Version 3.5.1: Unable to open keyboard layouts

[Matthias J. Déjà]

I'm on macOS Big Sur 11.2.1 (latest version), and Ukelele 3.5.1.

As of today, I cannot open any of my keyboard layouts any more.

There is no error message; when I try to open one, simply nothing happens.

When I try to create a new keyboard layout from my current input source, there is an error message telling me that it's not valid XML.

It does not matter if I have my custom keyboard layout as an input source, or one of the standard macOS keyboard layouts.

Suspicion:

Could it be that Ukelele can't access my "Documents" folder?

I never was asked to give it access.

I tried completely removing Ukelele with AppCleaner and reinstalling it, but this had no effect either.

[Sorin Paliga]

Did you try to restart the computer

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[Matthias J. Déjà]

I did restart the computer yesterday, but now today after I got that problem.

Hold on, I'll restart now.

[Matthias J. Déjà]

That's interesting.

Just restarted. Now I can open one of my custom layouts, but I still get the error when trying to create a new layout from the current source.

Good enough for me! That's all I need for now. Thanks!

[Sorin Paliga]

Well, so half of the problem is solved! Rule of thumb: when something eerie occurs, restart the computer.

I have just tested how UKELELE works in Big Sur 11.2.1 running on an M1 mini, and opened a custom keylayout without a problem, i.e. the current active keylayout created by me many years ago. There must be something with your specific keylayout.

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[Matthias J. Déjà]

Yes, there most certainly is.

I've modified this keyboard layout for ages, carried it across several Ukelele versions.

Sometimes Ukelele behaves a little weird with it. For example:

Usually, for creating a new version, I duplicate the file and rename it.

Then I open the new file in Ukelele and rename the keyboard layout in Ukelele.

(I noticed if I don't rename it, macOS will not always use the new version.)

But then, when I open it again in Ukelele, I see several keyboard layouts.

Somehow, instead of renaming the old layout, Ukelele keeps several older versions, as well as the new one.

I delete the old versions routinely, but they keep popping up.

But I can live with that very well, it's not a problem for me.

Ukelele is really the only tool that can edit keyboard layouts like this!

[Sorin Paliga]

On 19 Feb 2021, at 21:41, Matthias J. Déjà <mado...@gmail.com> wrote:

But then, when I open it again in Ukelele, I see several keyboard layouts.

Hm… Cannot reproduce this. As long as you save your keylayout somewhere on the disk, but not in its final destination, I do not understand how you may see more than one keylayout.

BTW, do you happen to install your custom keylayout at the user level or at the general, for-all-users, level? Use the latter one, beginning with several generations ago, installing the keylayout at the user level may give errors. This is a bug in macOS, not in uKELELE. An unsolved bug.

[Matthias J. Déjà]

Hmm, I think I don't forget to save.

I install the keyboard layout in user space. I simply copy the file to: ~/Library/Keyboard Layouts

Then, I select the layout in System Settings, and I restart my Mac.

If I don't restart my Mac, it keeps reverting to the previous layout when switching to apps that have been running since before I installed the new layout.

I keep my layout in a separate folder under my documents.

I only copy it over to "~/Library/Keyboard Layouts" for installing it, and then never copy the file back from there.

Whenever I edit it, I use the version in my document folder.

[Gé van Gasteren]

Hi Mathias,

You wrote:
> Usually, for creating a new version, I duplicate the file and rename it.

Please change that part of your process. Do it like this:

Open the original layout with Ukelele, then choose the command File > Duplicate.

This makes sure (behind the scenes) that the new layout gets a unique ID, which means that MacOS can identify it as different from the original one.

[Matthias J. Déjà]

Oh, that's a good tip.

I never thought of this, thanks a lot!

[Sorin Paliga]

On 19 Feb 2021, at 21:49, Matthias J. Déjà <mado...@gmail.com> wrote:

Hmm, I think I don't forget to save.

I do not understand what you mean here...

I install the keyboard layout in user space. I simply copy the file to: ~/Library/Keyboard Layouts

Not a good place beginning, I guess, with macOS 10.11 or… 12.

Then, I select the layout in System Settings, and I restart my Mac.

Vice-versa: first restart, then select.

If I don't restart my Mac, it keeps reverting to the previous layout when switching to apps that have been running since before I installed the new layout.

Of course, restarting is mandatory. 

Also, if you successively put variants of the same keylayout with the same name, take care of any previous version and remove it from the system. By ’name’ I mean the one given inside UKELELE under Keyboard/Set keyboard name and script, not the name given to the file in the Finder, that one may be any.

I keep my layout in a separate folder under my documents.

That’s good.

I only copy it over to "~/Library/Keyboard Layouts" for installing it, and then never copy the file back from there.

Not there, put it in /Library/….

As said, there is an unsolved bug in macOS beginning with 3 or 4 generations back.

Whenever I edit it, I use the version in my document folder.

That is correct.

Cattus Thraex schrieb am Freitag, 19. Februar 2021 um 20:45:16 UTC+1:

On 19 Feb 2021, at 21:41, Matthias J. Déjà <mado...@gmail.com> wrote:

But then, when I open it again in Ukelele, I see several keyboard layouts.

Hm… Cannot reproduce this. As long as you save your keylayout somewhere on the disk, but not in its final destination, I do not understand how you may see more than one keylayout.

BTW, do you happen to install your custom keylayout at the user level or at the general, for-all-users, level? Use the latter one, beginning with several generations ago, installing the keylayout at the user level may give errors. This is a bug in macOS, not in uKELELE. An unsolved bug.

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[Matthias J. Déjà]

Okay, I will install it for all users in the future.

I make sure to always rename it in Ukelele, for every new version.

Thanks!