Set your own emoji shortcuts in Ubuntu / Pop_OS

How do you quickly insert a 💩 emoji when using your laptop? I just type ScrLck, p, o, o!

What is this 🧙‍♀️ craft?

In your keyboard settings, you should see an option like this:

You can set the "Compose" key to be anything you like. Personally, I use the otherwise-useless Scroll Lock button.

Now, once you press ScrLck you'll see this symbol .

The next few letters you type will be "absorbed" by that symbol and combined to make something new.

What's available

You can see the default symbols in /usr/share/X11/locale/en_US.UTF-8/Compose

You can add your own, either in the file or in ~/.XCompose

Note!

The short-cuts you type are case-sensitive. Typing ScrLck, f, u does nothing, but typing ScrLck, F, U will get you 🖕!

Alternatives

There is a menu driven way of selecting emoji if you can't remember keyboard shortcuts.

Credit

I've shameless stolen this tip from:

Claudia Pellegrino @claudi@darmstadt.social

@c_pellegrino

I love #Linux so much!
Typing Compose+p,o,o gives you: 💩
Typing Compose+F,U gives you:🖕
I’m absolutely not making this up. It’s in the Compose map that comes with X11. (Works in the terminal but not in the browser)

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Although, I've found that it does work in the browser on Wayland 🤷

🖖