Word 2007 - keys on laptop keyboard showing characters with accent

[newbie82]

Please help! I have a new laptop with Word 2007, and am trying to use common
punctuation:

[]\{}|
;':"
,./<>?

shows up in word as

^çà¨ÇÀ
;è:È
,.é‘â€Ã‰

what has happened to my keyboard? Is it possessed

 

[Peter T. Daniels]

Are you saying that some keys on your keyboard have an accented
letter, probably in a different color?

The documentation that came with your computer (or the manufacturer's
website) will tell you how to switch back and forth between its
character sets. There's probably a key for it.

This isn't a Word matter.

 

[pbkry2r]

By any chance is your default Windows language set for French? To check, look
in your Control Panel under Date, Time, Language and Regional Options.