Active Keys

Windows makes it possible to trigger a whole variety of its features through hotkey commands, just so you don’t have to spend time looking for them, or creating additional shortcuts. On the bright side of things, there are also third-party applications like Active Keys which aim to give you control over hotkeys, and even set up your own.

You’re not kept busy for a long while during setup, but it’s a good idea to make sure that your computer is fitted with .NET Framework to ensure functionality. The application usually sits minimized in the tray area, and you might want to bring up the configuration panel to get an idea of what can be accomplished and how.

There are several preset hotkey commands, most of which are tied to system functions, such as opening the control panel, emptying the Recycle Bin, adjusting system volume, and handling several window related controls, including a layer positioning hotkey in case you want to make something stay on top of everything else.

Creating your own hotkey command isn’t a difficult, task, especially since you’re taken through a series of steps, through which you get to choose the category, check hotkeys for availability, and add a description. These are automatically activated as soon as the configuration process ends.

The application wants to make it easy to pick a command, and encompasses them in different categories, such as display, Internet, multimedia, system, text, window control, and Windows Shell. These range from accessing offline and online locations, to pasting specific items from clipboard, adjusting display parameters, or configuring multimedia controls for popular multimedia players.

Taking everything into consideration, we can state that Active Keys is a powerful hotkey manager which is sure to give you the control you need. Target areas range from multimedia management, opening programs and web pages, to handling a variety of system functions, making the application worth your while overall.