Before you start using HotkeyNet, you need to adjust a few settings. On each computer that you've installed it on, click "Comm Settings" to bring up the communications settings panel.

Click "Apply" and restart HotkeyNet to make your settings take effect. If you're using HotkeyNet on only one machine, you're finished with this page.

If you're using HotkeyNet on more than one machine, click "Yes" in the illustration shown above.

You must now choose one of your computers to be the server. All the others will be clients. This choice has no effect on how you use the program. Every computer that runs HotkeyNet can do the same things as the others regardless of whether it's a server or a client. The only difference between a server and a client is that the server coordinates communications behind the scenes.

Click "Apply" and restart HotkeyNet on your server to make your settings take effect. You are finished setting up your server.

On each client, you must enter the server's IP address. You can find the server's IP address by clicking "Show this PC's IP details" on the server's copy of HotkeyNet.

Enter the server's IP address in each client as shown in the following illustration.

The IP address shown here is only an example. You must enter the actual IP address of YOUR server.

Once again, you can find your server's IP address by clicking "Show this PC's IP details" on the server's copy of HotkeyNet.

Normally you can ignore the port setting. HotkeyNet chooses one by default, and it will work on most computer networks.

However it may be the case that a program on one of your computers is already using HotkeyNet's default port number. If so, HotkeyNet will tell you, and you will have to change the port number on all your copies of HotkeyNet. Just try different random numbers till you find one that works. If you pick an invalid number, HotkeyNet will tell you.

When you choose a new port number, you must be sure to enter the same one on all your copies of HotkeyNet, or else they won't be able to communicate with each other.

Each time you change the port number, click "Apply" and restart HotkeyNet to make your new settings take effect.

Your firewall will probably stop HotkeyNet from working unless you tell it to allow HotkeyNet to communicate freely. With some firewalls (such as ZoneAlarm) this is very easy. One or more windows will pop up the first time you run HotkeyNet asking if it's okay to allow HotkeyNet to do its job. You should say yes. Other firewalls are more complicated. You'll have to read the instructions for your firewall to find out how to do it.

(HotkeyNet contains no malicious code of any kind. It's perfectly safe to give it permission to communicate.)

Next page