Q. I'm using Gnome under Ubuntu Linux and my numeric keypad is disabled. Pressing numlock key does not work any more. I'm not able to use numbers or special symbols from numeric keypad. Reboot does not help or using different keyboard does not help. However, numlock only works if I switch to text console by pressing CTRL+ALT+F1. Now, I'm dam sure this is related to X.org or Gnome. How do I fix this problem?
A. This can be easily fixed using Keyboard preference tool. It can modify the autorepeat preferences for your keyboard, and to configure typing break settings. This works as in MS Windows. With this option selected, using Shift with keys on the numerical pad when NumLock is off extends the current selection. With this option unselected, use Shift with keys on the numerical pad to obtain the reverse of the current behaviour for that key. For example, when NumLock is off, the 8 key acts as an up-arrow. Press Shift+8 to type an '8'. Basically, Shift+Numlock can turn on or off mouse keypad. To get rid of this problem simply press Shift+Numlock again.
You can also enable or disable this feature by visiting System > Preferences > Keyboard > Mouse key tab:
Gnome: Keyboard preference tool to control mouse key
Featured Articles:
- 20 Linux System Monitoring Tools Every SysAdmin Should Know
- My 10 UNIX Command Line Mistakes
- 10 Greatest Open Source Software Of 2009
- Top 5 Email Client For Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows Users
- Top 20 OpenSSH Server Best Security Practices
- Top 10 Open Source Web-Based Project Management Software
- Top 5 Linux Video Editor Software
- Email FAQ to a friend
- Download PDF version
- Printable version
- Comment RSS feed
- Last Updated: 12/28/08
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
That was so helpful:) I couldn’t figure out how I made my numpad keys control my mouse and how to make them type numbers again, till I read that article. The answer is Shift+NumLock. Thanks a lot!!!
Just a heads up; a bug with remote desktop — e.g. how Vino serves your X to tightVNC — can randomly turn on the mouse keys function. Again, Shift+NumLock will remedy the situation.
BEST POST EVER YOUR A GOD AMONG MORTALS!!! I was about to strangle a moose if I couldn’t get this sorted out “had to do an expense report really wanted my number pad back.” THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU. I thought my vm had buggered me up. THANKS AGAIN!!! post this in ubuntu forums as a tut too would ya?
Is there a way to disable the Shift-NumLock shortcut? This feature is annoying. In WinXP I can disable the keyboard shortcuts for a11y features.
Thank you so much! Whoever created a shortcut to enable this “feature” should pay for all of our wasted hours.
Thanks a lot for this post. I had turned it on by accident a few days before this post and just googled “keypad as a mouse pad in Linux” and this was the first one. I’m glad I chose this one first. Thanks again!
Thank you so much for that post!
Disabling that shortcut would be most useful indeed.
Shift-NumLock is a pretty unlikely combination, but the last few days have proved that I accidentally press it quite often.