Typing foreign characters in Byki
Step 3 of Byki’s learning mode, Produce It, requires you to type foreign words and phrases into a text box. Sometimes those words contain special characters not found on a Standard English keyboard. Normally, typing foreign characters is a pain, but Byki gives you a much better way to do this than copying them from your Character Map or using cryptic Option commands. In fact, depending on the language, you have two methods at your disposal:
- Using the Shift + arrow keys (for languages that use the Latin alphabet, like Spanish and French)
- Using Byki’s Keyboard Map (for languages with non-Latin alphabets, like Arabic and Russian)
The Latin alphabet is the same alphabet used in English. But sometimes a language like Spanish will require an accent or other variation on a given letter. Let’s say you want to type sábado, the Spanish word for Saturday:
Pause after you’ve typed the letter that needs a special accent—in this case, the first “a”.sa(Don’t move the blinking cursor, and don’t highlight the “a”. Just keep the cursor where it is, at the end of what you typed.)
Hit Shift + Up Arrow. Your answer should change tosá
Now, continue typing:sábado
And check your answer. Voilà! You’ve done it. Some letters will give you multiple options; keep hitting Shift + Up Arrow to see them one by one.If you are learning a language with a non-Latin alphabet, like Arabic, Byki’s virtual Keyboard Map will appear on your screen when you reach the written portion of Produce It. You can click on any of the keys to make the corresponding character appear in your answer field, or you can use your computer’s physical keyboard to type. Either way, Byki’s Keyboard Map will respond to anything you type, including Shift, Ctrl, and Alt, which sometimes reveal more options for you. Click the keyboard button next to the Skip Card button at any time to turn the Keyboard Map off or on again.You’re all set to type foreign characters! Now all you have to do is type the right answers. (If only that were as simple as using the keyboard… sigh.)
