Using a US (ANSI) keyboard in the UK

[Rajagra]

Some people in the UK/Europe are put off from using US keyboards because there is no straightforward way of using them without compromise. Switching the OS to the US layout means you lose any national symbols (£ etc.) The alternative, keeping the existing layout and touch-typing, doesn't work either because you've lost a physical key.

I don't think anyone has done anything about this before, so I've made a simple workaround using the MS Keyboard Layout creator.

This version is for hunt-and-peck typists, I think touch-typists need something different - I may do a follow up.

Aims (for hunt-and-peck typists):

Able to type all characters from UK layout, even the funny ones nobody can name.
All legends on US keys to be used, to avoid confusion.
All AltGr combos from UK layout to continue being used.
Any keys from UK layout not catered for by above to be added using AltGr combos in most logical place.

That lead me to this layout:



Red characters are typed using AltGr with the key. (Right-hand Alt is the AltGr, or apparently you can use Ctrl-Alt instead.) Where there are two red characters shown on a key the top one is typed using Shift-AltGr with the key.

Zip file follows. Download, unzip, run the installer and reboot. I've tested it in XP, should be fine in Vista and Win 7.

EDIT> I just realised the US International layout can do the funny characters from the UK layout. Shift-AltGr-4 gives £, AltGr-\ gives ¬, and Shift-AltGr-\ gives ¦.
Nevertheless, my layout is closer to standard UK, so may be of use to anyone wary of change.
For the US International layout, I recommend the version without dead keys here.

[jeyoung]

This is nice. I recommend people who need it to keep it handy on a USB drive, like I do with my UK Dvorak layout file.

FWIW, when I was stuck with US Dvorak, I got around the lack of £ sign (this is the real "pound" sign) by typing GBP instead; as a substitute for €, I typed EUR. No one ever complained.

As for the other funny characters, I have never needed them.

[nathanscribe]

I've started using a US-layout Filco tenkeyless recently and now prefer it to the UK layout, down to the Enter key arrangement I think.  For me £ is Alt-3.  No probs there then.  I don't have any £ to speak of anyway.

For info, those of us on OSX can use Ukelele to customize keyboard layouts beyond what's possible in System Prefs.

There's also Spark which allows easy shortcut mapping, particularly handy for things that don't seem possible in SYstem Prefs, like the Volume controls.

I've used both these on 10.6.4 with no trouble.

[zefrer]

Rajagra, what key do you lose when you use an ISO layout keyboard as US layout?

Edit: The tilde

[Rajagra]

The ISO hardware is a superset of the ANSI hardware. You lose nothing.

The key between Left Shift and Z is an extra one.

The #~ key to the left of Return on a UK board is the same key as \| above Return on the U.S. board. It sends the same code to the computer, despite being moved slightly and having different characters printed on it.

[Minskleip]

One can map caps to ctrl, and use left ctrl as fn. Or just use right ctrl as fn. Who uses right ctrl anyway?

[keyboardlover]

Who uses right ctrl anyway?

I use right ctrl.

[itlnstln]

Ctrl-Alt-Del.  The only time I use the right Ctrl.

[itlnstln]

Fixed.  I'm in the middle of a training class on a new CRM tool.  I'm getting dumber by the second.  The trainer for the course (from Teradata) is a real freakshow.  He talks like a hyper Rainman.

[itlnstln]

I figured their kids would be so introverted, they would implode.

[zefrer]

I hear all geeks are crater face bow-tie wearing, MMO playing, living in mom's basement in their mid 30s losers.

It's easy to stereotype.