Keyboard shortcut for numerals

Also you can change keys about. Is there a key you can go without - we can make that 6.

On this computer no custom keyboard remapping set

The value Scancode Map at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Keyboard Layout allows keys to behave as if another key (or no key) have been pressed. It is normally not present.

This structure maps one key to another (or to no key).

To read what is set: Each pair of characters is a byte. Each 4 pairs of characters is a dword (32 bit). The first dword is a header and is all zeros. The second dword is flags and is generally all zeros. The third dword is the number of remaped keys plus one. Each remapped key is one dword. The first word (two pairs of characters) of these dwords is what the key will do and the second word is what key to remap (the first word will be zeros to disable the key) . Finally there is a dword of zeros (why the number of remapped keys recorded is the number plus one).

Intel processors store numbers in byte order reversed. In the third dword which is the number of remapped keys a number of two would be stored as 02,00,00,00. Dwords are read in pairs of characters from right to left. However the dwords themselves, rather than the bytes in a dword, are in conventional order - first to last.

"Scancode Map"=hex:00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,02,00,00,00,43,00,1d,00,00,00,00,00

To decode the above entry, which swaps the F9 key with the Left Control key, break it up into dwords.

00,00,00,00, (Header)
00,00,00,00, (Flags)
02,00,00,00, (Number of records of remapped keys and the end marker)
43,00,1d,00, (Record 1 - second key - Left Control (001d) becomes first key - F9 (0043) and vice versa)
00,00,00,00  (End Marker)

Another example is to disable both Windows keys.

"Scancode Map"=hex:00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,03,00,00,00,00,00,5B,E0,00,00,5C,E0,00,00,00,00

To decode the above entry.

00,00,00,00, (Header)
00,00,00,00, (Flags)
03,00,00,00, (Number of records of remapped keys and the end marker)
00,00,5B,E0, (Record 1 - second key - Left Winkey (e05b) becomes first key which is nothing (0000))
00,00,5C,E0, (Record 2 - second key - Right Winkey (e05c) becomes first key which is nothing (0000))
00,00,00,00, (End Marker)

As the early keyboards didn't have all the keys on a modern keyboard there are two ways of expressing scan codes, normal and extended. Normal is one byte which we pad out with leading zeros to a word (2 bytes). Extended are two bytes and for this purpose are the scan codes starting with E0. Others which aren't relevent in this context start with 00. E0 or 00 tell a program to reread from the keyboard when the code will be available. Single keys all start with E0. They are basically the cursor keys, right hand side modifier keys Control and Alt, and F11/F12. These keys were not on the original keyboard. One moved the cursor with the number pad. References to grey keys are to the number pad as once number pad keys were grey and other keys beige.

List Scan Key Codes

You have two 6 keys. Use the other one.

On Screen Keyboard (Start - All Programs - Accessories - Accessibility - On Screen Keyboard, type osk in Start - Run, or Winkey + U) allows typing with only a mouse.

Holding down alt and pressing the character code on the numeric keypad will enter that character. The keyboard language in use must support entering that character. If your keyboard supports it the code is shown on the right hand side of the status bar in Character Map else this section of the status bar is empty. The status bar us also empty for characters with well known keys, like the letters A to Z.

However there is two ways of entering codes. The point to remember here that the characters are the same for the first 127 codes. The difference is if the first number typed is a zero of not. If it is then the code will insert the character from the current character set else it will insert a character from the OEM character set. Codes over 255 enter the unicode character and are in decimal. Characters entered are converted to OEM for Dos applications and either ANSI or Unicode depending on the Windows' application. See Converting Between Decimal and Hexadecimal.

E.G., Alt + 0 then 6 then 5 then release Alt enters the letter A

Alt + 054 is 6