Ubuntu, a macbook and the hash key

by jonh on April 10th, 2007

In the default install of Ubuntu Feisty Fawn on an Apple Intel Macbook, the hash key doesn’t work.

This isn’t really a surprise because it barely works in OSX (Alt/Option 3).

To mimic this functionality in Ubuntu go to System -> Preferences -> Keyboard, choose the tab labeled Layout Options.

In the Third Level Choosers list tick the box named: Press Left Alt key to choose 3rd level.

Keyboard Preferences, Ubuntu Hosted on Zooomr

Now you have the # (hash) key by pressing the Alt/Option button and 3 at the same time.

Alt + 3 = Hash (#) Hosted on Zooomr

This is pretty damn useful if you like doing include statements in C/C++ or writing comments in scripting languages like Perl, Ruby and PHP.

enjoy!

2 Comments →

Simon permalink

See that you’ve added pictures to help out those STOOPID Mac users ;p
jonh permalink

Lol – yeah :)

The problem is that all the documentation that you see refers to the Option button. So you’d think Apple being the creative mastermind that they are would write Option on the key.

But they don’t…they write Alt.