Monday, April 30, 2007

How To Utilize Your New Multimedia Keyboard Under Linux

To Install:

On Debian:
apt-get install xbindkeys

using source code:
download the latest source from here:
http://hocwp.free.fr/xbindkeys/xbindkeys-1.8.2.tar.gz

cd your_download_dir
Uncompress the source (1.x.x - refers for your version):
tar xzvf xbindkeys-1.x.x.tar.gz
Change to the new directory (created by tar):
cd xbindkeys-1.x.x

Install the program (as root):
su root
make install

Configuration:
The program is configured by the use of a file, .xbindkeysrc in your home directory. It is recommended to use the default configuration and then you can edit it according to your needs.
xbindkeys --defaults > $HOME/.xbindkeysrc

If you open the file with a text-editor you can see its structure:
# Next Track - Alt + Up
"xmms --fwd"
m:0x8 + c:98
# Previous Track - Alt + Down
"xmms --rew"

The command to be executed enclosed in quote characters, then a line after the keyboard codes which will cause that command to be executed. The line starts with hashmark (#) is for comment, recommended strongly. To find out the keycode you can do with:

xbindkeys -mk

This will pop up a window and show the keycodes when you hit keys. To quit when you done with your buttons press "q".

You can check your current keys and commands with:
xbindkeys --show

Once you have setup your .xbindkeysrc you can start the program by running:
xbindkeys &

This runs the command in the background causing to listen for keyboard events and execute the commands it knows about when finds a combination listed in its config file. To start xbindkeys when you login:

the best way to do this, as long as you're logging in via KDM or GDM, is to put xbindkeys in your ~/.bashrc file.

NOTE:
You can use xbindkeys-config, a GUI utility for editing your .xbindkeysrc. It can be installed with apt-get. Please note, create the config file with

xbindkeys --defaults > $HOME/.xbindkeysrc
before using the graphical application otherwise it will crash on saving.

Now, you are done. You can start using your extra buttons without installing any special driver!

No comments: