Scripting a permanent CTRL / CAPS swap in Gnome?

Question

I have a bash script that I use to configure a vanilla Ubuntu (10.10 Maverick Meerkat) installation to be exactly the way I want it. I make extensive use of gconftool-2 to configure the desktop, set up shortcut keys, etc.

Now, I'm trying to swap the CTRL and CAPS keys. I have found two ways of doing this:

• In Gnome, go to System -> Preferences -> Keyboard -> Layout -> Options and make the change in there. This works well, but I don't know how to script this; the setting doesn't seem to be stored in the usual place as I can't find it with gconf-editor.

• Add the line setxkbmap -option "ctrl:swapcaps" to my .bashrc file. That works too, until I suspend the machine & then resume it. At that point the CTRL and CAPS behaviour return to normal, until I cause .bashrc to be run again by opening a new shell. This behaviour has been reported as a bug in RedHat.

Could someone please suggest a way of switching those keys that is both permanent, and can be scripted? I'm sure I must be missing something obvious here ...

Answer 1

I have accomplished this on my RHEL system in a generic way by adding this to the beginning of `~/.xinitrc:

xmodmap ~/.xmodmaprc

And the contents of .xmodmaprc:

!! Swap Caps_Lock and Control_L
remove Lock = Caps_Lock
remove Control = Control_L
keysym Control_L = Caps_Lock
keysym Caps_Lock = Control_L
add Lock = Caps_Lock
add Control = Control_L

Answer 2

There's an even quicker Gnome-only solution. Thanks to this post from gmargo over on Ubuntu Forums:

If you're running Gnome, then all you need to do is create a file $HOME/.Xkbmap with this content:

-option ctrl:swapcaps

Log out then back in.

Update: I just confirmed that the setting lasts across a suspend/resume.