BootsnAll Travel Community

I'm kind of a dunce when it comes to most things - things just don't occur to me. Take, for instance, the first time I tried to log into email from a non-English speaking country (in this case, France).

I'm an experienced typist - last time I checked I was up near 90 WPM - so I don't spend a lot of time looking at my fingers when I'm typing. So, there I was, sitting at the computer in the hotel lobby in Arles, merrily thinking I'd check my email account and send off a couple messages. But I couldn't log into my account. I tried about six times before finally looking down at my hands as I was tapping the keys, and found that the keys were in all kinds of different places than I was expecting.

Needless to say, the whole checking-and-sending-email process - one I thought would be quick, easy and fun - turned into an exercise in frustration. It had simply never occurred to me that the keyboard layout that I took for granted at home would be any different anywhere in the world (well, in the places that used the same kind of alphabet, anyway). I wasn't even hunting for special characters or accented letters, I was just trying to find the "M"...

At any rate, Melissa posted a link for a cheat sheet for the shortcuts to find all those special characters you might need to find on one of those unfamiliar keyboards. It might not be as easy as plugging in your own keyboard (you know, the one you carry around in your backpack at all times), but it'll help in a pinch.

if you're just trying to type as you do at home if you go into control pannel and language settings you can change the keyboard to american english (or whatever you're used to typing on) and as long as you don't look down you're typing as normal

Jessie! The same thing happened to me in France! Of course it wasn't until I was leaving that I realized you could just change the settings back to your own keyboard. Boo.

The French keyboards really don't make sense at all. You clearly use a . much more often than a ;, and why are the numbers on top of the symbols?!

In Germany the z and y were switched, so I kept typing zou and yebra.

Criminey, I had no idea you could switch the keyboard via the control panel. Yeesh. It's a good thing I'm not in charge of anything technical at this here online company...

I might add that this only helps if you know how to type.
If you are a two fingered hunt and peck typist like me it doesn't do a lot of good.

I went to use one in Dar Es Salam once and had to get the clerk let me plug in my lap top because the darn thing had nothing resembling Roman characters on it. It did make good comedy for the local users as they thought my expression was priceless.

i hate other keyboards...if there was something small enough and thin enough to carry around with me that folded up (i bet there is, like those palm keyboards or something) I would use them with traveling...it frustrates the heck out of me to have to type and constantly hit the wrong keys...I feel your pain jessie as I can type upwards of your level...

it is so frustrating...

Almost every Windows based computer has a US keyboard layout available, and you can easily switch between them by hitting Alt-Shift to change layouts, and then you can type with where your fingers think the letters should be.

Often there's only two layouts available, so that'll just switch between US and local, but occasionally thoughtful computer owners will have put other layouts on, to serve a wide variety of nationalities, so you may have to try a few times before hitting the right one. Usually if there's more than one, you'll also see a little 2-letter code in the bottom right, if you click on it, you'll see a list of all layouts available.

When I was in school, I was in the French immersion program, so I quickly learned this trick to avoid having to constantly use the "add symbols" feature. Indeed, I still use it at home so I can easily add things like the € symbol to my posts. Of course, I use the French Canadian keyboard, which only has a few small changes from the US layout, so I can still type quickly. France French keyboards baffle me.

Ahhh..yes...memories of that damn French keyboard!

So my story of encountering the French keyboard...I was staying with my Dutch friend in Maastricht. I was so accustomed to things Dutch. We drove over to Antwerp for the night to go to a club...this club had an internet kiosk..like take a picture of yourself at the club and send it out or something like that. I look at the keyboard, and I'm like..what the f*&$??? This must be some kind of joke! Mind you I was drunker than hell and probably under the influence of something else, too. I seriously thought it was a keyboard to stump drunk party people...

A few days later I go to Brussels...at the hostel..same keyboard. I look a bit puzzled at first, then figure it out. But damn the keys being switched..I just typed like I normally did, and added a 'code' for the person I was emailing.

But you live and you learn!

quote:

Originally posted by Marisa:
I just typed like I normally did, and added a 'code' for the person I was emailing.

That's cute - like a WWII coded message. Of course, if it were truly a coded message, the "decoder" wouldn't be included in the message...

I'll have to keep an eye out for that layout-switching option next time, though!

I know how to type but seem to have adjusted to my US keyboard. The y and z are reversed here often and my last laptop reflected that so I got used to that for a while.

I actually find it harder though to change just the setting and keep the same keyboard - I get stumped when things are different and find it harder when what I type doesn't correspont to what's on the key.

Also, you have to be careful - for my Serbo-Croatian class I got instructions for how to change the keyboard to be able to use some Cyrillic. I was using my father's computer at the time, and he insisted on making the change himself. Somehow, he changed the regional setting or something - not just the keyboard - and all his ". "got changed to" ,", the dates got reversed into European fashion...and best of all the $ turned to Dinars. Luckily he figured out how to change it back.

And isn't it frustrating when you type at upwards of 90wpm and you have to resort to using two fingers again!! LoL

Needless to say I didn't send that many emails from France last time I was there...

Funnily enough though, I don't remember there being too many problems in Amsterdam...