SDL_GetKeyName(3)

✨ SDL_GetKeyName ✨

okay so bestie, welcome to the SDL3 FUNCTIONS corner of the man pages 💖 this one's called SDL_GetKeyName and it's literally the girl who tells you what a key is called, in human words 🎀

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🌸 NAME 🌸

SDL_GetKeyName — get a human-readable name for a key 🫶

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🦋 SYNOPSIS 🦋

#include <SDL3/SDL_keyboard.h>

const char * SDL_GetKeyName(SDL_Keycode key);

like, one header, one function, one key. that's the whole vibe ✨

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💅 DESCRIPTION 💅

so you hand it a key and it hands you back the name of that key. cute, right?

now the important part: if the key doesn't have a name, this function returns an empty string (""). not NULL, not a shrug emoji, just a lil empty string 🙈 so if you get nothing back, that's not a bug, that's the answer.

and letters? they will be presented in their uppercase form, if applicable. so yes, it's giving A, not a. uppercase main character energy 👑

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🎀 FUNCTION PARAMETERS 🎀

• key — the desired SDL_Keycode to query. this is the key you're asking about, the one you're like "bestie who are you" to 💜

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⭐ RETURN VALUE ⭐

returns a UTF-8 encoded string of the key name 🌈

that's the whole thing. no exit codes, no errno drama, just a string. slay.

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🔥 THREAD SAFETY 🔥

this function is NOT thread safe. 💀

fr fr, do not be calling this from a bunch of threads at once thinking it's fine. it is not fine. keep it to one thread, i'm begging 🙏

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🌟 AVAILABILITY 🌟

this function has been available since SDL 3.2.0 ✨ so if you're on something older, no key names for you, sorry babe 😭

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👑 SEE ALSO 👑

• SDL_GetKeyFromName(3) — the reverse bestie, name goes in, key comes out
• SDL_GetKeyFromScancode(3) — scancode in, keycode out
• SDL_GetScancodeFromKey(3) — keycode in, scancode out

iykyk, these four are the little friend group 🫶

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and that's the page!! go forth and name your keys 💖

Simple Directmedia Layer 🦋 SDL 3.4.18 🎀 SDL_GetKeyName(3) — mwah, ily, bye bestie 💅✨