If you are new to keyboard universe, you have probably heard the term keyboard ghosting, right? Do you know what is keyboard ghosting, its benefits, anti-ghosting, how to prevent ghosting and so many questions related to keyboard ghosting? If you want to use the keyboard for routine typing, you will rarely encounter this term, but if you are a gamer or developer, it is vital to have proper keyboard ghosting knowledge.
What is Keyboard Ghosting? Causes, Benefits, and Preventions
A situation where the user presses a key, and it doesn’t get registered and also doesn’t return the user the function that is meant to perform is known as keyboard ghosting. The issue is commonly experienced by a casual computer user or web surfer. For instance, a typist can be a victim of keyboard ghosting as he uses more than a couple of keyboard keys as shortcuts.
Gaming enthusiast has to press multiple keys together to perform specific actions and control their gaming character. However, programmers and developers are the two most affected categories by this issue who simultaneously use various combinations of keys.
Typically, keyboard ghosting occurs when you press more than the upper limit of keys in combination together. The limit is three or fewer on most keyboards. Ghosting is not common as when we use over keyboards, we press a single key at a time, and one key never rolls over.
What Causes Keyboard Ghosting?
There is no rocket science to understand the causes of keyboard ghosting. Most popular keyboard manufacturers like Logitech know that it is pretty rare that a user may encounter any type of keyboard ghosting. Hence, they use a variety of hardware elements and components that prevents pressing more than a few keys at a time. Here are some well-known causes of keyboard ghosting.
Keyboard Design
A keyboard comes with a grid of column and row wires that pass under the keys. Such wires are unconnected by default. When a user presses a key, the circuit is connected, and the keyboard software figures out which key was pressed based on its connection.
For instance, when you press the “S” key, the keyboard looks at which column wire features a row wire connected to it. With a similar technique, keyboards figure out two-key combinations and also some multiple key combinations without any ghosting.
Here is how your keyboard can’t find which keys are pressed.
Pressing Keys in an Indistinguishable Circuit
Sometimes, when you press multiple keys at a time, a keyboard can identify the presses uniquely. However, there are certain key combinations that can cause your keyboards to get confused.
Keyboard Ghosting Test
So, you must be wondering whether your keyboard has ghosting or not? Here is a keyboard ghosting test for your convenience.
Using WordPad
If you are a new keyboard user, the keyboard ghosting test can be a bit complicated for you. We are here to take a look at whether the keyboard can press and register more than three keys in combination. Open the WordPad or any text editor and open a new document.
Press three or more key combinations and check how many of the keys are typed onto the document. If all pressed keys got typed, it means the keyboard doesn’t have ghosting. Remember, some keyboards have better technology and switches for a specific section of the board. On the other hand, some keyboards are not good at such traits, which means one section may ghost and the other won’t.
Using an On-Screen Keyboard
This method is highly effective in checking keyboard ghosting. Open an on-screen keyboard on your computer. The benefit of an on-screen board is that it will highlight the keys you press at a certain time.
For instance, if you press multiple keys in combination and they all highlight, it means the keyboard doesn’t have ghosting. However, if only two or three keys are highlighted, it indicates the keyboard has ghosting in it.
The section of the keyboard with WASD keys, Ctrl, Alt, and Shift keys are designed not to ghost in combination. Make sure to press all other combinations and to find out if the keyboard is actually no or slightly key rollover.
How to Fix Keyboard Ghosting?
There is no complicated and quick keyboard ghosting solution available as it is not a software-based problem. Instead, the problem is purely hardware-based that needs hardware fixing.
For a beginner, it can be a quiet headache as the process is a bit complicated. However, we are going to share a few easy-to-follow and quick keyboard ghosting fixes with you.
Key Remapping
As mentioned above, various keyboards have different ghosting proof sections due to their design and usage. If you are facing any keyboard ghosting in one section of your keyboard, you can swap that section of the keyboard with the non-ghosting part.
When you have tested the non-ghosting section, it is easy to use third-party software to remap the keys onto another section and use the keys without any keyboard ghosting issue. This technique works mostly, but it takes some time to figure it out.
Anti-Ghosting Keyboards Are Effective
This is the easiest way to prevent keyboard ghosting problems. All you need is to buy the best anti-ghosting keyboard featuring N-key rollover. These keyboards may be expensive, but they are the best way to prevent keyboard ghosting issues.
Anti-Ghosting Keyboard Pros
An anti-ghosting keyboard comes with amazing features. Here are some of the prominent benefits of Anti-ghosting keyboards.
Gaming
Every gaming enthusiast loves fast-paced action for a keyboard. When you press more than one key at a time at a crucial stage, these anti-ghosting keyboards ensure to prevent ghosting and losing momentum.
Typists Usage
Typically, typists and writers use a certain macro to get the job done. Using anti-ghosting keys ensures all the keys will be registered and won’t face any problem.
Quick Registration
As compared to regular keyboards, the response and registration time of the best anti-ghosting keyboards are very quick. These keyboards make the keyboard experience quite effective and ideal to perform different computer tasks.
Programming
If you are working on IDE, you need to use shortcuts to introduce code templates along with Emmet elements to the core. You can press multiple keys at a time, and you won’t face any issues, thanks to anti-ghosting keyboards.
No Keypress Is Lost
Keyboards that are prone to ghosting have keypress lost issues. However, a high-quality anti-ghosting keyboard prevents such problems no matter how many keys are pressed in combination, which makes shortcuts better, usage convenient, and the overall experience much swifter.
Excellent Features
N-key rollover or anti-ghosting is available in premium keyboards with high-end quality and design. These keyboards have excellent features, customizable options, and components that can be used to make the keyboarding experience better.
Final words
Whether you are playing games with quiet gaming keyboards or completing a vital programming project, keyboard ghosting is not a pleasant sight at any point. The issue is not very common, but sometimes, you have to deal with it. That’s why it is essential to beware of keyboard ghosting, its causes, and how to prevent keyboard ghosting from making the most of your keyboard.
You May Also Read: How To Change Backlight Keyboard Color
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
How Do I Know if My Keyboard Is Ghosting?
When you press multiple keys simultaneously, a regular keyboard ignores most of the pressed keys, which is known as ghosting. On the other hand, an anti-ghosting keyboard takes most or all of them to notice and utilize.
How Do You Stop the Keyboard From Ghosting?
Here are a few techniques to stop your keyboard from ghosting.
- Never use a control scheme that needs too many simultaneous key presses.
- Make sure to use games pads if available.
- Allow the player to remap the keys so they can easily find a non-ghosting key set for their hardware.
Do Laptop Keyboards Have Anti-Ghosting?
It depends on the laptop manufacturer and design to identify whether it has anti-ghosting or not. However, typical laptop keyboards don’t have anti-ghosting.
