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Hardware - Support => Other => Topic started by: Ean on July 21, 2023, 04:20:09 AM

Title: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 21, 2023, 04:20:09 AM
Hi, I've recently installed LL6.4 and have had a couple of problems which weren't present in 5.x. The PC is a dual core 3GHz CPU with 4Gb DDR3 RAM.

Here, the Keyboard characters @ and" are transposed, and I installed LL6.4 with a UK keyboard, Generic 105 Key, using the same keyboard and PC as with the earlier LL5.x installation. The problem persists after a reboot. There may be other wrong keys which I haven't discovered. I examined the many keyboard options available in LL, but the existing setting is by far the best apparent match. Please advise.

Many thanks, Ean.
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: stevef on July 21, 2023, 04:41:54 AM
Try this

Click Menu
Begin typing 'settings manager' into the search bar
When you see Settings Manager offered, click it
Under Hardware, click 'Keyboard'
Select the Layout tab
Ensure 'Use system defaults' is off
Under 'Keyboard model' the Generic option should be ok

Under 'Keyboard layout'
Check your keyboard marking for shift 3.
If it is a '£' symbol, then
If English (UK) is not present, use 'Add' to put it in the list.
Once English (UK) is in the list, highlight and remove other layouts leaving just one.
Close
This may change dynamically, but reboot if it doesn't.
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 21, 2023, 05:12:57 AM
Hi Stevef,

Many thanks for your fast reply. When shift 3 is pressed, I get a #. I can't turn "Use System Defaults" off; on clicking this nothing happens. English UK is the sole option shown under keyboard layout.

Ean.
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: stevef on July 21, 2023, 05:51:33 AM
What is reported if you open a terminal and enter the following command ?

Code: [Select]
setxkbmap -query
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 21, 2023, 06:32:24 AM
Hi Stevef,

The following comes back from     setxkbmap -query:

rules:      evdev
model:      pc105
layout:     us

LL settings tells me I have a UK keyboard (I've rechecked this), terminal (and the wrong key settings) indicate a US keyboard! It amazes me how people learn all these Terminal commands, etc. Expertise, I guess. I only use a few.

ean
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: stevef on July 21, 2023, 06:46:27 AM
There are some quirks in xfce desktop.  It can get confused if you change using the GUI and end up out of step.
Having one layout set by the GUI usually works, but something is awry here.

Try using the command

Code: [Select]
setxkbmap gb
Then check again.
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 22, 2023, 03:59:29 AM
Nothing happens when using the command.

In the meantime I installed Mint xfce alongside LL to see if there's anything odd in my PC or brain. There is no keyboard issue here (nor the Firefox issues I'm having as well with LL6.4-a separate topic).
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: stevef on July 22, 2023, 05:13:41 AM
Not sure what is going on then.  Just checked on a LL 6.4 system with a UK keyboard and UK mapping.
First showing the current mapping, then switching to to us mapping, repeat show the mapping and test with shift3.
Then revert to gb mapping and show and test again.

Code: [Select]
stevef>setxkbmap -query
rules:      evdev
model:      pc105
layout:     gb
stevef>
stevef>setxkbmap us
stevef> setxkbmap -query
rules:      evdev
model:      pc105
layout:     us
stevef>###
stevef>setxkbmap gb
stevef>£££
£££: command not found
stephen>setxkbmap -query
rules:      evdev
model:      pc105
layout:     gb
stevef>
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 22, 2023, 05:55:32 AM
Many thanks for your time on this. Would you recommend a re-install? If so, is there anything I have to watch for when reinstalling on top of the old LL6.4 with Mint installed on the same PC? (I want to keep Mint, for the time being).
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: stevef on July 22, 2023, 06:51:41 AM
Quote
Would you recommend a re-install?
Not yet.

Let's go back to the GUI for a moment.
Quote
I can't turn "Use System Defaults" off

What exactly do you mean here ?

On my desktop, 'Use System Defaults' set to ON means the slider is to the right (with a blue background) and the options to change anything are greyed out.  To turn it off, I click the slider to the left, the blue goes to grey and the options are enabled.

Can you confirm your settings GUI is stuck with Use System Defaults being ON
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 23, 2023, 03:53:55 AM
I've done Settings Manager> Keyboard Icon> Layout, and there is no slider or selectable options on this page. Clicking any of the headings does nothing.
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: stevef on July 23, 2023, 04:08:43 AM
Quote
I've done Settings Manager> Keyboard Icon> Layout, and there is no slider or selectable options on this page. Clicking any of the headings does nothing.

Just below where you select the tabs when viewing the 'Layout' tab, there should be the words 'Use System Defaults' on the upper left side and level with that over on the right there should be an an on/off slider switch type selector.

Do you not have this at all ?
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 23, 2023, 04:32:39 AM
There are the words "Use System Defaults" but no slider.
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: stevef on July 23, 2023, 05:05:15 AM
That's odd. We're looking for a pictogram of an on/off type slider switch over on the right, level with the 'Use System Defaults' text.  As you don't have that pictogram, go back to 'Settings Manager' and under the 'other' section at the bottom click 'Settings Editor'

On the resulting screen, highlight the 'keyboard-layout' line

In the line 'Default' is there a tick in the locked box ?
If necessary, expand the 'Default' entry by clicking on the triangle.
Look for the property 'XkbDisable' (Type boolean).
Is the Value box is ticked or not.
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 23, 2023, 05:14:55 AM
 The property 'XkbDisable' (Type boolean). Value box is not ticked; has GB above it. The locked value box is also unticked.
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: stevef on July 23, 2023, 06:30:51 AM
Just to be 100% clear, the settings layout screen should look something like this.
The mouse pointer in the image is indicating the position of the 'Use Default Settings' on/off slider.
With the pictogram switch set to the left, it is possible to make changes.

(https://i.imgur.com/aVdt31i.png)

If I've understood correctly, you don't see the on/off slider pictogram at all.
Your system operates as if 'Use System Defaults' is set to ON and enforcing the US keyboard layout.

Even with 'Use System Defaults' ON, it should be possible to set the keyboard layout to 'gb' temporarily (for duration of the session) to 'gb' from the CLI.  I think I asked you to check this but please can you run these commands and post back.

Code: [Select]
setxkbmap -query
Code: [Select]
setxkbmap gb
Code: [Select]
setxkbmap -query




Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 24, 2023, 04:13:18 AM
The ON/OFF slider is not present. I've done this before, but a useful double check.

 setxkbmap -query
rules:      evdev
model:      pc105
layout:     gb

setxkbmap gb                    No response-goes back to the cursor.



Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: stevef on July 24, 2023, 06:17:45 AM
I could only speculate why your Settings screen is locked and missing the on/off pictogram.  Do you remember if it ever looked correct and worked ?  For example, in your first post you mentioned looking at the many keyboard options available.  Was this using the Setting screen ?

No explicit response expected from the CLI to the set command, but if the 'before' query had shown the map to be 'us', then the set command should have set it to 'gb' which would have been shown in the 'after' query and hopefully corrected the keyboard mapping for the session.

One more place to check.  Please post back with the result of
Code: [Select]
cat /etc/default/keyboard
From what you've posted so far I'd expect this will show the layout to be 'gb' as well but worth a check.

Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 24, 2023, 07:51:27 AM
 The keyboard problem was there right from the start. I can't remember where I found the many keyboard options available.

I've just realised I'm on a Windows machine; I'll do the Terminal command tomorrow morning.

Just to let you know, I'll be going away tomorrow around midday for about a week and will have no Internet access.
 
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 25, 2023, 03:57:27 AM
cat /etc/default/keyboard
# KEYBOARD CONFIGURATION FILE

# Consult the keyboard(5) manual page.

XKBMODEL="pc105"
XKBLAYOUT="gb"
XKBVARIANT=""
XKBOPTIONS=""

BACKSPACE="guess"
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: stevef on July 25, 2023, 05:43:01 AM
I'm out of ideas as to why your system is fixed on using what is probably a us keyboard layout.
All the locations I can think of where the keyboard layout is noted point at a gb layout.  Clearly I am missing something.

The absence of the pictogram on the GUI settings screen is one possible avenue to explore, but beyond my scope.   

If you have snapshots made using 'System Restore  Utility' (aka timeshift) you could try rolling back, but it maybe time to re-install.
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: Ean on July 30, 2023, 07:58:59 AM
Many thanks for all the time you've spent on this. I've not got a System Restore as the problem started right from the beginning. I'll try a re-install, and see if the issues I'm having with Firefox will disappear as well.
Title: Re: Keyboard Layout Problem.
Post by: karlheinz on July 30, 2023, 09:07:48 AM
Hallo! Ich habe LL6.4 mehrfach neu installiert. Bei der Installation ist Chrome als Browser dabei, den hatte ich auch in Windows. Der funktioniert, Firefox ist möglicherweise ein "Snap" der Probleme bereitet. Viel Erfolg ! K.H.