Please add a preference to lock the entire keyboard, and also the trackpad for laptops as well as mouse buttons if possible, except for one user-specified key which would stop cleaning mode. If the trackpad or a mouse button is pressed while cleaning it can trigger unwanted actions just like the keys. The trackpad is a universal need b/c pressing it while cleaning it often moves windows across the screen or opens apps/files, especially those located in the dock which require only a single click to open.
Currently, the modifier keys (fn, control, option, command, shift, etc.) also remain unlocked, and in my case I need to use a screensaver outputting to a projector w/out having unwanted key strokes interfere w/ the video. Your tool works great to prevent the character keys from interrupting the screensaver, but the other keys still do. There may be other uses for this as well. I realize you can’t lock all keys b/c then there’s no way to access the app again
My suggestion would be to add a preference to the effect of:
• Lock entire keyboard, trackpad, and mouse buttons except for one specified key: [ esc ]. (“Escape” is the user-selected key in this example.)
unfortunately, at the pretty high level at which KeyboardCleanTool operates, it's not possible to block modifier keys or mouse movement as far as I know.
I see – how about the trackpad though? When I clean my laptop’s trackpad I have to open a blank text edit file and expand it to full screen to prevent the presses from triggering all sorts of drag actions and creating chaos.
no, unfortunately that would require to change a lot of code, especially if configurable (which it would need to be). I’ll think about something simpler.
Gotcha. I'm not sure if this is configurable either, but perhaps moving the pointer over the button without having to press the trackpad – since locking the trackpad should be only for pressing not for moving the cursor.
Hi, just following up again, as it's been almost another year. The main issue is that the laptop trackpad still remains unlocked when the tool is enabled, and this is usually cleaned at the same time as the keyboard. Not locking it guarantees that unwanted actions will be triggered on the screen. Test it yourself, and you should see.
If you can’t easily lock the modifier keys as previously suggested, please at least lock the trackpad (and mouse buttons), as this applies to all users.
I have decided that for KeyboardCleanTool this is out of scope (at least for now).
With BetterTouchTool it would be relatively simple to create a "cleaning preset". You'd need to
1.) Define some trigger (e.g. a trackpad gesture or any other trigger available in BTT) to trigger the "Start Blocking Keyboard Input" action.
2.) Define some Touch Bar buttons to override the system Touch Bar
3.) Define "Normal Mouse" triggers that override left click and right-click
4.) Define some trigger that disables that preset and also triggers the "Stop Blocking Keyboard input" action.
Thanks for the tip and instructions w/ BetterTouchTool. I haven't used this app yet, but will give a try when I have a chance.
@Frank1: Thanks for the suggestion. I'm familiar w/ this setting, but I'm not using a mouse w/ this laptop. And while it would still be ideal to have an option to disable the mouse buttons for cleaning, the mouse can be easily unplugged, while the trackpad cannot be removed.
