<p dir="auto">On Windows systems, you can hold the Alt key and type a number combination on the number pad to insert special characters. For example, I can insert an m-dash (—) by holding Alt and typing 0151.</p>
<p dir="auto">This works fine in most text editors, including Sublime Text; however, in Atom, the Alt key + a number results in switching to a different tab.</p>
<p dir="auto">Pressing <kbd>alt</kbd>+<kbd>1</kbd> through <kbd>alt</kbd>+<kbd>9</kbd> will attempt to switch tabs. <a href="https://github.com/atom/atom/blob/44db3e7d2b56cc4ca32b24d47d3964e60ff761ab/keymaps/win32.cson#L80-L88">See code here</a></p>
<p dir="auto">When entering an alt code, the tabs switch. It's hard to enter alt codes.</p>
<p dir="auto"><strong>Workaround:</strong> Open a file in a separate pane, and enter alt codes there.</p>