Virtual Keyboard always on top instead of docked

Anonymous
2015-08-16T15:02:46+00:00

Split from this thread.

The new virtual keyboard is a mess.  I never really thought about it in W8.1; would just start typing.  In W10, I hate it.

And it's not just a matter of getting used to something new.

You can make the keyboard pop up.  There is a setting under Devices.  In the search window, search for TYPING.  The top line looks like a heading, but it is really a choice.  It just says TYPING SETTINGS. Choose it.

Near the bottom of the options there is one that allows, "Automatically show the touch keyboard in windowed apps..."

Keep in mind that the behavior is different whether you are in TABLET mode or not. (Which is yet ANOTHER annoying feature designed to help)

Finally, perhaps the biggest problem is that the keyboard does not clip into the screen, but instead stays on top.  This means it will effectively cover many of the text fields when you are trying to type. This is absolutely UNBELIEVABLE! It is hard to understand how anyone could make this on purpose. It is highly unusable.

And of course they didn't seem to anticipate that the keys on the far right of the keyboard will be pressed from time to time and are in the same area as the touch zone of the swipe from right.  so often as I am typing the ACTION CENTER will appear.  Grrrrr....

Surface | Surface Headphones | Touch and gestures

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments

15 answers

Sort by: Oldest
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2015-08-19T19:22:03+00:00

    The Touch Keyboard (TK) is the large keyboard that automatically appears in tablet mode and can be made to appear in desktop mode.

    The On Screen Keyboard (OSK) is a resizable keyboard that can be found under the Ease of Access tools.

    In Windows 8.1 the OSK behaved exactly as the original poster wanted. If you used the Dock key on the OSK it would lock itself on the bottom of the screen and other windows would be resized so that nothing was under the OSK. In Win 10 this does not happen.

    Unfortunately it seems that Microsoft chose to remove this feature and force both the TK and OSK to float over other windows even when they are "docked".

    Earlier thread on this topic

    Was this answer helpful?

    2 people found this answer helpful.
    0 comments
  2. Anonymous
    2015-08-19T19:29:00+00:00

    Clear as mud... so now we have TK, OSK, and now TIP?  ;-o

    I just touch on a text input field and a keyboard appears.  Not sure if it's TK, OSK, TIP, or EIEIO.

    Of course, appreciate you sticking with the thread.  Thanks.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  3. Anonymous
    2015-08-19T19:31:30+00:00

    Unfortunately it seems that Microsoft chose to remove this feature and force both the TK and OSK to float over other windows even when they are "docked".

    Earlier thread on this topic

    Thanks... this makes sense.

    The explanation, that is, makes sense.

    Microsoft's rationale, however, is a complete mystery.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  4. Anonymous
    2015-08-19T20:53:12+00:00

    Clear as mud... so now we have TK, OSK, and now TIP?  ;-o

    I just touch on a text input field and a keyboard appears.  Not sure if it's TK, OSK, TIP, or EIEIO.

    Of course, appreciate you sticking with the thread.  Thanks.

    Well you can basically forget TIP since its been gone since Win 7.

    Even after all those abbreviations we also have to deal with the confusion between docking a window and docking an entire tablet (physical dock). It makes searching for any info on this topic really hard to find.

    Was this answer helpful?

    1 person found this answer helpful.
    0 comments
  5. Anonymous
    2015-08-19T21:03:34+00:00

    Even after all those abbreviations we also have to deal with the confusion between docking a window and docking an entire tablet (physical dock). It makes searching for any info on this topic really hard to find.

    And to further complicate it, my question is specifically related to Surface Pro 3.

    So the searches look something like:

    Virtual Keyboard not docking in Windows 10 on Surface Pro 3

    Windows 10 on Surface Pro 3 Virtual Keyboard Always on Top

    And so on...

    With all of those keywords, the search certainly casts a pretty wide net, and catches a lot of unrelated junk.  :-(

    Was this answer helpful?

    2 people found this answer helpful.
    0 comments