Mouse keys

Mouse keys are a feature of many operating systems that allows the numeric keypad to take on some of the functions of a pointing device. They can be useful when playing RuneScape because the "5" key can be used as a mouse-click, which can reduce strain on the player's hand when performing click-intensive playing, and it is possible to use mouse keys to jump the cursor a set distance, which can be used to reach options on drop-down menus.

Basics
The keys that are involved in mouse keys are only the ones on the number pad.


 * 5 clicks the mouse, and the surrounding 8 numbers are used to move the cursor.
 * / sets the 5 key to left click.
 * * sets the 5 key to right click.
 * + double clicks (can be used to withdraw 2 items from the bank)
 * 0 clicks and holds the cursor.
 * . releases the cursor if it has been held by pressing 0.

The cursor jump is performed by holding down Ctrl, then pressing one of the 8 directional keys. The cursor jump can only be used after it has been enabled in the mouse keys settings. The cursor jump is most frequently used when right clicking something to produce a drop-down menu, then pressing Ctrl-2-5 to select an option. The most common uses for the cursor jump are dropping items (the cursor must jump down to the second option) or withdrawing items (the cursor must jump down to the fourth option). The cursor jump distance can be adjusted by changing the top speed in mouse keys settings, or by changing the mouse pointer speed (including enabling or disabling pointer precision). It is not necessarily possible to get the jump distance that players may want, due to different mice set to different pointer speeds. lol nooooooooooooooo lol

Mouse keys on a Laptop
Most laptops do not have an actual number pad. However, laptops often have keys which can double as a number pad. Looking closely at keys may reveal small numbers, which are the number pad. The number pad can be enabled by turning Num Lock on. There may not be an actual Num Lock key on laptops, but there may be a key that doubles as a Num Lock key if players are holding down the Fn (Function) key. For mouse keys to work on a number pad being used on a laptop in this way, it is essential that mouse keys are set up to be enabled while numlock is on.

Despite this, some laptops do not have keys that can be converted to a numeric keypad. Mouse keys can be used on these laptops only by plugging in a keyboard, or possibly by downloading a program that would allow keys to be set to a numeric keypad.

Windows XP
Mouse keys are enabled on Windows XP by selecting the Control Panel from the Start Menu, selecting Accessibility Options, selecting Mouse, checking "Use MouseKeys," and clicking "Apply." An alternate way to enable mouse keys is to press Alt+Shift+NumLock. For additional settings, click "Settings." Check the box that says "Hold down Ctrl to speed up and Shift to slow down." This will enable the cursor jump. Players also may want to disable showing mouse keys status on the screen.

Windows Vista
Mouse keys are enabled on Windows Vista by selecting the Control Panel from the Start Menu, selecting Ease of Access, selecting the Ease of Access Centre, clicking "Make the mouse easier to use", then clicking "Set up Mouse Keys". Check the boxes that say "Turn on Mouse Keys" and "Hold down Ctrl to speed up and Shift to slow down." This will enable the cursor jump. Of course, this doesn't matter, because Vista does not have the right setting for the mouse to make the correct "jump", it will overshoot/undershoot, causing the items to be used on each other or examined.

Windows 7
Mouse keys are enabled by going Start menu→Control Panel→Ease of Access Centre→Make the mouse easier to use. Check the box that says "Turn on Mouse Keys". Setting can be adjusted from the "Set up Mouse Keys" link below the check box.

Mac OS X
To turn on Mouse Keys, click the System Preferences icon on the Dock, and then click the Universal Access icon. Select the Mouse & Trackpad pane, and turn on Mouse Keys.
 * 5 clicks the mouse, and the surrounding eight number keys are used to move the cursor.
 * 0 clicks and holds the cursor.
 * . releases the cursor if it has been held by pressing 0.

Linux (GNOME)
Use the main menu and go to Preferences→Keyboard, then in the Keyboard Preferences dialogue box switch to the tab called "Mouse Keys". Check the box at the top to enable Mouse Keys.

Adjust the acceleration, speed and delay sliders according to your personal preferences. Setting the acceleration to max, speed to around 45% and delay to 1% (press the right arrow key on the keyboard twice to achieve this) seems to be ideal for moving the mouse pointer between the different items in your inventory or bank with decent accuracy (it's recommended to test it yourself and adjust the settings to improve the precision). Neither the GNOME Mouse Settings nor dpi sensor buttons seem to affect the speed of the mouse pointer when using Mouse Keys.

You move the mouse pointer around with the 1-4 and 6-9 keys, using the 5 key to click.

Dropping items
Mouse keys can be used to drop items in the inventory. This technique significantly decreases the time taken to empty an inventory of unwanted items. This can be very useful to a player Power levelling several different skills, such as mining, fishing, and woodcutting. With practice a full inventory (excluding the bottom row) can be dropped very quickly; the maximum speed allowed by the game for dropping items is 2 items per game tick (0.6 seconds), which can often be reached very easily with the help of the mouse keys jump.

Configuration
In order for mouse keys to be used to drop items, the mouse must be set to jump the exact distance between the first click and the drop option on the drop down menu. It will take some experimenting to find this exact setting.

Start by opening the Mouse keys settings window and starting with the lowest setting where it says "Top speed". Then, on Runescape go to the settings menu and change the mouse to one mouse button. Test it by pressing 5 on the number pad when the mouse is hovered over an item in the inventory, then holding down the CTRL key press 2 and see how close it gets to the drop option. If this does not work change the distance and try again until the distance is just right (or at least close).

If it is still not close enough to work, go to Mouse properties which is found in the Control Panel. From there, go to the Pointer options tab and you can further tweak the distance the mouse jumps by changing the pointer speed. You also may try turning "Enhance pointer precision" on and off to try out different combinations, as this also affects pointer speed. Note: If when you press 5, 2, 5 on the first item in your inventory, it works how it should, but on the second item down in the column when you press 2, it jumps to "examine", or "cancel", then you will have to untick "Enhance pointer precision" to make it work correctly.

Note that on some computers the exact configuration is impossible to reach. Often, the mouse-jump distance is only a single unit too short. In such a situation, it may still be worthwhile to consider using mouse keys, even though you must take the time to readjust your mouse position by releasing the CTRL key and pressing the appropriate number. For instance, if the mouse is one mouse-position-unit above the correct drop option, a player would use the sequence [CTRL] + 5 + 2 + [release CTRL] + 2 + [CTRL] 5 ... to correctly position the mouse. While this is not as fast as the ideal key sequence, it might still be faster than using the actual mouse.

How to use
Now that it is configured it is time to give it a try. (NOTE: This will not work on items in which drop is not the second option on the drop down list, such as items that have the option to wield). Once you have a full inventory, you must have the mouse buttons set to 1 through the settings menu. Start by positioning the mouse at the top left item and clicking 5,2,5 over and over until you get to the bottom of the first column. Then, using the mouse keys still, navigate to the top of the second column and do the same. Do the same for the last two rows and you have successfully dropped your inventory with Mouse keys. With practice, it will become much faster and more natural feeling.

Usefulness in skills
Using Mouse keys can be very beneficial to training various skills. Not only will it greatly decrease time between inventories hence speeding up experience gained, but it is also more consistent and takes stress off of the hand. Some of the skills in which is it most useful are:


 * Fishing (dropping fish)
 * Woodcutting (dropping logs)
 * Mining (dropping ores and rocks)
 * Construction (building and removing furniture)
 * Runecrafting (withdrawing essence from bank and/or emptying pouches and/or filling pouches)
 * Herblore (withdrawing supplies from bank and/or cleaning herbs)
 * Magic (optimizing time between casts of High Alchemy or Stunning)

Legality
There is often confusion about whether Mouse keys are legal or if they are considered macroing. Mouse keys are officially not considered macroing; they are allowed by Jagex because they are an accessibility option that is included in many operating systems. Players still have to manually press each click, so the program is not a "macro".