onKeyDown = function() {}

Invoked when a button has keyboard focus and a key is pressed. The onKeyDown event handler is invoked with no parameters. You can use the Key.getAscii() and Key.getCode() methods to determine which key was pressed. You must define a function that is executed when the event handler is invoked.

Example

In the following example, a function that sends text to the Output panel is defined for the onKeyDown handler. Create a button called my_btn on the Stage, and enter the following ActionScript in a frame on the Timeline:

my_btn.onKeyDown = function() {
    trace("onKeyDown: "+this._name+" (Key: "+getKeyPressed()+")");
};
function getKeyPressed():String {
    var theKey:String;
    switch (Key.getAscii()) {
    case Key.BACKSPACE :
        theKey = "BACKSPACE";
        break;
    case Key.SPACE :
        theKey = "SPACE";
        break;
    default :
        theKey = chr(Key.getAscii());
    }
    return theKey;
}

Select Control > Test Movie to test the SWF file. Make sure you select Control > Disable Keyboard Shortcuts in the test environment. Then press the Tab key until the button has focus (a yellow rectangle appears around the my_btn instance) and start pressing keys on your keyboard. When you press keys, they are displayed in the Output panel.

See also

onKeyUp (Button.onKeyUp handler), getAscii (Key.getAscii method), getCode (Key.getCode method)