Shift lock in Windows (when synergy is in use?)

keyboardmousesynergy

I use 'synergy' to make different Linux and Windows PCs appear as one working space for my mouse, keyboard and clipboard.

The problem is that 'synergy' is not very stable, and apparently it sometimes makes Windows (XP, if that matters) "think" that Shift button is always pressed. The most annoying thing is 'Shift+ MouseClick' combination could be mapped to a special functionality by some applications (e.g. Firefox), and mouse becomes barely usable with them.

Rebooting the PC helps to unlock the Shift but obviously this is not the solution I'd like to use.

Best Answer

Workaround that helps to avoid the reboot:

Right-click on the language bar indicator (in the right corner of your task bar).
choose 'Settings',
Press 'Key Settings' button in the 'Preferences' area,
Choose 'Press the SHIFT key' in 'To turn off Caps Lock' area,
Press 'OK' until all 'Settings' dialogs are closed.
Press 'Shift' -- Bingo! -- the problem is solved!
now repeat the above to switch back to Caps Lock button.

Note that I use two input languages, and switch between them using Ctrl+Shift. If you're only using English, the language bar might not be directly accessible.

P.S. Just thought that may be pressing 'Shift' from the beginning could have solved the issue without changing any settings... I'll check this when I encounter the lock again.

Related Solutions

Windows – Use ‘Shift + Caps lock’ instead of ‘Caps Lock’

In autohotkey:

CapsLock::Return
+CapsLock::CapsLock

Though you could then set Capslock itself to a much more useful function rather than disabling it entirely. You could have it equal to shift, for example:

Capslock::Shift

or set it to open/switch to Firefox:

Capslock::
SetTitleMatchMode, 2
IfWinExist, Mozilla Firefox
{
IfWinActive, Mozilla Firefox
{
Send ^t
Send !d
sleep, 100
Send ^a
}
WinActivate
WinWaitActive
}
else
Run %programfiles%\Mozilla Firefox 3.1 Beta 3\firefox.exe
return

(Though the latter would need a tiny bit of configuration for FF's path, and how long you need the sleep to be)

Windows – synergy: how to switch language on client

After an hour of torment with Synergy, I stumbled on an alternative solution - ShareMouse tool - that solved the problem with language switching for me. The free version of this app has the same features as Synergy plus ability to switch between screens by a shortcut.

Best Answer

Related Solutions

Windows – Use ‘Shift + Caps lock’ instead of ‘Caps Lock’

Windows – synergy: how to switch language on client

Related Question