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Google's Chromebooks do not have standard keyboards. Ubuntu has a Mac layout, but no Chromebook layout. Help!

Keys that do no function correctly:

  • All the F keys after F5
  • All the "Media" keys below the F5 (back/forward/refresh)
  • The every important "Search" key
  • All the home/page down keys that should work with the arrow keys

Tested in Ubuntu 14.10 (Chrubuntu, not Crouton) on Intel HP Chromebook 14.

I hear the official package xkb has layouts you can edit in a complicated manner, but it is not clear how to map the new keys such as the "search" key.

Jonathan
  • 3,904

1 Answers1

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Common Solution

The best way to do this is with xmodmap Use xev to find which keycode, and xmodmap to find which modifier, then add this to ~/.Xmodmap and add the line sleep 4 && xmodmap ~/.Xmodmap & to your .bash_profile to make sure it is ran on startup.

Add this to your ~/.Xmodmap

clear mod4

!Make right alt to look like Super_R
!I'm assuming your search key has keycode 225, you can check using xev
keycode 225 = Super_R NoSymbol Super_R

!Add the Super_L and Super_R keys to the modifier mod4
add mod4 = Super_L Super_R

Alternate Solution

sudo apt-get install xbindkeys-config xbindkeys xdotool
xbindkeys-config

Add this command to your xbindkeys-config when the search button is pressed:

xdotool key Super

When done, `~/.xbindkeyssrc should look something like this:

"xdotool key Super" 
    XF86Search

I don't know why you have to logout/log back in after doing this, but you do...

A bunch of other keys you can add are here: http://www.reddit.com/r/chrubuntu/comments/1crefd/how_to_get_shortcut_keys_to_work_on_chrubuntu/

And here: http://www.reddit.com/r/chrubuntu/comments/1rsxkd/list_of_fixes_for_xubuntu_1310_on_the_acer_c720/ce2ej5y

This may not work for many of the Window Handling commands (such as snap the window left, or view an overview of all your open windows (Super+W))

To set those, you'll need to go to Compiz Config Manager (ccsm) and change the Bindings there. Look in Grid and in Scale and in Expo

Jonathan
  • 3,904