I want calculator to steal focus!

I have a microsoft keyboard with a calculator button above the numpad. When i run calc.exe form the start menu it pops up in front and in focus. However, when i run calc by hitting the keyboard button, calculator starts in the background behind whatever im working on - i have to then use alt-tab or click on the taskbar icon to bring it forward.
Whats going on and how can I get calculator to open in foreground?

Thanks.

I don't know what the problem is, but then I'm on a Logitech keyboard, and it pops right out on top like it should, either by keyboard or start menu.

I have a microsoft keyboard also and when I press the calculator button it comes to the front

Microsoft Keyboard I have

I'm running windows 7 64 ultimate and using the latest win 7 64 keyboard drivers: IntelliType Pro 7.0 64-bit for Windows 7. Using the microsoft "digital media pro keyboard".

I've tried its default config and even assigned the key manually to open calc.exe in both the sysWOW64 and system32 folders.

Also noticed that it always open behind the current window, so if i have 5 windows open, it will appear behind the front one. This is inexplicable. Are there any operators I can type at the end of the file path that will make it open in focus?

Does your keyboard have a driver that permits you to assign function to your hotkeys? If so, and all else fails, you could download a different calculator and point the calculator key to it.

Yeh, the firmware allows me to assign any function to the key. By default, the radio button is set to 'Starts Calculator' but you can set the radio button to 'Start a program, Web page, or file' - which is the setting I used to manually point to calc.exe.

I'd rather use the windows calculator if possible though - there must be some reason why it starts in the background - any uber geeks here that can explain it?

UPDATE - found some more forums with similar threads. A workaround is to right-click on calc.exe and apply a keyboard shortcut ie. Ctrl + Alt + C. Go to the keyboard config and set the button to 'keystroke' and use the same keyboard shortcut.

IMPORTANT - You must apply the shortcut to the keyboard button FIRST, then apply the shortcut to calc.exe SECOND. Otherwise, when you try to tap the keyboard shortcut into the keyboard config box, calc will pop up and prevent you from applying the shortcut.

This works great. One little note I had to figure out myself. You have to right-click on the shortcut in accessories in the start menu and apply the keyboard shortcut. When you go to C:\Windows\Syswow64\calc.exe there is no option to create a keyboard shortcut. I instead right-clicked on the shortcut in my start menu and made the ctrl-alt-c keyboard short cut...Thanks Mikedz, worked great!!

As far as I can see, the problem does not lie with calc.exe itself.

I'm using IntelliType Pro 7.0 / Windows 7 Ultimate / Microsoft Digital Media Keyboard 1.0A.

I tried assigning calc.exe to one of the 5 generic shortcut keys at the top of the keyboard. It successfully opened the calculator on top of everything else, with focus as it should.

It is only when I use the special Calculator key with the wee picture of a calculator on it that there are issues.

1. For me it also appears behind the front window - not at the back, but just one space too far back!
2. When I am using Remote Desktop and I press the calculator button, it opens it both on the remote machine and on my machine. This has been a quirk of the Calculator button i've observed in the past. The five generic shortcut keys don't exhibit this behaviour, though. I've not tested "Log Off" and "Sleep" just in case!

My suspicion is that this is maybe even an issue with the keyboard itself. I think I was able to use the Calculator button before even installing IntelliType. Maybe IntelliType only handles the generic custom shortcut keys.

Does anyone have any thoughts to confirm/deny this?

- Ken

I'm not at my regular machine at the moment so can't test, but I have experienced calc opening behind the frontmost page - not right at the back. I havent tested using the other config buttons to open calc. It must be a firmware issue that the boffins havent gotten round to sorting yet.

This is just the phenomenon I experienced today. I too have a Microsoft keyboard (Wireless Media Desktop set), and the calculator button pops up the Windows Calculator, but it doesn't get focus. IntelliType installed, Windows 7 Ultimate x64. Strange behavior, if you ask me.

I have the same problem. Every app is starting under active. Fluses few times and stay until I bring it to front. (Windows 7 x64).

I discovered that when I hold and push again calc button it apears as active and only then other buttons function properly bringing all apps to the foreground. You have to do it once and to another system restart works fine. But it isn't working the other way (media button - hold - push...).

I have made some progress on this issue, it seems that without IntelliType software, it works OK. Only after installing the software does this happen. Pressing the calculator button a second time makes the window get focus, so just tap it twice, if you want the calculator

Try the following batch file. View attachment calculator.bat Note that you will need to right-click, select Properties and then click Unblock.
Save this with a suitable name (I suggest Calculator) and give it a .bat file extension. You can save the file where you like, but if you wish to save it in the System32 directory, you will need to provide administrative credentials.

Now point the calculator key to this file.


When you press the key now, the command window will briefly flash, but the calculator will appear and will have focus.

calc.exe to the front

if you create a shortcut to the .bat file and right click and set it to run minimized, then use the path to the shortcut, the cmd window will never show up.

Calculator to front

I also had this problem with the calculator button on my Microsoft Comfort Curve Keyboard 2000. I uninstalled Microsoft IntelliType Pro 7 and the calculator now opens in front with focus when I push the calculator button.

Windows Update fixes this now!

Hi everyone,

I was just downloading some updates from Windows Update this morning and noticed one in the "Optional" category called "Microsoft - Other hardware - Microsoft Hardware USB Keyboard".

The "More information" link sends you to here:

Winqual Help

(Note: This only works on IE. Boo!)

It basically explains it's just a new driver, BUT I noticed this could be something special when it started to install a new version of Intellitype as well. I tested the Calculator button first of all to see if it still exhibited the same behaviour. Sure enough - it appeared behind the front window, but not at the back of the pile.

I then installed the new version of the Intellitype software and tried again. This time - success! The calculator appeared at the front as it should. If you look very closely you can see it briefly appears behind the front window and then comes to the front. I only noticed because of the position of my two Notepad windows I was using to test it.

Anyway, that's it. It works now!

My device manager is now showing my keyboard as having driver version 8.0.219.0 which is dated June 29th, 2010. Too bad it took me a few months to notice the optional update!

Hopefully this has been helpful to someone. Happy calculator usage!

- Ken

This was my problem / solution

Had this problem intermittently with every program launched from keyboard. (when I was the most busy, of course)

Specifies the time, following user input, during which the system keeps applications from moving into the foreground.

Default: 200000

ForegroundLockTimeout


Edit : (did not help )