I've been messing around trying to make a patch to get the computer keyboard keys to change values up and down by using a line object, because I don't like the way they seem to output multiple successive bangs when you hold down a button. The bangs seem to be very unevenly spaced, and it seems to take several milliseconds before the values start changing. This makes for a pretty shabby value changer.

the way I've been thinking is to get the first bang to change state (to 1) and set off the line object, and then for subsequent bangs of similar state to be ignored, until a '0' bang comes along, which will stop the line. However, it seems that when you hold down a computer keyboard button, it also outputs '0's aswell as '1's.

Can anyone confirm this and offer advice on a workaround?

Thanks,
Brett

this speedlimit patch might be close to what you describe. it limits the rate of fire of a trigger. It's not very elegant, but then, none of my patches ever seem to be. pardon.

http://www.pdpatchrepo.info/hurleur/speedlimit.pd

you can use [change] so that keys only output a 1 on being pressed, and then a zero on being unpressed.

Thanks Guys. Sunji, your patch looks like a good way to even out the timing of the bangs, but doesn't the delay object keep resetting each time it's banged?

Hardoff, is there a way to place the change object in front of the keyname object? otherwise I still can't get around the fact that between each bang that is generated whilst a key is pressed down, a zero is sent, so the change recognises this as a different value.

I'm not looking at my speedlimit patch right now, but I think I put the delay on the far side of the spigot, so that it won't receive any bangs until the gate opens up again. If that isn't how it's coded, then consider this a howtofix for the bug.

Using the [speedlimit] with the [change] might do what you want. Put the speedlimit in front of change, and make the delay in speedlim just longer enough to clip out the 0.

oops. try this:

http://www.pdpatchrepo.info/hurleur/keything.pd

it's a while coming, but here is a patch for turning the A and Z keyboard keys (or any for that matter) into smooth controllers.

Thanks Hardoff for your keything patch that I have used in it.

The patch seems to work pretty well, but it's a bit of monster program for what it is - any ideas for a more elegant/streamlined version?

I have also found a glitch where it seems to slip to 1 at the bottom of the range instead of 0 if you quickly press Z after starting up with A (and vice versa). not sure why this happens.

by the way, you also need my revised 'keything2' object that I'll upload next. (how do save subpatches into the main patch?)

Cheers,

Brett

http://www.pdpatchrepo.info/hurleur/keys.pd

apologies. it's still called Keything in the main patch...

http://www.pdpatchrepo.info/hurleur/keything.pd

yeah works well.

if only computer keyboards were pressure sensitive, you could vary the speed by pressing your key harder or softer.

actually, pressure sensitive keyboards would be a really big plus for computer music, but the best one i could find was this one from 1983:

http://www.atarimagazines.com/compute//////issue34/132_1_NEWS_PRODUCTS_PRESSURE_SENSITIVE_KEYBOARD_FOR_THE_PHYSICALLY_HANDICAPPED.php