Mouse Menu Key Sequences: Corrections and Additions

• Microsoft Mouse Driver for MS-DOS, versions 6.x, 7.x, 8.x, and 9.0

SUMMARY

Page 71 of the "Microsoft Mouse Programmer's Reference" lists "Key Sequences That Can't Be Simulated" using the menu programming TYPE statement. These keys cannot be simulated in a mouse menu because the key or key sequence is suppressed in the ROM BIOS. The list that is presented in the guide is incomplete, and in certain instances it is in need of revision.

MORE INFORMATION

Each suppressed key mentioned is the lowercase character on the key. It is understood, but not explicitly stated, that the uppercase character on these keys will also be suppressed. A number of keys and key combinations that are suppressed and cannot be emulated are not mentioned in the guide. Some of the additions and corrections that can be made to the published list are given below.

KEY COMBINATIONS FOR 83-KEY KEYBOARD

For the IBM PC and compatibles with a standard 83-key keyboard, the following keys and key combinations are suppressed.

NOTE: Where applicable the uppercase character is given in parentheses.

In Combination With the ALT Key

RIGHT TAB ` (~) \ (|) ALT HOME PG UP NUMPAD 5 NUMPAD + END PG DN INS DEL

In Combination with the CTRL Key

CTRL ` (~) NUMPAD 5 NUMPAD +

KEY COMBINATIONS FOR 84-KEY KEYBOARD

For the IBM AT and compatibles with a 84-key keyboard, the following keys and key combinations are suppressed:

In Combination with the ALT Key

` (~) \ (|) TAB (right and left) ALT

With ALT and on the Numeric Keypad

7 (HOME) 1 (END) 5 0 (INS) 9 (PG UP) 3 (PG DN) - (SYS RQ) +

In combination with the CTRL Key

ENTER CTRL

With CTRL and on the Numeric Keypad

5 - (SYS RQ) +

For the IBM PS/2 and compatibles with a 101- and 102-key keyboard, the following keys and key combinations are suppressed:

In combination with the ALT key and on the Numeric Keypad

7 (HOME) 1 (END) 5 0 (INS) 9 (PG UP) 3 (PG DN) - (SYS RQ) +

In combination with the CTRL Key

` (~) CTRL ALT SCROLL LOCK

With CTRL and on the Numeric Keypad

EXCEPTIONS AND CORRECTIONS

The exceptions and corrections to the list of suppressed key and key combinations given on pages 71-72 of the "Microsoft Mouse Programmer's Reference" (Copyright 1989) are noted below.

The followings key combinations can be represented using extended-keyboard-scan codes with the IBM PS/2 and compatibles with a 101- and 102-key keyboard:

   ALT+BACKSPACE
   ALT+ESC
   CTRL+INS
   CTRL+TAB

   [    ]
   ;
   '
   -
   ,
   .
   /
   *

For more information about this topic, see "The Programmer's PC Sourcebook," pages 400-406; the "IBM PC/AT Technical Reference," pages 4-21 and 5-14 to 5-23; and the "IBM PS/2 Hardware Technical Reference," pages 41-49.