Does keyboard language cause issues?

[TheNiceGuy]

I have only been able to use Japanese (with English) keyboards for the last 2 years. Occasionaly, I get issues with symbols being in the wrong place when typing in English (ie, )(":{@). I tried to fool around with Windows settings and drivers, with limited success. So I am now wondering about hardware. Must the keyboard 'language' match the OS language?

 

[Peter]

Not really, since PC keyboards don't "have" languages. All they do is send scancodes, which relate to a certain key _position_. The keyboard itself does not know what character is on each particular keycap. It is up to the operating system to make something of a certain keypress.

So no, it shouldn't matter what's written onto your keyboard's keycaps. You must however be aware that the position of the special characters you named actually are quite different in the different keymaps. E.g. German keyboards have {[]} on RightAlt-7890, not on their own keys.

(There are certain subtle differences to the mechanical keyboard layout, like US keyboards having one less key than international/western-european ones. That might spoil some of the fun, but other than that, such things shouldn't happen.)

 

[TheNiceGuy]

So, if I understand correctly, any keyboard hardware will work in any language (Japanese-English for me). The OS and drivers just have to sort it out? So my 'special character problem' is definately OS/driver related?
Thank you by the way!

 

[Peter]

All keyboards do the same thing, there is no "language" to them other than what's printed on the keycaps, and maybe an extra or absent key or two.

 

[TheNiceGuy]

Doh!
I just paid extra money for an 'English' keyboard I don't really like.
Thanks for the info!

 

[beverage]

this thread makes me want to buy a keyboard with no markings on it at all. sure would curb the amount of random people that use my computer when I'm not around.

 

[Peter]

Just buy a cheap normal one and clean it once. The letters will rub off easily.

 

[TheNiceGuy]

Actualy, I did a reality check: they ARE physicaly different, in a few ways. For example, the Japanese board has an extra key in the "asdf..." row. The keyboard errors directly correspond to these different key layouts. Again, the Japanese keyboard has all the English keys, plus some extras in different places.

 

[Peter]

I told you there might be extra/missing keys. But that's all there is to it.

That might bite you just as it bites me - with the US keyboard here, if I switch to German, I can't type <, >, | anymore, because these are on the one extra key that western-europe keyboards have.