QUESTION

[davidn]

Plusnet decided to set fire to their servers or throw them about the room or something this morning, but it seems to be working again now. I'm still mystified as to why I have a static IP address even though I haven't paid for one.

A question came into my head the other day when we were talking about the Caps Lock key in the Security lecture. (Well, it beats talking about hypercube-shaped lattices.) How many people actually use it? I can't think of a time when I've needed it on my computer, or turned it on without it being accidental. It's just something annoying between Tab and Shift that messes up your typing when it's hit.

If you ask me we should take that key off along with the blatantly useless SysRq, and replace them with something useful, like "Write my essay for me" and "Kill the Microsoft paperclip". Or I'm sure there are other more feasible ones. Scroll Lock can stay - it may not have much use, but it does something in Excel and it's got an air of mystery to it.

Comments

[dungeoneer.livejournal.com]

Well, I've found it handy when typing SQL queries. Just to make them a bit more readable.

I guess if you're programming and your constants have really, really, really long identifiers you might want to use Caps Lock...

[whinknee.livejournal.com]

I use caps lock all the time at work. When I am entering finances and invoices into File Express the entries are in caps and I don't want to have to hold down shift the whole time I am typing. So, no, don't get rid of it, it helps me be lazy when using DOS.

[davidn]

Being lazy while using DOS = DOSsing about. :D

Sorry, I only just thought of that one.

[e-to-the-ipi.livejournal.com]

I've used Caps Lock in a couple of games for a button, and a few times for capitals. However, you have started me wondering whether or not it could be useful to do away with Caps Lock, replacing it with another button for some indeterminate purpose, and integrating a Caps Lock function into word processing software, e-mail clients, etc. It really doesn't make too much sense to have it on hardware, I'd have thought.

[stubbleupdate.livejournal.com]

i use caps lock when i'm on message boards and need people to know that I am absolutely right.

my laptop has four keys at the top that open up my email program, my internet program, my program manager and another program of my choice. one of the keyboards at school has four similar buttons at the top. one of them shows a light. if you press the button on the keyboard, a small green light lights up next to the Caps lock/num lock lights. press the button again and the light goes off.

wow.

[kibet.livejournal.com]

I use the sysrq button rather often as it is also the prtsc button too on my laptop.

I use capslock when i am on the microscope and writing my password into my email or If I am using the mouse lefthanded whilst needing to type something in.

[(Anonymous)]

It's useful for one handed typists I suppose.
Probably just a throwback from when keyboards were used in conjunction with typewriters.

Good point though - I keep accidentally pressing it. Most annoying

[zephyr-pie.livejournal.com]

What exactly does "sys rq" do?

[davidn]

Pretty much nothing. It stands for "system request", and apparently during the early x86 days it was planned to be used for task switching when multithreaded operating systems were invented (showing remarkable forward planning). But when Microsoft got around to making Windows they ignored it and used Alt+Tab instead, giving us an entirely useless key.

[pookatimes.livejournal.com]

How about adding "eject"?

[siloh.livejournal.com]

"Eject Windows" might be a useful button. Of course, Microsoft keyboard drivers wouldn't support it. :b

[malefact.livejournal.com]

I'm an entirely self-taught touch typist and I always use Caps Lock to alternate between the cases. With my speed, I think that the time difference between my way of changing case and the use of Shift is almost so small as to be unmeasurable.

As for SysRq, it shares the same key as Prt Scr, which is a genuinely useful function. But given that the Windows key is probably the most pertinent equivalent these days, SysRq is pretty superfluous and definitely a throwback... the appendix of the modern PC. Mind you, given the antique nature of all the junk code in Windoze, not to mention the hardware itself being fundamentally similar, if not identical, to the early 80s original, the odd evolutionary leftover isn't entirely surprising.