french apple keyboard on macbook pro running debian

apple_keyboard_linux.txt

# this works with the laptop's keyboard fine:

>>> more /etc/default/keyboard

# KEYBOARD CONFIGURATION FILE

# Consult the keyboard(5) manual page.

XKBMODEL="macintosh"
XKBLAYOUT="fr"
XKBVARIANT=""
XKBOPTIONS=""

BACKSPACE="guess"

# however if I plug my bigger apple keyboard, keys <> and @# are reversed. So I wrote a couple of bash function
# to switch back and forth:

>>> in .bash_aliases (or .bashrc,...)

bigkeyboard() { 
   xmodmap -e "keycode 49 = less greater less greater lessthanequal greaterthanequal lessthanequal"
   xmodmap -e "keycode 94 = at numbersign at numbersign periodcentered Ydiaeresis periodcentered"
}   

smallkeyboard() { 
   xmodmap -e "keycode 94 = less greater less greater lessthanequal greaterthanequal lessthanequal"
   xmodmap -e "keycode 49 = at numbersign at numbersign periodcentered Ydiaeresis periodcentered"
}