macOS 15: Problem with certain system-wide keyboard shortcuts
Apple will no longer allow you to create global hotkeys by holding down the Option key. This can be annoying.
New functions in macOS 15.
(Image: Apple)
macOS 15 brings a range of new security functions, which the manufacturer has apparently not really thought through. For example, changes to the network filters and the firewall are currently still causing professional security solutions to fail in some cases and monthly requests for video conferencing and screenshot tools are annoying users. However, Apple – has also apparently made unpleasant changes at another level for security reasons –, which may fall on the feet of users after the upgrade to Sequoia: in the support of system-wide keyboard shortcuts.
Control instead of Option – but why?
The creators behind the professional screenshot app Shottr, who were already affected by the annoying screen access requests, found that standard hotkeys no longer work as desired. "Starting with macOS Sequoia, Apple no longer allows global keyboard shortcuts where the Option key or Shift plus Option are the only modifiers." Confusingly, this only affects the Option key, but not Control (also called Control on PCs). For example, if you have defined a hotkey such as Option+Letter, you will no longer be able to use it after upgrading to Sequoia.
The solution is to switch to Control+Letter or to add the Command key as an alternative for the hotkey. Apps that do not use the hotkey API provided by macOS and instead use their own routines to listen for keystrokes are apparently not affected by the problem. However, this is not recommended by Apple and can even cost battery capacity on MacBooks.
With dubious justification: apparently intended by Apple
Other well-known apps such as the open-source clipboard manager Maccy are also affected and currently have no solution other than the recommendations mentioned above. Further reports on apps suffering from the change are summarized on Reddit. Anyone using automation tools such as Keyboard Maestro should also check their assigned hotkeys.
The problem has also already been recorded in the Open Feedback Assistant on Github. There is speculation that this is a change intended by Apple. A "Frameworks Engineer" at Apple writes in the developer forum that the aim is to prevent "key-logging malware" from recording keystrokes in other applications. The problem was that "alternative characters could be generated in passwords" using the Shift+option. There is therefore no workaround –, however rare this danger may be. Sequoia now always requires a modifier that is not Shift or Option.
Empfohlener redaktioneller Inhalt
Mit Ihrer Zustimmmung wird hier ein externer Preisvergleich (heise Preisvergleich) geladen.
Ich bin damit einverstanden, dass mir externe Inhalte angezeigt werden. Damit können personenbezogene Daten an Drittplattformen (heise Preisvergleich) übermittelt werden. Mehr dazu in unserer Datenschutzerklärung.
(bsc)
