Lots of JavaScript libraries come replete with ways of capturing key input and using it to your advantage. It's a good bet that you will be able to find a library to do just that, and nothing else. I don't have a lot of experience there, however.
I've been using Ext for a while now, and their KeyMap class is really easy to work with. Here is a simple example using it.
new Ext.KeyMap(Ext.getDoc(), {
key: 'abc',
alt: true,
handler: function(k, e) {
var t = Ext.getCmp('tabpanel');
switch(k) {
case 65:
t.setActiveTab(0);
break;
case 66:
t.setActiveTab(1);
break;
case 67:
t.setActiveTab(2);
break;
}
},
stopEvent: true
});
This takes class, Ext.TabPanel, and allows the user to push a keyboard key to change tabs, rather than clicking the tabs themselves.
It can, of course, do much more than this. This is a simple example of how it works though.
