How to Disable a Keyboard Shortcut?

Alt+C invokes a macro my wife designed for WordPerfect 5.1 for DOS, which she still has cause to use from time to time for reasons too esoteric to go into here. I've managed to get this DOS program working just fine on her new Win XP Pro SP2 Toshiba all-singing-all-dancing laptop.

Said laptop has a built-in camera, very useful for chatting in Skype, etc, with overseas offspring.

Unfortunately Alt+C now switches on the camera and its on-screen components, instead of doing what it was supposed to do. Getting her to re-write her macro to use another key combination is an uphill struggle (I think she's actually forgotten how to, myself... ). Therefore - does anyone have any idea how one can trace and modify whatever bit of code has 'hijacked' her macro? (At the moment I have disabled the whole camera software by renaming its executable extension as .exx - but that's a very inelegant solution, and means it has to be renamed everytime we do want to use the camera).

David

 

Hi, David.

It seems the laptop camera software's keyboard shortcut should be editable (and you have not mentioned looking for such a configuration).

With the information you provided so far, all I could do was get to Toshiba's Support page where one selects the family and model of the laptop. Even if we had specifics about the laptop, we might need specifics about the camera software too.

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Perhaps the camera software's memory-resident component(s) could be prevented from loading at startup and you could manually open the camera software (via the Start menu or a desktop shortcut) only when you wish to use it. Check your laptop manual and camera software documentation for any configuration settings you might be able to use to disable the memory-resident portion of the camera software that listens for the Alt-C key combination.

You might want to experiment with a startup manager to control your startups to see if you can find a workable solution that way.

If you want to experiment with disabling unnecessary startups, then here are some links.

Choose one of the following handy stand-alone utilities for controlling your startups. (You do not need to install the application.) I suggest you use one of these utilities instead of MSCONFIG to control your startups.

• Microsoft/Sysinternals Autoruns
• Mike Lin's Startup Control Panel

CAUTION: Be certain you do not disable any necessary startups. See the references below for details that will help you decide what is reportedly safe to disable.

Check out the following links to help you decide what startups you might want to disable.

• Pacman's Startups - Contents: (I suggest you read this "Contents" page for background information.)
  ***Please read my cautions/disclaimers at the end of this message.
  

Another resource that may be helpful is

• AnswersThatWork.com: TASK LIST PROGRAMS (including WinNT4/2000/XP/2003/Vista Services)
  Keep in mind this database includes descriptions of memory-resident processes that are not necessarily automatically started when you boot your computer.

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***Here are more cautions/disclaimers.

In case you ever decide to use HijackThis (mentioned in Pacman's Startups - Contents page I linked above), ...

CAUTION: DO NOT have HijackThis "fix" anything without carefully following expert guidance. Otherwise, you might render your computer unstable or even unbootable.

In your case, I suggest not using HijackThis unless you suspect you have malware festering in your computer. If you suspect malware, then suggestions and the latest version of HijackThis may be obtained via this link.


In case you consider editing your registry (also mentioned in Pacman's Startups - Contents page I linked above), ...

DISCLAIMER/CAUTION: Editing/cleaning/repairing your computer's registry is potentially dangerous. You might render your computer unstable or even unbootable. Before you edit/clean/repair your registry with any method, be sure you make a backup of your registry. Also be sure you know how to access and use that backup in case you muck up your computer.

If you decide to manually edit your registry, then be sure you are comfortable with editing the registry and I suggest you save a backup of at least the section you edit ahead of time in case you need/want to reverse your changes. Editing the registry can produce serious undesirable consequences if done incorrectly.

In any case, you should know ahead of time how to restore your original registry settings and prepare to do so in case the need arises.

• MVPS.org (Ramesh's Site): How to backup the Windows XP Registry?
• Microsoft KB322756: How to back up and restore the registry in Windows XP and Windows Vista
• Symantec: Backing up the Windows registry

I also suggest you create a System Restore point before making any changes (regardless of what method you use). System Restore may be accessed as follows.

• Click Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore

Microsoft KB306084: How to restore the operating system to a previous state in Windows XP

 

User friendly software will generally allow the user to disable or reassign shortcuts. Load camera software (go into preferences / options) and look for this setting. OK the screens, close camera software. "Restart" computer. Try your old short cut. If problem continues, go back into camera software and check same setting... try repeating same process.

Side Note
For myself, I generally disable shortcuts offered by most programs (within program). They generally conflict with other programs.

 

Thanks mailman - some ideas to work on.

I'm pessimistic, on past experience, about appropriate help from Toshiba or any camera manufacturer, and certainly from the Toshiba manual or online at Toshiba. But I'll play with discovering and disabling the memory resident part of the webcam's installation. If I can do that but still have it fire up when using, say, Skype... then excellent. But if I find I have to manually start the camera each time, I won't feel I've progressed very far. A bit like renaming its executable (though slightly more elegant), I'll have used a sledgehammer to crack the nut. Still, we'll see...

I might also see if Kelly's Korner has something to say about disabling keyboard shortcuts...

David

 

Sorry Dennis - just noticed your post.... Next time I can get at the said computer, I'll explore just there - and let you know. Many thanks
David