CODEWITHSUNDEEP
linuxkeyboard-shortcuts
user2277550
user2277550

Reputation: 621

How exactly are keyboard shortcut commands handled?

When I am running firefox as my active application and do a [ctrl]+[shift]+T, firefox opens a new tab. Hoever when I do a [ctrl]+[alt]+T, linux opens a new terminal window. Just made me ponder over the possible internals of this operation.

I had assumed that the control over stdin lies with the active application and if it reads something that makes sense to it, it goes ahead and does it. Now I feel that before the input is even put into stdin, the kernel scans it for the shortcuts that are relevant to it, and only the ones leftover are passed onto stdin, and from there to the user space applications.

Is this view accurate?

Upvotes: 0

Views: 166

Answers (1)

mikeb
mikeb

Reputation: 11267

You are correct about what is causing it, just not the details. It's not the kernel that is swallowing it in this case, it's the Window Manager.

Your keyboard shortcut for Ctrl+Alt+T is getting eaten by your window manager. If you go to your Window Manager keyboard shortcuts, find the one bound to Ctrl+Alt+T and un-define it, it will work in FF properly.

The WM is a "layer" if you will that receives all events and passes on the ones that it determines are relevant to the underlying application.

Upvotes: 1

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