Windows 7 Is CTRL-Fn an Rx for everything?

[BudVitoff]

My adult daughter is running Windows 7 SP1. She swears that whenever the computer misbehaves or otherwise does something she doesn't like, she presses CTRL-Fn and the problem goes away. I know, I know, these are both modifier keys and require another standard key to accomplish something, but that doesn't impress her a bit.

Has she discovered a magic cure, or is she just some kind of witch?

 

[Neemobeer]

I'd say figure out what the "problem" is. You are correct that Ctrl and Fn don't map to anything without a regular key.

 

[Neemobeer]

I do have a program lying around somewhere I wrote to capture key strokes and the key code in limited fashion if you want to try and run that and see what it captures.

 

[BudVitoff]

If you're saying that your program runs in the background logging keystrokes and therefore would catch what she did just before her magic cure, yes I'd like to give that a whirl. Also doesn't Windows maintain a log (that would probably read like Greek to me) that would contribute to this effort? What's the procedure for getting your program to me?

 

[Neemobeer]

Well turns out I didn't back it up before I wiped my laptop. I made need to re-write it.

 

[BudVitoff]

As luck would have it, the PC did "something strange" and my daughter's solution worked -- sort of. I'll save you the boring details and just get to the point.

If "virtual keyboard" means the physical keyboard is unresponsive, and instead the user clicks on a keyboard displayed on a screen, then I found my self stuck in a virtual keyboard environment. FN/CTRL (not CTRL/FN) took me out of the virtual keyboard and back to a normal physical keyboard.

 

[Neemobeer]

The virtual keyboard should not block the hardware keyboard. May want to check out ease of accessibility to see anything is enabled such as sticky keys.

 

[BIGBEARJEDI]

I have not personally witnessed this behavior on either desktop PCs or laptops running Win7. I see a lot of computers with that configuration on a regular basis. That doesn't mean it doesn't exist (though the Witch explanation is looking pretty good! Does she live anywhere near Salem, MA?).

As far as keyboard loggers, you can buy those programs that are legit on the Internet, but if you want one to track function key codes down I think you'd have to look on the Dark Web for those, and it would be good to use a different computer than your daughter's to do that on, download it out and test it out before trying it out on her computer. Or you can wait to see if Neemo will rewrite his app for you....

<<<BIGBEARJEDI>>>

 

[BudVitoff]

Come to think of it, during the time that I (thought I) was experiencing the non-responsive physical keyboard, I did ignore a popup that said something about the CTRL key (I think) being stuck or held down or words to that effect, and my daughter also said something similar.

I just checked ease of accessibility, and nothing seems to be out of order -- sticky keys not enabled. Actually, this is the first time that I've given more than a glance at that set of features. Interesting stuff there.

I may have to back off on my claim about the virtual locking out the physical. I just checked remotely and that was not the case, but I am sure about FN/CTRL having the effect described.