Volume control without using fn key

Hey all,

An inquiry I yet have to find the answer for, I will try asking here.

I have the ASUS N56 laptop. I also have a baby son I pick up and carry around the house.
Problem is, I listen to music or watch youtube or whatever, and it is IMPOSSIBLE to control the master volume on the keyboard without using two hands. On this laptop you press fn+f11/f12 and that requires a huge hand if not two.

Is there anyway through simple programming or software, to assign master volume controls without using the fn key? I would hate to let go of my son just to control the volume and pick him up again. Say for instance I want to control the master volume just by pressing the plus or minus button on my numpad.

Regards

 

There are keyboard mapping utilities but they tend to not work with laptop keyboards so much: Remap Keyboard Keys with These 3 Free Apps [Windows]

 

You can tap the icon on the bottom right and either lower and raise the volume by clicking on the slider or using the scroll function on your touchpad.

 

Thanx for the replies.
As for controlling it with the mouse, that would require precision and is not a speedy way of controlling sound.

Wonder why the manufactorers just threw away the concept of having multimedia controls on the keyboard..

br

 

I know it's not ideal (what can we do besides rebuild the keyboard), if you're using VLC Media Player, you can also control the volume with a double-finger swipe gesture. Swiping up or down will control the level.

 

The controls take up space, power and are quite tricky to get right. You could maybe look into downloading some sort of control program.

 

AutoHotkey is a great, free program that lets you assign keys various functions like changing the volume and uses very little background processes.

Step 1: Download and install Autohotkey

Step 2: Run AutoHotkey then right-click your desktop and click "New" then click "AutoHotkey Script"

Step 3: Right-click the file you just created on your desktop and click "Edit Script"

Step 4: Start a new line beneath the line that says "SetWorkingDir %A_ScriptDir% ; Ensures a consistent starting directory." It should look like this http://i.imgur.com/hPzpTkr.png

Step 5: On my PC if I want to turn up the volume I have to press fn+f12 but if I just wanted to press f12 to turn up the volume I would type f12::Volume_Up on the first empty line. It should look like this http://i.imgur.com/gzQczHZ.png

Step 6: To do this for the volume down key and mute key you need to start a new line for each new key shortcut. It should look like this http://i.imgur.com/hizJxKU.png

Step 7: To run the script you just created you simply double-click it. You can put this script anywhere, I placed mine in a scripts folder I created in my documents.

Step 8: To make the script you just created run when you log in you will need to place it in your Startup folder. To do this on Windows 8 open run and type "%AppData%" (without the quotes) and click "ok". It should look like this http://i.imgur.com/hJbTUTv.png Then click the "Microsoft" folder, then click the "Windows" folder, then click the "start Menu" folder, then click the "Programs", then click the "Startup" folder. Once your in the "Startup" folder it should look like this http://i.imgur.com/XCscihU.png

Step 9: Make sure you saved your script in a folder where you want it (I would recommend not leaving it on your desktop before creating a shortcut). Now right-click the script and select "Create Shortcut". Then place the shortcut it creates into your "Startup" folder. Once your done with that it should look like this http://i.imgur.com/XCscihU.png

You can use this same method to make other unused keys do things liek play/pause media, play next track, ect... Here's a list of other commands List of Keys and Mouse/Joystick Buttons for Hotkeys and Macros Use this formula for play/pause, next track, ect.. (key you want to trigger action): Action) = f12::Volume_Up

 

Great JOB!!! I wish I would have found your post before leaning all about autohotkey.. here's what I did to get the same results minus the mute which I forgot about.

Use autohotkey then just edit the default script and add the following to the end of that script, remember to save it, then reload the script. BTW my laptop is an ASUS G750J. This only for the volume, didn't mess with the brightness.

F11::Send {vkAEsc12E}
F12::Send {vkAFsc130}

 

I am also an owner of an N56 and I can just reach the volume keys (f11, f12) if I use my thumb and middle finger for it. My hands are not large by any means, I can't even grip a size 5 basketball with one hand.

But if one hand doesn't suffice, you should definitely look into Autohotkey. I see that it's already been mentioned in greater detail, so I'll leave it at that.

 

Simply Genius!

 

Why did they get rid of rotary phones. I hate that I cant dial with one finger........