Notices

Here's a current working version of Xkbd for the N800 only.

If you're interested in using this on a N810 I might have a few ideas for you to throw around and try. As for the N900, I wouldn't have a clue.

Install bash2 from app manager if you already haven't done so. If you launch a keyboard in Xterm, closing out Xterm will also close the keyboard as well. If you don't have bash2, sometimes the keyboard will stick on the screen.

Download, unzip, and put the Keyboards folder on your external memory card (media/mmc2/).
Keyboards.zip

Open up the Xkbd install.note file in the folder, edit, select all, copy, open Xterm, edit, then paste

If for some reason you ever reboot the device or your hildon keyboard stops from showing up on the screen, open up the Restore keyboards.note file in the folder, edit, select all, copy, open Xterm, edit, then paste. This only needs to be done once as far as I can tell.

One possible issue might be if you try and use a BT keyboard, but I'm not all too sure about this. The other thing is if you want to use a Xkbd layout that's created for a different language.

Anyway, there's a backup of that base file in the Keyboards folder.

There's a Keyboards.note file that you can copy and paste to launch the various layouts that come in the folder.

Side and Garnet keyboards both need to been launched with the screen rotated.

There are right and left invisible arrow keys on the left side of Garnet VM and up and down invisible arrow keys on the right side of it. Once you try it, you'll understand how simple it is to use them.

This version also stops the keys repeating like they have done in the past which makes using Xkbd so much more manageable.


*Technical Details on this hack*

From a fresh reboot, running setxkbmap -print in Xterm produced this result:
xkb_keymap {
xkb_keycodes { include "evdev+aliases(qwerty)" };
xkb_types { include "complete" };
xkb_compat { include "complete" };
xkb_symbols { include "pc+us" };
xkb_geometry { include "pc(pc105)" };

Then, after running this in Xterm:
gconftool-2 --set -t bool /system/osso/af/keyboard-attached true && sleep 2 && gconftool-2 --set -t bool /system/osso/af/keyboard-attached false

It produced this result after running setxkbmap -print again:
xkb_keycodes { include "evdev+aliases(qwerty)" };
xkb_types { include "complete" };
xkb_compat { include "complete" };
xkb_symbols { include "nokia_vndr/su-8w(us)" };
xkb_geometry { include "pc(pc104)" };

So in the file
/usr/share/X11/xkb/rules/base
I made two simple edits.

* = pc(pc104) to * = pc(pc105)
and
nokiasu8w * = nokia_vndr/su-8w(%I) to nokiasu8w * = pc+us

so that it would once again match the initial settings given by the setxkbmap -print output.

I think Xkbd is calling an inappropriate mode_switch command somewhere in the coding if anyone wants to take a look at it so that hacking the OS would no longer be necessary.

It would also be great if someone ever got around to figuring out why it stills gives off this error when running Xkbd.
Sorry - server Keyboard map doesn't contain either 2 or 4 KeySyms per Keycode - unsupported!

Screen shots

Forgot to mention my easy (subjectively) setup to get Xkbd installed.

Grab all the files you need at pupnik.de throw them in a folder on your memory card named Xkbd then...

root
cd /media/mmc1/Xkbd
dpkg -i libxau0_0.1-2osso1_armel.deb
dpkg -i libxpm4_3.5.4.2-3_armel.deb
dpkg -i xlibs_6.5.4_all.deb
dpkg -i xkbd_0.8.15m-2_armel.deb

Craps.

I did a hard reset and it's back to being stupid again.

Hopefully I can reproduce the results again.

I hate when that happens.

That's about as bad as when my touchscreen randomly started working and stopped after a reboot.

Oh man! I'm so close on this!

I just wish I knew what the heck I was doing and I'd be there already!

So yeah, it's back to working again even after a full reboot.

Can someone jump on board with me on this and help me test?

These are basically the variables I'm working with.
Hold Caps Lock on hildon keyboard in Xterm

In xterm
gconftool-2 --set -t bool /system/osso/af/keyboard-attached true & xkbd & gconftool-2 --set -t bool /system/osso/af/keyboard-attached false

Last time I got it working was simply this I think
gconftool-2 --set -t bool /system/osso/af/keyboard-attached true & gconftool-2 --set -t bool /system/osso/af/keyboard-attached false

On that one I didn't even hold down the caps lock

There's something here but I'm not seeing it.

Come on guys, I really could use the help on this.

Thanks ahead!

If anyone here does help me test just do this...

Fire up Xkbd either by application menu or command prompt and press the letter "a" in like Xterm, Notes, or whatever.

If you see a capital letter "A" displayed, immediately close Xkbd. Some of the other keys will totally make your touch screen puke all over you.

Mess around with those two command lines of closing and restoring the hildon keyboard.

Once you get a lower case "a" when using Xkbd, all the other keys will work perfectly as well.

I can't really test anymore since it's working on my end so there isn't much for me to do.

Someone please post back on this.

Cheers!

Okay. I simply tried this on my second tablet and it worked the first time.

In Xterm:

gconftool-2 --set -t bool /system/osso/af/keyboard-attached true & gconftool-2 --set -t bool /system/osso/af/keyboard-attached false


No idea why this fixes Xkbd.

Again, first test with the letter "a", if it comes up as a capital letter then it didn't work.

I'll change all of my customized, "hacked" .xkbd keyboard layouts back to normal in a day or so and post them.

It still would rock though if someone else can confirm this trick!

Confirmed it works.

to simply for Diablo:
1.) become root
2.) wget http://repository.maemo.org/pool/mae...sso1_armel.deb
3.) dpkg -i libxpm4_3.5.6-2osso1_armel.deb
4.) wget http://pupnik.de/xkbd_0.8.15m-2_armel.deb
5.) dpkg -i xkbd_0.8.15m-2_armel.deb
6.) gconftool-2 --set -t bool /system/osso/af/keyboard-attached true & gconftool-2 --set -t bool /system/osso/af/keyboard-attached false
7.) xkbd

and ta-da it is fine after reboot as well. Good job Addison (and Pupnik)!

My first witness!

Many thanks linux dude for testing this!

You're the man and my new, personal hero! (sorry to all of those who I've said this to before)

Can't believe it took almost two years to figure this one out...

Sounds like good news to me
I'll check it as soon as my tablet finishes recharging
Thanks