How to switch Keyboard Languages in Ubuntu

It's possible to switch between two or more keyboard layouts on the fly. This can be useful if you find yourself regularly typing in different languages.

To configure this feature, follow these steps:

1. Open the Keyboard Preferences dialog (System → Preferences → Keyboard), and, ensuring the Layouts tab is selected, click the large plus button (click the +ADD button if using Ubuntu 8.04).

2. Select the keyboard layout from the Country/Variants dropdown lists. When you've made a selection, click the +ADD button.

3. In the parent dialog box, and in the list under the Selected Layouts heading, click the radio button alongside the entry you'd like to be default. This will be the layout activated when Ubuntu
boots. When done, click the CLOSE button.

4. Right-click the bar running across the top of the screen, and select Add to Panel in the menu that appears. In the dialog that appears, click and drag the Keyboard Indicator entry to a panel. Then click CLOSE.

From now on you can switch between layouts by clicking the applet -  clicking will cycle through the choices of keyboard layout you selected in the Keyboard Preferences dialog.

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