{"id":1523,"date":"2019-01-02T07:00:17","date_gmt":"2019-01-02T12:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/langa.com\/?p=1523"},"modified":"2019-01-02T06:53:59","modified_gmt":"2019-01-02T11:53:59","slug":"a-reader-asks-pressing-a-key-or-clicking-a-mouse-button-sends-what-type-of-signal-to-the-cpu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/2019\/01\/02\/a-reader-asks-pressing-a-key-or-clicking-a-mouse-button-sends-what-type-of-signal-to-the-cpu\/","title":{"rendered":"A reader asks: “Pressing a key or clicking a mouse button sends what type of signal to the CPU?”"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the most conceptual sense, a click or keypress briefly completes an electrical circuit. The part of the computer that handles the keyboard sees this as a zero value changing to a one; the computer then initiates whatever sequence of events it’s been programmed to follow to interpret the keypress, send the keypress value to where it needs to go, etc.<\/p>

Of course, the reality is far more complex: Most keyboards have their own built-in controllers that can briefly store keypress data, and signal the CPU when there’s data to send; coordinating with PC components such as the interrupt controller (which helps the CPU handle things like keystrokes in an orderly fashion); and the keyboard’s device driver, which is running under the control of the operating system. Plus, in most current setups, the USB or Bluetooth subsystems may also be involved, funneling data and\/or power to and from the keyboard.<\/p>

It’s surprisingly complex, once you start to dig in!<\/p>

If you want the full rundown, here are some good sources that explain things in detail:<\/p>

Example: What Happens When You Press A Key <\/a><\/p>

How Computer Keyboards Work <\/a><\/p>

What happens from the moment we press a key on the keyboard, until it appears in your word document<\/a><\/p>

What happens when I press a key on a keyboard on a computer<\/a><\/p>

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Want free notification of new content like this? Click <\/strong>here<\/a><\/strong>!<\/strong><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the most conceptual sense, a click or keypress briefly completes an electrical circuit. The part of the computer that handles the keyboard sees this as a zero value changing to a one; the computer then initiates whatever sequence of events it’s been programmed to follow to interpret the keypress, send the keypress value to…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1523","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-misc"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paaiox-oz","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3000,"url":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/2019\/06\/27\/i-changed-the-voltage-on-my-cpu-to-fix-one-problem-but-it-created-another-whats-going-on\/","url_meta":{"origin":1523,"position":0},"title":"“I changed the voltage on my CPU to fix one problem, but it created another. What’s going on?”","author":"Fred Langa","date":"2019-06-27","format":false,"excerpt":"Alfredo Sanchez's full question: \"I changed the voltage on my CPU and this fixed my BSOD (Blue Screen Of Death) problem, but now when I reboot the computer it starts up and then powers off and constantly powers on and loses power and tries to power on again.\u2026 eventually it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "A reader asks..."","block_context":{"text":"A reader asks...","link":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/category\/a-reader-asks\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2640,"url":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/2019\/04\/19\/if-you-could-only-do-one-computer-upgrade-when-you-purchase-a-new-computer-would-you-upgrade-ram-processor-or-storage\/","url_meta":{"origin":1523,"position":1},"title":"“If you could only do one computer upgrade when you purchase a new computer, would you upgrade RAM, processor, or storage?”","author":"Fred Langa","date":"2019-04-19","format":false,"excerpt":"(Answer requested by Mandi Bailey) If it's a brand-new PC, odds are it'll have a reasonably current, capable CPU; and an at least acceptable hard drive. But most PC baseline models have only a modest --- sometimes minimal --- amount of RAM. So, if I'm allowed only one upgrade, I'd\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "A reader asks..."","block_context":{"text":"A reader asks...","link":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/category\/a-reader-asks\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/langa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/xidax.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3399,"url":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/2019\/09\/11\/can-i-overclock-a-cpu-without-a-liquid-cooling-system\/","url_meta":{"origin":1523,"position":2},"title":"“Can I overclock a CPU without a liquid cooling system”","author":"Fred Langa","date":"2019-09-11","format":false,"excerpt":"(Answer requested by Lorenzo Gramigni) Sure. The system doesn\u2019t care how you provide cooling, as long as you keep the CPU safely within its designed temperature rage. Most PCs use air as the working fluid for heat removal. You can prepare many PC's for modest overclocking simply by adding a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "A reader asks..."","block_context":{"text":"A reader asks...","link":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/category\/a-reader-asks\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":5184,"url":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/2020\/06\/15\/sudden-uncommanded-shutdowns-plague-win10-laptop\/","url_meta":{"origin":1523,"position":3},"title":"Sudden, uncommanded shutdowns plague Win10 laptop","author":"Fred Langa","date":"2020-06-15","format":false,"excerpt":"AskWoody subscriber John Mackin's laptop was badly malfunctioning, and the problem remained unresolved even after some top-notch troubleshooting and maintenance. \"Fred, I have a three-and-a-half-year-old laptop (Dell Inspiron 13\", i7, 12 GB RAM, 1TB M.2 SSD, Windows 10) that has recently begun to periodically shut down during use.\"Suspecting CPU overheat,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AskWoody Plus"","block_context":{"text":"AskWoody Plus","link":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/category\/askwoody-plus\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fred Langa","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/langa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Langa-2-100.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5553,"url":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/2021\/01\/25\/excess-cpu-heat-during-laptop-recharging\/","url_meta":{"origin":1523,"position":4},"title":"Excess CPU heat during laptop recharging?","author":"Fred Langa","date":"2021-01-25","format":false,"excerpt":"A\u00a0reader is concerned: His laptop\u2019s CPU temperature rises during battery-charging sessions. Why would the CPU heat up from battery charging? Relatedly, what are normal CPU temperatures, anyway? What\u2019s a safe temperature rise? Plus:\u00a0A tiny freeware app that\u00a0prevents\u00a0PC overheating! Read the full story in\u00a0AskWoody Plus Newsletter 18.3.0\u00a0(2021-01-25). Also in this issue:\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "AskWoody Plus"","block_context":{"text":"AskWoody Plus","link":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/category\/askwoody-plus\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Fred Langa","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/langa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/Langa-2-100.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3952,"url":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/2019\/12\/18\/does-a-usb-hub-add-latency-to-mice-and-keyboards-e-g-does-a-usb-hub-affect-gaming\/","url_meta":{"origin":1523,"position":5},"title":"“Does a USB hub add latency to mice and keyboards (e.g., does a USB hub affect gaming)?”","author":"Fred Langa","date":"2019-12-18","format":false,"excerpt":"Those are really two different questions. \"Does a USB hub add latency?\" Yes. A USB hub isn't passive wiring: It receives a signal from a source (PC or peripheral), decodes the embedded address information, and then actively retransmits that signal to its destination (peripheral or PC). That process takes a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "A reader asks..."","block_context":{"text":"A reader asks...","link":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/category\/a-reader-asks\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1523"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1523\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1556,"href":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1523\/revisions\/1556"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/langa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}