On the other hand, to illustrate Windows [[Alt code]]s you might want to use separate templates with no intervening punctuation or space. In most Windows systems in North America and Western Europe, for example, the [[plus-minus sign]] (±) can be entered by holding down the Alt key while typing <code>0177</code> (with the [[numeric keypad]]). This could be illustrated like this:
On the other hand, to illustrate Windows [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Alt_code Alt code]s you might want to use separate templates with no intervening punctuation or space. In most Windows systems in North America and Western Europe, for example, the [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/plus-minus_sign plus-minus sign] (±) can be entered by holding down the Alt key while typing <code>0177</code> (with the [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/numeric_keypad numeric keypad]). This could be illustrated like this:
Some wiki markup character, like the [[Pipe symbol]], the [[Semicolon]] and the [[Equals sign]], need to be entered using the {{tl|!}}, {{tl|;}} and {{tl|{{=}}}} templates:
Some wiki markup character, like the [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Pipe_symbol Pipe symbol], the [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Semicolon Semicolon] and the [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Equals_sign Equals sign], need to be entered using the {{tl|!}}, {{tl|;}} and {{tl|{{=}}}} templates:
[[File:Ctl wndws alt.jpg|thumb|200px|Old-style Windows key]]
[[File:Ctl wndws alt.jpg|thumb|200px|Old-style Windows key]]
There are no characters for the [[Windows key]] and [[Menu key]]. Besides, the Windows logo is [[trademark]]ed. So this template shows approximate characters for them in the following way:
There are no characters for the [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_key Windows key] and [http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Menu_key Menu key]. Besides, the Windows logo is [[http://wikipedia.org/wiki/Trademark trademark]ed. So this template shows approximate characters for them in the following way:
This is the {{key press}} template, which can be used to illustrate keystrokes. Typographically it works best with examples that are separated from the normal flow of text, e.g. in table cells. It can also be used in lists (as in this page), but it may be a good idea to add an empty line between each list item, so the key borders won't overlap each other.
Example:
{{key press|A}} produces A
Keystroke combinations
To illustrate keystroke combinations, just use extra parameters:
{{key press|Alt|P}} produces Alt+P
{{key press|Ctrl|Alt|Del}} produces Ctrl+Alt+Del
This template currently handles up to 5 key name parameters. If it gets too many key name parameters it reports the page into Category:Wikipedia keypress template parameter needs fixing. This means we can easily find those pages and fix them, or we can discover if we need to make this template take more parameters.
When you feed several key names to this template, it adds a "+" with no spaces around. This means it won't line wrap. But when you show key combinations for instance in a table then that might cause too wide items. Then instead manually build the key combination with spaces around the "+" so it can line wrap. Like this:
{{key press|Ctrl}} + {{key press|Alt}} + {{key press|Del}} produces Ctrl + Alt + Del
On the other hand, to illustrate Windows Alt codes you might want to use separate templates with no intervening punctuation or space. In most Windows systems in North America and Western Europe, for example, the plus-minus sign (±) can be entered by holding down the Alt key while typing 0177 (with the numeric keypad). This could be illustrated like this:
If you are wikilinking the keys, please ensure that you are piping to the correct page (e.g. [[Control key|Ctrl]] instead of [[Ctrl]], which leads to a disambiguation page).
Wiki characters
Some wiki markup character, like the Pipe symbol, the Semicolon and the Equals sign, need to be entered using the {{!}}, {{;}} and {{=}} templates:
{{key press|{{!}}}} produces |
{{key press|{{;}}}} produces ;
{{key press|{{=}}}} produces =
However, if the characters are marked as wikilinks, they can be entered as such:
There are no characters for the Windows key and Menu key. Besides, the Windows logo is [trademarked. So this template shows approximate characters for them in the following way:
{{key press|Win}} produces ⊞ Win
{{key press|Menu}} produces ≣ Menu
Technical details
This template calls {{key press/core}}, which holds the code that otherwise would be repeated several times in {{key press}}, thus simplifying the code.
See also
{{pskeypress}} – For PlayStation-style controllers.