Caps Lock

Update 27 January 2013.
Thank you to everyone for your emails and support of the Caps Lock and MD5 Checker programs. Sorry I have been unable to respond to you all. Many have offered suggestions of how the programs can be improved and requested additional features. I do agree there is plenty of scope for further improvement and development, but unfortunately due to other commitments I no longer have the time to actively develop these programs. I have decided to release the source code under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) licence in the hope that they will be improved and developed further. The programs have been written in Pure Basic (www.purebasic.com).

Caps Lock Source Code

Caps Lock by George Jopling is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License..

Click on the Zip icon to download capslock_code.zip. File size is 13.2 Kb.
MD5: 00DB17CB57336F9E70B74ACB9CD4819F

The zip file includes the icons and beep sound file.

April 2011. Caps Lock has been awarded a Software Informer Editor's pick.

A utility program that gives an on-screen display and optional audible indication of the keyboard Caps Lock key state.

Version 4.2.0 of Caps Lock is now available for download.

Thank you for your emails, sorry I have not responded to them all. I have read the comments and feedback and most of what you wanted are included in this new version.

Caps Lock does not contain adware, spyware, malware or any other forms of 'ware'.

New to Version 4.2.0

Select the number of key presses made between the beep sound (1-25, default 5).
Option to save all user prefered settings on program Exit.
Prefered settings automatically configured on program startup.

There are further significant changes to the Caps Lock program code. Behind the scenes changes include: a preference file is generated in the target computer's application data folder. This is a text file that Caps Lock looks for during startup and exit. If it is not found or cannot be read correctly, default settings are loaded during the next program startup. Please look out for these changes. Testing on my computers has all worked fine.

The Caps Lock default settings are...

Caps Lock = Off
Num Lock = On
Sounds Speakers = On
Key Presses = 5
Save on Exit = On

Please note that if the Save on Exit option is unchecked, Caps Lock will load the default settings each time it is started.

When the Status window is displayed, the Caps Lock and Num Lock check boxes mirror the current status of the corresponding keyboard keys. Click on the check box or press the keyboard keys to change the key status from off to on or vice versa.

System speakers sound is enabled as the default option. Uncheck this if you do not want the beep sound to be heard. Caps Lock 4.2.0 no longer supports motherboard sounds.

Select the number of key presses that you wish to make in between the beep sound. You can do this by clicking on the small up and down arrows to the right of the number. The keyboard keys can also be used to navigate the Status Window options. Press the Tab key to move to the option required, press the Space Bar to select or clear the check boxes and use the up and down arrows on they keyboard to change the Key Count number.

The number of key presses is selectable between 1 and 25. The default setting is 5. Setting the number of key presses to 1 will make the Beep sound on every key press.

Click on the OK button to close the Status window, or click on any other program, desktop area, start button etc. When the Status window loses focus it is the same as if you had clicked on the OK button.

The Caps Lock keyboard key state will then be indicated in the system tray by a green tick for on and a red cross if it is off. Clicking on the Exit button will exit the program.

Hover the cursor over icon will give a tool tip display.

Right click on the System tray icon and then click on the Caps Lock Status menu option to open the Status window again

Notes

Due to the changes made in Caps Lock version 4.2.0, only a standard Windows installation Setup file is now available.
As all modern computers have some form of system sounds via a sound device, Caps Lock no longer supports motherboard sounds.

Acknowledgements:
Fluid Byte for his keyboard hooking code example which assisted me in the development of Caps Lock.

If you have any comments about Caps Lock or spot any errors or bugs, I can be contacted by email using the below link. Thank you to those who have sent feedback about Caps Lock.

Upgrading Caps Lock

Please uninstall any versions of Caps Lock prior to version 4.0.0. and then install version 4.2.0.

Version 4.0.0 users - please close the Caps Lock program (if it is currently running) prior to upgrading and then run the Setup file. Setup will automatically upgrade the files to version 4.2.0.

Caps Lock Download

I have created a standard Windows installation package (tested with Windows 7, Vista and XP).

Setup will place a shortcut link in the all users startup folder (Windows 7, Vista and XP) so that when you start the computer Caps Lock will run automatically.

Click on the Zip icon to download capslock_setup.zip. File size is 296 Kb.

MD5 Hashes

capslock_setup.zip	DDB3FE3FD924E1BDA9E715817F8BAFDE
setup.exe	6532A5E1A3A55218EC9BA567059B7CDF
Caps Lock.exe	B6853E638D2D1B97C29CC25611854CF6

To check the MD5 Hashes, click here to download my free MD5 Checker Program.

Version Notes

4.2.0 December 2010. Key counting for beep sound, save user settings and configure at startup, use of a preference file.
4.0.0 November 2010. System tray icon status. Optional motherboard or System speaker sound. System tray icon right click menu. Clicking on another program or desktop area etc. will close the Status window.
3.0.0.0 May 2009. Setup menu. Switch on and off the Caps Lock and Num Lock keyboard keys. On-screen display changes colour when Caps Lock is on. Sound can be switched off.
2.0.0.0 March 2009. Plays a beep sound through the normal sound output when a keyboard key is pressed whilst the caps lock is on.
1.1.0.0 March 2007. No Taskbar button displayed when running.
1.0.0.0 February 2007. Original Release.