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Re: Wikipedia -- expanding Apple II presence with new articles



BluPhoenyx wrote:
Michael J. Mahon wrote:


I have a couple of "nits" to point out:  1) the two Apple keys are not
"function" keys (which deliver a key code), but "modifier" keys, like
Shift and Control.  2) You refer to the internal game port as "a set
of pins" when it would be more descriptive to say, "a 16-pin DIP
socket".


No. The Apple keys are push button switches and require software control. Modifiers such as the shift key function in hardware. It is possible for software to react to the switches in a function oriented manner. Such software will also react to the push buttons on a joystick.

Of course, that is the implementation.  But the functional description
at the level of this page is the point.  And at that level, the Apple
keys are used by applications almost exclusively as key modifiers, not
as pushbuttons.

In any event, they are not at all like "function keys", which deliver
keypresses on their own.

-michael

Music synthesis for 8-bit Apple II's!
Home page:  http://members.aol.com/MJMahon/

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