ChrisRevocateur: So I'm looking for a virtual keyboard application with controller support to use for an HTPC. Yes, I know about Controller Companion on Steam. It doesn't meet my needs at all, for several reasons.

First off, the mapping capability of the software is no where near powerful enough. It lacks advanced custom button combinations (holding one key down, tapping a few others, letting up on the held key, and tapping a few more, or tapping a button, waiting a few seconds, then tapping it, or another button again, etc) as well as lacking advanced controls (such as doing one thing for tapping a button, another for holding it down, or different button combinations depending on how far you tilt one of the joysticks and in what direction, etc).

Second, it's limited to only one profile and two layouts in that profile per game, as well as hardcoding the layout switch to the back button, and only while held down. Xpadder also limits you to one profile per game, but allows for up to 8 layouts in that profile. Pinnacle Game Profiler/Padstarr are limited to 5 layouts per profile, but can hotswap any number of profiles in a game. Both can assign layout shifting to any key, as a one way, toggle, or held down control.

Third, CC ONLY works with XBox style xinput controllers. No playstation controllers, no old directinput controllers, no joysticks/joypads, no steering wheels, nothing. Just xbox style controllers.

Fourth, last, and really most important: There is no null profile. Controller Companion will turn itself off when you're in Steam Big Picture Mode, and while playing any games launched from Steam big picture mode, but other than that, it is ALWAYS on, unless you manually shut it off (yes, easy with the start+back button combo, but not automatic). I don't use Steam as my main game launcher (I'll be using Launchbox's Big Box for this), and I'll be doing a lot more than just games anyway. Kodi has built in controller support, a lot of games I have from outside of Steam have full controller support built in, and I have games and applications where I want other controller mapping software to take the controller. A blank profile in CC leaves the controller unable to do anything, and setting every application where I don't want CC to do anything, but hasn't been launched in big picture, to just emulate xbox buttons is not only extremely tedious, but you never know exactly what is actually going to come out when you've got two controller mapper programs both trying to modify a controller's inputs at the same time. So, while most of the programs that I want the keyboard function in would do just fine with the very simple control capabilities given by CC, CC would otherwise get in the way of everything else I want to do with the controller outside of Steam Big Picture.

So I want the power of Pinnacle Game Profiler/Padstarr, and a stand alone on screen keyboard that can either be controlled directly using xinput, or through a Pinnacle Game Profiler/Padstarr profile emulating something like arrow key presses. While one like CC's would be amazing (doesn't steal focus in a way that interrupts games, and the really awesome spiral keyboard design), I'd be happy with one that looks like a traditional keyboard and ran as a normal application (I can just set any games that would need it to borderless window mode).

Finally, yes, I know I can use the Windows onscreen keyboard, and use one of the joysticks to emulate the mouse, but that's not as easy as moving a highlighting cursor from letter to letter.