Monday 30 March 2020

InputStickUtility v2.03 (Android)

Added Display Over Other Apps permission:

Android 10 requires apps running in the background to have "Draw over other apps" permission in order to display popup messages. Because of that it was necessary to add this permission to InputStickUtility app and now it affects devices running Android 10 and Android 9 (so far it seems that the app works properly on earlier Android versions even if the permission is not granted).

If the permission is not granted, InputStickUtility may not be able to automatically show following popup messages:

  • request to enable Bluetooth (if Auto-enable Bluetooth option was not activated in app settings)
  • request to select InputStick device (if you have more than one InputStick)
  • reminder to remove InputStick from USB port (if enabled in settings)
and it will be necessary to click on a notification in order to display popup message.

This popup should appear automatically during connection attempt (if you have 2 InputStick devices)

...but if the permission is not granted you will have to click on a notification in order to display the popup

It is highly recommended to give InputStickUtility the permission if:
  • your device is running Android 10 or Android 9
  • you have more than one InputStick device
  • InputStick is used by apps running in background (KP2A Plugin, USB Remote widgets, USB Remote Tasker plugin)

in other cases you can most likely ignore warnings about missing permission.

How to manage the permission?
open InputStickUtility → click Settings icon (top right corner) → Display over other apps → enable Allow display over other apps

How to disable permission warning?
If you are running Android 8 or earlier and everything works correctly you can disable warning messages. To do that: 
open InputStickUtility → click Settings icon (top right corner) → disable Display warning message option

InputStickUtility settings screen


Added macOS keyboard setup assistant:

When InputStick is plugged in for the very first time macOS will launch "Keyboard setup assistant" in order to identify keyboard type. Now you can use InputStickUtility to press keys necessary to detect keyboard type. Make sure to select correct keyboard layout (must be the same as layout used by your Mac).

macOS keyboard setup assistant


More text-typing (InputStick test) features:

It is now possible to test different typing speeds (it may be necessary to use decrease typing speed on some USB hosts) and to type pre-defined demo text.



Added option to add device manually:

If for some reason your Android device is not able to discover InputStick via Bluetooth scan, you can use another device to get Bluetooth MAC address of your InputStick and enter it manually.


Provide MAC address and select Bluetooth version (BT4.0 in most cases)


Other:


  • optimized for Android 10
  • UI improvements
  • bug fixes



Saturday 28 March 2020

KP2A plugin v1.44

Here's what's new in KP2A plugin v1.44:

Added "Type from clipboard" popup:

On Android 10 applications are not allowed to access system clipboard while running in the background. Because of that the plugin must display a popup screen in order to get text from system clipboard.

If your device has Android 10 and you want to type text from clipboard:
  • copy text to system clipboard
  • open KP2A Entry menu
  • select Clipboard action (must be enabled in plugin settings)
  • click on notification to open up Type from clipboard popup screen
  • press Type or Type+Enter button

Click on a notification

"Type from clipboard" popup screen will appear


If your device has Android 9 or earlier you can still use old method:
  • open KP2A Entry menu
  • select Clipboard action (must be enabled in plugin settings)
  • copy text to system clipboard
  • text will be automatically typed


Other:

  • Display Over Other Apps permission changes now also affects Android 9 devices