As we all know, just about every keyboard nowadays has a dreading annoying Windows Key. Is there a way to make this stupid key serve a purpose in gnome or KDE?

In my KDE it serves as the same thing as in winbloze, it opens up the K menu. Came like that by default, I didn't map it.

If you want it to do something else, maybe you should check out this article on key mapping:
http://www.linuxdude.co.uk/docs/Special-Keys/

Cool

Hey MasterC Thank u for that link.. I have been searching for that for one week ..

It does nothing for me in KDE

Does anybody know how to map the Windows key in gnome such that it opens up Global menu ( as it opens Kmenu in KDE)? I could map it for many other functions from the shortcut manger in sawfish .......

MC is out of the "prison" tonight, so I'm covering for him

Window desktop matters not. They're under X, aren't they? Make 2 files in your user folder.

vi .xinitrc
xmodmap .Xmodmap

.Xmodmap
keycode 115 = F13
keycode 116 = F14
keycode 117 = F15

And run it, then reflect changes in keyboard setup.

speaking of crazy keys, what is the Fn key?

Absolutely, you can also use xmodmap to change your mouse to left handed in any wm. I am left handed so this was a must for me.
man xmodmap
provides much more info on this.

Thanks for covering for me

Cool

The Fn key is used on laptops, as a shortcut for functions like changing volume, screen, brightness etc.

Where did you get the value of F15, etc? I need to get the values for keycodes 233, 234, and 227. Any ideas where I can find that?

the only think it does by default in my distro (opensuse) is controll amarok
win+xcvb are previous, stop, play/pause and next win+ "+" and win+ "-" are volume up and down

Not 100% into the very idea of this thread, but Windows key is not a constant. I remember some year(s) ago there were some companies that sold keyboards with a penguin printed on the "Super" button instead of the Windows logo. I haven't seen too much ads about those keyboards lately, but at least one firm that sold them was in Germany. I'm fairly sure (or actually hope..) that such things are available today too. Though not a fanatic, I could afford to pay a little extra for a keyboard with a penguin instead of Windows logo. Of course you can grind the Windows logo off the button and print/paint/draw your own instead, but factory-made penguin would be something

The "win key" is actually three keys: left win, right win, and contextual menu (on the right).

With Mandriva (I use Gnome), Those keys are configured as they are on windows, except the right win key is configured as the X Compose key, that is: you type "right win key" then "e" then "`" and you get "è", or you type "right win key" then "n" then "~" and you get "ñ".

Those settings are set in Gnome key mappings (see the Gnome Control Center), except the Compose thing, which is a X feature, thus in xorg.conf. So those keys are definitely usefull and I'm glad I have them. When not in Gnome, I use those for keyboard shortcuts (in "ion" for example).

Besides, this is just the "standard" config, you can actually configure them to execute anything you want: launch firefox, or change the volume up/down... it's up to you.

Yves.

As far a I know these keyboards had exactly the same wiring inside as a standard keyboard, just with a different printing on two of the keys. Everything in this thread would still apply to the win/penguin key on these keyboards.

Sure, I didn't claim anything against that.

My point was that the "dreading annoying Windows Key" isn't something you must have. The button is just like all the others, but it's "Windows Key" because of the logo on it. A lot of people think it's annoying that PC keyboards hold a logo for some operating system X that they don't even use, so I just thought to mention they can (or could in the past, anyway) buy a keyboard without that specific logo.

The wiring depends on the keyboard itself. Better boards have buttons "wired" (well, conducted anyway) separately, cheaper boards have sets of buttons "wired" together, so you can't press more than few buttons at a time without hearing annoying beeps. Good old keyboards allowed you to press a whole bunch of buttons and they were all recognized - these were the days when DOS games were something fun Nowadays every "standard" (=cheap) keyboard starts crying after three or four simultaneous buttons presses.