Type Cover Use in Portrait Mode

[jnjroach]

Nope, I've used Bluetooth Keyboards in Portrait mode...Microsoft Wedge Keyboard to be exact.....

 

[spockmonster]

I am of the opinion that not providing a setting to prevent disabling the keyboard in portrait mode is a needlessly poor UX (user experience). In my case, I like to read in bed, and to do so I disable rotation so that the text stays aligned with respect to my eyes, not to the center of the earth. Humans are not always in a position such that they are perpendicular to the center of the earth.

So, if I am laying down watching a training video, or reading, I cannot use the physical keyboard to turn pages or move and click the mouse. That is a huge restriction, for absolutely no reason.

This is sufficient enough for me to not purchase a Surface Pro 3. On top of that, the back camera is fixed focus, so pictures of documents are blurry and unreadable. And it takes 5 hours to recharge. 3 Strikes, you're OUT! Well, I already purchased this POS, so I am stuck with it until I can offload it on someone else.

 

[FinnSydney]

...trouble developing a basic workflow .... use portrait mode quite often, but my type cover gets disabled when ever I flip it to this orientation.... how can I enable the type cover while the screen is in portrait mode? Theoretically you can enable it by setting the monitor to portrait, but this is finnicky and often undoes itself.

I'd like to add that I suffer from the same issue but for a different reason.

We would like to use the Surface to take handwritten notes. To do this we'd like to open the Surface type cover (like a notebook cover) and use the stylus to hand write.

However, when a Surface with a type cover is laid flat on a flat surface (like a table of a desk) it flips from portrait to landscape.

Nobody uses a paper notebook in this way (in landscape, leaning on the inside of the cover to write on the paper). Everybody would use the paper notebook in portrait - so why can't we use the Surface like this?

 

[Jorj_X_McKie]

I'm an illustrator and therefore use portrait mode quite often, but my type cover gets disabled when ever I flip it to this orientation... So the question is, how can I enable the type cover while the screen is in portrait mode?

I recently bought a Surface 3 and after seeing that it works quite well with Manga Studio and thought is would be awesome to flip it into portrait with the lightweight keyboard attached also.... you know because tab key to minimize tool bar, and easy copy/paste etc. I think the OP had a logical and reasonable idea. It's too bad something so intuitive would be disabled.... sure it's an unusual configuration, but no harm is really inherent in this physical arrangement.

If some workaround is discovered, I would also be interested.

 

[Nucleon]

I draw in landscape on sketchbook, orientation doesn't concern me with the pinch+zoom+rotate controls, and gives me a comfortable angle to draw on with the kickstand too

But perhaps disabling rotation might do the trick? You might have to draw sideways, but to a digitizer, it's all the same anyway

 

[Jorj_X_McKie]

Rotation lock would be a simple solution, but once again, Microsoft in all of its infinite wisdom won't let you lock rotation if the keyboard is attached because you are in 'laptop' mode--and therefore must use it in the mandated way. Heaven help us from fools (and 'helpful' computers).

 

[Nucleon]

Rotation lock would be a simple solution, but once again, Microsoft in all of its infinite wisdom won't let you lock rotation if the keyboard is attached because you are in 'laptop' mode--and therefore must use it in the mandated way. Heaven help us from fools (and 'helpful' computers).

Oh yeah, I forgot about that...

 

[osgfxman]

I'm trying to visualise this. So are you saying you hold/place the tablet in portrait mode with the keyboard attached, like a book--thus the keyboard is sideways but you still want to use it? That's quite outside the realm of normal use as MS envisioned it, I guess. I don't know if this is driver level or firmware or something in the OS, but it appears external is the only option at this point (with a Surface)... (or whatever Jeff posted ;D).

for instance, when i read a book in portrait mode it's a lot easier to use my cover keyboard to press WIN+SH+S to capture part of my screen to onenote .. i do this very frequently ..

it's not about "typing" in portrait mode .. just some quick shortcuts make the life easier..

 

[jrioux]

I am of the opinion that not providing a setting to prevent disabling the keyboard in portrait mode is a needlessly poor UX (user experience). In my case, I like to read in bed, and to do so I disable rotation so that the text stays aligned with respect to my eyes, not to the center of the earth. Humans are not always in a position such that they are perpendicular to the center of the earth.

So, if I am laying down watching a training video, or reading, I cannot use the physical keyboard to turn pages or move and click the mouse. That is a huge restriction, for absolutely no reason.

This is sufficient enough for me to not purchase a Surface Pro 3. On top of that, the back camera is fixed focus, so pictures of documents are blurry and unreadable. And it takes 5 hours to recharge. 3 Strikes, you're OUT! Well, I already purchased this POS, so I am stuck with it until I can offload it on someone else.

I'm curious. Can you tell me which tablets, laptops and 2-in-1s will do everything you want, including fully charging in less than 5 hours???

 

[lukeradl]

I am also an illustrator. I just got a Surface Pro 3 today and I ran into this issue immediately.

 

[osgfxman]

HEY! I found a solution for this! .. KISS: Keep It Simple & Stupid! .. do you have any tape? just close your surface as any book then tape this edge between the type cover and the surface very strongly as if you don't want to open it again! .. then force it to open and Vola! .. you can use keyboard in any position .. and download a tool called iRotate.exe to use shortcuts: ctl+alt+ arrows to flip screen as you wish!

 

[kristalsoldier]

I'm curious. Can you tell me which tablets, laptops and 2-in-1s will do everything you want, including fully charging in less than 5 hours???

You were not expecting an answer to that were you? I thought not!!!