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custom keyboard

ar flag

I have created a custom Dvorak keyboard layout that I have used successfully under Ubuntu 16.04. Now I am trying to get it to work with Ubuntu 20.04.

Here are my steps:

  1. I copy my layout file to /usr/share/X11/xkb/symbols/dv-mac
  2. I add the following line to /usr/share/X11/xkb/rules/xorg.lst
  dv_mac          us: Dvorak extended (similar to Mac OS X)
  1. I add the following to the <layoutList> sections of /usr/share/X11/xkb/rules/xfree86.xml and /usr/share/X11/xkb/rules/evdev.xml
      <layout>
        <configItem>
        <name>dv-mac</name>
        <shortDescription>Dvorak</shortDescription>
        <description>Dvorak</description>
        <languageList>
          <iso639Id>eng</iso639Id>
        </languageList>
        </configItem>
        <variantList />
      </layout>

Here's where I put this block, as the first item in the <layoutList>, just after the <modelList>, at around line 1335:

...
    <model>
      <configItem>
       <name>teck229</name>
       <description>Truly Ergonomic Computer Keyboard Model 229 (Standard sized Alt keys, additional Super and Menu key)</description>
       <vendor>Megawin Technology</vendor>
     </configItem>
    </model>
  </modelList>
  <layoutList>
    <layout>
      <configItem>
        <name>dv-mac</name>
        <shortDescription>Dvorak</shortDescription>
        <description>Dvorak</description>
        <languageList>
          <iso639Id>eng</iso639Id>
        </languageList>
      </configItem>
      <variantList />
    </layout>
    <layout>
      <configItem>
        <name>us</name>
        <!-- Keyboard indicator for English layouts -->
        <shortDescription>en</shortDescription>
        <description>English (US)</description>
        <languageList>
          <iso639Id>eng</iso639Id>
        </languageList>
      </configItem>
...

I have noted that I use dv_mac in the xorg.lst file and 'dv-mac` (with a hyphen instead of an underscore) elsewhere, but apparently this worked both on Ubuntu 16.04 and a previous version of Ubuntu 20.04 that I installed.

However, this time, I cannot get the entry for my Dvorak keyboard to appear in the Language and Region settings.

Any help in finding where I have gone wrong this time will be much appreciated.

James Newton avatar
ar flag
Oh yes. That was my first action.
Gunnar Hjalmarsson avatar
uz flag
I edited my `evdev.xml` file with the above, and it showed up for me as an item under all the _English_ menu items.
James Newton avatar
ar flag
Where did you put it in evdev.xml? It doesn't appear for me, anywhere at all in the Languages and Regions settings.
Gunnar Hjalmarsson avatar
uz flag
I think I put it as the very last layout right before `</layoutList>` (around line 6322).
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