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<H3><A NAME="general"></A> <A NAME="s5">5. International Keyboard - General settings</A></H3>

<P>
<P>
<P>
<P>The  <I>KDE International Keyboard</I>
program (<CODE>kikbd</CODE>) allows you to select
different keyboard maps for various national languages so you can
easily switch between different  national keyboard layouts.
The program is started
by clicking on the <B>International Keyboard Layout</B> item
in the <B>System</B> menu; it may also be configured to start
automatically every time you start  the KDE Desktop.
You can switch between different keyboard layouts
by using  a 
specially-defined <B>Switch</B>
``hotkey'' combination, or by 
clicking on the <B>keyboard-indicator
button</B> that is present whenever the <I>International Keyboard</I> 
program  is running.   
<P>
<P>
<P>
<IMG SRC="general.gif">
<P>The <B>General Settings</B>  dialog configures the keyboard
maps and ``hotkeys''.
<P>
<P><B>Keyboard maps</B>:
<P>Your personal list of national keyboard maps is shown in the box.   The
first entry is the  <I>default</I> keyboard map,
used by <I>International Keyboard</I> when it starts.  When you start
the  <I>International Keyboard</I> program (or its Control Center
configuration module) for the first time, the current keyboard map
is copied to your personal list of keyboard maps  as the default entry.
(In the example screenshot above, the default keyboard is
<CODE>En</CODE> - US English Language.)
<P>
<P>
<P>Use the buttons at the right to control your keyboard map list.
<UL>
<LI>Click on the <B>Add</B> button to add entries to
the list of keyboard maps.   
This opens the
<B>Add Keyboard</B> dialog which has a pull-down list of available
keyboard maps, and gives information about the keyboard you select
from it.  Click on its <B>OK</B> button to add the chosen keyboard map
to your personal list, or on <B>Cancel</B> to close the dialog without
changing your list.
</LI>
<LI>Click on the <B>Delete</B> button to remove the selected  
(highlighted) keyboard map from your personal list.
</LI>
<LI> Use the <B>Up</B> and <B>Down</B> buttons to select 
a  keyboard map by moving up or down in your personal list.  
The selected keyboard, which is
highlighted, is the ``<I>hot</I>'' keyboard.
</LI>
<LI>Click on the <B>Info</B> button to view the
<B>Keyboard Map Information</B>  about the  selected
keyboard.
</LI>
</UL>
<P>If you use more then two keyboard maps, it is very helpful to activate
the ``<B>Use hotlist</B>'' option. In this case you can switch between
the ``<I>hot</I>'' (highlighted) keyboard and the <I>default</I> 
(first) keyboard by 
using the <B>Switch</B>
key(s).  
You can  change the choice of 
``<I>hot</I>'' keyboard in the <I>International Keyboard</I>  
pop-up menu
that appears when you right-click on the 
keyboard-indicator  button.
<P>
<P><B>Switch and Alt Switch</B>:
<P>This section allows you to choose the ``hotkey'' combinations  used
by  <I>International Keyboard</I>  for
the <B>Switch</B> and <B>Alternate Switch</B> keys.
<P>The box on the left shows the key combination chosen for
the <B>Switch</B> key .
<UL>
<LI> Pressing the <B>Switch</B> key combination switches the keyboard
map to the the next one in your personal list of keyboard maps 
(or between the <I>default</I> and the highlighted (``<I>hot</I>'') 
map, if
the ``<B>use hotlist</B>'' option is active).   </LI>
</UL>
<P>The box on the right shows the key chosen as the <B>Alternate Switch</B>
key. This acts as a second shift-type key for accessing any
<I>alternate characters</I> defined in the keyboard map.
<P>
<UL>
<LI> The ``lower-case''  alternate characters
in the keyboard map
for the current national keyboard 
are obtained if the key is typed with the <B> Alternate Switch</B> key
held down, and the ``upper-case'' alternate characters
are obtained if the key is typed with both the <B>Alternate Switch</B> and
the <B> Shift</B> held down.</LI>
</UL>

Both boxes have a pull-down menu allowing different choices for these
special keys to be selected.
<P>In the  example screenshot above, you can switch between
keyboards by pressing <B>Right Ctrl</B>
and <B>Right Shift</B>  keys 
at the same time (the selected <B> Switch </B> key combination), and
you can obtain any alternate symbols defined for the
current national keyboard by holding down the 
<B>Right Alt</B> key (the selected <B> Alternate Switch</B> key)
while you type.
<P>
<P>
<P><B>Options</B>:
<P>This section allows other options to be configured.
<P>
<UL>
<LI>If the ``<B>Beep</B>'' option is activated,
the system will make an audible beep each time the keyboard map  changes.
</LI>
<LI>Click on the <B>Advanced</B> button to open the 
<A HREF="kikbd-6.html#advanced">Advanced Options dialog</A>
for more options.
</LI>
</UL>
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