NOUS - The ultimate keyboard

• NOUS - The ultimate keyboard
• Preview
• Linux and OpenBSD
  • Installation
  • X11 setup
  • Wayland setup
    • Cosmic DE
  • Nix specific setup
  • Arch package
  • How to use with fcitx
  • Switching keys in tty
• MacOS
  • Installation
  • Other tips

Nordic + United States. Made with scandinavian keyboards in mind. Uses both Shift and AltGr to shift keys.

Preview

Linux and OpenBSD

Installation

Install the layout globally:

# cp nous /usr/share/xkeyboard-config-2/symbols

(legacy instructions)

Only do this if you have a xkeyboard-config prior to 2.45, or you may not be able to update

# cp nous /usr/share/X11/xkb/symbols

You can check XKB_CONFIG_ROOT if you're unsure.

If you're the only user, you can install the layout just for yourself:

$ mkdir -p ~/.config/xkb/symbols
$ cp nous ~/.config/xkb/symbols

If you have XDG_CONFIG_HOME set, the path is $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/xkb/symbols.

X11 setup

$ setxkbmap nous

For a permanent setup:

# linux:   /etc/X11/xorg.conf.d/00-keyboard.conf
# openbsd: /usr/X11R6/share/X11/xorg.conf.d/00-keyboard.conf
Section "InputClass"
    Identifier "system-keyboard"
    MatchIsKeyboard "on"
    Option "XkbLayout" "nous"
    Option "XkbModel" "pc102"
    # optional
    # Option "XkbOptions" "altwin:swap_lalt_lwin"
EndSection

Wayland setup

Unlike X11, there is no uniform way to set keyboard layouts. You will have to consult your compositor's documentation. For GNOME, you need to register the layout properly:

$ mkdir -p ~/.config/xkb/rules

# ~/.config/xkb/rules/evdev.xml
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE xkbConfigRegistry SYSTEM "xkb.dtd">
<xkbConfigRegistry version="1.1">
  <layoutList>
    <layout>
      <configItem>
        <name>nous</name>
        <shortDescription>nous</shortDescription>
        <description>Norwegian US (nous)</description>
        <countryList>
          <iso3166Id>NO</iso3166Id>
          <iso3166Id>SE</iso3166Id>
          <iso3166Id>DK</iso3166Id>
        </countryList>
        <languageList>
          <iso639Id>eng</iso639Id>
          <iso639Id>nor</iso639Id>
          <iso639Id>nob</iso639Id>
          <iso639Id>nno</iso639Id>
          <iso639Id>swe</iso639Id>
          <iso639Id>dan</iso639Id>
        </languageList>
      </configItem>
      <variantList/>
    </layout>
  </layoutList>
</xkbConfigRegistry>

And it should appear in the list of keyboard layouts after restarting.

Cosmic DE

Cosmic requires you install the nous symbols file globally, and does not respect evdev.xml, instead requiring changes to base.xml, so insert the example layout from ~/.config/xkb/rules into /usr/share/X11/xkb/rules/base.xml instead.

Nix specific setup

In /etc/nixos/configuration.nix:

services.xserver.xkb = {
  layout = "nous";
  variant = "";
  extraLayouts.nous = {
    description = "nous";
    languages = [ "eng" "nor" "nob" "nno" "swe" "dan" ];
    symbolsFile = /etc/nixos/nous;
  };
};

And copy the nous file into /etc/nixos/nous.

Arch package

You can build it yourself by running makepkg -i in that repo. nous is for the layout file, switchlayout is for the tty layout as described below.

How to use with fcitx

Sort of unrelated but in case you also have trouble. I added a new input method. I searched for "nous" and selected "Keyboard - English (US)". I think it's conincidental it shows up. Move it to the top of the list, then Addons -> (Advanced) -> X Keyboard Integration -> (Configure) -> (Untick) Allow to Override System XKB Settings. Then restart and AltGr combos should now work, even with Japanese or whatever you may use! This also prevents fcitx from screwing up my capslock, escape and tab rebinds.

Switching keys in tty

The switch.map can be used to switch tab with escape and control with capslock. It does not implement the rest of nous. It was edited from /usr/share/keymaps/xkb/us.map.gz on an alpine system. kbd is a requirement. Apparently keycodes can vary by system. If it doesn't work make your own by using showkey to find the codes. Install: gzip -k switch.map && cp switch.map.gz /usr/share/keymaps/xkb/ && loadkeys switch. Load automatically on login:

# .profile
loadkeys switch

MacOS

The MacOS layout currently does not exactly correspond to the linux layout wrt. to all special symbols. It does however map æøå to option, in the same way altgr/right alt is used on linux.

Installation

1. move nous.bundle into Documents.
2. use Ukulele's File > Install > Show Organizer to install
3. sign out and log back in
4. select nous from the top bar

Other tips

I'd also recommend Karabiner-Elements for swapping the right cmd and option for easier layer switching.