# How do you change the keyboard layout on Windows Vista? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 21, 2010, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-change-the-keyboard-layout-on-windows-vista/536910 "2010-04-21T19:24:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2010, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-change-the-keyboard-layout-on-windows-vista/536910/1 "2010-04-21T19:24:28Z")
I just did a reinstall of the OS and now I’m stuck with a lousy (:)) US configuration of my keyboard when I want/need the Irish layout. How do I change this? Windows Vista Home. Thanks in advance. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2010, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-change-the-keyboard-layout-on-windows-vista/536910/2 "2010-04-21T20:29:00Z")
It’s in the Control Panel, under Regional Settings and Languages. I expect someone with Vista handy will come with better instructions, but once you open Regional Settings it looks the same as it did in previous versions. The Languages tab has an “Advanced” button which lets you add additional keyboard layouts or change them. Why the heck don’t they put that in “Keyboards”, that’s what I don’t understand. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [April 21, 2010, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-change-the-keyboard-layout-on-windows-vista/536910/3 "2010-04-21T21:11:09Z")
I looked it up just to see what makes an Irish keyboard different. Why does it need a grave dead key? Is it for Ulster Scots? So you can type blessèd when corresponding with people from Olden Times? ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2010, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-change-the-keyboard-layout-on-windows-vista/536910/4 "2010-04-22T02:13:20Z")
I’m not entirely sure. I thought for a sec you were referring to the acute dead key which is of course for the Irish language. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2010, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-change-the-keyboard-layout-on-windows-vista/536910/5 "2010-04-22T02:16:34Z")
That’s the acute, there’s a dead key for that one, too. I think grave might’ve been used for some Irish in the past? But nothing since they’ve standardized it. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2010, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-change-the-keyboard-layout-on-windows-vista/536910/6 "2010-04-22T02:47:12Z")
The only thing I can think of is that French is a common enough school language in this country and maybe it is included for that reason. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 22, 2010, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-change-the-keyboard-layout-on-windows-vista/536910/7 "2010-04-22T07:54:37Z")
I haven’t used an Irish keyboard, but the differences between Spanish, UK and US keyboards are “different signs for everything except the qwerty part”. Different signs when using AltGr, different signs combining shift and a number, different signs in those three keys to the right of the M key… Some of the keyboards listed by Windows don’t even exist outside Microsoft’s mind, AFAIK. The only differences between Spanish keyboards I’ve seen were between 101 keys and 102 keys; other than that, they all seem to be “Spanish (International)”.