Dead/Compose key maps

Dead key and compose key maps for the integrated console are both implemented through the mapchan command which uses a common configuration file. These files must be placed in the directory /usr/lib/mapchan, where examples of these maps can be found.

Dead key maps

A mapchan file consists of halves, one referring to the input mappings, the other referring to the output mappings. Dead key maps are implemented on the input side. An example dead key map is shown in ``Example dead key map''.

   input
   

   dead 0311   # Acute accent dead key
    'E' 0x90    # E acute
    'e' 0x82    # e acute
   

   output

Example dead key map

Although no output mapping is performed, the keyword output must still be present. The dead key is specified using the dead keyword, followed by the value returned by the dead key (in the above example the value 311 octal is used, which corresponds to the value used in the mapkey file). Pairs of characters are then specified, the first being the key to be pressed in conjunction with the dead key, and the second being the character generated by this dead key combination. Multiple dead keys can be specified by repeated use of the dead keyword. Dead key sequences cannot contain the dead key character.

Compose key maps

Compose key maps are specified similarly to dead keys. ``Example compose key map'' shows an example.

   input
   

   compose 0x14    # Compose key (^T)
    '+' '+' 0x23     # number sign
    '(' '-' 0x7B     # opening brace
    ')' '-' 0x7D     # closing brace
   

   output

Example compose key map

As with dead keys, the compose sequences are specified as input mappings and the compose key is specified using the compose keyword. In the above example <CNTL-T> (14 hex) is used as the compose key. The following characters are then specified in triples, where the first two characters represent the input character sequence that follows the compose key to produce the third character. Only one compose key is allowed in a mapchan file, and the characters used in the compose sequences cannot include the compose key character itself.

For further detail see mapchan(4).