Not so with Ubuntu… you can set a Compose key with which you can easily do French accents… I use the right Win key for that so Rt Win a ` in series gives à.
The Compose key latches to avoid stretching your fingers across the keyboard 
All of the accents are available including consonants etc such as the cedilla ç using a standard English UK keyboard.
A friend of ours locally in 16 is returning to the UK and has a Windoze laptop for sale at about 120€ if you are interested.
I sometimes use the character palette, or if it is for SF use the HTML codes eg “à” = à, “é” = é etc
Android is much easier.
Didn’t know those ones… I’ll add them to my list - Thanks.
for my old computer… I have a chart pegged on the wall… clearly showing the shortcuts for use on the QWERTY keyboard (I know most of them off by heart now)… eg:
ê = alt + 136
û = alt + 150
é = alt + 130
and I still use those shortcuts if I’m on my new computer with its AZERTY keyboard if I’m using it in English mode with just the odd French word…
If I’m working in French… of course, the AZERTY keyboard comes into its own… but I’m not so nimble… 
The full set of html codes useful for French is
Ç = Ç ç = ç
À = À à = à
È = È è = è
Ù = Ù ù = ù
 =  â = â
Ê = Ê ê = ê
Î = Î î = î
Ô = Ô ô = ô
Û = Û û = û
É = É é = é
Ë = Ë ë = ë
Ï = Ï ï = ï
¨ = Ü ü = ü
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but I’m not so nimble…
One of the reason I want a laptop is to be able to type with more than one finger, so frustrating! Watching the some people speed type on mobile phones is amazing 
ah, Lily… yes, I can’t touch-type with my keyboard in AZERTY… I am speedy, but I do have to keep checking…
Still… this keeps the brain cells working and is supposed to be anti-ageing… ??? (says she, hopefully 
)
and if you are using a laptop… you are doing much better than I can…
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Certainly does keep the brain cells working. When we first came to France I remember having to translate some letters/documents and it was so slow, I think I lost a few brain cells I still do translate somethings (hate to lose anything in translation) but it is so much easier now 
So what do you use to type? other than your fingers 
haha @Lily reminds me of that (really) old joke - “can I use your dictaphone?” reply “No, use your finger like everyone else!” 
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ha ha
laptops don’t have a big enough keyboard for me… let alone a big enough screen… and I like a proper, fluffy mouse…
and if there is a really, really big laptop… it would be too big for my lap…
I have normal size keyboards for both computers… and 2 mice… 
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Because the laptop stays at home I only use a mouse, I find it quicker than the mouse pad 
ah… different lifestyles… I don’t need a computer when I’m not at home…
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Lily we recently bought an HP Pavilion 14 (that’s the size of the screen… a friend picked it up for us and brought it here but I am sure you can find one in FRANCE. https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/laptops/hp-pavilion-14-ce0524-14-laptop-intel-pentium-gold-128-gb-ssd-purple-10195339-pdt.html
It’s fantastic we use it for Word. Social Media and Internet and Email… its light and compact.
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Oh and all new laptops are Windows 10 which runs well on modern computers
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I was looking for a new laptop last year and decided to go for an Italian keyboard. It’s fundamentally QWERTY but with a good range of accented characters. Works a treat, although the password box at startup still welcomes me as Utente (user). Most everything else is in English.
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Thank you very much, Paul! Now printed out for reference 
For anyone looking at the quoted text and thinking “well, it’s pretty ******* obvious that Ç = Ç etc” scroll up a few posts and you’ll see how to get the accented characters.
Oh, small error in the original post - capital U umlaut (Ü) is Ü
Oops! 
(Now to work out how to edit it…)