NaturalPoint TrackIR Users Manual version 4.0.020   5 The TrackIR software 5.1 Overview The TrackIR software is the interface between the TrackIR, games and simulations, and you. In order to use your TrackIR, the software must be running. It is recommended that you minimize the software while playing games and simulations, this will consume the the fewest system resources (less than 2% on most PCs).   5.2 Using the TrackIR with Games (basic operation) In order to use the TrackIR with a game or simulation, the game must be TrackIR Enhanced. A list of games that are TrackIR Enhanced can be found in the "Profiles" panel of the software. Once you have determined that a game is TrackIR Enhanced, you can continue to the next step. Verify that the TrackIR software is running before starting the simulation that you wish to use with TrackIR. Once the game is running and the virtual cockpit is activated, it should be possible to control the view by moving your head. Some games may require you to turn on support for the TrackIR in the game. If the TrackIR it does not work immediately, please consult the game's manual or manufacturer support for more details. For information about using the TrackIR with games which are not TrackIR-Enhanced please see Section 4.3.   5.3 Using Profiles (advanced operation) Note : Naming Conventions. Games and simulations are referred to as "Titles" in the TrackIR version 4.0 software. Profiles are a collection of settings (motion, hot keys, etc.) that optimize the response of the TrackIR for different game conditions and user preferences. Primarily, profiles control how real head movement of the user is converted into view control. It is possible to increase or decrease the speed and precision of the view movement by editing profiles. It is also possible to inver and disable each individual Axis. The default installation of the TrackIR software includes several sample profiles which have been tuned to perform well for a wide variety of games and simulations. The sample profiles provide a good starting point for customizing the motion to suit your needs as you become more familiar with using the TrackIR. Profiles can be loaded manually (with Exclusive-load), or they can be associated with a particular game to be loaded automatically when it runs. The following section describes how to work with profiles and adjust them to best suit your needs.   5.3.1 Associating Profiles with Games The TrackIR software allows you to associate profiles with a TrackIR Enhanced Title so that the profile will be loaded automatically when the Title starts. In order to associate profiles with games, open the Profiles Tab in the Main window of the TrackIR Software. There is a list of supported TrackIR Enhanced Titles on the top half of the window under the heading "Assign Profiles to Titles". The left side lists the names of Titles while the right side displays the associated auto-load profile. To change the auto-load profile for a Title, click on the drop-down list on the right-hand side and select a new one from the list of available profiles. Keep in mind that the profile will not be loaded until the Title is started.   5.3.2 Exclusively Loading a Profile If you wish to use a specific profile without waiting for it to be Auto-Loaded by a game, it can be manually loaded the "Exclusive-Load" feature. Please note that as long as the Exclusive-Load feature is active, the Auto-Loading of Profiles will be disabled. In order use the Exclusive Load feature, open the Profiles Tab in the Main window of the TrackIR Software. At the bottom of the window there is a list which displays all of the profiles. On the right-hand side of this list is a column with the title "Exclusive Load". Each profile in the list has a checkbox in this column, clicking on a checkbox will manually load the profile. Note : Clicking an Exclusive-Load checkbox will disable the list of TrackIR Enhanced titles (the top half of this Profiles screen will turn grey), until the Exclusive-Load checkbox is un-checked. TrackIR Enhanced Titles still work with this feature enabled, however they will not auto-load profiles.   5.3.3 Creating, Copying and Deleting Profiles In addition to the sample profiles provided with the software installation, new profiles can also be created. It is also possible to copy and delete existing profiles. In order to accomplish these tasks, open the Profiles Tab of the Main window in the TrackIR Software. At the bottom of the window there is a list which displays all of the profiles, there are also several buttons below the list which allow you to perform actions with the profiles. Creating new profiles Pressing the "New" button will create a new profile and add it to the list after you have entered a name for it. Copying a profile Pressing the "Copy" button will make a copy of the profile that is currently highlighted in the profile list. The new copied profile will be added to the profile list with "Copy of" added to the beginning of the profile name, you can change the name of this profile by clicking the "Edit" button. Deleting a profile Pressing the "Delete" button will delete the profile that is currently highlighted in the profile list. Before the profile is deleted, you will be prompted to confirm deletion.   5.3.4 Editing Profiles To optimize the performance of the TrackIR, users can customize profiles to best suit the needs of a particular game or group of games. Profiles are a powerful way to help you get the most out of your TrackIR as you become more familiar with it. In order to edit a profile, select it from the list of profiles in the Profiles Tab of the main TrackIR software window, then click on the Edit button which will launch the Edit Profile window.   5.3.4.1 Selecting the Tracking mode The tracking mode that the TrackIR software is operating in determines whether just Pitch and Yaw (2DOF) or full 6DOF (Pitch, Yaw, Roll, X, Y, X) are available for view control. The tracking mode is controlled by the "Tracking Type" radio button on the Motion Tab of the Edit Profile window. For more information about tracking modes, see Section Section 4.2 Note : This setting is stored on a per-profile basis. To change the tracking mode you must have a profile open for edit. For details on how to edit a profile, please see Section 5.3.3 Note : In order to use Vector tracking mode, you must purchase and activate a Vector Expansion. For more information on the Vector Expansion, please see Section 4.1.2 .   5.3.4.2 Editing Acceleration Curves (Adjusting Speed) Each Axis of head movement that the TrackIR software is able to track can be adjusted to have a faster and slower response to your real head movement. The TrackIR software uses an Acceleration Curve to amplify your real head movement, this allows complete control of the in-game view with only a few degrees of head movement. Changing the Acceleration Curve for an Axis allows you to fine-tune the amount of head movement used to control your view, it also be used to create Dead-Zones which help keep the view stable for types of use like Flight Simulation combat. Hint : You can preview the effects of your changes in both the "Heads" and "Gauges" pop-up windows while you are using the Curve Editor. This will help you understand the how the changes affect your view control motion. You can find out more about these windows in Section 5.5.3 and Section 5.5.4 In order change an Acceleration Curve, you need to open the Acceleration Curve editor. This is done by selecting (clicking once) the Axis you wish to edit from the Axis list and pressing the "Edit" button in the Motion Tab of the Edit Profile Window (you must have a profile open for edit). The Acceleration Curve editor has a graph which displays how much the motion for the Axis is amplified. The horizontal center of the graph is the origin of the Axis, this corresponds to the "Center" of your head movement that is set by pressing the Center Hotkey. Head movement away from the center of the Axis is represented as moving left or right from the origin on the graph. The control points on the graph allow you to edit the curve by clicking and dragging the points, or by using the Position and Value controls to select and change the values of individual edit points. Moving a point "up" on the graph will increase the amount of amplification for head movement. Moving a point "down" on the graph will reduce the amount of amplification, moving a point to the bottom of the graph (zero) will prevent head movement from being sent to the TrackIR Enhanced Title while your head is within that area of the Axis. Presets, which can be loaded using the Acceleration drop-down list, should cover basic tracking needs. The Copy button and drop-down list can be used to copy your Acceleration curve to other Axes. Note : As the speed of view control is increased or decreased, you may wish to adjust the amount of smoothing that is used. Increasing the speed will often require an increase in the amount of smoothing to ensure that the view control remains stable and smooth. For details on how to change the smoothing amount, see Section 5.5.6.2   5.3.4.3 Changing Hotkeys The TrackIR software allows the user to re-map keys from their keyboard and assign them to perform important actions in the TrackIR software. Our software allows you to select the key used to perform these actions, as well as turning the hotkey on or off, and other features. In order to change the settings for a hotkey, open the Hotkeys tab of the Edit Profile window, there is a list of all the available hotkeys and their settings. For more information about the specific hotkey settings, please see Section 5.5.6.4 Note : When a hotkey is enabled and the Trap setting is checked, the keyboard key assigned to that hotkey action will not be available to any other windows program. If you wish for that keyboard key to be used by other programs, you will need to either re-assign the hotkey to a new keyboard key or disable the Trap setting for it (which means that the key will still perform the hotkey action but will be then passed on to other windows programs). Note : These settings are stored on a per-profile basis. To change hotkey settings you must have a profile open for edit. For details on how to edit a profile. please see Section 5.3.3   5.3.5 Organizing Profiles with Filters There are a large number of titles which feature TrackIR Enhanced support. For this reason it is sometimes useful to reduce the number of titles that are displayed at a time in the TrackIR Enhanced Title list. The Filter feature for Titles allows you to display either all Titles, or just the Titles associated with a particular category (for example "Flight", "Racing", etc). The category that a Title is grouped under is pre-determined by NaturalPoint and cannot be changed, however there is one extra category that is customizable called "Favorites". You can add Titles into the Favorites category by right clicking on the Title and selecting "Add to Favorites".   5.4 Using the Motion Preview and Tracking Windows There are a number of utilities built into the TrackIR4 software to help you get the most of your experience, as well as to help you easily resolve any tracking or motion problems that you may encounter. Each of the following windows can be launched from either the "View" menu in the main TrackIR software window, or from checkboxes found in the Edit Profiles, Motion tab.   5.4.1 Heads Window The Heads window allows you to see the movement of your real head alongside a preview of the amplified head movement that is sent to TrackIR Enhanced Titles (games and simulations) for view control. While editing a profile, this window will provide instant feedback about how the changes you make will affect in-game view control. For more details on using this window, please see Section 5.5.4   5.4.2 Gauges Window The Gauges window displays each Axis that the TrackIR is capable of tracking, depending on the current Tracking mode it will update either 2 or all 6 Axes. The gauges window displays a graph of the Acceleration Curve for each Axis along with lines representing the current tracking information. This can be useful while editing Acceleration Curves for getting an idea of what part of the Curve that your head movement is in, as well as how that movement is amplified using the curve. For more details on using this window, please see Section 5.5.3   5.4.3 Tracking Window The Tracking window provides instant feedback about what the TrackIR camera is tracking, and what is in it's field of view. This helps you adjust the position of yourself and the TrackIR camera to get the best range of motion and tracking results. For more details on using this window, please see Section 5.5.5   5.5 Description of the Software 5.5.1 Overview The TrackIR software has been optimized to provide you with the best experience possible, it gives you a simple, yet powerful and highly customizable way to use TrackIR device for in-game view control. For most users, the default configuration and settings should provide a good starting point for enjoying the TrackIR experience with their favorite games and simulations. The powerful Profile system allows users to customize the behavior of the TrackIR to best suit their needs. For more information on how to work with profiles, please see Section 5.3   5.5.2 Main Window This window displays basic status information and serves as a gateway to the other features in the TrackIR software. There are additional features on individual tabs which control how the software works, the features on each of these tabs will be explained further below in detail.   Main Profiles File menu Exit : Clicking this menu item will close the TrackIR software. View menu Tracking : This menu item controls whether the Tracking Window is visible or not, clicking it will display or hide the Tracking window depending on whether it is already visible or not.   Heads : This menu item controls whether the Heads Window is visible or not, clicking it will display or hide the Heads window depending on whether it is already visible or not.   Gauges : This menu item controls whether the Gauges Window is visible or not, clicking it will display or hide the Gauges window depending on whether it is already visible or not. Options menu Run at Startup : When checked, the TrackIR software will automatically start as soon as Windows loads, every time you turn on or restart your computer.   Options menu : Run Minimized : When checked, the TrackIR Software will run in a minimized state when it is started.   Options menu : Close to Tray : When checked, this option places the TrackIR software into the System Tray when the application is minimized.   Help menu Contents : This menu item launches the TrackIR users manual that you are reading!   Check for Updates : Clicking this menu item will launch a NaturalPoint web page that allows you to check if new updates are available for the TrackIR software.   About TrackIR : This menu item launches a window with information about the version of the software you are using, and contains a link to the NaturalPoint website.   Status bar Status : Information about whether a reflective object is being tracked will be displayed here. If no objects is found to track, or no TrackIR camera is connected, then it will display "No Data"   Tracking : The current tracking mode is shown here, it will indicate either "Vector" or "Dot".   Center : This displays the keyboard key that is currently assigned to the Center hotkey action.   Enable : This displays the keyboard key that is currently assigned to the Enable hotkey action.   5.5.2.1 Main Tab The Main Tab provides basic information about the status of the software, the TrackIR hardware and the Vector Expansion. Device Info Information about the TrackIR hardware that is connected to your computer is displayed here, it will indicate the Model type and Serial number of your device. Current Game If a TrackIR Enhanced game is running and has connected to the TrackIR software, then the name of the game will be displayed here. Current Profile The name of the Profile (settings) that is currently loaded will be displayed here, this will be updated when a profile is loaded manually or auto-loaded by a TrackIR enhanced Title (game or simulation). Expansion This area displays the status of the Vector Expansion for the TrackIR, there are 4 different states that can be shown. A link under the graphic can be clicked to launch a NaturalPoint web page with more detailed information.   No Device Detected : No TrackIR was found   Vector Expansion not Activated : No License for the Vector Expansion was found   License file is not valid : A License was found for the Vector Expansion, but it is not valid for the TrackIR that is connected   Vector is active : A TrackIR is connected and a valid License for the Vector Expansion is installed For details about the Vector Expansionm see Section 4.1.2 and Section 3.3   5.5.2.2 Profiles Tab The Profiles Tab allows you to organize, create, edit, load, and assign profiles to a particular Title (game or simulation) is started. For details about how to work with profiles and the TrackIR Enhanced Title list, please see Section 5.3 Assign Profiles to Titles (TrackIR Enhanced Title list) This list contains all of the Titles that have implemented TrackIR Enhanced support. It allows you to assign a profile to each title to be auto-loaded using the drop-down list in the right-hand column, basic information about the title can be found by double clicking on the name in the list. For more details about how to use these features, please see section 5.3.1 Filter The Filter drop-down list allows you to customize which games show up in the TrackIR Enhanced Title list. For more details about how to use this feature, please see section 5.3.5 Available Profiles This list contains all of the Profiles that are available to be used. Profiles can be added, copied and deleted from this list using the buttons below it. It is also possible to manually load a single profile and prevent other profiles from being auto-loaded by using the Exclusive Load checkbox in the right-hand column. For more details about how to use these features, please see Section 5.3.2, Section 5.3.3, Section 5.3.4 5.5.3 Gauges The Gauges window displays each Axis that the TrackIR is capable of tracking, it provides valuable feedback about your head movement, and is especially useful when editing Acceleration Curves to tune the performance of the TrackIR. This window can be launched from the View menu of the main window, or from the Motion Tab of the Edit Profile window. Graphs The gauges window displays a graph of the Acceleration Curve for each Axis along with lines representing the current tracking information. On each graph a vertical blue line is shown indicating the origin (center) of the Axis, a vertical red line represents your Real head position and a vertical yellow line represents the amplified head position which is sent to TrackIR Enhanced Titles (games and simulations) for view control. These lines update on the graphs as you move your head while it is being tracked by the TrackIR. Double clicking on a graph will open that Axis of the current profile for editing. Now Previewing The profile that is currently loaded or being edited will be displayed here, the Acceleration Curves displayed in the gauges window will be updated to reflect the Acceleration Curves if they are being edited.   Main Profiles 5.5.4 Heads The Heads window shows the movement of your real head alongside a preview of the amplified head movement based on the settings of the current profile. While editing a profile, this window will provide instant feedback about how the changes you make will affect in-game view control. This window can be launched from the View menu of the main window, or from the Motion Tab of the Edit Profile window. Your Head This head displays the movement of your real head as it is tracked by the TrackIR In-game Head This head displays a preview of the amplified head movement that is sent to TrackIR Enhanced Titles (games and simulations) for view control. Now Previewing The profile that is currently loaded or being edited will be displayed here, the motion shown in the Heads window will be based on the settings for that profile. View This drop-down list allows you to select between previewing your real head motion (Mirror), and a demonstration of what each axis is and what kind of movement it tracks (Pitch, Yaw, Roll, X, Y, X). 5.5.5 Tracking This window displays a video image which shows what the TrackIR camera is currently seeing, and is useful for solving any tracking problems that may occur. Use this window to make sure that you are centered within the TrackIR camera's field of view, which will give you the best range of motion. This window can be launched from the View menu of the main window, or from the Motion Tab of the Edit Profile window. Camera View The color of the objects in the window indicates what they mean. A Green object indicates that the object is active and being used for view control. Grey to White objects are colored based on priority of the next best active object with white being the highest priority and grey being the lowest. Red objects have been filtered out and will not be tracked. Settings The button launches the Tracking Settings window which has additional controls for adjusting the tracking. 5.5.5.1 Tracking Settings Settings that affect how the TrackIR detects and tracks your motion are found in this window, they allow you to fine tune the tracking and are useful in resolving tracking problems that may occur. It is recommended that they are used in conjunction with the Camera View video in the Tracking Window. Camera LED's On This checkbox turns on or off the TrackIR camera's internal Infrared LEDs. This box is checked by default and must be checked when you are using reflective material to have your head movement tracked. If you are using battery powered LEDs for tracking instead of reflective material, you will want to turn the TrackIR Infrared LEds off. Camera Rotation This feature allows you to choose the correct rotation of the TrackIR unit if you have clipped the unit to any part of your laptop screen. To ensure that the proper rotation has been selected, compare the angle of your TrackIR unit to the graphic shown in this menu. If the TrackIR is upright (sitting on its stand), then the rotation should be set to 0. If the unit is positioned on its left or right side or is upside down, then the Camera Rotation should be set to 90, 270 or 180 degrees respectively. Light Filtering Use this Checkbox to enable or disable the slider bar which controls the Light Filtering. This slider bar is used to control the light filtering of the TrackIR camera. A higher setting will result in more light being filtered. If used in areas where there are strong lights shining, the slider may need to be set to a higher value to filter out the reflections caused by these lights. When used inside, a value of 130 should produce good results (or just un-check the Light Filtering checkbox). Increasing this setting above 200 may reduce the precision of your TrackIR device. Dot Tracking This group of controls allows you to adjust the type of object that the TrackIR will track when it is operating in Dot tracking mode, the settings have no effect when when operating in Vector Tracking mode.   Object Type There are two filter buttons which select the type of reflective target that the TrackIR will prefer to track. Selecting the type that matches the reflective target you are using will make your tracking experience more reliable. Dot The TrackIR looks for a reflective area that is approximately the same height and width. The Object Size slider is set to 100 by default and is designed to track objects that have a rounded or dot like appearance. TrackHAT When using the NaturalPoint TrackHAT or other narrow strips of reflective material, the Object Size slider is set to 200 and tells the software to look for objects that are long and narrow. Preferred Object Size This slider bar determines the preferred size (in pixels) of the reflective target for the TrackIR to track. The larger your dot, the greater the setting needs to be set to. Use blue LED for TrackIR Enhanced When this checkbox is checked, the Blue Case LED turns on whenever a TrackIR Enhanced Title (game or simulation) starts and connects to the TrackIR software. 5.5.6 Edit Profiles Window Profiles are a collection of settings (motion, hot keys, etc.) that optimize the response of the TrackIR for different game conditions and user preferences. The profiles window has several tabs with pages which have features that allow you to work with profiles, each page is explained further below in detail.   General Motion Hotkeys To edit a profile, select a profile from the Profiles list in the Profiles Tab of the main TrackIR software window and either press the "Edit button" or double click on it. For more information on working with profiles, please see Section 5.3 5.5.6.1 General The General Tab of the Edit Profile window allows you to view and edit the basic information for a profile. Name You can specify the name of the profile by entering it in this edit box, changing the name shown will rename the profile when the "OK" button is pressed. Renaming the profile here will also change the filename that is is saved under in the Profiles directory. Notes You can store your notes for the profile in this area. 5.5.6.2 Motion The Motion Tab of the Edit Profile window contains settings which control how head movement is converted into in-game view control. Adjusting the Profile settings contained in this Tab allow you to adjust the sensitivity of your view (faster or slower) and turn on and off each individual axis. For more information on working with profiles, please see Section 5.3 Tracking Type The tracking type determines which Tracking mode the TrackIR software should operate in, this affects how many Axes of view control are available for in-game view control (6DOF for Vector, 2DOF for Dot). Changing the Tracking mode is only possible when a valid Vector License is installed and a TrackIR camera is connected to the computer, otherwise the selector will be hidden from view. For more information on Tracking modes, please see Section 4.2 Axis list Every axis that is available for the currently selected Tracking mode is listed here, each axis has a number of settings and a Acceleration Curve that can be adjusted. When Vector tracking is activated all 6 Axes will be listed (Pitch, Yaw, Roll, X, Y, Z), when Dot tracking is activated only 2 Axes will be listed (Pitch, Yaw). Enabled When a checkbox in this column is checked for an Axis in the Axis list, tracking information for that Axis is sent to games or simulations. When it is not checked, no information about that Axis will be sent and it will remain centered in the game. Invert When a checkbox in this column is checked for an Axis in the Axis list, the tracking information for that Axis will be reversed. For example, checking the invert box for Pitch will make your in-game view turn to the right when you turn your head to the left. Acceleration Presets The Acceleration Curve for an Axis can easily be changed by using the drop-down box in this column, it will load a preset Acceleration Curve for that Axis. The change will be displayed in the Gauges window if it is open. Edit button This button allows you to edit the Axis that is currently selected in the Axis list, as soon as an Axis is selected the button's text will change to include the name of the Axis. It is also possible to edit an Axis by double clicking on it's name in the Axis list. Editing an Axis will launch the Curve Editor window. Edit button Smoothing The Smoothing is used to stabilize head movement as it is converted into in-game view control. Increasing the amount of smoothing will provide a steadier view, while decreasing the smoothing will make panning the view more responsive Preview Windows These checkboxes control whether the Motion Preview windows are visible or not, these windows provide useful feedback when customizing profiles. 5.5.6.3 Curve Editor The curve editor allows you to edit the Acceleration Curves that convert your Real head movement into in-game view control. For more information on editing curves, please see Section 5.3.4.2 Acceleration Curve graph The graph in this window shows the Acceleration Curve for the Axis that is being edited. Clicking on points in the graph allows them to be dragged up and down, which changes the speed of the in-game view for the associated range of head movement. It is very useful to have the Heads and Gauges window open when editing a Acceleration Curve. Axis This drop-down menu selects the Axis that to edit, changing it will load a new Axis for editing. Acceleration Preset Acceleration Curves can be loaded by selecting an item from this drop-down list, as soon as a profile has been edited, this list will auto-select the "Custom" entry. Shift Entire Curve To increase or decrease the overall speed of a Acceleration Curve, use the Shift Entire Curve control. Pressing the Up arrow will make the in-game view move faster through the entire range of head movement by shifting the entire Acceleration Curve upwards, likewise pressing the Down arrow will slow down the in-game view. Position The position control selects which point of the Acceleration Curve is being edited, the point that is currently selected will be indicated by being drawn as the outline of a circle instead of a filled-in circle. The center of the graph represents the origin (center) of the Axis, points on the graph further away from the origin correspond to head movement further from the center (that was defined by pressing the center Hotkey). Value The Value control adjusts the amount of amplification for the currently selected point of the Acceleration Curve. Pressing the Up arrow will make the in-game view move faster when your head movement is in this range of the Axis, likewise pressing the Down arrow will slow down the in-game view for that region. The graph of the Acceleration Curve will be updated as you make your changes. Mirror Values If Mirror Values is checked, then editing either side of the Acceleration Curve will instantly update the same area on the opposite side of the Acceleration Curve. If you wish to make the Curve behave differently on one side, you must disable this feature by un-checking it. Copy Curve to Axis The Acceleration Curve that is displayed in the Curve Editor can be copied to any Axis, or group of Axes by selecting which one(s) you want to copy it to and then pressing the "Copy" button. 5.5.6.4 Hotkeys The TrackIR software allows the user to re-map keys from their keyboard and assign them to perform important actions in the TrackIR software. For more information about the assigning hotkeys, please see Section 5.3.4.3 Pause Hotkey The Pause Hotkey allows you to control whether Head Movement information is sent to TrackIR Enhanced games for view control. Information on whether Pause is activated or not is available in both the Status bar at the bottom of the main window, and the Status LED on the front of the TrackIR camera. Center Hotkey The Center Hotkey allows you to re-center your in-game view, every time the Center Hotkey is pressed it re-defines your current head position as the new center. Moving your head away from the center position will begin to change your view, while returning your head to the center position will move the view back to the center. Precision The Precision Hotkey enables Precision mode which temporarily makes the view steadier by increasing the amount of smoothing that is used, when Precision mode is disabled again the smoothing returns to the normal amount for the profile. This is commonly used in combat flight simulators when tracking an enemy in your sights to keep the view as stable as possible. Enable checkboxes These turn the associated Hotkeys On and Off. Toggle checkboxes The Toggle feature changes the way the Hotkey works such that pressing the key once turns the associated hotkey feature on, and pressing the Hotkey again turns the feature back off. For example, turning Toggle on for the Precision hotkey would allow the user to turn Precision mode on with the first keypress, and turn Precision mode off with the next keypress, instead of only having Precision mode on while they key was held down. Trap checkboxes The Trap feature controls whether a keypress for the associated hotkey is shared with any other windows programs. If the Trap checkbox is checked, then keypresses for that hotkey will not be shared, if it is un-checked then they keypresses will be shared. Change buttons Clicking these buttons brings up a dialog box that allows the user to change the key assigned to the function listed next to the button. Note that you can only assign keyboard keys to as Hotkeys. Note : When a hotkey is enabled and the Trap setting is checked, the keyboard key assigned to that hotkey action will not be available to any other windows program. If you wish for that keyboard key to be used by other programs, you will need to either re-assign the hotkey to a new keyboard key or disable the Trap setting for it (which means that the key will still perform the hotkey action but will be then passed on to other windows programs).