How can I get the Caps Lock state, and set it to on, if it isn't already?

Question

I would like a specific example on how to turn caps lock on if it is off.

I know how to toggle the key, I have been using this:

toolkit.setLockingKeyState(KeyEvent.VK_CAPS_LOCK, Boolean.TRUE);

That will change the state of the key whether it is on or off. But I want to make sure it is on at the beginning of the application.

(The final goal is having the keyboard LEDs flash in certain sequences, which works better if I have a certain starting state.)

Answer 1

You can use getLockingKeyState to check if Caps Lock is currently set:

boolean isOn = Toolkit.getDefaultToolkit().getLockingKeyState(KeyEvent.VK_CAPS_LOCK);

However, it's unnecessary -- setLockingKeyState doesn't toggle the state of the key, it sets it. If you pass it true it will set the key state to on regardless of the original state:

Toolkit.getDefaultToolkit().setLockingKeyState(KeyEvent.VK_CAPS_LOCK, true);