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XMODMAP(1) XMODMAP(1)
NAME
xmodmap - utility for modifying keymaps and pointer button mappings in X
SYNOPSIS
xmodmap [-options ...] [filename]
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.
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 speci-fied specified
fied from the command line.
-pm This option indicates that the current modifier map should be printed on the standard output.
This is the default mode of operation if no other mode options are specified.
-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.
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 with-out without
out 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). Up to eight keysyms may be
attached to a key, however the last four are not used in any major X server implementation.
The first keysym is used when no modifier key is pressed in conjunction with this key, the
second with Shift, the third when the Mode_switch key is used with this key and the fourth
when both the Mode_switch and Shift keys are used.
keycode any = KEYSYMNAME ...
If no existing key has the specified list of keysyms assigned to it, a spare key on the key-board keyboard
board 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
/usr/X11/lib/X11/XKeysymDB. 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, but-ton button
ton 2 generates a 2, etc.).
pointer = NUMBER ...
This sets the 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 ta-ble, table,
ble, 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 don't 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) won't 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 gen-erate generate
erate an alternate keysym. This frequently involves exchanging Backspace with Delete to be more com-fortable comfortable
fortable to the user. If the ttyModes resource in xterm is set as well, all terminal emulator win-dows windows
dows 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
This example can be run again to swap the keys back to their previous assignments.
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.
SEE ALSO
X(7), xev(1), Xlib documentation on key and pointer events
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.
AUTHOR
Jim Fulton, MIT X Consortium, rewritten from an earlier version by David Rosenthal of Sun Microsys-tems. Microsystems.
tems.
X Version 11 xmodmap 1.0.3 XMODMAP(1)
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