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AbsenceOfTruth
Jun 12, 2007, 09:50 PM
Whenever I play WOW I can't press some of the F keys because they are either work for volume, brightness settings, etc. What do I have to do in order to use them as F keys, as to toggle it off and back on? Thank you.


AbsenceOfTruth
Jun 12, 2007, 10:12 PM
bump?
samh004
Jun 12, 2007, 10:12 PM
Hold down the function key, which is located near CTRL from my recollection of a mac keyboard, and while holding it down, press the appropriate keys.

Apparently you can also switch this setting around so to adjust the brightness and volume, you need to hold down that key. But it works better this way around.
Alloye
Jun 12, 2007, 10:13 PM
Whenever I play WOW I can't press some of the F keys because they are either work for volume, brightness settings, etc. What do I have to do in order to use them as F keys, as to toggle it off and back on? Thank you.

Open the Keyboard & Mouse panel in System Preferences. In there you will find a checkbox that says, "Use F1-F12 keys to control software features." If you enable this option, your function keys will work like the would on a desktop keyboard. You can still access the brightness/volume features by holding down the fn key.
AbsenceOfTruth
Jun 12, 2007, 10:14 PM
Great! Thanks a lot guys.

Cheers!
poke4christ
Jun 28, 2007, 10:21 AM
I'm new to apple (MBP 2.4) and this is something I've been wanting to know. I thought I had accidentally enabled the Fn-lock somehow. After a lot of searching I finally found this thread. Thanks a lot guys!
ArtOfWarfare
Apr 19, 2008, 01:04 PM
Yeah... I'd really like a function lock on my Mac.

Is there something I can download that will make it so I can more easily turn function lock on/off rather than go to the system preferences?

Or does someone like to program and want to make something for me... maybe just have a transparent program that appears as a dockling... the icon shows whether function lock is on or off, clicking on it will change it from on/off or pressing F19 will change it from on/off.

Whoops, topic resurrection. 9.5 months dead and it lives again!
kcbahamas
May 27, 2008, 09:36 PM
Open the Keyboard & Mouse panel in System Preferences. In there you will find a checkbox that says, "Use F1-F12 keys to control software features." If you enable this option, your function keys will work like the would on a desktop keyboard. You can still access the brightness/volume features by holding down the fn key.



I am using a Windows OS on a MACbook - I want to lock the function keys and was hoping this tip would work . I tried it by going back into the MAC operating system and clicked the option in system preferences but when I went back into Windows OS, the lock didn't apply? Would appreciate any advice to let me know what I'm doing wrong . . .
wesrk
May 27, 2008, 10:43 PM
I didn't want to start a new thread, but how to do this while using XP through boot camp?
alphaod
May 27, 2008, 11:45 PM
I am using a Windows OS on a MACbook - I want to lock the function keys and was hoping this tip would work . I tried it by going back into the MAC operating system and clicked the option in system preferences but when I went back into Windows OS, the lock didn't apply? Would appreciate any advice to let me know what I'm doing wrong . . .
I didn't want to start a new thread, but how to do this while using XP through boot camp?

Right click the BootCamp icon in the taskbar and go to Preferences-->Keyboard. You can enable/disable there.
wesrk
May 28, 2008, 01:46 AM
Right click the BootCamp icon in the taskbar and go to Preferences-->Keyboard. You can enable/disable there.

thank you very much.
kcbahamas
May 30, 2008, 10:18 PM
Right click the BootCamp icon in the taskbar and go to Preferences-->Keyboard. You can enable/disable there.


Thank you SO much!!!
joelhwilliams
Jun 7, 2009, 12:42 PM
Thanks for the keyboard/mouse setting tip.

Topic Resurrection - great. looks like 3 or more of us have needed this info in the last month so seems well justified.

Windows OS - I'm running Parallels and fyi the keyboard/mouse setting change for the fn key fixed the WinOS as well as the MacOS - no need to change anything in Parallels like was needed in BootCamp.

Easier Way - If anyone comes up with an easier way to do this besides changing keyboard/mouse setting in system prefs, please post it here. seems there should be a "Function Lock" where holding the fn key down for a few seconds changes the function keys default from one setting to the other (that just seems too simple of a solution for someone at Apple not to have thought of it)