Ubuntu
gnome-control-center package

Right Alt key is always selected under "key to choose 3rd level"

Bug #438520 reported by Nick B.
84
This bug affects 11 people
Affects Status Importance Assigned to Milestone
console-setup (Ubuntu)
Expired
Undecided
Unassigned
gnome-control-center (Ubuntu)
Fix Released
Low
Unassigned

Bug Description

Binary package hint: gnome-control-center

On a fresh install of Karmic, under the keyboard layout options, the right Alt key is selected under "Key to Choose 3rd Level". I'm not even sure what the 3rd level is, as I've never needed this setting before. On Jaunty, there is nothing set under this option. As a result on Karmic, this breaks the right Alt key. For example right Alt+F2 doesn't do anything. But when you try to uncheck this option, it doesn't remember the setting. The next time you open the layout options, it's checked again. There seems to be no way to uncheck this option.

What should happen
1. Open System > Preferences > Keyboard
2. Go to the Layouts tab
3. Click Layout Options
4. Expand Key to Choose 3rd Level
5. Uncheck Right Alt
5. Close the Layout Options window
6. Reopen Layout Options
7. Nothing should be checked under Key to Choose 3rd Level

What happens instead
Right Alt is still selected after unchecking it, closing the Layout Options window and reopening it.

ProblemType: Bug
Architecture: i386
Date: Tue Sep 29 00:08:29 2009
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 9.10
NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia
Package: gnome-control-center 1:2.28.0-0ubuntu2
ProcEnviron:
 LANG=en_US.UTF-8
 SHELL=/bin/zsh
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.31-11.36-generic
SourcePackage: gnome-control-center
Uname: Linux 2.6.31-11-generic i686

Revision history for this message
Nick B. (futurepilot) wrote :
Revision history for this message
Sebastien Bacher (seb128) wrote :

Thank you for your bug report, I'm not confirming the issue there though

Changed in gnome-control-center (Ubuntu):
importance: Undecided → Low
assignee: nobody → Ubuntu Desktop Bugs (desktop-bugs)
Revision history for this message
Nick B. (futurepilot) wrote :

This may be a bug in the debian-installer. I can't reproduce this with the live CD. When installed from the alternate CD or mini iso, XKBOPTIONS="lv3:ralt_switch" is added to /etc/default/console-setup. Commenting out that option and rebooting fixes the issue, but I'm unsure why that was set in the first place.

Revision history for this message
sefs (sefsinc) wrote :

I commented out and still the right alt key does not work for me. I rebooted also.

Revision history for this message
Iļja Ketris (punund) wrote :

3rd level choosers just won't work in Mozilla in 9.10.
Latvian keyboard layout relies on right alt, and it just doesn't work regardless of settings in /etc/default/console-setup.

Revision history for this message
cyqotiq (jnsatterfield) wrote :

I can confirm the problem described by the O.P.
My right ALT key no longer functions as a modifier key because of this.

Cyqotiq
-------------
My system specs are:

Ubuntu AMD64 installed from the Alternative CD
Linux version 2.6.31-14-generic (buildd@crested) (gcc version 4.4.1 (Ubuntu 4.4.1-4ubuntu8) )

Studio 17 Notebook (Studio 1745)
Intel Core 2 Duo T9600, 2.8GHz, 1066Mhz, 6M L2 Cache
4GB, DDR3, 1066MHz, 2 DIMM
ATI MOBILITY RADEON HD 4570 512MB
500G 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive
8X DVD+/-RW Dual Layer Drive
Integrated High Definition Audio 2.2
Dell Wireless 1397 802.11g Half Mini Card

Revision history for this message
cyqotiq (jnsatterfield) wrote :

As an addendum to my post (#6 above), I am inside the United States and my keyboard layout is set to Generic 104-key PC (previously set to generic 105-key PC, but with same issue).

Cyq

Revision history for this message
Richard Hansen (rhansen) wrote :

I am also having this problem. Could this be a regression of bug #76901? I have a standard US 104-key keybard, yet my /etc/default/console-setup also has XKBOPTIONS="lv3:ralt_switch".

Revision history for this message
Lesmana Zimmer (lesmana) wrote :

there are many bugs about a not working right alt key. and there are many bugs about a not working shortcut to change keyboard layout (left alt + right alt). as far as i can tell fixing the right alt key would also fix the keyboard layout problem.

could someone with more knowledge than me in the topic please look at these bugs and generously mark as duplicate.

in no particular order:

bug #76901 (marked as fixed, but obviously there is a regression)
bug #363363
bug #251443
bug #462249
bug #96434
bug #226676
bug #382473
bug #438520

Revision history for this message
smlx (sml) wrote :

This is still a problem when installing Lucid using the alternative CD.

Revision history for this message
agklein1 (andyklein) wrote :

I can confirm this bug on multiple systems running Lucid 10.04 (alternate installer). Indeed, if you de-select the alt key under "3rd level", the keyboard layout applet does not remember the setting. However, if I immediately do it a second time, it *does* remember the setting.

Revision history for this message
Joel Ebel (jbebel) wrote :

This does appear to be a regression since bug 76901, as when console-setup gets installed by debootstrap, even with the USA layout and variant, /etc/default/console/setup is getting XKBOPTIONS="lv3:ralt_switch"

tags: added: glucid
Joel Ebel (jbebel)
Changed in console-setup (Ubuntu):
status: New → Confirmed
Revision history for this message
Alroger Filho (alroger-cafe-ti) wrote :

I still see this bug in Ubuntu 10.04 and 10.10. Amazing.

I always have to use Bryan's workaround, from https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/console-setup/+bug/76901.

"Selecting the "Alt and Meta are on the Alt keys" option in "Keyboard Preferences" fixes this behavior"
After that we can finally disable Right Alt as the 3rd level key and it works again as an ALT key.

Revision history for this message
Clayton Kramer (clayton-kramer) wrote :

Alroger is right. Just noticed I was bit by this same bug after using Alt installer for Maverick laptop running on LUKS LVM.

Revision history for this message
smlx (sml) wrote :

This appears fixed for me in Natty.

Can we get some confirmation so we can close this bug?

Revision history for this message
Alroger Filho (alroger-cafe-ti) wrote :

Looks good in Natty 64 beta. Comes unchecked.

Colin Watson (cjwatson)
no longer affects: debian-installer
Revision history for this message
Launchpad Janitor (janitor) wrote :

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

Changed in gnome-control-center (Ubuntu):
status: New → Confirmed
Mathew Hodson (mhodson)
tags: added: lucid
removed: glucid
Changed in console-setup (Ubuntu):
status: Confirmed → Incomplete
Changed in gnome-control-center (Ubuntu):
status: Confirmed → Incomplete
Revision history for this message
Launchpad Janitor (janitor) wrote :

[Expired for console-setup (Ubuntu) because there has been no activity for 60 days.]

Changed in console-setup (Ubuntu):
status: Incomplete → Expired
Revision history for this message
Rolf Leggewie (r0lf) wrote :

what is the status here? Anything left to be done for bionic or later?

Revision history for this message
Paul White (paulw2u) wrote :

Bug did not expire due to assignment.
No reply to comment #19 but comments #15 and #16
imply fixed in Ubuntu 11.04.
No comments re any later release so closing.

Changed in gnome-control-center (Ubuntu):
assignee: Ubuntu Desktop Bugs (desktop-bugs) → nobody
status: Incomplete → Fix Released
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