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Handling Key Events

A Mac OS X system generates key events when a user presses a key on a keyboard or presses several keys simultaneously. When more than one key is pressed, one or more of those keys modifies the significance of the “main” key that is pressed. The most commonly used modifier keys are the Command, Control, Option (Alt), and Shift keys. In certain contexts and combinations, key presses represent commands to the operating system or the frontmost application and not characters to be inserted into text.

This chapter discusses how you handle key events, particularly key-down events.

Contents:

Overview of Key Events
Overriding the keyDown: Method
Handling Key Equivalents
Keyboard Interface Control

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