Abstract: Methods, articles and systems are provided to enable a human user to control particular functions of a processor-based mobile computing device by utilizing hardware actuators of the mobile computing device, such as when touchscreen or other capacitive controls of the computing device may be unreliable or unavailable based on an atypical physical environment or enclosure of the mobile computing device within an external device case. An executing mobile application may assign a first function of the mobile application and/or mobile computing device to a first hardware actuator of the mobile computing device, and assign a set of additional functions of the mobile application and/or mobile computing device to other hardware actuators.