Add Convenient PgUp/PgDn to your Vaio Z

Hi, Folks!

The Vaio Z keyboards don't have separate PgUp and PgDn keys. You can still enter them when needed, but it's a two handed operation: holding down the Fn key with your left hand, while pressing the Up or Down arrows with your right hand. Personally, when I'm just browsing boards like this one, I find that that's too much work, as it is if I'm just lying on the couch and browsing the web while using my left hand to hold the unit. There's a free and easy fix. What I'll describe below will allow you to use two fingers of your right hand to enter PgUp and PgDn a lot faster and more conveniently.

Check out Keyboard Remapper. Download either the Free version (which is all that's needed for adding PgUp and PgDn), or the Complete version (for $10) if you want to do more complicated stuff. Have Windows Explorer extract the two files, then double-click on KeyRemapper. Clear the check mark where Windows indicates "Always ask when opening this file", click Run, and the configuration screen will appear.

To add PgUp, just click on the Add New Key Combination button, then the Next > button, letting you type in the key to be remapped. Hold down the right Ctrl key while you tap the cursor up-arrow key (you'll see the words Up+Ctrl.Right appear), then click on the Next > button. On this screen click the selector for Change Key To: and select "PageUp" from the long list of keys on the right. Click Finish, and you now have a PgUp key whenever you hold down the right Ctrl key while tapping the up arrow.

Repeat the exact same process with the down arrow (selecting "PageDown" instead of PageUp, of course), and you've now got easy to use PgUp and PgDn keys. Try it, you'll like it!

Assuming you do like it, select Yes when you exit Key Remapper, and it'll automatically set things up so this will run each time your machine boots up.

Cheers!
Mark

 

Awesome work. Thank you very much.

 

Thank you very much, Nuggetbro!

Have Fun!
Mark

 

Hi, Folks!

When I mentioned above that you could download the Complete version of Keyboard Remapper for $10 "if you want to do more complicated stuff", I guess I'll add why I actually run the Complete version. In my configuration, I also:

• Turn off that annoying Caps Lock key, so that I'll stop accidentally hitting it (it becomes another Ctrl key).
• Map Ctrl+left arrow to become "Browser_Back" to easily move back to the previous page.
• Map Ctrl+right arrow to become "Browser_Forward" to move forward in the browsing history.
• Map Ctrl+Right Shift to become "Browser_Reload" to make it easy to check for new posts.

This grouping of keys in this location makes web browsing much simpler and faster (at least for me), as well as being pretty intuitive.

Think over what enhancements might work for you. Keyboard Remapper really is a very handy little utility, and it's easily worth the $10 to me. No, I don't have any relation to the author, nor do I make any money on it.

Cheers!
Mark

 

• 
  It's worth mentioning that that's how keyboards used to be! CTRL to the left of the A made lots of sense on computers, where CTRL- combinations are common.
  But then came IBM and Microsoft, who launched the "Enhanced" keyboard. It was aimed at secretaries and bosses who didn't know the first thing about a computer, and would get confused by a CTRL key. So it was moved out of the way, and CAPS LOCK went there instead, to mimic the hammer assembly lock key of really old (pre-rollerball) typewriters.
  But these days, who uses caps lock except widows of Nigerian prime ministers?
  Arguably, I use scroll lock more (it actually does something in Excel).

 

Hi, arth1!

I definitely remember those days, and in fact the upper Ctrl location is still quite useful when running Linux. Note that it's easy to still retain Caps Lock functionality by mapping Shift+Caps Lock (or even better, since it's less accidental, Ctrl+Caps Lock) to Caps Lock.

Cheers!
Mark

 

I still use cap locks in programming sometimes. There are times things I am doing need to all be in caps (SQL) because of how we format our code in our report writer programs to keep it standard. So for me I need it

I think I have to buy this program because I want to map more than one key. I need to remap the End and Home too, I use those keys alot and the function home/end is not convinent.

 

Hi, Folks,

Well, after using the mapping for a while, it turns out that the Caps Lock is actually a problem. Windows seems to ignore the Caps Lock function completely whenever Shift, Ctrl, or Alt is active, and simultaneously pressing another key simultaneously with Caps Lock can wind up leaving it active, requiring you to disable Keyboard Remapper, press Caps Lock twice to get it turned off, and then re-enable it. So skip those mappings!

IzzyB68, I think you'll like this program!

Cheers!
Mark

 

anyone tried Sharp keys? it's free.

 

Hi, Ascend!

Unfortunately Sharp Keys won't do any good here. It cannot map key combinations at all.

Sorry!
Mark

 

oic. Thanks for the note MJFlash.

 

Can Keyboard Remapper also remap FN+key combinations?

 

I find myself using the Caps lock key regularly for stuff like SQL programming as IzzyB68 had mentioned.

On 2nd thoughts, maybe I can turn myself into a lady & be a widow of Nigerian prime ministers?

 

Howdy!

MillerCentral: Unfortunately not directly, since the Fn key does not itself generate a key code (that's generally handled by SMI hooks in the BIOS). However for keys with a blue legend, you can map a few of the Fn combinations, like Mute, Volume Up/Down, Scroll Lock, Pause, Break, PgUp, PgDn, Home, End.

SPEEDwithJJ: ROTFLMAO!

Cheers!
Mark

 

I found it easier to just use AutoHotkey ( http://www.autohotkey.com/) and script my Right Shift + Up and Down to be Page Up and Page Down. You can even create the script to be an executable. You probably can do more than that through scripting.

Best of all, it's completely free.

 

FYI: Shift+Spacebar PGUP and Spacebar on its own pages down in web browsers with stock windows 7.

Just sayin...

 

Hmm..never knew this. It works!

 

for those interested, I programmed my MS Mini Explorer Mouse side buttons to do page up and down and scroll button for home. Works quite well for me.

 

Nice, I'm going to remap the selector key for use with the Home/End/up/down keys.

I'll also use it to make the window splitter function easier to use with one hand. If you haven't done this before, select an open app, hit the windows key + the left or right arrow key. It's great with the FHD screen

 

Is it possible to map the Sleep function to a button with these programs?

I have changed my power button to Hibernate (that's what I use to completely turn the laptop off), and no lid action (I want to keep my programs running while the lid is down). So I am left with Fn+F12 that doesn't do anything useful (duplicate Hibernate) and no shortcut for the Sleep mode.

 

Hi, Folks!

It's great to see the creative ideas! That's exactly why I mentioned "think over what enhancements might work for you". By no means am I trying to shove my favorite approaches down anyone's throat - the idea is to enable you to personalize the machine as best fits you!

Darklichy: Autohotkey looks cool! It obviously takes more time to set up than Keyboard Remapper (which is in fact the primary reason I listed KeyRemapper here), but it's also quite powerful. Thanks for the pointer!

ZoinksS2K: Coming from you, I especially appreciate your feedback, given all your fabulous posts! Thank you very much!

Cheers!
Mark

 

Hi, MNZ2000!

Nope, that's why I excluded the Sleep key from the Fn-key list. Unfortunately, this is another BIOS-handled function, so Keyboard Remapper never gets a chance to see the key prior to the machine going to sleep. The same is true for the brightness keys, monitor switching, and zoom keys.

EDIT: While you can't map Fn-F12 to anything else, you could remap another key sequence to sleep, depending on what you're looking for. For example, it'd be easy to map Ctrl-0 (near the old sleep key) to sleep.

Sorry!
Mark

 

Thats what I thought too. So I'll have to add the Sleep function to some other button then. I guess I'll start by looking into configuring the S1 button to launch some program that does the Sleep function. This way I wouldn't need a third-party app.

 

Here's one: NirCmd ( http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/nircmd.html). Just make it issue "nircmd.exe standby" to make the computer sleep.

This program also does a lot of other things too! I use this program to turn off my monitor when I download large files overnight.