Is there a easy way to disable the cap locks key?

Factual Questions
1

New computer so I’m getting used to a new keyboard. And one result is I’ve been hitting the cap locks key (which is right next to the A key and the shift key) by mistake a lot lately.

In the twenty-plus years I’ve been using computers, I don’t think I’ve ever had cause to intentionally use the cap locks key. So I’d be happy to sacrifice it completely.

Is there an easy way to simply disable a key so it has no effect when you hit it? I’ve found some instructions for doing it but they involve editing the registry files, which I’d prefer to avoid. Is there another way to do it?

2

Stick something under the key to keep it from pressing down.

3

Better still, squirt some epoxy (or similar) under the key.

Caps lock is a vestigial left-over from the days of manual typewriters!

I read somewhere, a few months ago, that manufacturers are considering eliminating it. What are they waiting for?

And while we’re at it, does anyone know if the “Scroll Lock” key has ever done anything useful (or anything at all) in, say, the last 20 years? It used to be functional on old VT-52 and similar terminals on DEC machines.

4

I used to have the same problem. I used Autohotkey to ‘remap’ my keys so that ‘CapsLock’ does nothing at all, but I can hit ‘Shift-CapsLock’ if I want to get the Capslock function (which I occasionally do).

5

And the other keys on the keyboard are not?

I use it far more often than the ` or = keys. It’s far faster when you need to type something – like a title – in caps.

If it bothers you, you can just pop it off, though.

6

Something like this sounds promising. Is there anything built into Windows that remaps keys like this or do I have to download an outside program?

7

I had this problem with the Windows key on a work computer a few years ago. I just popped it off.

8

Well, you could edit the registry to remap the Caps Lock Key, but that’s ill advised and is probably what Autohotkey does anyway.

9

The registry is the “official” and best way of doing this. Even if you’re unfamiliar with the Registry Editor, all you have to do is copy and paste a few lines into Notepad, save it, and then double-click the saved file. Read this. It only takes a second and you don’t have to manually edit the registry.

Even better, just download this file (right-click, save as) and double-click on it. It’s the same registry edit pre-packaged and requiring no additional edits or installations.

ETA: I think this is a better bet than Autohotkey because it doesn’t take up any additional system resources. Autohotkey has to run in the background all the time for it to work.

10

I highly recommend Spanish Accents Capslock.

It changes your Capslock into a type of ‘shift’ key that allows easy typing of Spanish accented characters (like é, e.g.). So, if you accidentally hit it, you’re not in All Caps mode. And if you do want All Caps, you double tap it to go in and out of All Caps mode.

11

When logged in to a terminal it’s still useful for looking at info that has passed off screen. There are times I still use it.
Same for caps lock. It’s useful when editing files or entering commands that are case sensitive.
It would be terrible not to have those buttons.

12

Ctl-S and Ctl-Q do the work of the ScrollLock key, which is usually not found on laptop keyboards. CapsLock is pointless and can be accomplished all sorts of other ways besides having a key that can so readily be pressed when used by so few. I’ve had to adjust to an awful lot of new keyboards over the years, and it doesn’t take that long to get used to a new one, but hitting the useless CapsLock key is always the biggest problem.

13

Is it the same edit in Windows 8 as it was in Windows 7? The article you linked to gives the code as “00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00,02,00,00,00,00,00,3a,00,00,00,00,00” but I’ve seen other ones than use “00000000000000000200000000003a0000000000”. Minor details maybe but I worry about changing my registry and getting some minor detail wrong.

14

http://www.brainsystems.com/capsunlock/

15

While I can understand that not everyone needs to use the caps lock key, I don’t understand the claim that so many people frequently accidentally hit the caps lock key. I’ve been using computers for about 30 years and I’ve never had problems with it. The enter key is in the same relative position for the right hand, and I don’t hear anyone complain about accidentally hitting it all the time. And that could have far more serious consequences than hitting caps lock by mistake.

16

I pried the caps lock keys off my home and work computer keyboards.

17

I didn’t know about that, and trying it just now it doesn’t work for me.
Where does that work?

Maybe I’m just doing the obvious of using the caps lock key when I’ve got a lot of caps to type. Other then stressing out my pinky, what other ways?

18

Some keyboard drivers, including IIRC those for Microsoft keyboards, allow you to do this (and some other key re-mapping too) via the Keyboard item in Control Panel. However, it will depend on your brand of keyboard. My old Microsoft wireless keyboard let me do it quite easily, but my current keyboard (that came with the computer) does not. It might be worth poking about in Control Panel before you take more drastic measures.

19

Recommended. I have used this for years. Still works even for Win7.

20

Works in my telnet emulator and in the DOS window. I’m on a laptop and haven’t installed Putty yet, but I’m pretty sure that can be configured to accept Ctl-S and Ctl-Q.