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How to have Microsoft add US-International keyboard layout shortcuts for you automatically
Add the United States-International keyboard layout (Microsoft Fix it 50558). Saves you reading and following the rest of the instructions here: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/306560.
You will get:
International.
| Press this key | Then press this key | Resulting character |
| ‘(APOSTROPHE) | c, e, y, u, i, o, a | ç, é, ý, ú, í, ó, á |
| "(QUOTATION MARK) | e, y, u, i, o, a | ë, ÿ, ü, ï, ö, ä |
| `(ACCENT GRAVE) | e, u, i, o, a | è, ù, ì, ò, à |
| ~(TILDE) | o, n, a | õ, ñ, ã |
| ^(CARET) | e, u, i, o, a | ê, û, î, ô, â |
For Windows 7, in Windows Vista, and Windows XP. Finally, view this if you are still on Windows 3.1. ![]()
Keyboarding game and Typing tutor for ESL students unfamiliar with Roman letters keyboards
- For ESL learners unfamiliar with Roman letters keyboards, the LRC features only a few keyboards with non-Roman character overlays, and otherwise software transliterators integrated into Windows that, while allowing typing in L1 for dictionary lookup and note taking, still require familiarity with the Roman letters keyboards. To help ESL learners getting started, here are a 2 websites I found:
- A typing tutor:
- pros: pedagogically sound: English words are given as cues, and an on screen keyboard that can be operated from the hardware keyboard, but gives hints when needed by highlighting the next letter on the keyboard after a waiting period
- cons: a bit drab.
- An arcade-like keyboarding game (Missile command/Tetris):
- cons:
- bit too much sound,
- not advertisement free
- letters only, not practice of English words
- pros:
- autostarts and thus can be directly launched for students from the teacher station as a divertissement during slow times in the LRC ,
- reasonably entertaining,
- Levels that start slow, but adaptive.
- cons:
Bab.la.com: Arabic–English Online Dictionary
Bab.la features: easy lookup (1,2,3), and for each lemma: grammar information (4), synonyms (5, with lookup (6)), usage samples (7), pronunciation help (8: audio, but not IPA), reverse lookup (9).
And an example for the reverse lookup:
.
In short, this is a real dictionary, unlike Google Translate, which is amazing in itself, but often misused by language learners. Unlike Google Translate, Bab.la helps with lookup by Arabic letter, but does not come with a phonetic transliteration to make it usable with a Roman letters keyboard. Fortunately, the LRC features to phonetic transliterators integrated into Windows: MS-Maren and Google Arabic Input.
How a teacher can divide a class into groups, each sharing audio and one screen, in Sanako Study 1200–the ultimate training summary…
- … using animated GIFS
- make groups (=sessions) like shown here;
- share audio/screen within each group so that (ideal for enforcing oral communication during a shared computer task)
How to record your voice with Vocaroo.com
- Click the red record button:
- IMPORTANT: You have to allow the web app access to your microphone (you would not want webpages be able to record you without having been asked for permission, would you?):

- And/or Click “allow” on this screen:
- Speak, when done, click the square stop button:
- Click the triangle to listen to your recording (if you do not see the triangle, but a warning at the bottom, have you clicked “allow ” in step 3 above? If you are not sure, press “F5” now to refresh the page, that will bring up the dialogue again for you press “allow ”):
- Listen:
- “Save”.

