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I'm currently using Google Docs, but when I try to use the keyboard shortcuts like Ctrl+Alt+M it gives µ instead.

alt text

Is Chrome (9) overruling Google Docs in some way?

How can I get these shortcuts working?

I'm using Chrome dev 9 on a Dutch Windows 7 with a US-layout keyboard

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6 Answers 6

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Here is Google's Official Shortcut Page for Google Doc. There you find that the current shortcut to insert comments is Ctrl + Alt + M and the old shortcut was Ctrl + M. I would have to assume that the old shortcut isn't supported. Which leads to this...

Check this out: (Source - Google Support)

"Originally, US PC keyboards (specifically, the US 101-key PC/AT keyboards) did not have an AltGr key, it being relevant to only non-US markets; they simply had "left" and "right" Alt keys.

As those using such US keyboards increasingly needed the specific functionality of AltGr when typing non-English text, Windows began to allow it to be emulated by pressing the Alt key together with the Control key: Ctrl + Alt ≈ AltGr -- (wiki source).

Therefore, it is recommended that this combination not be used as a modifier in Windows keyboard shortcuts as, depending on the keyboard layout and configuration, someone trying to type a special character with it may accidentally trigger the shortcut, or the keypresses for the shortcut may be inadvertently interpreted as the user trying to input a special character."

US International Layout: Ctrl + Alt ≈ AltGr ... which means... AltGr + M = µ

Note: To resolve this issue switch to a pure US layout, not a US International keyboard layout. See steps below on how to switch.


Windows 7: Switch Keyboard Layout to Pure US Keyboard Layout:

  • Open Start Menu
  • Type in: Region and Language
  • Hit [Enter]
  • [Click] the Change keyboards button
  • Select the General tab if not selected
  • [Click] the Add button
  • Scroll to and expand English (United States) (or another US layout - e.g. Macs using Boot Camp can use United States (Apple))
  • Expand Keyboard if not already expanded
  • [Check] the check box for US
  • [Click] the OK button
  • Select 'English (United States) - US' from the Default input language drop down menu
  • [Click] OK
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    The reason is, you are using a US International layout. You need to switch to a pure US layout. Proof is found here.
    – SgtOJ
    Dec 1, 2010 at 10:46
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    So, I want to double check that you have done the steps I just added. BTW, I didnt break it down because I don't think you knew. Instead I did it for future use of the question by someone who might not know.
    – SgtOJ
    Dec 1, 2010 at 11:11
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    @Fuhrmanator that might be a solution for you, but for people working on non-English texts this is definitely a no-go. Feb 22, 2013 at 10:01
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    is google seriously ignoring the rest of the world?!
    – Schiavini
    Apr 24, 2014 at 15:54
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    you'd think that one of the major world tech players' attempts to create a text-storage system could figure out a shortcut scheme that didn't disallow the convenient use of certain characters.
    – c..
    Jul 30, 2015 at 11:54
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You can solve this problem by making sure that Ctrl+Alt+M (or AltGr+M) doesn't yield µ. You can disable µ but keep the rest of your keyboard layout intact.

To do this you can use Microsoft Keyboard Layout Creator. Load your current keyboard layout from the 'File' menu ('Load Existing Keyboard...') and shift state to 'Alt+Ctrl (AltGr)'. Then you can remove µ from the keyboard by clicking it and deleting the character in the popup. Next, build your new keyboard from the 'Project' menu. Lastly, install the keyboard layout from the created setup file and select it under the keyboard layout settings of Windows.

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    2020 and this is still the only tool for the job :-|
    – t3chb0t
    Jun 7, 2020 at 16:20
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If you are using Windows 10/11, another option is to use PowerToys > Keyboard Manager. Create the mapping as in the screenshot below:

PowerToys settings

For Chrome, whenever you press Ctrl + Alt + 1, it will send 1 as if it was pressed from a keyboard that has a numpad. Works well on Windows 11 with US INTL keyboard layout.

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    Question was asked in 2010.
    – Toto
    Jun 1, 2023 at 13:45
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    And yet here we are in 2023, and this is a useful workaround for some visitors today; perhaps it will help others for a while into the future, as superuser/SE communities are living resources subject to substantial change and improvement with time. (Not an ideal solution for me personally, unfortunately; my keyboard is en-us already, and my Alt key problems are limited to Google Sheets regardless of whether Ctrl is being held.)
    – bburhans
    Aug 11, 2023 at 0:07
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The only easy workaround to "disable" Alt+Ctrl becoming AltGr, without disabling AltGr (a missing feature of Windows, as non-libre OS maybe forever, because minorities are irrelevants to M$), is: to use numpad (with numlock on, as any normal human being XD).

At least, this work for me on Google Docs on Chrome on W10 with Spanish layout.

The other "solutions" does not worked for me (I need AltGr+2 to @).

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  • Nice one!, I've been trying to solve this for ages There is another solution in the bottom, that basically does the same (remapping to numpad) which works equally good if you don't want to use the numlock but the numbers on top. But personally I don't care to use numlock.
    – SirLouen
    Jul 5, 2023 at 9:40
  • Best solution: no extra software, no extra config. Just kidding Windows using the numpad. :) Mar 6 at 14:05
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Another thing you can do is load another keyboard layout and use a keyboard shortcut to temporarily switch to that one, in order to get rid of the µ and other conflicts.

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For windows 10 , this is how I managed to work :

​From language preferences > preferred languages > click on 'English(United States' > Options > in Keyboards list : it should be US (Qwerty) first, then(or maybe not needed) United States-International (Qwerty)

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