Question about keyboards, US and int'l

rhenderson · 06-10-2005, 12:43 PM

Okay, I'm not new to Linux, Unix, or computing in general, but new to OS X.

A few months ago I was at an Asterisk symposium, and there was a gentleman in front of me with a Powerbook G4 (I couldn't tell you which vintage) coding an app in python.

What caught my eye was that he appeared to be switching between virtual desktops, a la Linux... Much like the on-screen brightness, volume and eject icons that pop up, there was a 4th icon I had never seen before... it looked like 2 screens stacked on top of each other, much like the MS Virtual PC logo, but white and tilted to the left, instead of the right.

Fast forward to last week. I scored a 667 DVI Powerbook on craigslist for cheap, with a couple of minor problems... missing a key, no ram. Easy to solve. I also scored a trashed 550 for next to nothing that I used to scavenge parts from.

But the 667 has a UK keyboard, and wouldn't you know it! On the F5 key, where the num lock is on the US keyboard, THERE'S THAT STACKED SCREEN symbol!

What is it? Is it a desktop switching type key? If so, how do I enable it in OS X? If it's not, what is it, and why does it only show up on my UK keyboard, and not the US version?

Anyone who can shed some light on this apparent mystery for me?
I've looked for pictures all over the net, and all over Apple's US and UK sites, but damned if I can find a picture. When I'm able to, if need be, I'll snap a pic of the UK keyboard and post it.

Thanks!

rhenderson · 06-10-2005, 01:16 PM

Okay, quick update:

First off, the weird symbol shows up on my F6 (num lock) key, not my F5 key.
I found some pictures that should make it crystal clear what I'm talking about.

First pic:
(This is the newer model G4, and it's moved from F6 to F7, but the symbol is the same)
http://mbrix.dk/~mbp/tmp/powerbook/keyboard_flash.jpg

Second pic:
This is the same keyboard I have, except the numlock key has that symbol on it instead of num lock:
http://www.gwright.org.uk/images/pic...k-Keyboard.jpg

Hopefully someone can fill me in. I can say with 100% clarity that I saw the symbol (shown in the first pic) on screen, just like brightness, volume and eject.

Caius · 06-10-2005, 01:44 PM

That is actually on your F7 key on the new powerbook I think you will find

Its the Display switching key. Plug an external screen in and it switches between mirror and dual display mode.

What you saw was probably a bezel (such as the volume bezel) for virtual desktop software.

Edit:

Does it look like:

I found two virtual desktop applications on versiontracker.

Its Desktop Manager that uses that bezel to show the switch between desktops is happening.

The key on the powerbook (F7) isn't actually to do that, its to switch the displays as I said earlier, but I guess you could set the hotkey for the virtual desktop software to it if that made you feel better

Hope that helps.

rhenderson · 06-10-2005, 01:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iNemo


	That is actually on your F7 key on the new powerbook I think you will find Its the Display switching key. Plug an external screen in and it switches between mirror and dual display mode. What you saw was probably a bezel (such as the volume bezel) for virtual desktop software.

That makes some sense to me... the dual monitor thing, anyways.

As far as seeing it in action, are virtual desktops supported in OS X? If not, what software could I use? And can I map that dual display key to be the active key for swapping virtual desktops?

hayne · 06-10-2005, 01:58 PM

Maybe what you saw was VirtualDesktop: http://www.codetek.com/ctvd/
or DesktopManager: http://desktopmanager.berlios.de/index.php

I don't know about that F-key. Maybe that was a graphic that the person added to the F-key themselves.

[edit]
too slow !
[/edit]

rhenderson · 06-10-2005, 02:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by iNemo


	Edit: Does it look like: Hope that helps.

YES YES YES YES YES!

That's it! I wasn't close enough to read the screen, but that is most definitely the icon I saw on screen.

Thanks, both of you!

06-10-2005, 12:43 PM	#1
rhenderson Prospect Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 4	Question about keyboards, US and int'l Okay, I'm not new to Linux, Unix, or computing in general, but new to OS X. A few months ago I was at an Asterisk symposium, and there was a gentleman in front of me with a Powerbook G4 (I couldn't tell you which vintage) coding an app in python. What caught my eye was that he appeared to be switching between virtual desktops, a la Linux... Much like the on-screen brightness, volume and eject icons that pop up, there was a 4th icon I had never seen before... it looked like 2 screens stacked on top of each other, much like the MS Virtual PC logo, but white and tilted to the left, instead of the right. Fast forward to last week. I scored a 667 DVI Powerbook on craigslist for cheap, with a couple of minor problems... missing a key, no ram. Easy to solve. I also scored a trashed 550 for next to nothing that I used to scavenge parts from. But the 667 has a UK keyboard, and wouldn't you know it! On the F5 key, where the num lock is on the US keyboard, THERE'S THAT STACKED SCREEN symbol! What is it? Is it a desktop switching type key? If so, how do I enable it in OS X? If it's not, what is it, and why does it only show up on my UK keyboard, and not the US version? Anyone who can shed some light on this apparent mystery for me? I've looked for pictures all over the net, and all over Apple's US and UK sites, but damned if I can find a picture. When I'm able to, if need be, I'll snap a pic of the UK keyboard and post it. Thanks!

06-10-2005, 01:44 PM	#3
Caius All Star Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Leeds, UK Posts: 757	That is actually on your F7 key on the new powerbook I think you will find Its the Display switching key. Plug an external screen in and it switches between mirror and dual display mode. What you saw was probably a bezel (such as the volume bezel) for virtual desktop software. Edit: Does it look like: I found two virtual desktop applications on versiontracker. CodeTek Virtual Desktop Desktop Manager Its Desktop Manager that uses that bezel to show the switch between desktops is happening. The key on the powerbook (F7) isn't actually to do that, its to switch the displays as I said earlier, but I guess you could set the hotkey for the virtual desktop software to it if that made you feel better Hope that helps. __________________ http://caius.name/ Last edited by Caius; 06-10-2005 at 01:55 PM.

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06-10-2005, 01:16 PM	#2
rhenderson Prospect Join Date: Jun 2005 Posts: 4	Okay, quick update: First off, the weird symbol shows up on my F6 (num lock) key, not my F5 key. I found some pictures that should make it crystal clear what I'm talking about. First pic: (This is the newer model G4, and it's moved from F6 to F7, but the symbol is the same) http://mbrix.dk/~mbp/tmp/powerbook/keyboard_flash.jpg Second pic: This is the same keyboard I have, except the numlock key has that symbol on it instead of num lock: http://www.gwright.org.uk/images/pic...k-Keyboard.jpg Hopefully someone can fill me in. I can say with 100% clarity that I saw the symbol (shown in the first pic) on screen, just like brightness, volume and eject.

06-10-2005, 01:58 PM	#5
hayne Moderator Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Montreal Posts: 29,276	Maybe what you saw was VirtualDesktop: http://www.codetek.com/ctvd/ or DesktopManager: http://desktopmanager.berlios.de/index.php I don't know about that F-key. Maybe that was a graphic that the person added to the F-key themselves. [edit] too slow ! [/edit]