In Windows, there are some undocumented key combinations that, when pressed (usually unintentionally) activate a function.
In particular, sometimes my keyboard switches its layout from German to English.
Anybody knows:
which combination that is?
What quick combination would reverse it?
How to disable it?
Thanks.
Alt+Shift changes the Windows keyboard language (assuming you have multiple languages installed). Hitting that again should switch you back.
The only way I know to disable it would be to remove English from your keyboard options in the Control Panel.
In Windows Vista and 7 (at least), you can configure the keys used to switch between languages.
(Translating to likely English names from my French version of Windows: )
In Control Panel, go to Regional Settings. Choose the third tab, “Keyboards and languages”. Press the topmost button, “Modify keyboards”. You should see a new window, “Text services and languages”. Go to the third tab, “Advanced key parameters”. The keys are defined in there.
Constanze, I feel your pain, for years Windows mysteriously (at least for me then) switched the keyboard layout before it dawned on me that an unintentionally activated keyboard short-cut could be the culprit :smack:. After having googled that short-cut, it became at least clear that a combination like Alt-Shift is easily pressed by accident, and my years old puzzlement was finally cleared. Yes, I’m thick sometimes.