macOS: Capslock non-ideal for control group due to hard-coded delay by the OS

[ericvw]

macOS hardcodes a delay on Capslock to avoid accidental key presses, which makes using Capslock for gaming non-ideal because the key actuates on every other click 😞. I'm not sure if they are enough keys to make TheCore Lite workable out-of-the-box on both macOS and Windows.

Since I was unable to use Capslock, I ended up rebinding control group 6 to the grave key instead. So my control group setup ends up being:

Grave 1 2 3
Q W
A S
Z X

I understand that the current usage of the grave key is to be able to quickly steal units and I am forgoing that functionality. One advantage of my tweak was that all the key combinations for manipulating control groups are similar (i.e., requires combinations of Ctrl, Alt, Shift) without a direct outlier key for manipulating control groups.

Tangentially, I also have rebound Capslock to be the Esc key, which now keeps on or below the number row of the keyboard.

I created this issue to explore if there is an opportunity to accommodate a key layout that would work consistently across Windows and macOS. However, I also understand there are other driving principles that may favor Capslock's usage as well. Thanks in advance!

[karmakaze]

I have a workaround for this issue with macOS. I also rearrange my Tab, CapsLock, Shift, Option/Alt keys using a defaults write script. I also use thumb for Cmd rather than use Ctrl so everything is in easy reach. This Apple Technical Note TN2450 shows the mapping codes.

starcraft-keys

• remap Tab->Shift, CapsLock->Tab, LeftShift->Alt

#!/bin/bash
hidutil property --set '{ "UserKeyMapping": [{ "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingSrc": 0x70000002B, "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingDst": 0x7000000E1 }, { "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingSrc": 0x700000039, "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingDst": 0x70000002B }, { "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingSrc": 0x7000000E1, "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingDst": 0x7000000E2 }] }'

starcraft-keys-off

• restore Tab, CapsLock, LeftShift

#!/bin/bash
hidutil property --set '{ "UserKeyMapping": [{ "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingSrc": 0x70000002B, "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingDst": 0x70000002B }, { "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingSrc": 0x700000039, "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingDst": 0x700000039 }, { "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingSrc": 0x7000000E1, "HIDKeyboardModifierMappingDst": 0x7000000E1 }] }'

For the curious, a slightly outdated pic of my Protoss control groups and abilities.

[bobo38]

cool, thanks for sharing your tip ! I use similar trick on my Linux system (to transform CapsLock in a Left Control key). Nice to see there is something like that for MacOS