Keyboard Layout - Change

How to Change the Keyboard Layout in Windows 7​

   Information

This will show you how to change the keyboard layout to customize your keyboard for a specific input language or format. The keyboard layout controls which characters appear on the screen when you press the keys on your keyboard. Some input languages have several keyboard layouts; others have only one. This can make it easier to enter text or edit documents in multiple languages.

   Warning

Before you will be able to change the Keyboard layout, you must add a input language and keyboard layout that you want to use first.

OPTION ONE

To Change Default Input Language and Keyboard Layout

NOTE: This will allow you to select an added input language and keyboard layout to use as the default for all input fields in Windows 7.
1. Open the Control Panel (icons view), and click on the Region and Language icon.

2. Click on the Keyboards and Languages tab, then click on the Change keyboards button. (see screenshot below)

3. In the Defualt input language section, click on the drop box and select a added input language and keyboard layout. (see screenshots below)

4. Click on OK. (see screenshots above)

5. Click on OK. (see screenshot below step 2)

OPTION TWO

To Change Keyboard Layout from Language Bar

NOTE: The input language you select in this option will only stay set until you log out, shut down, or restart the computer. Afterwards, it will reset to the default input method set in OPTION ONE until changed.
1. Click on the Language bar (on taskbar (default) or desktop), then select (check) a input language with the keyboard layout you want to use. (see screenshots below)

OPTION THREE

To Change Keyboard Layout from the Welcome Screen

NOTE: For example, on the CTRL+ALT+DELETE screen. The input language you select in this option will only stay set until you log out, shut down, or restart the computer. Afterwards, it will reset to the default input method set in OPTION ONE until changed.
1. On the Welcome screen, click the Keyboard layout button

, and then select a input language with the keyboard layout you want to use. (see screenshot below)

That's it,
Shawn

Related Tutorials

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• How to Add or Remove a Keyboard Input Language in Windows 7
• How to Create a Region and Language Shortcut in Windows 7
• How to See a Keyboard Layout Preview in Windows 7
• How to Hide or Show the Language Bar in Windows 7
• How to Change the Display Language in Vista and Windows 7 Ultimate and Enterprise
• How to Install and Uninstall Display Languages in Windows 7 Ultimate and Enterprise
• How to Copy Your Region and Language Settings to New Users and Welcome Screen
• How to Overwrite the Display Language of All Users with the System Display Language

 

[WildWilly]

Auto adjust

I've just noticed that if I click MB2 on the Language Bar icon, there's an option named Auto Adjust and it's got a check mark beside it, something I never did, at least not knowingly. I've been trying to find something that discusses what that is but I can't find it. The built-in Help and Support is no help & I haven't been able to find mention of it in any discussion on this site. I'm about to try Google but I decided to come here first. If I find anything, I'll post back.

 

[WildWilly]

Still a mystery

Well, what I've found on Google is that the world is FULL of people who don't like the thing that Windows does, changing the keyboard layout when you change tasks. I did find a couple of other people who also discovered that currently active tasks can have different keyboard layouts assigned and they revert to default on next launch.

As for the Auto Adjust feature, I found 2 references to it that said, in passing, they disabled the check mark in the process of doing something else, but then added the comment, "whatever that means." So the mystery is intact. What does that check mark give me? What happens if I turn it off? I don't really mind the way things are now. So I have to switch keyboards when I switch tasks. Or at least be aware that they can be different. Big deal. But something like that check mark should be documented & I'm not finding the documentation. In the Text Services and Input Languages dialog, F1 doesn't activate Help. It doesn't even do anything.

This is getting annoying.

 

[Brink]

Interesting. You might test it for a day with the "Auto Adjust" checked and uncheck to see what differences you notice.

 

[WildWilly]

Much later that lifetime . . .

I never noticed a single impact from the setting or non-setting of that Auto Adjust check mark.

And it seems that the reversion to default keyboard is working as designed. You can change to an alternate keyboard only within a task and only for the duration of that task. The keyboard can be different in every task you have running, but as soon as you close a task, the system forgets that you used that keyboard with that application. The next time you launch that application, you get your default keyboard and you need to select your alternate keyboard again if you want to use it again. Oh well . . .