Editing Dead key (section)

==Electronic keyboards==
A dead key is different from a typical modifier key (such as {{keypress|[[AltGr key|AltGr]]}} or {{keypress|[[Option key|Option]]}}), in that rather than being pressed and held while another key is struck, the dead key is ''pressed and released'' before striking the key to be modified. In some computer systems, there is no indication to the user that a dead key has been struck, so the key appears dead (nothing immediately happens), but in some text-entry systems, the diacritic is displayed, along with an indication that the system is waiting for another keystroke to complete the typing sequence.

Computers, however, work differently. The dead key temporarily changes the [[keyboard layout|mapping of the keyboard]] for the next keystroke, which activates a special keyboard [[mode (user interface)|mode]] rather than actually generating a modifier [[character (computing)|character]]. Instead of the normal letter, a [[precomposed character|precomposed]] variant, with the appropriate diacritic, is generated. Each combination of a diacritic and a base letter must be specified in the [[character set]] and must be supported by the [[computer font]] in use.

There is no precomposed character to combine the acute accent with the letter {{char|q}}, striking {{keypress|´}} and then {{keypress|q}} is likely to result in {{char|´q}}, with the accent and letter as separate characters. However, in most systems, the invalid typing sequence may be discarded.{{efn|By using the [[combining character]]s available in the [[Unicode]] character set, it may be possible to generate a combination that more or less looks like a {{char|q}} with an acute accent ({{char|q́}}), but that technique is quite distinct from the dead key functionality. In addition, since a letter like ''q'' does not normally take accents, computer font makers may not include the font attributes necessary for a combining accent to be applied successfully or in an attractive way. It is necessary to test this usage in context, since support for accenting in this way varies considerably. Furthermore, files generated in this way may not be useful since it is not possible to guarantee that all recipients have the required fonts installed.}}