Reversed function keys?

martinlest · 27 Sep 2018

When I press F2, F3 etc. the use seems to be 'toggled' wrongly. Only if I press the FN key first do I get the usual function (rename for F2 and so on). Otherwise, the screen gets brighter, or whatever..

I spent some time Googling this but the only 'solution' that seemed to work was to hold the FN key down for 10 seconds. That works for the first time you use a function key, but immediately afterwards the behaviour returns to how it was before.

Is there a setting somewhere or does anyone know of a fix that will return the F keys to their 'proper' use? (Why on earth have Windows changed this??)

Thank you,

Martin

PolarNettles · 27 Sep 2018

What laptop do you have? Fn key behavior can usually be changed in BIOS setup.

martinlest · 27 Sep 2018

I have an HP Envy 360 convertible... I never imagined it was something set in the laptop (never seen this before).

HP Notebook PCs - How to Lock or Unlock the Fn Key | HPÂ® Customer Support

And that fixed it. Many thanks for the heads up!

Berton · 27 Sep 2018

One has to watch for the Fn + Other F key and their markings. Not all Notebooks follow the same marking scheme but most will use colors to denote when to use the Fn key with the others, I have a couple that do not use the Fn for things like Brightness but most of them do use Fn with keys marked with the same color. Even amongst the same brand different models may have a different scheme. I have seen one Notebook where all the key markings were in white, had to either read the manual or experiment to determine how they worked.