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xmodmap(1X)
X11R6
NAME
xmodmap - utility for modifying keymaps in X
SYNOPSIS
xmodmap [options...] [filename]
OPTIONS
The following options may be used with xmodmap:
-display display
This option specifies the host and display to use.
-help
This option indicates that a brief description of the command line
arguments should be printed on the standard error channel. This will
be done whenever an unhandled argument is given to xmodmap.
-grammar
This option indicates that a help message describing the expression
grammar used in files and with -e expressions should be printed on the
standard error.
-verbose
This option indicates that xmodmap should print logging information as
it parses its input.
-quiet
This option turns off the verbose logging. This is the default.
-n This option indicates that xmodmap should not change the mappings, but
should display what it would do, like make(1) does when given this
option.
-e expression
This option specifies an expression to be executed. Any number of
expressions may be specified from the command line.
-pm This option indicates that the current modifier map should be printed
on the standard output.
-pme
This option indicates that the current modifier map should be printed
on the standard output in the form of expressions that can be fed back
to xmodmap.
-pk This option indicates that the current keymap table should be printed
on the standard output.
-pke
This option indicates that the current keymap table should be printed
on the standard output in the form of expressions that can be fed back
to xmodmap.
-pp This option indicates that the current pointer map should be printed on
the standard output.
- A lone dash means that the standard input should be used as the input
file.
The filename specifies a file containing xmodmap expressions to be
executed. This file is usually kept in the user's home directory with a
name like .xmodmaprc.
DESCRIPTION
The xmodmap program is used to edit and display the keyboard modifier map
and keymap table that are used by client applications to convert event
keycodes into keysyms. It is usually run from the user's session startup
script to configure the keyboard according to personal tastes.
EXPRESSION GRAMMAR
The xmodmap program reads a list of expressions and parses them all before
attempting to execute any of them. This makes it possible to refer to
keysyms that are being redefined in a natural way without having to worry
as much about name conflicts.
keycode NUMBER = KEYSYMNAME ...
The list of keysyms is assigned to the indicated keycode (which may be
specified in decimal, hex or octal and can be determined by running the
xev program.
keycode any = KEYSYMNAME ...
If no existing key has the specified list of keysyms assigned to it, a
spare key on the keyboard is selected and the keysyms are assigned to
it. The list of keysyms may be specified in decimal, hex or octal.
keysym KEYSYMNAME = KEYSYMNAME ...
The KEYSYMNAME on the left hand side is translated into matching
keycodes used to perform the corresponding set of keycode expressions.
The list of keysym names may be found in the header file
<X11/keysymdef.h> (without the XK_ prefix) or the keysym database
<XRoot>/lib/X11/XKeysymDB, where <XRoot> refers to the root of the X11
install tree. Note that if the same keysym is bound to multiple keys,
the expression is executed for each matching keycode.
clear MODIFIERNAME
This removes all entries in the modifier map for the given modifier,
where valid name are: Shift, Lock, Control, Mod1, Mod2, Mod3, Mod4, and
Mod5 (case does not matter in modifier names, although it does matter
for all other names). For example, "clear Lock" will remove all any
keys that were bound to the shift lock modifier.
add MODIFIERNAME = KEYSYMNAME ...
This adds all keys containing the given keysyms to the indicated
modifier map. The keysym names are evaluated after all input
expressions are read to make it easy to write expressions to swap keys
(see the EXAMPLES section).
remove MODIFIERNAME = KEYSYMNAME ...
This removes all keys containing the given keysyms from the indicated
modifier map. Unlike add, the keysym names are evaluated as the line
is read in. This allows you to remove keys from a modifier without
having to worry about whether or not they have been reassigned.
pointer = default
This sets the pointer map back to its default settings (button 1
generates a code of 1, button 2 generates a 2, and so forth.).
pointer = NUMBER ...
This sets to pointer map to contain the indicated button codes. The
list always starts with the first physical button.
Lines that begin with an exclamation point (!) are taken as comments.
If you want to change the binding of a modifier key, you must also remove
it from the appropriate modifier map.
EXAMPLES
Many pointers are designed such that the first button is pressed using the
index finger of the right hand. People who are left-handed frequently find
that it is more comfortable to reverse the button codes that get generated
so that the primary button is pressed using the index finger of the left
hand. This could be done on a 3 button pointer as follows:
% xmodmap -e "pointer = 3 2 1"
Many applications support the notion of Meta keys (similar to Control keys
except that Meta is held down instead of Control). However, some servers
do not have a Meta keysym in the default keymap table, so one needs to be
added by hand. The following command will attach Meta to the Multi-language
key (sometimes labeled Compose Character). It also takes advantage of the
fact that applications that need a Meta key simply need to get the keycode
and do not require the keysym to be in the first column of the keymap
table. This means that applications that are looking for a Multi_key
(including the default modifier map) will not notice any change.
% xmodmap -e "keysym Multi_key = Multi_key Meta_L"
Similarly, some keyboards have an Alt key but no Meta key. In that case the
following may be useful:
% xmodmap -e "keysym Alt_L = Meta_L Alt_L"
One of the more simple, yet convenient, uses of xmodmap is to set the
keyboard's "rubout" key to generate an alternate keysym. This frequently
involves exchanging Backspace with Delete to be more comfortable to the
user. If the ttyModes resource in xterm is set as well, all terminal
emulator windows will use the same key for erasing characters:
% xmodmap -e "keysym BackSpace = Delete"
% echo "XTerm*ttyModes: erase ^?" | xrdb -merge
Some keyboards do not automatically generate less than and greater than
characters when the comma and period keys are shifted. This can be
remedied with xmodmap by resetting the bindings for the comma and period
with the following scripts:
!
! make shift-, be < and shift-. be >
!
keysym comma = comma less
keysym period = period greater
One of the more irritating differences between keyboards is the location of
the Control and Shift Lock keys. A common use of xmodmap is to swap these
two keys as follows:
!
! Swap Caps_Lock and Control_L
!
remove Lock = Caps_Lock
remove Control = Control_L
keysym Control_L = Caps_Lock
keysym Caps_Lock = Control_L
add Lock = Caps_Lock
add Control = Control_L
The keycode command is useful for assigning the same keysym to multiple
keycodes. Although unportable, it also makes it possible to write scripts
that can reset the keyboard to a known state. The following script sets
the backspace key to generate Delete (as shown above), flushes all existing
caps lock bindings, makes the CapsLock key be a control key, make F5
generate Escape, and makes Break/Reset be a shift lock.
!
! On the HP, the following keycodes have key caps as listed:
!
! 101 Backspace
! 55 Caps
! 14 Ctrl
! 15 Break/Reset
! 86 Stop
! 89 F5
!
keycode 101 = Delete
keycode 55 = Control_R
clear Lock
add Control = Control_R
keycode 89 = Escape
keycode 15 = Caps_Lock
add Lock = Caps_Lock
ENVIRONMENT
DISPLAY to get default host and display number.
BUGS
Every time a keycode expression is evaluated, the server generates a
MappingNotify event on every client. This can cause some thrashing. All of
the changes should be batched together and done at once. Clients that
receive keyboard input and ignore MappingNotify events will not notice any
changes made to keyboard mappings.
xmodmap should generate "add" and "remove" expressions automatically
whenever a keycode that is already bound to a modifier is changed.
There should be a way to have the remove expression accept keycodes as well
as keysyms for those times when you really mess up your mappings.
SEE ALSO
X(1X), xev(1X), Xlib documentation on key and pointer events
AUTHOR
Jim Fulton, MIT X Consortium, rewritten from an earlier version by David
Rosenthal of Sun Microsystems.
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