5 Composing Characters

The VT320 lets you use more characters than appear on your keyboard, by typing compose sequence. A compose sequence is a series of two or three keystrokes that produces a single compose character. You can use three-stroke sequences on all VT320 keyboards. You can use two-stroke sequences on all keyboards except the North American/United Kingdom and Norwegian/Danish keyboards.

Two basic factors determine which compose sequences you can use.

• your VT320 keyboard model
• the character set the terminal is currently using

What Characters Can I Use?

You can only select characters from the character set the terminal is currently using. You can select from 2 multinational sets (DEC Multinational and ISO Latin-1) or 12 national replacement character sets (NRCs). By default, the VT320 uses the DEC Multinational set. See "Character Sets" in Chapter 2.

The Character Set Mode feature in the General Set-Up screen sets the terminal to work with 8-bit multinational sets or 7-bit NRC sets.

If You Use a Multinational Character Set

Table 5-1 lists the compose characters you can use. Some characters are only available in one of the multinational character sets, DEC Multinational or ISO Latin-1. You select these sets with the User-Preferred Character Set feature in the General Set-Up screen.

If You Use a 7-Bit NRC Set

You select one of the NRC sets by using the _____ Keyboard feature in the Set-Up Directory. The compose characters available also depend on whether you use typewriter or data processing keys. You select typewriter or data processing keys with the _____ Keys feature in the Keyboard Set-Up screen.

NOTE: When you select "Data Processing Keys", keys that have three or more characters on their keycap send the characters on the right half of the keycap.

• Use Table 5-2 with the "Typewriter Keys" setting. This table lists compose characters by keyboard.
• Use Table 5-3 with the "Data Processing Keys" setting.

Table 5-2 shows how to compose characters that do not appear on the given keyboard. If you want to compose a character that is not already on the keyboard, refer to Table 5-1 for the character and the correct sequence.

When you use a 7-bit NRC set, some accent marks that appear on some European keyboards are not available. These accent marks are 8-bit characters.

Three-Stroke Sequences

You can use three-stroke sequences on any VT320 keyboard. All three-stroke sequences start with the Compose Character key. Tables 5-1 and 5-2 list the three-stroke sequences.

NOTE: If the Compose Character key does not work, check the Compose feature in the Keyboard Set-Up screen (Chapter 4).

If you use a diacritical mark in a three-stroke sequence, the VT320 uses an equivalent character. The North American/United Kingdom and Dutch keyboards do not have diacritical marks.

Using a Three-Stroke Sequence

You can select a three-stroke compose character as follows.

1. Find the character you want in column 1 of Table 5-1 or 5-2.
2. Press the Compose Character key. The Compose indicator turns on, indicating the terminal is in compose mode.
3. Type the two characters in column 2 for the character you want.

For example, to select an e with an acute accent, press Compose Character, then type e and ' (apostrophe).

Two-Stroke Sequences

Two-stroke sequences are faster than three-stroke sequences, because you do not use the Compose Character key. However, two-stroke sequences are limited to sequences starting with the following nonspacing diacritical marks.

• grave accent `
• acute accent ´
• circumflex accent ˆ
• tilde mark ˜
• diaeresis mark (umlaut) ¨
• ring mark ˚

NOTE: You cannot use two-stroke sequences on the North American/United Kingdom or Dutch keyboards.

Some European keyboards have keys with both a standard character and a diacritical mark. Make sure you select the correct character when you use these keys in compose sequences.

Using a Two-Stroke Sequence

You can select a two-stroke compose character as follows.

1. Find the character you want in column 1 of Table 5-1, 5-2, or 5-3. Check column 3 to make sure you can use a two-stroke sequence for that character.
2. Press the key with the diacritical mark shown in column 3. The Compose indicator comes on, indicating the terminal is in compose mode.
3. Type the second character shown in column 3.

For example, to select an e with a grave accent on a Danish keyboard, you would type ` (grave accent) then e.

Invalid Sequences

When you complete a valid compose sequence, the compose character appears on the screen and the Compose indicator turns off. If you use an invalid sequence, the VT320 cancels the sequence and sounds the warning bell. (You can turn the warning bell on or off in the Keyboard Set-Up screen, Chapter 4).

NOTE: Pressing a function key cancels a compose sequence without sounding the bell.

Canceling or Restarting a Compose Sequence

If you accidentally start a compose sequence by pressing the Compose Character key or a diacritical mark key, press the <x] key. This immediately cancels the compose sequence.

If you press Compose Character during a compose sequence, a new three-stroke sequence starts from that point. The first sequence is canceled.

If you press any of the following keys during a compose sequence, they cancel the sequence and perform their usual function.

• Tab
• Return
• Enter
• Any top-row key
• Period (.) key on the numeric keypad
• Any Ctrl-other key combination