Keyboard: Option to auto-reconnect to same keyboard with no intervention (upon powerup of either or both device)

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(moved from a comment I posted, and edited to expand)

BACKGROUND:
Excellent -- thank you very much. As a deaf guy, I often communicate on 
keyboard even in person. I just purchased a copy of BTStack keyboard and 
it works perfectly with my ThinkOutside? keyboard. (I've used it for many 
years on PocketPC's as well as on a BlackBerry? Curve). I'm also a 
developer too as well. Matthias, I have a big favour to ask of you.... I 
would like to request that improvements to be made: 

FEATURE REQUEST:
An option to automatically reconnect to the most-recently connected 
keyboard when the keyboard is turned back on. Meaning, I can take my 
iPod/iPhone out of my pocket, open the Bluetooth keyboard, and start 
typing right away. These could be perhaps two checkboxes:

[X] Keep keyboard always connected [disable sleep]
[X] Automatically reconnect to last keyboard [even if not discoverable]
Warning: Enabling either or both above options may consume extra battery 
power.

This is how the keyboard driver on the Windows Mobile, as well as the 
discontinued BlackBerry? Curve driver (OS 4.2) made by ThinkOutside?. 
Meaning the keyboard always worked when opened up, although there was 
often a 2-3 second delay before the text showed up.  Either the keyboard 
driver is continuously reconnecting to the existing pariing (MAC address?) 
or the keyboard is initiating an incoming connection to the device.  

Meaning I would never have to launch the BTstack keyboard app again except 
to turn on/off the automatic reconnect feature (unless the iPod/iPhone was 
rebooted). 

I know that whenever the keyboard is turned back on, it won't be 
discoverable. But that works in the keyboard drivers of other devices. 
This means BTstack would need to memorize what keyboard it paired with 
last time, and might require polling for it directly "in the blind". I 
know, this will consume more battery power, but this feature is extremely 
important to me. (Because I am a deaf guy and I often like to communicate 
by keyboard --- whipping out my iPod and keyboard, powering up the 
keyboard, and immediately typing, without needing to unlock the iPhone and 
launch BTstack first.   It should work regardless of which device is 
turned on first, and should work when the keyboard is powered up (many 
keyboards, such as ThinkOutside, don't reenable discoverable mode when 
merely opened up, which powers it on)

Also: This will also solve the following problems too:
- Keyboard stopping working if it goes out of range 
- Keyboard driver stopping working if the keyboard "goes to sleep" on its 
end (Thinkoutside ultra low power mode)
Meaning, BTstack can be made to automatically reconnect when the keyboard 
is back in range, or when the keyboard is woken up by a keypress. 

BTW - when I use on other devices, I noticed that the ThinkOutside? 
keyboard also has a built in keyboard buffer, and bursts out the last few 
keypresses once fully reconnected. But you don't have to worry about this 
feature as I don't mind waiting 2-3 seconds for an automatic reconnect) 
Can you please add this feature to your BTstack driver too? I offer to pay 
$50 by PayPal? immediately up front if you can work on this feature and 
make it available as soon as you are able to. 

P.S. BTstack keyboard is the ONLY reason I jailbroke my iPhone! :-) The 
first app I ever purchased from Cydia (yet). 

Original issue reported on code.google.com by marky...@gmail.com on 14 Feb 2010 at 10:15

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Original comment by matthias.ringwald@gmail.com on 15 Feb 2010 at 9:33

• Added labels: Type-Enhancement
• Removed labels: Type-Defect

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Do you need any coding help to make this feature possible?   Do I need 
low-level 
Bluetoothk tinkering to do this, or are these simple changes I could do myself? 

(I'm a coder myself, though mainly code for BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, and now 
Android, but I'm also expanding to iPhone too.)

i.e.
- (easy?) Save MAC address of last keyboard to internal settings file
- (easy?) Re-autoconnect to that keyboard whenever it sees that MAC (even when 
running in the background) whenever it sees that keyboard in discoverable mode.
- (easy?) Turn off the 15 minute timeout
- (harder?) Intermittently poll for that MAC address of the already-paired 
keyboard, 
whenever it'd disconnected and isn't 'discoverable' because it may stil be on 
an 
nearby.

Please feel free to reply to re-rank the bullets; and which bullets you think 
can be 
worked on the already pubicly available btstack source code; and which bullets 
require modifying the proprietary app?

Any way to help out here?

Original comment by marky...@gmail.com on 19 Feb 2010 at 1:46

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Note -- this would be one of my first real Bluetooth project, although I have 
lots 
of experence with older serial protocols -- I'll have to do some studying on 
the 
necessary Bluetooth protocols (especially SDP, HID, etc) before I can even 
attempt 
to try and take upon this.  If each bullet requires changes to the proprietary 
app, 
then I'm out of luck.

Original comment by marky...@gmail.com on 19 Feb 2010 at 1:51

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hi markybox

i think the best solution would be to handle incoming connections. I've added 
the
missing pieces in BTstack beginning of this month, the rest (all your bullets) 
is in
the "proprietary" code. It's not that much work, but I just lack enough time to 
do
everything I could.

the one thing which is related is to prevent the iPhone from sleeping while BT 
is on.
Currently this is done within the keyboard app, but it should be in the daemon. 
If
you're interested in using/helping with BTstack, please join the dev list. :)

Original comment by matthias.ringwald@gmail.com on 25 Feb 2010 at 7:05

• Changed title: Keyboard: Option to auto-reconnect to same keyboard with no intervention (upon powerup of either or both device)

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Upon further research, I believe you are right.  My keyboard evidently attempts 
to 
connect to the host when I press a keypress.  So it's not a matter of polling 
for 
it, but a matter of ability to accept incoming connections.  That would be 
perfect, 
I hope.

Less important is iPhone sleeping while BT is on, is to at least make it work 
automagically: 

1. Turn on iPod/iPhone (press button)
2. Turn on keyboard (which is usually just tap a key)

And the keyboard automatically connects.  That's evidently how conveniently it 
works 
on other handheld devices including BlackBerry Curve 8300 (OS 4.2 only, using 
old 
ThinkOutside driver that doesn't work on OS 4.5), as well as on Windows Mobile 
devices.

So basically, for now, perhaps some low lying apples (pun intended) can easily 
be 
done:

(1) Checkbox "[x] Alway keep Bluetooth on (May use more battery power)" 
(not necessarily disable sleep mode, that can be a future checkbox "[x] Prevent 
sleep when Bluetooth on")

(2) Checkbox "[X] Automatically reconnect to last keyboard upon startup of 
BTStack"
Meaning, I just have to launch BTStack and it will automatically reconnect to 
my 
keyboard when I merely make discoverable.   
(Your future rewrite will make this even more convenient, but at least this is 
an 
easy interim step?)

Original comment by marky...@gmail.com on 25 Feb 2010 at 8:06

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Addendum, when I say
1. Turn on iPod/iPhone (press button)
2. Turn on keyboard (which is usually just tap a key)

I mean, without launching a pairing app or launching BTStack.  Meaning, I keep 
working right away in the same application that was already running when the 
iPod 
last went to sleep (when I intentionally press the power button)

I want quick power-off and quick power-on convenient, for sudden nomadic starts 
and 
stops of the Bluetooth keyboard -- very important to me.

Original comment by marky...@gmail.com on 25 Feb 2010 at 8:08

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I also would like to express my appreciation for a feature like this to be 
implemented. I also have the same bt keyboard and find that it has a very small 
timeout and therefore I am constantly having to reboot my ipad to get the 
btstack keyboard app to see the keyboard again. (For some reason once the 
keyboard goes to sleep it has a tough time finding it again and the only 
surefire way I've been able to solve this is by rebooting). I also echo that 
this and the bt mouse are the only reasons why I jealbroke my ipad (to use with 
logmein).
Keep up the great work!

Original comment by brian%sy...@gtempaccount.com on 23 Nov 2010 at 4:18

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hi. I never implemented incoming connections for BTstack Keyboard or Mouse, but 
I've release BTC Mouse & Keyboard which integrates into iOS Bluetooth. I hope 
this makes the BTstack Keyboard & Mouse combination obsolete and provides a 
better user experience as the iOS stack supports re-connection out of the box.

Original comment by matthias.ringwald@gmail.com on 2 Nov 2012 at 8:32

• Changed state: WontFix