576NUC+ Keyboard Functions (Part 2)

TKNUC V1.4 Firmware

Today I'll cover a bit more about the special function 'hot' keys when using the PS/2 keyboard with the NUC.

ACTION KEY(s)
Used in combination with the
following keys

SCREEN SAVER

XRAM MODE

VGATE MODE

NumLock MODE

KEY MAP SELECTION

The following functions are non-volatile in nature, meaning that whatever their last known state was, that will get retained between power-ups.

SCREENSAVER:   CTRL+ALT+S to toggle
                              ALT+S to view setting

Enables or disables the Atari 'attract' mode. When disabled (OFF) a CTR+SHIFT+A is sent once every 3 minutes to reset the attract timer. Normally this is considered a 'null' key send by the Atari OS and will be ignored.

XRAM MODE:    CTRL+ALT+X to toggle
                             ALT+X to view setting

Selects between two different extended RAM modes. Either 256KB Compy Shop, or 512KB Rambo. Compy Shop mode allows for separate CPU/Antic access to the RAM.

VGATE MODE:   CTRL+ALT+V to toggle
                             ALT+V to view setting

Toggles VGATE chip ON or OFF. When it's ON, over scan is limited to what would normally have been visible on a CRT screen, thus eliminating graphic garbage produced during certain games or demos in the bordering areas on wider screen displays (LCDs). The NUC also has an LED showing the present state of the VGATE chip, so you should see this turning ON and OFF depending upon the last setting.

NumLock:         CTRL+ALT+NumLock to toggle
                             ALT+NumLock to view setting

This toggles the power-up state for NumLock, which determines if the numeric keypad will either be in number mode or navigation.

Pressing the NumLock key without ALT, simply toggles the mode without saving or changing the power-up state.

Key Map:           CTRL+ALT+F4 to select
                             ALT+F4 to view setting

There are 4 key maps that can be selected.

1. US  (United States)
2. DE  (Germany & Austria)
3. UK  (United Kingdom)
4. A8  (Requires re-labeled ISO keyboard)

Each time the CTRL+ALT+F4 combination is pressed the next selection in line will be chosen, and when it gets to the end, it'll go back to the first one on the list. For more information on each map selection go HERE.

- Michael