Mac OS X 10.5 Help
About keyboard layouts
You can type in languages that use a different writing system (or “script”) from yours without having the physical keyboard that’s designed for that language.
A keyboard layout determines what characters appear when you press a key on your keyboard. The layout of keys on an Italian keyboard, for example, is slightly different from the organization of a U.S. keyboard. If you have an Italian keyboard, you can choose the Italian keyboard layout in International preferences.
When you choose a keyboard layout different from the keyboard you have, the keys you see (and press) on your physical keyboard may be different from the character that is displayed when you type. You can use the Keyboard Viewer to see the location of characters on your keyboard. For more information about Keyboard Viewer, click the link below.
To use a keyboard layout different from the keyboard you have:
Open System Preferences and click International.
Click Input Menu.
Select the checkbox next to the keyboard layout you want to use.
Select the “Show input menu in menu bar” checkbox.
Click the Input Menu icon (international symbol) in the upper-right corner of the menu bar.
Choose the keyboard layout from the menu and start typing.
When you install Mac OS X, all keyboard layouts for the languages that Mac OS X supports are installed on your computer. If you don’t see the keyboard layout for the language you want to type in, you may need to install a keyboard layout not made by Apple.
Some languages may not appear unless a font for that language is installed. For more information about the languages and fonts installed with Mac OS X, visit www.apple.com/support and search for “using different languages.”