[maemo-developers] Virtual keyboard (was: Re: How VNCVIEWER can bring non maemo applications onto the N800)

[From: Florent de Dinechin]

Concerning the virtual keyboard, I am a big fan of the way you can 
shift, on the standard n800 keyboard, by stroking up a key, instead of 
clicking it. I wonder how many n800 users have missed this feature?

This idea should be extended so that we may stroke in any of the 8 
directions (back and left are already used). This is much faster than 
shifting or whatever. I mostly never use shift anymore, even with a 
french keyboard in xterm (where basic characters like / have to be shifted).

The Frenchman that I am will start as soon as possible to add the french 
accents on top of the vowels (like, getting é by an upper right stroke 
on e). The current special keyboard for accents is a pain.
Unless somebody tell me that it's being done already. I really believe 
this should be standard, because it is so easy to learn.

At some point, there will be the need to show the possibilities on the 
virtual keyboard itself (in small colored characters around the main 
letter).

Anyway, back to VNCviewer, this should also be the way to go.


Sorry if this has been around already, I'm just arriving and I haven't 
read all the archives yet.

	Florent



 > Well, technically, it's not "vncviewer's keyboard", it's the standard
 > virtual input method keyboard that is used for all maemo applications.
 > Plus, you have the advantages of the special keypresses provided by VNC
 > viewer (i.e. Ctrl-Alt-Del, etc.).  For the next release of VNC viewer,
 > Detlef is making some changes that will provide the ability to configure
 > the behavior of the + and - keys.  They will basically become modifier
 > keys (i.e. hold down the - key and click to get a left-click, if the 
- key
 > is configured to act this way).  I think the + and - keys will also work
 > as modifier keys for other hardware keys (namely the directional keys),
 > ala chords.  This wasn't easily done on the 770 because it wasn't 
possible
 > to have two keypresses at the same time (only the first took), but it
 > appears that this problem has been remedied on the N800.
 >