Alternatives

In which we document some of the alternatives that have been proposed to replace Caps Lock, assuming the key is moved to a safer position, or eliminated entirely:

• Addition of a Ctrl key, to make it easier to type combinations like Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V (the Happy Hacker layout).
• Addition of a second Enter key, to make the keyboard more useful for left-handers (proposed by r03).
• Addition of a second backspace key, nicely positioned on the home row (the Colemak layout).
• A new 'clipboard' key to replace cut/copy/paste (proposed by Linus McCabe, see ClipControl for a Proof of Concept).
• A programmable key (or two smaller keys) for games and applications.
• The 'any' key, which will solve the current problem of "hitting any key to continue" (Richard Sakowski)
• A non-modal Caps key that converts selected text to uppercase (or lowercase) (Sylvie M.)

Do you have a suggestion? What key or combination do you use so often that you wish it was on the home row, easily accessible by your left hand? Join the wikidot.com community, and then add your comment below.

My alternative for the current keyboard layout

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A switch on the keyboard to physically disable the Caps Lock key. This way users who don't use the key can't accidentally press it.

And yet another alternative

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As is already mentioned in the list above: a programmable key.
The thing I would like to explicitly add is that it should also be possible to program it to function as the Caps Lock key.

2 more alternatives

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1) Make Caps Lock only work in combination with Left Shift. This way the user always has to press 2 keys, and is less likely to enter Caps Lock mode.

2) Always put an LED on the Caps Lock key so the user can see he/she is in Caps Lock mode without having to look at the screen.

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