Russification of Macintosh

Updated 01/27/2019 FOURTH EDITION

Welcome! Are you looking to be able to write in Russian on your computer? Read on - this site is for you.

If you are a Mac user, things have gotten substantially easier since I originally started providing information about getting your Mac to "type" in Russian. Macs come with all the necessary pieces in place - fonts, keyboard layouts, applications that are ready to deal with Cyrillic alphabets right out of the box. One crucial thing is still missing, however - if you are not familiar with key layout in a standard Russian typewriter, you will find it difficult to use Apple-supplied Russian keyboard layouts. This is where my phonetic keyboard layout comes in - it makes it super-easy to type in Russian because majority of letters are arranged in such a way as to correspond phonetically with Latin keys on your keyboard.

If you are using Windows, do not despair - despite this site's name, we now have the same easy-to-use phonetic keyboard layout available to you.

Here's what my keyboard layout looks like:

Scroll down to choose your operating system and instructions for downloading and installing the keyboard layout. Dear users, please enjoy!

Keyboard Layout for MacOS X 10.9 "Mavericks" and above

  • Download this file: Russification-2013.zip
  • Unzip it by double-clicking on it
  • Place contents into either /Library/Keyboard Layouts or ~/Library/Keyboard Layouts folder (access the latter by holding Option key and going to "Go" menu in Finder where you'll see "Library")
  • Log out and log back in
  • Go to System Preferences → Keyboard → Input Sources tab and add the new layout by clicking the "+" button at the bottom left - it is called "Russification"
  • Check "Show Input menu in menu bar" at the bottom; you'll see US flag appear in your menu bar
  • Using the menu bar (or a keyboard shortcut - see System Preferences → Keybaord → Shortcuts → Input Sources), switch to this layout to type in Russian; switch back to your default layout when you're done
  • Option key accesses certain letters not present in regular layout, including single- and double-quote characters where Cyrillic letters "ч" and "ж" are
  • If you use this layout, consider making a donation to support availability and continued development!

Keyboard Layout for MacOS X 10.6 "Snow Leopard" to 10.8 "Mountain Lion"

  • Download this file: ruskbd106.zip
  • Unzip it by double-clicking on it
  • Place contents into either /Library/Keyboard Layouts or ~/Library/Keyboards folder
  • Go to System Preferences → Language & Text → Input Sources tab and enable the new layout - it is called "Russification"
  • Log out and log back in
  • Switch to this layout to type in Russian; switch back to your default layout when you're done
  • Option key accesses certain letters not present in regular layout
  • Apostrophe is in the upper left instead of "~" (tilde) key - this feature is unique in Snow Leopard version
  • If you use this layout, consider making a donation to support availability and continued development!

Keyboard Layout for MacOS X 10.2 "Jaguar" to 10.5 "Leopard"

  • Download this file: ruskbdx2.zip
  • Unzip it by double-clicking on it
  • Place contents into either /Library/Keyboard Layouts or ~/Library/Keyboards folder
  • Log out and log back in
  • Go to System Preferences → International → Input Menu tab and enable the new layouts (you truly need only one - "Русская - AppleStd")
  • CapsLock toggles between Latin and Cyrillic layout:
    • CapsLock up → Latin
    • CapsLock down → Cyrillic
  • Shift key functions normally in both configurations, producing capital letters.
  • Option key accesses certain letters not present in regular layout
  • If you use this layout, consider making a donation to support availability and continued development!

Keyboard Layout for Windows

Now you can have the same easy-to-use phonetic keyboard layout you came to trust on your Mac when using Windows. I understand that you would rather be using your Mac, but sometimes we simply have no control over these things. So while you have to put up with Windows, at least you do not have to put up with a typewriter-style keyboard layout!

Should be compatible with Windows 2000 and XP (limited testing performed on XP only)

  • Instructions
    • Download
      • For Windows 2000 and XP (limited testing performed on XP only), download this file: RU-MBP.zip
      • For Windows 7 and above, download this file: ru-mbp7.zip
    • Unzip
    • Double-click "RU-MBP" to install
  • Configure XP
    • Start → Settings → Control Panel → Regional and Language
    • Languages Tab, in "Text services and input languages," click "Details..."
    • Under "Installed services," click "Add..."
    • Under "Input language:" select Russian
    • Check "Keyboard layout/IME:"
    • Choose "Russian Phonetic Student Keyboard Layout," click "OK"
    • There are now 2 Russian keyboard layouts; remove the one named "Russian"
    • One the same window under "Preferences" click "Language Bar..."
    • Check "Show the Language bar on the desktop" and click "OK"
    • A few more "OK" to dismiss the remaining windows
    • Now, use Left Alt + Shift to activate the new layout you just installed!
  • If you use this layout, consider making a donation to support availability and continued development!




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