Check Your Input Source If Your Mac Types Unexpected Characters

ByMike Moffit

If your Mac starts typing unexpected characters—or rejects a password you know is correct—check to see if the Input Source menu appears in the upper-right corner of the screen, indicating that your Mac has more than one keyboard layout available for writing in other languages. Accidentally switching from the standard U.S. keyboard (or whatever you regularly use) to another layout—like the French ABC – AZERTY, which swaps the A and Q keys, among others—can cause keystrokes to produce different characters than expected. This key swapping is particularly confusing in password fields, where you can’t see what’s being typed. To fix it, click the Input Source menu and choose your default. To prevent this problem from recurring, go to System Settings > Keyboard, click Edit next to Input Sources, and delete any keyboard layouts you don’t use. You can also change what the Globe key does in System Settings > Keyboard—you can prevent accidental layout changes by switching it from Change Input Source to Show Emoji & Symbols, Start Dictation, or Do Nothing.

Estonia, Tallinn, July 11, 2020. Apple Macbook pro 15 Retina on table

(Featured image based on an original by iStock.com/Armastas)

Social Media: Is your Mac typing the wrong characters or rejecting your password? You may have accidentally switched keyboard layouts. Here’s how to check your input source and prevent it from happening again.

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