[xubuntu-users] Alt+Fn switches to tty console?!

[Eric Christopherson]

On Thu, Jun 14, 2018 at 9:50 AM, Ulli Horlacher <
framstag at rus.uni-stuttgart.de> wrote:

>
> I have an annoying behaviour in my Xubuntu 16.04 :
>
> Alt+F1 switches to the tty console 1
> Alt+F2 switches to the tty console 2
> Alt+F3 switches to the tty console 3
> Alt+F4 switches to the tty console 4
> ..
>
> In the past I have had to press Control+Alt+Fn to switch the console.
>
> What happend?
> How can I bring back the default key sequence?
>
>
I would guess you changed your laptop's Fn key functionality, perhaps
inadvertantly. On all keyboards I know of with an Fn key, that key is
handled specially within the keyboard's own hardware/firmware before the
keyboard events get sent to the OS, so Ubuntu likely doesn't know whether
you're pressing Fn or not. So you might have an F1 key that also has an
audio mute function on it, depending on whether you're holding Fn; the
keyboard sends Ubuntu a different key code depending on that. Most
manufacturers allow you to choose whether the F keys send the old-fashioned
F1, F2, F3, etc. codes or the new media/volume/screen keys when the Fn key
is not held; then when it *is* held the behavior is reversed. The specifics
of that are dependent on your hardware.

As for the Control key being a necessary part of the key binding, AFAIK
it's only required if you're currently in an X session. If you're in a
plain text console and hit Alt+F2, you should go right to console 2; but if
you're in an X console and hit Alt+F2, that sequence is instead sent to
your X application or window manager, so you have to add Control in that
case only.

-- 
        Eric Christopherson
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