Hardware Shortcuts for VS Code

The KM16 Macropad is sixteen keys with three knobs, remapped in the browser over VIA, at $119. Pointing it at VS Code is straightforward, but only if you take the keystrokes from your own editor rather than from a list on the internet. This page is about the method, not about specific key combinations, because those differ by platform, by version and by whatever extensions you have installed.

What does VS Code see when I press a macropad key?

An ordinary keystroke. There is no driver, no integration and nothing for VS Code to support. The pad sends the same thing your keyboard would send, so any command you can bind in the editor can be put on a key.

That is also the constraint. If two applications use the same combination for different things, the pad will not know which one you meant. Whatever has focus wins.

How do I find the right keystroke to program?

Open the Command Palette and run the command that opens Keyboard Shortcuts. Search for the action by name, and read the binding your editor is actually using right now. That is the string to put on the pad.

Do not copy a binding from an article, ours included. They drift between releases, they differ between macOS, Windows and Linux, and an extension you installed last month may have taken one already. The Keyboard Shortcuts editor is the only source that describes your machine.

If a command has no binding at all, give it one there first, then mirror it on the pad.

Which actions are worth a dedicated key?

Describe the job, then find its command. The ones people keep coming back to:

• Accept and dismiss an inline AI suggestion, if you use GitHub Copilot or a similar extension.
• Run the last task, or run the test file you are looking at.
• Show and hide the integrated terminal panel, which is where Claude Code, Codex and Gemini CLI live if you run them inside the editor.
• Go to the next problem or the next change in the diff view.
• Format the document, and stage or commit in source control.

Everything else is better left in the Command Palette. A key you cannot remember the meaning of is worse than no key, because you will press it by accident.

What about chord bindings and knobs?

VS Code supports chords, where one combination is followed by a second. If your pad can only send a single keystroke per key, a chord will not fit on it. The fix is to give that command a single-combination binding of your own in the Keyboard Shortcuts editor, and put that on the pad.

Knobs want continuous actions. Scrolling a long file or a long agent output, moving through the editor tab list, adjusting the font size while you are pairing on a call, or plain system volume.

Is a pedal better than a pad for this?

For a small number of actions you fire while both hands are already typing, yes. The Pedal Three at $69 covers accept, reject and one more without your hands leaving the keyboard. For anything longer than that, keys are easier to tell apart than pedals are.

For a full mapping written out against one tool, read our KM16 setup guide for GitHub Copilot.