Typing German Letters

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Alternative to Changing Your Language Settings

If you're using an English QWERTY keyboard, you'll notice that certain German letters simply aren't present.  Although you can switch to a German keyboard layout, that might not be practical if you're only typing a couple German words.  One alternative is to use the Windows ALT Codes or Unicode to enter the characters manually.

Windows ALT Codes: On a Windows computer, hold down the ALT key and then type in the numeric code.  If you're on a laptop, you may need to hit the F-Lock key, and then hold down the FN and ALT keys together while typing on the keypad.  The keypad will be the colors that overlay the letters on your right hand.

Unicode Characters: If you use a Chromebook or Linux, then you'll need to use the Unicode characters.  To do this, hold down the CTRL+Shift+U keys, and release them — that will reveal and underlined lowercase (Looks like this: u).  Then type the four-digit code.  Note that unicode uses a mix of numbers and letters — you will see the number zero (0), but never the letter O.

And here's a helpful list of keyboard code symbols from multiple European languages, English and German included.

List of Windows ALT and Unicode