Configuring Desktops


Using Windows XP Professional, you can customize desktops to support your company s specific language and regional needs. You can configure desktops with specific Regional and Language Options, such as a default input language or keyboard layout. You can also configure the browser to receive localized, regional content, and you can add toolbars and keyboard shortcuts to simplify switching between input languages.

Windows XP Professional enables administrators to specify the appropriate input language/keyboard layout combination and standards and formats settings for the default user account on a computer. All subsequent new user accounts created on that computer inherit the specified defaults; existing user accounts are not affected.

Administrators can specify these default settings through the user interface, or by using answer files. For more information about specifying the default settings through the user interface, see Configuring Regional and Language Options later in this chapter. For more information about specifying the default settings through the answer files, see Creating Unattended Installations and Using Silent Configurations later in this chapter.

Configuring Regional and Language Options

You can use the Regional and Language Options settings in Control Panel to configure input languages for user accounts, and for the MUI Pack, to specify or change the default user interface language, or install or remove user interface language packs.

To install the Complex Script and Right-to-Left Collection or East Asian Language Collection

  1. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  2. Click the Languages tab, and then under Supplemental language support, select the check boxes of the language collections that you want to install.

To change the language for non-Unicode programs

  1. Log on as an Administrator.

  2. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  3. Click the Advanced tab, and then under Language for non-Unicode programs, select the language for which the application was developed.

For more information about language collections and languages for non-Unicode programs, see New Multilingual Features in Windows XP Professional earlier in this chapter.

Configuring Regional and Language Support for User Accounts

Some language versions of Windows XP Professional might require installing the Complex Script and Right-to-Left Language Collection or the East Asian Language Collection, as well as the appropriate input languages, to properly input and display all characters.

Administrators can specify which input languages are available for user selection at the Windows logon screen, and which are applied to new user accounts, by adding the appropriate input languages to the default user account.

To add an input language for the current user

  1. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  2. Click the Languages tab, and then under Text services and input languages, click Details.

  3. Under Installed services, click Add.

  4. In the Input Language box, click the input language that you want to add to enable users to input text in that language.

    This installs the input language with the default keyboard layout/IME listed in the Keyboard layout/IME box.

To add an alternative keyboard layout/IME for an input language

  1. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  2. Click the Languages tab, and then under Text services and input languages, click Details.

  3. Under Installed services, click Add.

  4. In the Keyboard layout/IME box, click the alternative keyboard layout or IME that you want to add to enable users to input text in the specified input language.

To specify the default input language for the current user

  1. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  2. Click the Languages tab, and then under Text services and input languages, click Details.

  3. Under Default input language, select the appropriate input language.

To add an input language for the default user account

  1. Log on as an Administrator.

  2. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  3. Click the Languages tab, and then under Text services and input languages, click Details.

  4. Under Installed services, click Add.

  5. In the Input Language box, click the input language that you want to add to enable users to input text in that language, and then click OK.

    If you want to add more than one input language, repeat this step for each language that you want to add.

  6. Click OK or Apply to close the Text Services and Input Languages dialog box.

  7. Click the Advanced tab, and then select the Apply all settings to the current user account and to the default user profile check box.

Configuring the User Interface Language (MUI Pack Only)

The Windows XP MUI Pack allows users to change user interface languages, as long as support for additional user interface languages has been installed, and Administrators have not locked down the desktop by using Group Policy settings.

To change the current user interface language

  1. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  2. Click the Languages tab, and then under Language used in menus and dialogs, select the language that you want to use.

To specify the user interface language for the default user account

  1. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  2. Click the Languages tab, and then under Language used in menus and dialogs, select the language that you want to use.

  3. Click the Advanced tab, and then select the Apply all settings to the current user account and to the default user profile check box.

Configuring Localized Content

You can configure the default location to ensure that a user or group of users receives the appropriate local content, such as news and weather, from Internet or intranet content providers. You can change the default location without impacting other multilingual settings, such as the default standards and formats used for currency, sorting, dates, and so on.

The Location setting of the Regional and Language Options Control Panel enables Web content providers to redirect users to more appropriate regional sites when they visit a generic site. For example, users in the Milan office would want the default location set to Italy to ensure that they connect to the appropriate servers, content providers, and so on.

To configure localized browser content

  1. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  2. Click the Regional Options tab, and then under Location, click the region or location for which you want customized content.

Simplifying Multiple Language Access on Desktops

Administrators can configure desktops to simplify working in multiple languages. For example, you can add a language toolbar to the desktop, or a language icon to the taskbar, making it easier for users to change between different input languages when they need to compose documents in multiple languages. You can also enable specific key sequences that let users quickly change between installed input languages and alternative keyboard layouts/IMEs.

To add the Language bar to the desktop or taskbar

  1. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  2. Click the Languages tab, and then under Text services and input languages, click Details.

  3. In the Text Services and Input Languages dialog box, under Preferences, click Language Bar.

  4. In the Language Bar Settings dialog box, select the check boxes that correspond to the language bar and taskbar options you want to enable.

To enable or change key sequences for switching input languages or keyboard layouts/IMEs

  1. In Control Panel, click Regional and Language Options.

  2. Click the Languages tab, and then under Text services and input languages, click Details.

  3. In the Text Services and Input Languages dialog box, under Preferences, click Key Settings.

  4. In the Advanced Key Settings dialog box, select the options that correspond to the key sequences and actions you want to use to enable a user to change between installed input languages or keyboard layouts/IMEs.

If you want to use the On-Screen Keyboard to input text in a different language, change to the appropriate input language before enabling the On-Screen Keyboard.

To display the On-Screen Keyboard

Entering Special Characters or Code Points

Users can input characters that are not on the keyboard by pressing and holding the ALT key, and then typing the appropriate decimal code value for that character on the numeric keypad.

For a complete list of OEM code pages and their associated code points for numeric keypad input, see the Microsoft OEM Code Reference link on the Web Resources page at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/reskits/webresources

Controlling Desktops by Using Group Policy Settings

Windows XP Professional enables administrators to automate different users Regional and Language Options, such as the default input language or standards and formats, by using a Group Policy logon script. When a given user logs on to a computer, the Group Policy logon script silently calls the Regional and Language Options Control Panel to specify the correct settings for that user. For more information about using a Group Policy logon script to silently configure desktop settings, see Using Silent Configurations later in this chapter.

The Windows XP Professional MUI Pack allows administrators to use Group Policy settings to control users abilities to change the user interface language. For more information about Group Policy settings, see Connecting Clients to Windows Networks in this book




Microsoft Windows XP Professional Resource Kit 2003
Microsoft Windows XP Professional Resource Kit 2003
ISBN: N/A
EAN: N/A
Year: 2005
Pages: 338
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