install_keyboard(3)

💖 install_keyboard(3) 💖

okay bestie, gather round, we're talking about install_keyboard from the Allegro manual (that's the 3 in the parentheses, iykyk — it's a library function, not a command you type in your shell 🐚✨).

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🌸 NAME 🌸

install_keyboard — installs the Allegro keyboard interrupt handler. that's it, that's the whole vibe 💅

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✨ SYNOPSIS ✨

#include <allegro.h>

int install_keyboard();

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

So basically: this function installs the Allegro keyboard interrupt handler. 🎀 And you must call it before you use any of the keyboard input routines, okay? No skipping ahead, babe.

And here's the tea ☕: once you've set up the Allegro handler, you can no longer use operating system calls or C library functions to access the keyboard. like, it's taken. it's Allegro's keyboard now. periodt. 🫶

Also — heads up, this part is lowkey important — on some platforms the keyboard won't work unless you've set a graphics mode. Even if this function returns a success value before you call set_gfx_mode. 😭 That can happen in environments with graphic windowed modes, because Allegro usually reads the keyboard through the graphical window (which only appears after the set_gfx_mode call). it's giving "technically succeeded but not actually ready" 💀

Example, bestie:

allegro_init();
install_timer();
install_keyboard();
/* We are not 100% sure we can read the keyboard yet! */
if (set_gfx_mode(GFX_AUTODETECT, 640, 480, 0, 0) != 0)
   abort_on_error("Couldn't set graphic mode!");

/* Now we are guaranteed to be able to read the keyboard. */
readkey();

see how the comment literally says you're not 100% sure yet?? yeah. she's honest. 🌈

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👑 RETURN VALUE 👑

Returns zero on success ✨, or a negative number on failure. But honestly? you may decide not to even check the return value, because this function is very unlikely to fail. main character energy — she just works. 💅 (still, checking is free, no cap.)

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🌟 SEE ALSO 🌟

• remove_keyboard(3)
• poll_keyboard(3)
• key(3)
• keypressed(3)
• readkey(3)
• ureadkey(3)
• keyboard_callback(3)
• keyboard_ucallback(3)
• keyboard_lowlevel_callback(3)
• three_finger_flag(3)
• key_led_flag(3)
• set_leds(3)
• set_keyboard_rate(3)
• set_gfx_mode(3)

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and that's the whole page, bestie!! 🎀 this was Allegro version 4.4.3 talking about install_keyboard(3) — go forth and install that keyboard handler before literally anything else, mwah 💖🦋🌸