[lewinr]

I use F1-F12 quite often and it annoys me when the Fn key gets turned off, which happens quite often because I use it with the Fn+Arrow Keys to get access to PgUp/PgDown/Home/End without having to toggle Fn each time.

Does anybody know any to tell SB and/or Win10 just to keep the Fn key enabled/locked all the time and never to disable it?

It will make dealing with F1-F12 keys much less frustrating as now when I push a F1..F12 key about 1 time in 5 it turns out the Fn key has been turned off and I end up pressing "End" instead F9 in excel (for example...)

Thanks to anybody who has a solution for this...

[TheJoester09]

I have a Surface Pro 3, and if you hold Fn and press Caps, it'll be reverse the function of the top row. I'm assuming it works the same way with the Surface Book.

[lewinr]

On SB we have the same functionality just by touching the key once... the function of the top row is toggled without needing to hold Caps. And that's the problem, an inadvertent touch (or a poorly timed "hold Fn+some other key") results in the function being toggled without me realizing it... that's why I want somehow keep the key locked. Sounds like I would prefer the SP3 keyboard...

[anon(9409166)]

Hold the FN key down for 10 seconds. The little light in the upper right hand corner of the FN key itself will light up and stay that way between reboots.

..mb

[lewinr]

Thanks. I tried it... the lights does come on (as it would normally when pressing the button) but doesnt stay "locked"... as soon as I touch the button again the light toggles off. I didnt try to reboot since that is basically irrelevant to what I need... If anybody else has a different result please let me know... thanks

[le_pie]

My experience with other laptops is that the firmware will sometimes have a toggle allowing the F keys to work normally, or with alternate functions as the default. Have you checked the firmware to see if that's an option for you? I don't own a SB or I would look myself.

[orlbuckeye]

The Surface Book the Function Keys work similar to all PC's. Like F5 does a refresh of the screen while holding the Fn key and F5 Lowers volume.

[Dush Ku]

If you hold the button and press a Fn key it doesn't toggle the light on and off. So you can lock the function, just don't unlock it and turn the light off.

[lewinr]

le_pie, I checked the firmware and there is no way to lock the Fn key. Hopefully it will be added in the future.

others: you seem to be missing my point that sometimes I accidentally hit the Fn key and turn it off... so the next time I try to use it I get the opposite function of what I expect. That's why I'm looking for a way to just keep it permanently enabled.

[Dush Ku]

Just put a bright red "do not touch" sticker on the key?

[le_pie]

Well, it was worth a try anyway.

It might be worthwhile using google and trying to find a software solution to the problem, like a utility that locks the key. it wouldn't help much with the desire to press it and an F key to get the alternate function, but it would keep the accidental presses from disrupting your use.

[Dush Ku]

Maybe there is a reg hack, the way you can disable certain keyboard keys like the windows key via registry

[cracgor]

I have a Surface Pro 3, and if you hold Fn and press Caps, it'll be reverse the function of the top row. I'm assuming it works the same way with the Surface Book.

Did you try this?

[lewinr]

Did you try this?

Yes, it does not work this way on the Surface Book but I wish it did. On the Surface Pro 3, Fn + Caps toggles the function of the top row. On the SB, just pressign Fn (without caps) does the same thing. As a result if you press Fn by accident, or if you type fast an mis-time a Fn+key combo (letting go of the Fn key before you press the other key) you change the function of the top row. This happens often to me and it is very frustrating when I push F9 expecting to recalculate in Excel and instead jump to the End cell.

I just wish there was a way to lock the function of the top row so when I push a F1..F11 key with or without the Fn key I can be 100% sure of what I will get!

[Christopher Lindsay]

Yes, it does not work this way on the Surface Book but I wish it did. On the Surface Pro 3, Fn + Caps toggles the function of the top row. On the SB, just pressign Fn (without caps) does the same thing. As a result if you press Fn by accident, or if you type fast an mis-time a Fn+key combo (letting go of the Fn key before you press the other key) you change the function of the top row. This happens often to me and it is very frustrating when I push F9 expecting to recalculate in Excel and instead jump to the End cell.

I just wish there was a way to lock the function of the top row so when I push a F1..F11 key with or without the Fn key I can be 100% sure of what I will get!

I'm a bit confused. If you have the FN key locked on, why are you pressing it to do things you already have it set on to do?

[lewinr]

I have Fn locked on for easy access to F1...F12 keys. Then I need to use the PgUp/PgDn/Home/End keys, so I must use Fn in conjunction with F8...F11 or the arrow keys.

[crossoft]

I can't believe how many don't get it...the question is really straightforward. We have Fn on. But a stray finger bumps it and you don't know it. Til you try a Ctrl+F4 and instead of closing a document, it turns the speakers on (or off). Not complicated. There was an app back in the day called "CapsUnlock" that turned Caps lock off if you turned it on. The same principle, but for the Fn key (and also, keeping it on, not off).

[lewinr]

Yes, exactly. Thank you :)

ABout CapsLock: There is a nice "accessibility" feature in Windows to alert you with a a beep when you toggle Caps Lock. (open start menu and type "caps lock" and feature will come up in search.) If we cant lock Fn on (or off) then at least it would be great to have this feature expanded to cover the Fn key also. (By the way, the lack of this feature for the Fn key is an accessibility issue on the Surface Book.)

[midnightfrolic]

You could try AutoHOTKEY macro. Map the Fn key to always turn on Fn instead of toggle. You can also map each individual F1-F12 to always invoke that specific F function regardless of what combo key you press. AutoHotKey is free. I used it for gaming whenever it requires mindless button mashing. :D

Just a suggestion. You could get a keyboard with single function keys instead of dual function keys. Meaning F1-F12 will ONLY have those function instead of additional special functions. If you require them THAT much, it'd be worth the while to have a single purpose keyboard.

[wangxi]

do you find a way ?

I also want the keyboard behavor just like normal key board

fn as a toggle really mess it up (who knows when will I accidentally turn it off ?)

I just want F keys as default and press FN+F keys to active other multimedia functions, but click only FN does not make any change at all.

[lewinr]

I didnt find a solution and I doubt there is one. I believe the Fn key is a hard-key, I've had cases where the whole notebook crashed but the Fn key continued to toggle.

I recently bought a $19 Logitech multimedia keyboard for my desktop which has a similar Fn key, and was pleasantly surprised when I installed the drivers and found a setting to disable the Fn key toggle. (So F1.F12 keys work as F1..F12 and you key multimedia functions only when Fn is held down.) I wish the Surface Book had the same feature. :(

[Hugo Minney1]

Hold down FN key for 10 seconds. It toggles the top row. To test, see if F6 increases volume or does something else, or see if F1 brings up help.

[lewinr]

I'm not sure what you mean... just touching the Fn key for any amount of time toggles the top row... that's the problem!
It tried holding the key down for 10 seconds but did not see any difference. If it would lock the Fn key when holding it down for 10 seconds, that would be good! (And if it could be set in the BIOS to have Fn always on, it would be perfect.)

[T Castle]

I get it. Fn does not seem to generate a keycode but merely modifies the effect of certain keys. With Fn lit, the F4 key is F4; with Fn unlit, the F4 key is mute volume.

I've just started testing, but this AutoHotKey command keeps Alt/F4 working whether or not the Fn key is lit: !Volume_Mute::!F4

You could add similar commands for whatever additional function keys you routinely rely on (typically, F2 and F5).

Of course, in order to mute volume or trigger any of the other functions that share with the function keys, the Fn key needs to remain unlit.

[lewinr]

T Castle, thanks for the tip. As I understand this effectively makes the "mute" key map to the F4 function, correct? So it makes the mute function (or any other multimedia function key for which I setup the same mapping) unavailable on the keyboard and only accessible via the standard windows interface, correct? If so this will work but it is not ideal... sometimes it is still nice to be able to hit a key to mute the sound...