Copy From the Web
Perhaps the easiest way to insert non-typical characters into an email is by copying and pasting the text from another source.
Search for the phrase, perhaps in translation, on the web.Copy and paste phrases or individual characters into the email.
Use the US-International Keyboard
The United States-International Keyboard layout is indispensable for anyone who needs to type or quote passages in other languages. Follow these steps to enable the layout:
Windows 10
Windows 8
Insert Characters With Character Map Utility
For occasional characters not available with the US-International keyboard, try the character map. It’s a visual tool that allows you to select and copy many available characters.
How to Use the US-International Keyboard Layout
Using the US-International keyboard layout, you can input often-used characters easily. To display é, for instance, type Alt+E, or Alt+N for ñ, or Alt+Q for ä, or Alt+5 for the € sign. In Windows 7, the map is available at Start > All Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Character Map. The US-International keyboard layout also has dead keys. When you press an accent or tilde key, nothing happens until you press another key. If the latter character accepts an accent mark, the accented version is input automatically. For just the accent key (or quotation mark), use Space for the second character. Some common combinations (where the first line represents the accent key, the second line the character typed following the accent key, and the third line what appears on screen):
’ + C = Ç’ + e y u i o a = é ý ú í ó á` + e u i o a = è ù ì ò à^ + e u i o a = ê û î ô â~ + o n = õ ñ" + e u i o a = ë ü ï ö ä
A solid grasp of the new keyboard layout will help, as what you type will not match what you see on your physical keyboard. Microsoft Visual Keyboard (or On-Screen Keyboard in Windows 7 and later) is an on-screen keyboard for Office applications that may help in the learning process.
Fonts and Encodings
When copying a character from Character Map or BabelMap, make sure the font you use to compose the email message matches the font in the character tool. When mixing languages, it is usually safest to send the message as “Unicode.”
How to Use Alt Codes
Another available option that requires neither copying nor pasting is typing alt codes. You enter characters this way by typing a series of numbers while holding the Alt key. For example, for a lowercase n with a tilde over it (ñ), the key command is Alt-0241. The main drawback to this method is having to either memorize the codes or keep a list handy. If you have a few characters you use all the time, however, you can just learn those keystrokes.
