Boris asks:

> On a technical note, why does it matter?  If you are just allowing the use 
of 
> a codepage (or equivalent) shouldn't it just be a matter of selecting the 
> keyboard mapping that goes along with it?

As a technical answer, we need an invertible function. While we can map any 
number of keys to one symbol during a shift operation, we can't map a 
many-to-one mapping back to the various original, unshifted characters very 
easily. 

The question revolves around a word such as "Straßenbahn". When the word is 
upshifted, how is it to be represented? Regardless of what is truly proper 
German (and I've learned over the last 24 hours that there is some true 
disagreement as to what is proper German), for purely technical reasons, 
we're going to have to write the caps-locked word as "STRAßENBAHN." 

What we can't do is insert two SS's into the caps-locked string, nor can we 
map the ß to a single S and be able to properly decapitalize it later. Thus, 
the function we're implementing is going to have to be ß -> ß -> ß.

BTW, the method by which we're putting this extended character set into 
QCTerm is the way that we've always planned. The F11 key (special characters) 
will be the only key you have to strike to modify a character. If you wanted 
a Pound/Lira symbol, you will type the "$" and then press the F11 key 
repeatedly until the Pound symbol appears. The keys will be grouped so that 
items such as the currency symbols will all appear together. The currency 
sequence will be "dollar sign -> euro -> pound/lira -> cent -> yen -> 
currency symbol -> dollar sign". Repeatedly pressing the F11 will walk you 
through that particular circular sequence. The same will be true for all of 
the other characters (if there are alternates). I think that this will be 
much easier, much quicker and more obvious than the way that either Microsoft 
or the Macintosh has traditionally done it on their keyboards or HP did it on 
the terminals.

I do greatly appreciate all of the answers and advice I've received.

Wirt Atmar