Just like Ctl, Alt + delete
I want to write a program, which uses global hotkeys with 3 or more arguments in python. The assigned function should only perform when I press all three keys on my keyboard. For example alt, windows and F3.
win32con.VK_F3, win32con.MOD_WIN, win32con.VK_F5
This is the current program I want to run, however its output is:
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "C:\Python32\Syntax\hot keys\hotkeys2.py", line 41, in <module>
for id, (vk, modifiers) in HOTKEYS.items ():
ValueError: too many values to unpack (expected 2)
The Program:
import os
import sys
import ctypes
from ctypes import wintypes
import win32con
byref = ctypes.byref
user32 = ctypes.windll.user32
HOTKEYS = {
1 : (win32con.VK_F3, win32con.MOD_WIN, win32con.VK_F5),
2 : (win32con.VK_F4, win32con.MOD_WIN),
3 : (win32con.VK_F2, win32con.MOD_WIN)
}
def handle_win_f3 ():
#os.startfile (os.environ['TEMP'])
print ("Hello WOrld! F3")
def handle_win_f4 ():
#user32.PostQuitMessage (0)
print ("Hello WOrld! F4")
def handle_win_f1_escape ():
print("exit")
sys.exit()
HOTKEY_ACTIONS = {
1 : handle_win_f3,
2 : handle_win_f4,
3 : handle_win_f1_escape
}
for id, (vk, modifiers) in HOTKEYS.items ():
print ("Registering id", id, "for key", vk)
if not user32.RegisterHotKey (None, id, modifiers, vk):
print ("Unable to register id", id)
try:
msg = wintypes.MSG ()
while user32.GetMessageA (byref (msg), None, 0, 0) != 0:
if msg.message == win32con.WM_HOTKEY:
action_to_take = HOTKEY_ACTIONS.get (msg.wParam)
#print(" msg.message == win32con.WM_HOTKEY:")
if action_to_take:
action_to_take ()
user32.TranslateMessage (byref (msg))
user32.DispatchMessageA (byref (msg))
finally:
for id in HOTKEYS.keys ():
user32.UnregisterHotKey (None, id)
print("user32.UnregisterHotKey (None, id)")
Registering 3 hotkeys? Possible? Explains how one can use assign one key that needs to be pressed and then if two of which either needs to be pressed. However I won’t that the function only performs when all there are pressed simultaneously. I took
For anyone interested in details and a more elaborate example regarding this topic, I recently wrote a short program demonstrating the hotkey functions provided by win32con. The program allows you to specify and test any hotkeys you want via command line:
Please note that this program is intended for demonstration purposes only as parts of the program (e.g. exec function) should not be used in production environments. Also note that with this approach, you won't be able to override built-in hotkeys like WIN + E etc., they will simply be ignored and still perform the built-in functions (e.g. opening Explorer).
Another Way (courtesy of @martineau)
Here's how to build the translation maps without using
exec()
:For starters, if you wanted alt, windows and F3, wouldn't you need to use
win32con.VK_F3, win32con.MOD_ALT, win32con.MOD_WIN
for theHOTKEYS
entry?However, it doesn't really make sense to say press F3 with modifiers of the Win and F5 key.
The error on the line:
is because the value of each dictionary entry is a variable length
tuple
. Here's a way to handle that which also bitwise OR s all the modifier values together in preparation for passing them as a single argument toRegisterHotKey()
.It would have been easier to work on your problem if your code was indented properly and followed the PEP 8 -- Style Guide for Python Code recommendations. Please consider doing so in the future.