I cannot type french accents even by holding the specific keys. what should i do?

How to type accents, emoji, and symbols on your Mac - Apple Support

When this does not work as expected: do the SMC reset:

1. Shut down the computer.

Plug in the MagSafe power adapter to a power source, connecting it to the Mac if its not already connected.

2. On the built-in keyboard, press the (left side) Shift-Control-Option keys and the power button at the same time.

3. Release all the keys and the power button at the same time.

4. Press the power button to turn on the computer.

Trishh01 wrote:

It was on "Unicode Hex"

That keyboard has a special purpose, to type characters by pressing the option key plus 4 hex codes from the Unicode standard. It does not have the feature you were looking for.

When you depress and hold a key do you see any options?

WWhat was the input keyboard setting which did not work?

I have tried this on my A1242 (small) keyboard and it does not work (I have 'British' as my Input Source).

What app? Using TextEdit, what happens when you do option e, then e. It should be é.

When you hold down the option key and do asdf, do you get åß∂ƒ ?