12

I installed Ubuntu with mostly default configuration; the keyboard seems not to detect the Alt Gr key so that I can not type international characters.

How can I enable Alt Gr key?

Artur Meinild
  • 31,035
user257297
  • 133

3 Answers3

23

This answer has screenshots for Gnome-Shell (Ubuntu Gnome 13.10). I suppose it will be similar for standard Unity, but if not, please chime in.

First of all (and this is the most common problem), to have AltGr working you need a keyboard layout which uses it. For example, this is my keyboard layout (Settings -> Region and Language):

Screenshot: Region & Language settings

  • English (US, international with dead keys) has AltGr.
  • English (US) has NO AltGr.
  • English (international AltGr dead keys) has AltGr.

(My preferred layout is the third one, really).

If the layout does not map AltGr+Key to anything, like for example the default "English (US)", AltGr will not work even if it's activated in the Keyboard -> Shortcuts panel.

This is normally sufficient. To change the position of the AltGr you go to Settings -> Keyboard and set the "Alternative Characters Key":

Screenshot: Keyboard settings

For example, my keyboard has no physical AltGr key, so I mapped it to the Right Alt key.

Now with the third layout, pressing AltGr and n together gives ñ.

Compose (the option before) is a very different beast. If you enable it, then you will have a set of characters available with three (or more) keystrokes. For example, pressing Compose, o, e gives œ. That's three sequential keystrokes, not together.

Take into account that there is a bug related to the layout switching in 13.10 which is being worked on, so check it if you have problems changing layout.

wjandrea
  • 14,504
Rmano
  • 32,167
4

In order to set up the Alt-Gr key you must go to (setting -> keyboard -> layout settings -> keyboard settings -> then go to the typing tab -> press and hold the Alternative Keyboard Key setting -> move you mouse down to select the key you want to assign Alt-Gr to. enter image description here enter image description here enter image description here enter image description here

basketball
  • 119
  • 2
  • 14
0

AltGr sounds like a lot of trouble for only a few symbols. A better choice might be the United States Alternative International keyboard. This one gives a choice of dozens of letters with diacritical marks . The k'bd is just like the standard k'bd except that the `~ ^' and the " are --dead-- keys ( delayed action ) until the next key is pressed. These are the accent grave, tilde, circumflex and the accent agut. Just these 5 added to all the vowels and many consonants gives dozens of extra characters . If you want to type the apostrophe by it self just hit the space bar. ( Or the quote sign ) I have Ubuntu 12.10 and it works OK. I used the instructions for Ubuntu 14.04 so I had to do some guessing but I finally got it to work.
http://www.wikihow.com/Change-Keyboard-Layout-in-Ubuntu

  ã â ś Ḱ ç ŕ ï ḿ ĝ  ĥ â ŝ ó õ------samples

the 'and the v = ǘ this u with 2 marks above it ,,, wonder where it is used ?

nelson
  • 1