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I found a post [from June 8 2021. I can't seem to find a link to that post] that claimed if I did some terminal command and then restarted my MacBook I'd get my accent menu back. I did that, but it didn't work. I've still no accent menu. My accent menu used to work, but some *** hat screwed up my computer whilst pretending to help with a printer issue.
Any ideas?
FWIW, I'm on a 14" MacBook Pro running OS 12.5.1
thanks,
larry p
lgpiper wrote: I found a post [from June 8 2021. I can't seem to find a link to that post] that claimed if I did some terminal command and then restarted my MacBook I'd get my accent menu back. I did that, but it didn't work.
If you have Webroot on your machine, get rid of it. That is a major cause of the problem you describe.
After that, if the accent menu is still absent, please try the terminal command again, as this usually works.
open Terminal and type
defaults write -g ApplePressAndHoldEnabled -bool true
and then press Return and restart.
lgpiper wrote: I found a post [from June 8 2021. I can't seem to find a link to that post] that claimed if I did some terminal command and then restarted my MacBook I'd get my accent menu back. I did that, but it didn't work.
If you have Webroot on your machine, get rid of it. That is a major cause of the problem you describe.
After that, if the accent menu is still absent, please try the terminal command again, as this usually works.
open Terminal and type
defaults write -g ApplePressAndHoldEnabled -bool true
and then press Return and restart.
Greetings lgpiper,
We’re thinking you’re talking about entering characters with accent marks by pressing and holding the key. This is a functionality that is available in some apps, though not all.
Let’s work on a few things to isolate the issue though. Testing in safe mode will help to rule out issues that could be caused by software that launches when you start up, and testing in a new user account will determine if the issue is system-wide or specific to your user account. The results will help work out the next best steps.
First, let’s boot to safe mode and test - How to use safe mode on your Mac
Then, we’d also like to have you test in a new user on your Mac - Set up users, guests, and groups on Mac
Let us know the results.
Thanks.
Hello lgpiper,
Since this issue doesn't happen in safe mode, you'll want to test to see if it's related to a login item. This article will guide you on how to remove login items to test it out: Remove login items to resolve startup problems on your Mac.
1. On your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, then click Users & Groups.
2. Click your account name below Current User, then click Login Items at the top of the window.
Make a list of the login items—you’ll need to remember them later.
3. Select all of the login items, then click the Remove button.
4. Choose Apple menu > Restart.
5. If this solves the problem, open Users & Groups preferences again, add the login items one at a time, and restart your Mac after adding each one.
When the problem occurs again, follow the steps above to remove only the last login item you added.
Kind regards!
Yes, my issue was with getting the pop-up menu with accent choices when I did a hold on certain keys. That used to work, but what happens now is that the letter just repeats. Yes, I know the option isn't available in all apps, but surely it should work in Pages and Notes. I'm pretty sure it used to work in Thunderbird, which is my email client, and in OneNote.
Anyway, it did work properly in safe mode, but not when I created new users. I first tried making a "guest" account, but it didn't seem to offer the option to do anything but use Safari. Perhaps I missed something. So, I created a different version of myself as a user, but did not offer admin privileges to "my other self". When I tried doing accents in Pages, I just got repeat letters, no pop-up menu offering me accent options. My letters of choice were 'a' and 'e', but in safe mode I got lots of options with all the vowels, and also some other letters, such as 'l', 'c', 'h', and some others.
I did update my OS after I posted the above request for help. I'm now on 12.6. That update didn't help.
Thanks for working through this with me.
Yup that was it. The jerk who was trying to help with the printer installed WebRoot while he was about the business of getting printer drivers. I've now uninstalled WebRoot, and the accent menu pops up after a long press.
Now, just to figure out how to type the 1/2 character. I know I can select it from an icon palette, but that makes for an inconsistent type face. On Windoz, I just typed ALT+0189, but I've yet to find something similar for the Mac. I read an article about doing character codes on a Mac, but it was for old Intel Macs and didn't work on an M1 variety.
Well, then too, what would be a more appropriate internet security program?
Anyway, thank you all for your suggestions. I've only just recently moved from the Windoz environment, and still have a lot to learn, but you all are helping with that. Thanks a bunch!
lgpiper wrote: Now, just to figure out how to type the 1/2 character. I know I can select it from an icon palette, but that makes for an inconsistent type face.
On a Mac, you can activate the Unicode Hex keyboard layout (system preferences > keyboard > input sources > plus > other category. Then option/alt 00bd will produce ½ (Mac uses hex instead of decimal code points).
Easier is to just put things like that in system preferences > keyboard > text > replace with
I would forget about "security" apps. They are not really necessary and often cause problems of their own.
Thanks, Tom,
I had tried the hex keyboard thing before, but couldn't make it work. Now it does. I'm not sure what changed, it could just be my "technique" needed refining. ;-) Anyway, I'm all good now. Thanks a bunch!
Accent Menu is not working
