Can I make a useless key an additional Ctrl?

Can I make a useless key an additional Ctrl?

[Oleksandr Manzyuk]

Hi, everybody!

I apologize if my question does not belong to this mailing list.

The keyboard of my laptop has a key that I do not use at all. How
come? Well, it is a Toshiba laptop purchased in Germany, so originally
it had a German keyboard, until I changed it to something looking like
a US keyboard by attaching stickers to keys. In the German layout
there was a separate key for < and > symbols; this key does not
correspond to any key in the US layout. When I press it now (having
chosen the US layout in Ubuntu keyboard settings menu) it does produce
< and >, and so do Shift-, and Shift-. (as it should be in the US
layout). The point is that this <> key is so conveniently located on
the right of the Space that it is very tempting to make it an
additional Ctrl key (my keyboard has no right Ctrl; having it would
make working with Emacs even more pleasant and satisfying). Do you
know if it is possible to remap this key to Ctrl? The potential
problem that I see is that it generates the code of the symbol <, and
I certainly don't want to lose this symbol (i.e., I don't want Shift-,
to behave as a Ctrl...). I'm a total ignoramus in these questions, so
maybe what I'm saying is stupid. Anyway, any help is appreciated!

Thanks,
Oleksandr

Re: Can I make a useless key an additional Ctrl?

[Pascal J. Bourguignon]

Oleksandr Manzyuk <manzyuk@googlemail.com> writes:

> Hi, everybody!
>
> I apologize if my question does not belong to this mailing list.
>
> The keyboard of my laptop has a key that I do not use at all. How
> come? Well, it is a Toshiba laptop purchased in Germany, so originally
> it had a German keyboard, until I changed it to something looking like
> a US keyboard by attaching stickers to keys. In the German layout
> there was a separate key for < and > symbols; this key does not
> correspond to any key in the US layout. When I press it now (having
> chosen the US layout in Ubuntu keyboard settings menu) it does produce
> < and >, and so do Shift-, and Shift-. (as it should be in the US
> layout). The point is that this <> key is so conveniently located on
> the right of the Space that it is very tempting to make it an
> additional Ctrl key (my keyboard has no right Ctrl; having it would
> make working with Emacs even more pleasant and satisfying). Do you
> know if it is possible to remap this key to Ctrl? The potential
> problem that I see is that it generates the code of the symbol <, and
> I certainly don't want to lose this symbol (i.e., I don't want Shift-,
> to behave as a Ctrl...). I'm a total ignoramus in these questions, so
> maybe what I'm saying is stupid. Anyway, any help is appreciated!

You can, by editing ~/.xmodmap ; google for xmodmap

-- 
__Pascal Bourguignon__

Re: Can I make a useless key an additional Ctrl?

[Peter Dyballa]

Am 31.03.2009 um 19:35 schrieb Oleksandr Manzyuk:

> Ubuntu


Yes. Xmodmap is the utility. Determine with xev the keycode, assign  
it a keysym(bol) like Control_R or Control_L and add it among the key  
modifiers.

	keycode <whatever> = Control_R
	add Control = Control_R

This can be done in ~/.xinitrc or ~/.xsession, whichever your X  
server prefers.

--
Greetings

   Pete                                           0
                                            %-/\_//
                                             (*)(*)

Re: Can I make a useless key an additional Ctrl?

[Oleksandr Manzyuk]

On Tue, Mar 31, 2009 at 3:57 PM, Peter Dyballa <Peter_Dyballa@web.de> wrote:
>
> Am 31.03.2009 um 19:35 schrieb Oleksandr Manzyuk:
>
>> Ubuntu
>
>
> Yes. Xmodmap is the utility. Determine with xev the keycode, assign it a
> keysym(bol) like Control_R or Control_L and add it among the key modifiers.
>
>        keycode <whatever> = Control_R
>        add Control = Control_R
>
> This can be done in ~/.xinitrc or ~/.xsession, whichever your X server
> prefers.

Worked like a charm! Vielen herzlichen Dank!