registry". I'm thinking that they might be T9 database files but I haven't found an editor to even verify that hypothesis.
The organization used to create our layouts is highly flexible and therefore really complex. There's some type of combination of format + language that is calculated in order to determine the correct layout to use. No wonder ASUS (and practically everybody else) has limited keyboard layouts. Additionally, this scheme also controls the majority of our hardware keyboard buttons as well.
For the physical keyboard dock, we have direct ways of manipulating the hotkeys or brute-forcing the layout within our grasp. The hotkeys are somehow contained in our "/system/app/keyboard.apk" and for the basic layout, all we really need to do is modify the "asusdec.kl" to shoehorn our preferences into the system.
An example to test if you want a DVORAK keyboard layout is to copy & paste this into the asusdec.kl and restart (back up the file first!) and it should now be in DVORAK format (though it will not be selectable from the menu). Same thing for the "Generic.kl" - edit the chars associated with the key numbers and the buttons will change values. I do not recommend this method as it is hacky/evil/dirty/bad and all sorts of other negative adjectives. However, until a better way is found, it may be our only real way of modding the keyboard the way we want.
I humbly ask if there are any of our beloved geniuses with further knowledge on how this system to please post additional information here in hopes that maybe we may create better keyboard options for our devices.
Thanks for reading
PS: Found out that Jelly Bean will have additional keyboard layouts. From this thread, "Android 4.1 includes 27 international keymaps for keyboards, including Dvorak." That's a good thing.
Wow, thanks. The information you've provided, is really helpful, and well layed out.
Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2
LMMT said:
Wow, thanks. The information you've provided, is really helpful, and well layed out.
Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm glad that you think so though I don't know how helpful this post will actually be. This is a rare topic to find information on and even rarer to find information that is directly useful. However, I hope that the information I provided would be at least enough to give us a direction when/if development for keyboard layouts start.
Maybe I'll go over to the Prime forums later to read up further on any advancements they have made.
alienedd said:
Edit Aug, 16: I have found out that the XT9 subsystem is used for specifically our docking stations. If you go to Settings -> Languages & Input -> ASUS Keyboard -> About, you'll see the big stupid XT9 icons. Therefore, our keyboards have to be using the XT9 database files and the only way to procure different languages seems to be via ASUS (that's what Nuance's site said anyway). The manipulation of the keyboard dock layout mentioned below seems to be our only way until 1) we procure these additional language files from a different source (might require tweaking), 2) someone with an XT9 license makes the files for us, 3) we find an editor that we can use to create / edit the XT9 files, or 4) we find out how to rework the keyboard framework to use different altogether.
Because of the way our system uses the XT9 subsystem, the JB keyboard update itself won't help us. Officially, it all depends on what ASUS gives us to enable additional langs/layouts for our keyboard docks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've already contacted ASUS regarding is_IS layout and they will not support it, so I would not hope for much change there. It would be great if ASUS would release some kind of remapping tool so we could map the keys correctly ourselves.
I'll be keeping a close eye on this thread, and will post if I find something interesting.
Okay, after googling a bit I found an app called External Keyboard Helper Pro that allows me to enable my layout perfectly on the dock.
I'd recomend people seeing if it has their layout of choice.
Edit: There is a thread here on xda: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1541916
Doing these changes after JB
alienedd said:
...
Example: 'A'
in the "Generic.kcm", it is defined as
Code:
key A {
label: 'A'
base: 'a'
shift, capslock: 'A'
ctrl, alt, meta: none
}
while in the "Generic.kl", it is defined as
Code:
key 30 A
Therefore, Key 30 is Mapped to Key 'A' that can have the states 'a' or 'A'.
...
PS: Found out that Jelly Bean will have additional keyboard layouts. From this thread, "Android 4.1 includes 27 international keymaps for keyboards, including Dvorak." That's a good thing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had modified the .kcm and .kl files in ICS and had successfully mapped Bluetooth->Mute to be F1-F12 while allowing Caps lock (when on ) to restore those buttons to their original function. I had also modified the Lock and Wireless buttons to function as Delete and ESC respectively. I had made a few other changes as well. After updating to Jelly Bean I made a backup of the new files that had overwritten my edits and then recopied my edits over the new files and rebooted. The edits no longer worked at all and most of the keys I had made changes to now did nothing. I then tried to restore the backups of the files I had changed and then rebooted but nothing changed even though they were seemingly back in their original configuration. Does anyone have any clue as to what might have happened?
Also, anyone else have any success in JB in changing their layouts?
daerwynn said:
I had modified the .kcm and .kl files in ICS and had successfully mapped Bluetooth->Mute to be F1-F12 while allowing Caps lock (when on ) to restore those buttons to their original function. I had also modified the Lock and Wireless buttons to function as Delete and ESC respectively. I had made a few other changes as well. After updating to Jelly Bean I made a backup of the new files that had overwritten my edits and then recopied my edits over the new files and rebooted. The edits no longer worked at all and most of the keys I had made changes to now did nothing. I then tried to restore the backups of the files I had changed and then rebooted but nothing changed even though they were seemingly back in their original configuration. Does anyone have any clue as to what might have happened?
Also, anyone else have any success in JB in changing their layouts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No i'm in the same position you are in i managed to edit my kcm file exactly how i wanted it for ICS but now i have "upgraded" to JB and the changes have been lost it appears JB does not use the files in the XT9 folder at all and i cannot find out how to edit it with JB!!! Very frustrating.
All i want is the backslash key to be a backslash in UK "mode". It is producing a # unless i change modes which is very annoying each time i want it. Wondering if there is any other solution than to downgrade back to ICS?
Please help us someone!
Thanks
I would like to be able to save a custom keyboard command, for example, CTRL + /, so that, for example, if I'm using Figma on my touch device (within the browser), I can hit this button and that keyboard shortcut will be "executed". In this instance, for Figma, it would toggle all of the UI and leave just the canvas.
Does such an app/widget exist?
denno020 said:
I would like to be able to save a custom keyboard command, for example, CTRL + /, so that, for example, if I'm using Figma on my touch device (within the browser), I can hit this button and that keyboard shortcut will be "executed". In this instance, for Figma, it would toggle all of the UI and leave just the canvas.
Does such an app/widget exist?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Figma app should support it, right?
Im not sure about anything else that can trigger UI elements.
Unfortunately I don't have access to the Figma app (it's in closed beta), I'm just trying to use it in the browser
denno020 said:
Unfortunately I don't have access to the Figma app (it's in closed beta), I'm just trying to use it in the browser
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tried here?
Keyboard shortcuts for Figma
A visual cheat-sheet for the 119 keyboard shortcuts found in Figma
usethekeyboard.com
It has that.
If you have a physical keyboard it mught work.
Thanks Kenora, I'm trying to avoid having to connect physical keyboard .
I'm looking to use Figma in the browser on my Galaxy Tab. I can trigger the Toggle UI shortcut by pressing and holding on the background, but am hoping for a quicker way to trigger that function
denno020 said:
Thanks Kenora, I'm trying to avoid having to connect physical keyboard .
I'm looking to use Figma in the browser on my Galaxy Tab. I can trigger the Toggle UI shortcut by pressing and holding on the background, but am hoping for a quicker way to trigger that function
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm y don't you get a virtual keyboard that has ctrl alt and stuff like that.
Sure there's one on the internet.