input_query

A cross-platform Rust library for querying keyboard key states without requiring a window context.

Features

• 🖥️ Cross-platform: Supports Linux, Windows, and macOS
• 🚀 No window required: Query keyboard state directly from the OS
• 🎯 Simple API: Easy-to-use interface with minimal boilerplate
• 🔧 Platform-optimized: Uses native APIs for best performance on each platform

Platform Support

Installation

Add this to your Cargo.toml:

[dependencies]
input_query = "0.1.0"

Usage

use input_query::{InputHandler, KeyCode};
use std::thread;
use std::time::Duration;

fn main() {
    let handler = InputHandler::new();

    loop {
        if handler.is_pressed(KeyCode::KeyEsc) {
            println!("Escape key is pressed!");
            break;
        }
        
        if handler.is_pressed(KeyCode::KeySpace) {
            println!("Space bar is pressed!");
        }
        
        // Your application logic here
        thread::sleep(Duration::from_millis(10));
    }
}

Note: On Linux, input events are monitored in a background thread automatically. On Windows and macOS, the state is queried on-demand. You no longer need to call update_inputs() - the library handles updates automatically!

Example

You can run the included example with:

cargo run --example simple

This will demonstrate real-time key detection. Press ESC to exit the example.

Platform-Specific Setup

Linux

On Linux, you need read access to input devices. You can either:

1. Add your user to the input group:

   sudo usermod -a -G input $USER
   

   Then log out and log back in.

2. Or run your application with appropriate permissions (not recommended for production).

macOS

On macOS, the application needs "Input Monitoring" permission:

1. Run your application
2. When prompted, or manually go to: System Preferences → Security & Privacy → Privacy → Input Monitoring
3. Add and enable your application

Windows

No special setup required on Windows.

Supported Keys

The library currently supports:

• All letter keys (A-Z)
• Number keys (0-9)
• Function keys (F1-F12)
• Modifier keys (Shift, Ctrl, Alt, Caps Lock)
• Arrow keys
• Common symbol keys (brackets, punctuation, etc.)
• Space, Enter, Backspace, Tab, Escape

See the KeyCode enum for the complete list.

API Documentation

For detailed API documentation, run:

cargo doc --open

Or visit docs.rs (once published).

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please feel free to submit a Pull Request.

Acknowledgments

• Linux implementation uses the excellent evdev crate
• Windows implementation uses the windows crate
• macOS implementation uses the core-graphics crate