Mac startup key combinations – support.apple.com/en-us/HT201255 – good to have handy when need to work with problematic computer and need starting in special modes.
Table of Contents
macOS Monterey, version 12.0
Introduces conflicts with our previously defined shortcuts. So fix:
System Preferences … > Keyboard : Shortcuts tab.
- App Shortcuts – section, ADD ‘Mail.app’ application-specific shortcuts
- “Hide Sidebar” : Ctrl+Command+Shift+S (as we use Ctrl+Command+S for saving email to disk)
- “Show Sidebar” : Ctrl+Command+Shift+S (to also provide the toggling functionality of this shortcut)
MS Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000
MS 4000 Ego
Overview of Used Solutions
- up to 2017: Original driver from Microsoft, worked for quite a while also after stopped being supported by MS
- ControllerMate. For macOS 10.13 (IM2713; 2018-2020)
- (only never bothered briefly with macOS 10.14 but got so annoyed with endless popping up of warning dialogs that 32-bit apps will stop working… like MS Office 2011)
- MS Natural Keyboard HID Handler. For macOS 10.15, Catalina
For Catalina, macOS 10.15: MS Natural Keyboard HID Handler
Sources and info: github.com/Orangenhain/MS-Natural-Keyboard-HID-Handler
Special Key Handler, Input Event Dumper
The two apps build from the sources.
Installed Use: /Software-IN-USE/
In one specific folder, created by us, …/Software-IN-USE/:
- Input Event Dumper.app
- Special Key Handler.app
- Start Special Key Handler.app
- startSpecialKeyHandler.sh
VERY IMPORTANT – IF / WHEN editing ‘Start Special Key Handler.app’, apparently MUST do the following (again):
(If not, when run the app – ‘Start Special Key Handler.app’ – and it announces it has started, it will NOT work.)
- Preferences > Security & Privacy > Input Monitoring
- Unlock
- TOGGLE existing item ‘Start Special Key Handler.app’
- Kill and restart any running ‘Special Key Handler’
- Allow access to Desktop and Download folders when pressing Special Key 1 and 2
Configuration
Key | ControllerMate (‘CM’) (IM2713) | External Resources | Special Key Handler (IM2720) |
Home | ‘Browser Toggle’, own AppleScript inside CM | … MS-Ergo4000-Web-Key.app | |
Search | ‘Search’, own AppleScript inside CM | … MS-Ergo4000-Search-Key.app | |
‘Mail Toggle’, own AppleScript inside CM | … MS-Ergo4000-Mail-Key.app | ||
Favorites 1 | ‘Desktop’, Finder item, absolute path, inside CM | ~/Desktop | |
Favorites 2 | ‘Downloads’, Finder item, absolute path, inside CM | ~/Downloads | |
Favorites 3 | ”current month of camera uploads’, AppleScript inside CM calling external bash-script | openCurrentDropboxCameraUploads.sh openCurrentDropboxCameraUploads.sh.app |
~/Dropbox/…/Go Finder 3 Photos.app |
Favorites 4 | ‘Documents’, Finder item, absolute path, inside CM (IM2713) | ~/Dropbox | |
Favorites 5 | ‘2sort’, Finder item, absolute path, inside CM | ~/Dropbox/…2sort | |
Favorites ‘star’ | ‘ControllerMate’, own AppleScript inside CM | ||
Mute | (no special handling by CM) | ||
Volume – | (no special handling by CM) | ||
Volume + | (no special handling by CM) | ||
Play / Pause | (no special handling by CM) | ||
Calculator | (no special handling by CM) |
- MS-Ergo4000-Web-Key.app
- Press keyboard button in question (upper left area keyboard)
- Install / use / (select path to) app in [ $HOME/Dropbox | $DROPBOX ] / Office / Apps / MS-Ergo4000-Web-Key.app
- Close dialog
- First-time, get dialog ‘”MS-Ergo4000-Web-Key.app” wants access to control “System Events.app”.’… Select OK.
- And it works. Toggles bringing web browser as front app or hide. (i.e. Hide app and all its windows – quite nice to quickly hide lots of windows).
- MS-Ergo4000-Search-Key.app
- Press keyboard button in question (upper left area keyboard)
- Actually doesn’t seem to need any longer. (For Ergo 4000.) Brings up Spotlight search dialog when press eye-glass/search key on upper-left part of physical keyboard anyway.
- MS-Ergo4000-Mail-Key.app
- Press keyboard button in question (upper left area keyboard)
- Install / use / (select path to) app in [ $HOME/Dropbox | $DROPBOX ] / Office / Apps / MS-Ergo4000-Mail-Key.app
- Close dialog
- First-time, get dialog ‘”MS-Ergo4000-Mail-Key.app” wants access to control “System Events.app”.’… Select OK.
- And it works. Toggles bringing email app (Mail.app) as front app or hide. (i.e. Hide app and all its windows – quite nice to quickly hide lots of windows).