Mac OS X 10.6 (Snow Leopard): Accidental Caps Lock Defense for laptops only?

Posted by Pierre Igot in: Macintosh
October 13th, 2009 • 3:53 pm

Following my recent posts about the Accidental Caps Lock Defense feature in Snow Leopard, I have received another e-mail from a reader pointing out article HT1192 in Apple’s Knowledge Base, which says:

Intel-based Apple Portables: Caps Lock modified to reduce accidental activation

Last Modified: March 18, 2009
Article: HT1192

Summary
Pressing the Caps Lock key on certain Intel-based portables may not immediately activate the Caps Lock function.

Products Affected
Keyboards, MacBook (13-inch Late 2007), MacBook Air, MacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2008), MacBook Pro (15-inch Early 2008), MacBook (13-inch, Early 2008), MacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2009), MacBook (13-inch, Early 2009), MacBook (13-inch, Late 2008), MacBook (13-inch, Aluminum, Late 2008), MacBook Air (Late 2008), MacBook Pro (15-inch, Late 2008), MacBook Pro (17-inch, Late 2008)

The caps lock function on these computers is designed to reduce accidental activation. The key must now be held down slightly longer in order to activate the caps lock function.

Interesting. What this seems to suggest is that the feature is only available on certain laptops, i.e. those made in the last couple of years.

And yet I can definitely report that, like Jonathan Rentzsch, I was able to enjoy the feature with an aluminium keyboard, in my case connected to a Mac Pro tower.

Just because Apple’s KB now says that the feature is only available on certain laptops does not mean that it was always the case. I don’t think both Rentzsch and I were dreaming when we noticed this feature with our wired aluminium keyboards.

In other words, it looks like the feature was, at some point, available on more than just Apple laptops, but that it is no longer the case and that now you have to be using a laptop’s built-in keyboard to order to continue to enjoy the feature.

It’s unfortunate, but I guess someone at Apple made that decision, and there’s not much we can do about it.


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