How To Change Your Keyboard Layout

Changing your keyboard layout can enhance your typing efficiency or accommodate different languages and typing preferences. Whether you need to switch to a layout that supports a different language or optimize your keyboard for specific tasks, the process is simple and can be done in just a few steps. This guide will help you navigate the process of how to change keyboard layout for both Windows and macOS systems.

1. Keyboard Layouts

Before making changes, it’s important to know what keyboard layouts are available and how they might affect your typing:

• QWERTY: The most common layout in English-speaking countries.
• AZERTY: Used primarily in French-speaking regions.
• QWERTZ: Common in German-speaking countries.
• Dvorak: Designed to increase typing speed and efficiency.
• Others: Various layouts exist for different languages and needs.

2. Changing Keyboard Layout on Windows

To change your keyboard layout on a Windows PC, follow these steps:

• Open Settings. You can do this by clicking the Start menu and selecting the gear icon, or by pressing Windows + I on your keyboard.
• Go to “Time & Language”.
• Click on “Language” in the left-hand menu.
• Under “Preferred languages”, select the language you want to add a new layout for. If the desired language is not listed, click “Add a language” and follow the prompts to add it.
• Click on the language you want to modify and select “Options”.
• In the “Keyboards” section, click “Add a keyboard” and choose the layout you want to add.
• If you want to remove the old layout, click on it and select “Remove”.

3. Changing Keyboard Layout on macOS

To change your keyboard layout on a macOS device, follow these steps:

• Open System Preferences. You can find this by clicking the Apple menu in the top-left corner and selecting “System Preferences”.
• Click on “Keyboard”.
• Go to the “Input Sources” tab.
• Click the “+” button to add a new keyboard layout.
• Browse through the list and select the layout you want to add. Click “Add” to include it.
• If you want to remove the old layout, select it from the list and click the “-“ button.

4. Switching Between Keyboard Layouts

Once you’ve added multiple keyboard layouts, you can switch between them:

• On Windows:
  • Click on the language icon in the taskbar (it may display the current language abbreviation like ENG for English).
  • Select the desired keyboard layout from the list that appears.
• On macOS:
  • Click on the input menu icon in the menu bar (it might display a flag or character symbol).
  • Choose the desired keyboard layout from the dropdown menu.

5. Testing Your New Keyboard Layout

After changing your keyboard layout, it’s a good idea to test it:

• Open a text editor (like Notepad on Windows or TextEdit on macOS).
• Type using the new layout to ensure it’s working as expected and to get accustomed to the changes.

6. Troubleshooting Common Issues

If you encounter problems while changing or using your keyboard layout:

• Make sure you’ve added the correct language and layout through the settings.
• Practice typing with the new layout to adjust to the different key positions.
• Ensure that the language bar or input menu is enabled and visible on your taskbar or menu bar.

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