Comment 12 for bug 985947

Here is a workaround for most of the problems described above using a keyboard utility program called “gXneur.” Follow these instructions to use this program to completely replace the functionality of the xfce4-xkb-plugin:

1) Remove the xfce keyboard layout switcher / indicator from the panel, if it is installed.
2) Go into the xfce keyboard layout control panel. Under the “Layouts” tab, add whichever layouts you wish to use. (I use US English and Russian.)
3) DE-select “Use System Defaults” if it is selected.
4) Install gXneur “X Neural Switcher.”
5) In the gXneur “Hotkeys” panel, add “Alt+Shift_L” (or whichever combination your prefer) to “Rotate Layouts.”
6) In “Properties,” check “Autostartup” with a delay of 10 seconds.
7) Make sure gXneur has appeared in the xfce Application Autostart list. Add it if necessary.
8) Reboot. Test.

There are also many other useful functions in the gXneur program that you might find useful.

Debian Wheezy 7.3.0 i386 on Lenovo S12, Atom CPU.