To type these accents, hold down the ALT key, then type the three or four digits listed here. When you release the ALT key, the character will appear. You must type the numbers with the numeric keypad, not with the row of numbers across the top of your keyboard.

Windows users have several options; in my opinion, the international keyboard is far and away the best.

• International keyboard (Win XP)
  1. Open your Control Panel (via Start menu or My Computer)
  2. Double click Regional and Language Options
  3. Click Languages
  4. Click Details
  5. Click Add
  6. Pick English (United States - International)
  7. Click OK in each dialog window.

  Using the international keyboard:

  The international keyboard maintains the QWERTY layout, with the following changes/additions:

  1. To type accent grave (à, è, etc.), type ` then the vowel.
  2. Accent aigu (é), type ' (single quote) then e.
  3. Cédille (ç), type ' then c.
  4. Circonflexe (ê), type ^ (shift + 6) then e (or another vowel).
  5. Tréma (ö), type " (shift + ') then o.
      
     NOTE: To type any of these symbols by themselves (e.g., single or double quotes) rather than above a vowel, type the symbol then hit the space bar. For example, to type c'est, type c then ' then space then e s t
      
  6. To type French quotation marks «  » use ctrl + alt + [ and ], respectively.

  The minor disadvantage of the international keyboard is that it takes a little while to get used to typing a space when you actually want to type ' or ". More info from Microsoft

  Troubleshooting the international keyboard:

  Step one: Double-check the above steps, and make sure that you click OK for each dialog.

  Step two: Look in the lower-right corner of your computer desktop, where you should see a little box telling you which keyboard you are using. Make sure it says US - International.

  Step three: If you are plagued by strangeness such as cést when you try to type c'est, re-read the note between numbers 5 and 6 of Using the international keyboard, above.