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On page 39 of the Kinesis Advantage keyboard manual it say:

When a non-US keyboard driver is selected, the right Alt key on a traditional keyboard becomes a new kind of modifier, “Alt Gr.” Alt Gr creates a third key action (in addition to unshifted and shifted) for certain keys, including the “International key” for some languages. If you need to use Alt Gr key action with the Advantage MPC USB keyboard, it is advisable to set “Instant Configuration” for PC (non-Windows) so that there is a readily accessible Alt Gr key (located above the Page Up key). If you prefer to use the Windows “Instant Configuration” setting, the Alt Gr key action is the embedded left Alt key (above Home). To use this key easily, remap it to a top level location.

I'm using the Windows instant configuration but I cannot figure out what it means by Alt Gr being embedded in the left Alt key. Does anybody know? I want to remap it so I have access to Alt Gr.

fixer1234
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Pablo Fernandez
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6 Answers6

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I had a similar problem: I wanted to remap AltGr to a foot pedal and then have the upper thumb key row as Ctrl, Alt, Alt, Ctrl just like in the US layout. I also encountered the issue that during remapping mode, we're in the default win thumbkey layout and thus the AltGr key's action is Win/Super and not AltGr.

I've contacted the Kinesis support, and the good news is that AltGr ([ralt]) is also bound to F2 in the keypad layer, and there you can easily select the source action from.

I don't know why the Kinesis support gave you a different answer. Possibly, that's a feature only applicable to the current Advantage 2 series.

Tassilo Horn
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I talked to Kinesis support which was amazing, way beyond anything I expected, specially since I bought my three keyboards about 10 years ago and they are now discontinued.

What I've learn though was that Alt-Gr is not available on Windows mode and on non-Windows PC mode it cannot be remapped to another key because it's special. This means that the only way to get access to Alt-Gr is in PC mode and on that key. They also confirmed this is the case for their new Kinesis Advantage 2.

Pablo Fernandez
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I had difficulties mapping F2 (function key) associated with ralt (Right Alt) to a thumb key (in my case I wanted to have rCtrl(Right Ctlr) being remapped as rAlt

An alternative simple path was to remap rCtrl manually in the qwerty.txt file that is the default mapping. The process is simple but I provide many details to make it as easy as possible to follow .

a) activate power user mode (PUM): progrm + Shift + Esc
b) open the advantage v-drive:progrm + F1
c) open the qwerty.txt file in the notepad
d) edit the qwerty.txt file mapping ralt key to the rCtrl key
My qwerty.txt file contains one line (See 13.2 Appendix- Dictionary of Action Tokens in Kinesis Advantage User Manual)

[rctrl]>[RALT]

Once the file edited, saved and closed, I followed the manual

"It is also important to always use the “eject” option of your operating system’s file manager, design for removable drives which is how the v-drive is characterized. Normally “eject” is available if you right click on the drive."

e) After the system says “okay to remove drive,” close the v-drive progrm + F1

This worked! My rCtrl key now works as rAlt

fcollet
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I've had a similar problem with my old Advantage (KB500) and after some time contacted Kinesis support (everything good that people say about them is true - their level is stellar). The guy from support (Tyler) suggested to keep the keyboard in PC mode and remap the Win key from there. Here's how I did it:

  • I was told that in the Keypad layer the keys that would correspond to F13 and F14 (PrintScr/SysReq and Scroll lock respectively) work as if they were Win.
  • I pressed Progrm+F12 to initiate remapping.
  • I pressed Keypad, then Scroll lock, then Keypad again to specify the "source" key (the second Keypad is important)
  • I pressed Win to specify the "destination" key.
  • I concluded the remapping with Progrm+F12

Lo and behold, it works!

Wojciech Gac
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To access the Alt-Gr key in Windows mode on a Kinesis Advantage keyboard, you need to press the right Windows key along with the desired key. On the Kinesis Advantage keyboard, the right Windows key acts as the Alt-Gr key.

For example, to type the @ symbol, you would press the right Windows key along with the 2 key. To type the € symbol, you would press the right Windows key along with the E key.

If you are having trouble accessing the Alt-Gr key on your Kinesis Advantage keyboard, you may need to check the keyboard configuration and ensure that the right Windows key is properly set up as the Alt-Gr key.

Emmanuel prakash
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I have the Advantage2 and I was also able to get it working by using PC mode, and remapping the win key from the keypad layer to a thumb key.

Keypad on and F1 is the left win key

So the complete solution is:

  • progm + F6 to go to PC mode
  • progm + F12 to start remapping. The ↓ light will blink.
  • keypad to switch to keypad layer
  • F1 to select LWin
  • keypad to switch off keypad layer
  • LAlt to select the destination (or wherever you want the Win key to go. This can't be RAlt because that's reserved for AltGr.)
  • progm + F12 to stop remapping. The ↓ light will turn off.

Note that if you ever change the thumb key mode these settings will be lost and you'll have to do it again.

Dan
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