Saw a couple posts about using sticky keys for various things, but I don't think this method has been suggested yet.
StickyKeys are a group of settings in windows (sorry mac users, if someone on a mac knows of a similar technique, then please post) that allow the shift, control & alt keys to stay "stuck down", or constantly active until you deactivate them by pressing the key again. It was created for people with disabilities or coordination problems that don't allow them to hold one key while pressing another at the same time, like CTRL+C to copy. With StickyKeys on, you tap the control key then tap the C key to copy, then tap the control key to turn it off again.
How can this possibly relate to Minecraft, you ask? I shall explain. With the Halloween update right around the corner, less than 10 hours or so, I guess, lots of people are wondering how to get all that obsidian they are going to need to make portals. It takes 15 seconds to mine one block of obsidian with a diamond pick, or 3.5 minutes to mine the 14 blocks you'll need for one portal. Of course, you can mold obsidian with lava and buckets, but I'm thinking I want a ready supply to build portals in the slip with, so I don't have to spend time dodging ghast fireballs while trying to mold a portal. Taking a bunch of obsidian with you is a pretty good idea I would think, you can build a portal pretty fast and get out of the slip a lot faster and safer than you can if you mold one.
OK, on to how it works. First, you need to configure StickyKeys. More than likely, you would have already turned them off, because hitting the shift key five times in a row will bring up the StickyKey dialog, and that's pretty easy to do playing games, so more than likely, it's off on your system. Go to the start menu, then settings, then control panel, then Accessibility Options. Under the keyboard tab, check the use stickykeys option, then go to settings. Check the box for use shortcut to turn them on, (hit shift five times) uncheck turn off if two keys are pressed, check the option for press modifier twice, and use your own preference for the notification options, I have the sound turned off, it gets annoying fast.
Once that's done, hit OK and run minecraft. You're going to need a specific set of conditions to get this working, first is a large lava source and some buckets. I don't like mining natural obsidian, you never know what's underneath it, probably more lava, that you don't want to fall into or lose the obsidian block to, so I always transport the lava to a safe place and mold it there and then mine. Dig around until you hit bedrock and find a likely piece of it and dig along in a straight line until you hit the next piece, or until you reach a set limit, like the number of blocks you want to mine. The bedrock is going to be your end point, since you can't mine through it, it will stop you from going further. Your trench should be one block wide and end at the bedrock, so start filling it with lava and dousing with water until the whole thing is obsidian. Dig out a starting point on the end opposite the bedrock and turn on stickykeys, you may want to run minecraft in a window so you can switch to the stickykeys dialog and change settings until you get it the way you want. Once stickykeys is on, change the key you use to move forward in minecraft to control. With stickykeys on, you tap control and stickykeys will make it "stay down" or lock until you double tap it (or is it a double tap to start and a single to stop? whichever, fool with it). Since minecraft is using the control key to move forward, and stickykeys is locking that key in the on position, you will walk forward automatically without having to hold the key down.
Now, for the mouse and the tape, equip your diamond pickaxe and get a piece of tape, I just used normal Scotch clear tape. Line up your cursor in minecraft with the first obsidian block, tape your mouse button down and let it rip. Once it mines through the first block, you'll automatically walk forward, and mine the next block, and so on. Once it hits the bedrock at the end of the trench, it will stop since it can't mine through it. You can walk away and do something else while it mines by itself. Come back in five minutes and have 20 or so blocks of obsidian without having to get carpal tunnel by holding down the mouse button and forward key for that time.
Once it's done, tap the control key again to turn it off, change your forward key in minecraft back to what you normally have it on and go about doing it again, or get on with the game. If you're done mining, you can turn off stickykeys and never think of it again until you need more obsidian.
A couple of pointers. Make sure the place you're mining is safe and well lit or play on peaceful, you don't want a mob finding you while you're not at the controls and ruining your day. Finding a piece of bedrock with enough room in one direction to make a decent trench can be tricky, but keep looking around you'll find a place eventually. Mine is right near my lava source, so I got lucky, or maybe it's not that hard to do. I have room now for 21 blocks, and I think I could go further into the wall and see how many I can get. 64 blocks for a full stack would be a long tunnel and I doubt you can get that far before hitting another piece of bedrock, but maybe not. You can use either the control, alt or shift keys with stickykeys, so any will work as your forward key in minecraft, whichever works best for you.
Here's a diagram, just to be clear on the trench you need, from above:
Start at the sand and mine towards the bedrock.
Fringe benefit: this will also lock your shift key, if you're using that to creep/sneak/not fall off something, so you don't have to hold it down all the time.
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
D_B
To tell them how to live is to prevent them living.
I dont use tape. Since I use a laptop for gaming, it has a track pad. That track pad also has a convenient on and off switch right above it, so I dont accidentally press something when using the mouse. The way I get a sticky click, is I turn on the track pad, hold left click, and while holding, turn off the track pad. It keeps on mining until I click right click with my mouse, or I turn on the track pad again. Now, using this and the water technique, I can mine long strips of obsidian very quickly, and effortlessly.
StickyKeys are a group of settings in windows (sorry mac users, if someone on a mac knows of a similar technique, then please post) that allow the shift, control & alt keys to stay "stuck down", or constantly active until you deactivate them by pressing the key again. It was created for people with disabilities or coordination problems that don't allow them to hold one key while pressing another at the same time, like CTRL+C to copy. With StickyKeys on, you tap the control key then tap the C key to copy, then tap the control key to turn it off again.
How can this possibly relate to Minecraft, you ask? I shall explain. With the Halloween update right around the corner, less than 10 hours or so, I guess, lots of people are wondering how to get all that obsidian they are going to need to make portals. It takes 15 seconds to mine one block of obsidian with a diamond pick, or 3.5 minutes to mine the 14 blocks you'll need for one portal. Of course, you can mold obsidian with lava and buckets, but I'm thinking I want a ready supply to build portals in the slip with, so I don't have to spend time dodging ghast fireballs while trying to mold a portal. Taking a bunch of obsidian with you is a pretty good idea I would think, you can build a portal pretty fast and get out of the slip a lot faster and safer than you can if you mold one.
OK, on to how it works. First, you need to configure StickyKeys. More than likely, you would have already turned them off, because hitting the shift key five times in a row will bring up the StickyKey dialog, and that's pretty easy to do playing games, so more than likely, it's off on your system. Go to the start menu, then settings, then control panel, then Accessibility Options. Under the keyboard tab, check the use stickykeys option, then go to settings. Check the box for use shortcut to turn them on, (hit shift five times) uncheck turn off if two keys are pressed, check the option for press modifier twice, and use your own preference for the notification options, I have the sound turned off, it gets annoying fast.
Once that's done, hit OK and run minecraft. You're going to need a specific set of conditions to get this working, first is a large lava source and some buckets. I don't like mining natural obsidian, you never know what's underneath it, probably more lava, that you don't want to fall into or lose the obsidian block to, so I always transport the lava to a safe place and mold it there and then mine. Dig around until you hit bedrock and find a likely piece of it and dig along in a straight line until you hit the next piece, or until you reach a set limit, like the number of blocks you want to mine. The bedrock is going to be your end point, since you can't mine through it, it will stop you from going further. Your trench should be one block wide and end at the bedrock, so start filling it with lava and dousing with water until the whole thing is obsidian. Dig out a starting point on the end opposite the bedrock and turn on stickykeys, you may want to run minecraft in a window so you can switch to the stickykeys dialog and change settings until you get it the way you want. Once stickykeys is on, change the key you use to move forward in minecraft to control. With stickykeys on, you tap control and stickykeys will make it "stay down" or lock until you double tap it (or is it a double tap to start and a single to stop? whichever, fool with it). Since minecraft is using the control key to move forward, and stickykeys is locking that key in the on position, you will walk forward automatically without having to hold the key down.
Now, for the mouse and the tape, equip your diamond pickaxe and get a piece of tape, I just used normal Scotch clear tape. Line up your cursor in minecraft with the first obsidian block, tape your mouse button down and let it rip. Once it mines through the first block, you'll automatically walk forward, and mine the next block, and so on. Once it hits the bedrock at the end of the trench, it will stop since it can't mine through it. You can walk away and do something else while it mines by itself. Come back in five minutes and have 20 or so blocks of obsidian without having to get carpal tunnel by holding down the mouse button and forward key for that time.
Once it's done, tap the control key again to turn it off, change your forward key in minecraft back to what you normally have it on and go about doing it again, or get on with the game. If you're done mining, you can turn off stickykeys and never think of it again until you need more obsidian.
A couple of pointers. Make sure the place you're mining is safe and well lit or play on peaceful, you don't want a mob finding you while you're not at the controls and ruining your day. Finding a piece of bedrock with enough room in one direction to make a decent trench can be tricky, but keep looking around you'll find a place eventually. Mine is right near my lava source, so I got lucky, or maybe it's not that hard to do. I have room now for 21 blocks, and I think I could go further into the wall and see how many I can get. 64 blocks for a full stack would be a long tunnel and I doubt you can get that far before hitting another piece of bedrock, but maybe not. You can use either the control, alt or shift keys with stickykeys, so any will work as your forward key in minecraft, whichever works best for you.
Here's a diagram, just to be clear on the trench you need, from above:
Start at the sand and mine towards the bedrock.
Fringe benefit: this will also lock your shift key, if you're using that to creep/sneak/not fall off something, so you don't have to hold it down all the time.
D_B
To tell them how to live is to prevent them living.