Using dead multimedia keys in Linux.

2016-08-20 20:46:22, In: Linux, Keyboard, Hack

For years I was using a KeyMaestro keyboard connected to PS/2 port. This keyboard is a normal AT keyboard with a set of multimedia/Internet keys. When I switched to Linux, I decided to still stick with it as most multimedia keys were working OK.
But not all the keys. Let's try to make them all running.
First, you should know how the keyboard is used in Linux. The user presses a key, then the keyboard emits the code. Driver in Linux kernel emits the SCANCODE, and Linux program responsible for keyboard mapping maps it to KEYCODE. The keycode may be then used by the system (to be translated to letter as keysym, but we don't go up this level). This way many different keyboards for different platforms may be used by only altering the scancode-to-keycode translation method.
To make key do things we want, we must get its keycode. The most simple method is to use xev and, after seeing the window, pressing the keys. In the console, you will...

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