Composeget easy access to all those characters that aren't on the keyboard
Compose, 85Kb
½ ¼ © é í óInstead of fishing through the Window's character map, or memorizing a bunch of alt-codes, you just press the compose key (the right control key) and type a predefined sequence, and the character appears. All sorts of handy sequences have been pre-defined, and they make so much sense that there really isn't much memorizing involved. For example, the ½ character is just right-ctrl 1 2 and é is right-ctrl ' e or right-ctrl e ' (you can use either). You can also define your own compose sequences, choose another key to be the compose key, preview fonts, and more.
Most programs use control key combos for menu shortcuts. For example, ctrl-P often activates the "print" command. The compose sequences don't interfere with your apps control short cut keys because you don't hold down the compose key while typing the sequence; you just press it, and then type the sequence. If you hold the control key down, the rest of the keys are sent to the app as shortcut activators.