How to Type Accents On Your Computer

Type characters from other languages with your number pad.

Very few words in the English language require the use of an accent. As a result, the standard U.S. English keyboard doesn't include accented letters in its layout. There are however, a number of commonly used words or phrases borrowed from other languages that do require accents when written. Common practice allows the accent to be omitted in most instances. It is possible though to include accents in written communications with the proper key combination.

Things You'll Need

• Keyboard with number pad

Instructions

1. Turn on the "NumLock" key on the keyboard. All ASCII codes must be typed on the number pad, not the top-row numbers, to be recognized.

2. Press and hold the "Alt" key.

3. Enter the four-digit ASCII value for the accented character. To type a capital A with an acute accent, press the "Alt" key and enter the numbers 0193 on the number-key pad. The character appears when the "Alt" key is released.

Tips & Warnings

• To view a complete list of characters that can be entered from your keyboard: click the "Start" button; type "charmap.exe" in the Run box and press the "Enter" key. Click the character you want to enter and use the keystroke code shown in the bottom-right corner of the Character Map window.

• Not all of these codes work correctly with Internet browsers. When using special characters in Web pages, test view the page in several browsers before publishing.

References

• Washington State University: Typing Diacritics and Special Characters