Hi Will,
You asked:
>WL: hi, does anyone use a german keyboard layout on a macbook at
>all?
>how do i type the umauts such as a umlaut, o umlaut u umlaut etcetera?
I type an umlaut on a regular (U.S.) Mac keyboard using the option key,
To place the diaresis over the u, hold down the Option key while pressing
the u key; release and type u again. For the same mark over the o, after
you release your option and u keys, type o. For a "sharp ess" (or German
eszett) hold down the Option key while pressing the s key.
In general the way you type accents on the Mac keyboard with the Option key
follows one of the two patterns given above:
1. accent marks associated with specific letters are typed by pressing the
Option key in combination with that letter; for example:
French cedilla Option+c (as in français)
German eszett Option+s
Nordic o Option+o (as in Søren's name)
2. accent marks that can be used with different letters (like your example of
umlaut 0, umlaut u, etc.) are typed by pressing the Option key in combination
with the accent mark key, then after releasing both keys you press the
letter you want accented:
diaresis (umlaut) Option+u (as in für)
circumflex Option+i
acute accent Option+e
grave accent Option+` (VO announces this key as "accent" whether or not
the option key is pressed with it; on U.S. keyboards this is the key
under the escape key at the left side of the keyboard)
tilde Option+n (as in señor)
If you want to get these accents by themselves, type Option+Shift+that accent
key. So Option+Shift+u for the umlaut (with no letter accented), and
Option+Shift+n for the tilde, etc.
I experimented with these after Jane's question to the list a while ago
about typing accents on the regular keyboard.
HTH
Cheers,
Esther
