I have a Compaq desktop running xp with sp3. Every so often the
keyboard goes dead and I have to reboot to get it working again.
Plugging in a different keyboard doesn't help.
It has the round connection.
I recently installed new drivers but that did no good.

Too much noise in the computer help nswsgroups.

Engineman

engineman wrote:
I have a Compaq desktop running xp with sp3. Every so often the
keyboard goes dead and I have to reboot to get it working again.
Plugging in a different keyboard doesn't help.
It has the round connection.
I recently installed new drivers but that did no good.

Too much noise in the computer help nswsgroups.

it's winter- it could be static.

If not, maybe your ps/2 port is blown out. You can probably just use a USB
keyboard or USB to ps/2 converter and your regular keyboard plugged into
the usb port.

I can mail you an adapter for that if you're in the US. I just picked some
up.

"engineman" wrote in message
...
I have a Compaq desktop running xp with sp3. Every so often the
keyboard goes dead and I have to reboot to get it working again.
Plugging in a different keyboard doesn't help.
It has the round connection.
I recently installed new drivers but that did no good.

Too much noise in the computer help nswsgroups.

Engineman

I have been having a similar problem on a Dell running XP. My keyboard
connect by USB and I can get it back by unplugging it and plugging it back
in. I am using it to run a CNC plasma cutter and it only happens once in a
while so I have been living with it. I will be interested to hear the
answer.
Steve

"engineman" wrote:
I have a Compaq desktop running xp with sp3. Every so often the
keyboard goes dead and I have to reboot to get it working again.
Plugging in a different keyboard doesn't help.
It has the round connection.
I recently installed new drivers but that did no good.

Too much noise in the computer help nswsgroups.

1.) Try bending the pins in the plug a little bit so they seat better,
and/or anchor the plug end of the cord so you don't yank it around if you
are yanking it around.

2.) alt.comp.hardware is your friend.

Jon

On 2009-01-27, engineman wrote:
I have a Compaq desktop running xp with sp3. Every so often the
keyboard goes dead and I have to reboot to get it working again.
Plugging in a different keyboard doesn't help.
It has the round connection.
I recently installed new drivers but that did no good.

Too much noise in the computer help nswsgroups.

Do you have any other keyboard? What happens if you replace your
keyboard with another one? Do you have a USb keyboard? Try to
troubleshoot it a little bit and isolate the problem.

--
Due to extreme spam originating from Google Groups, and their inattention
to spammers, I and many others block all articles originating
from Google Groups. If you want your postings to be seen by
more readers you will need to find a different means of
posting on Usenet.
http://improve-usenet.org/

engineman wrote:
I have a Compaq desktop running xp with sp3. Every so often the
keyboard goes dead and I have to reboot to get it working again.
Plugging in a different keyboard doesn't help.
It has the round connection.
I recently installed new drivers but that did no good.

Too much noise in the computer help nswsgroups.

Engineman
Does the mouse cursor die at the same time? Assuming PS/2 on both, they
generally run through the same serial I/O chip on the motherboard.
There are some interrupt service problems that will often kill both
devices at the same time. I had an electrostatic air cleaner that would
occasionally give a big SNAP! and my keyboard would sometimes lock up at
the same instant, so the suggestion it is static is pretty good.

Jon

"Jon Elson" wrote in message
...
engineman wrote:
I have a Compaq desktop running xp with sp3. Every so often the
keyboard goes dead and I have to reboot to get it working again.
Plugging in a different keyboard doesn't help.
It has the round connection.
I recently installed new drivers but that did no good.

Too much noise in the computer help nswsgroups.

Engineman
Does the mouse cursor die at the same time? Assuming PS/2 on both, they
generally run through the same serial I/O chip on the motherboard. There
are some interrupt service problems that will often kill both devices at
the same time. I had an electrostatic air cleaner that would occasionally
give a big SNAP! and my keyboard would sometimes lock up at the same
instant, so the suggestion it is static is pretty good.

Jon

In my case the mouse stays live. I think it is electrical interference from
either the plasma cutter, one of the motors on the CNC table or the exhaust
fan but I am unable to point a finger at any of them and say that is what is
causing the problem. Engineman...sorry about horning in on your problem.
Steve

On most of the PS/2 and other connectors similar to the mini-din, the socket
that they connect to isn't as well aligned as it soululd be sometimes, and
many times the connection is half-assed at best. When a cable gets moved
slightly, the signals or power can be temporarily interrupted.

I don't know if damage will occur if short interruptions to power or signals
can damage the keyboard circuit, or not.
While damage may not occur with every interruption, I don't think that the
keyboards are intended to be hot swappable devices.

I nearly always closely inspect the connector as it enters the socket/panel
receptacle to feel and see how secure the connection appears to be, mostly
to see that the cable plug seats firmly at the proper depth, not just barely
making contact, but well enough to operate the device under normal operation
conditions.
Abnormal conditions may include anything moving around in the vicinity of
the connection to the computer, or unsupported cable lengths. There are
sticky-backed anchor pads with a loop for tying a cable down with a wire-tie
which could be helpful in numerous applications where a hanging cable length
places a considerable amount of strain on the delicate connector contacts.

I was making a couple of PS/2 plug modifications recently, and the pins are
fairly delicate. The designations for mouse and keyboard pins are the same..
clock, data, +5V, ground and a shield (for the shell).
I read that the +5V line for a mouse is typically fused, but the +5V line
for a keyboard may not be. Two of the 6 pins are normally unused or reserved
for a different pinout layout (sounds something like a $12 keyboard that
sells for $120 because a generic one won't work).

Other aspects are generally always at play, thermal changes, vibration,
roaming critters or something drops off the back of a desk etc.

For me, the easiest way to ensure that a plug connector can seat fully in
the recepatacle, has been to trim away about 1/16" or slightly more of the
molded plastic that makes up the plug body around the connector shell
(tubular metal section) with a utility/razor knife edge pressed into the
vinyl material, and rolling the plug like you would turn a piece of tubing
to be cut, making sure that the sharp edge is cutting vinyl and not your
skin.
Slide off the O-shaped slice and see that the connector seats fully within
the the panel connector.
This trimming is especially helpful when the panel connector is slightly
recessed and/or mis-aligned with the panel opening.

--
WB
..........
metalworking projects
www.kwagmire.com/metal_proj.html


"engineman" wrote in message
...
I have a Compaq desktop running xp with sp3. Every so often the
keyboard goes dead and I have to reboot to get it working again.
Plugging in a different keyboard doesn't help.
It has the round connection.
I recently installed new drivers but that did no good.

Too much noise in the computer help nswsgroups.

Engineman

Wild_Bill wrote:
On most of the PS/2 and other connectors similar to the mini-din, the
socket that they connect to isn't as well aligned as it soululd be
sometimes, and many times the connection is half-assed at best. When a
cable gets moved slightly, the signals or power can be temporarily
interrupted.

I don't know if damage will occur if short interruptions to power or
signals can damage the keyboard circuit, or not.
While damage may not occur with every interruption, I don't think that
the keyboards are intended to be hot swappable devices.

I nearly always closely inspect the connector as it enters the
socket/panel receptacle to feel and see how secure the connection
appears to be, mostly to see that the cable plug seats firmly at the
proper depth, not just barely making contact, but well enough to operate
the device under normal operation conditions.
Abnormal conditions may include anything moving around in the vicinity
of the connection to the computer, or unsupported cable lengths. There
are sticky-backed anchor pads with a loop for tying a cable down with a
wire-tie which could be helpful in numerous applications where a hanging
cable length places a considerable amount of strain on the delicate
connector contacts.

I was making a couple of PS/2 plug modifications recently, and the pins
are fairly delicate. The designations for mouse and keyboard pins are
the same.. clock, data, +5V, ground and a shield (for the shell).
I read that the +5V line for a mouse is typically fused, but the +5V
line for a keyboard may not be. Two of the 6 pins are normally unused or
reserved for a different pinout layout (sounds something like a $12
keyboard that sells for $120 because a generic one won't work).

Other aspects are generally always at play, thermal changes, vibration,
roaming critters or something drops off the back of a desk etc.

For me, the easiest way to ensure that a plug connector can seat fully
in the recepatacle, has been to trim away about 1/16" or slightly more
of the molded plastic that makes up the plug body around the connector
shell (tubular metal section) with a utility/razor knife edge pressed
into the vinyl material, and rolling the plug like you would turn a
piece of tubing to be cut, making sure that the sharp edge is cutting
vinyl and not your skin.
Slide off the O-shaped slice and see that the connector seats fully
within the the panel connector.
This trimming is especially helpful when the panel connector is slightly
recessed and/or mis-aligned with the panel opening.



Oh, ding!
There IS a micro fuse on the power lead to the keyboard.

At least on the IBM PS2s there was.
But it's a real fuse and if blown it won't fix itself.
That doesn't sound like the case here.

IBM style keyboards have a microprocessor inside.
Mice don't.

They also have a lot more metal (ON TOPIC!) in the traces and such
that could be acting as a receiving antenna.

In a high voltage / high power environment, I'd almost EXPECT
odd problems for a garden variety computer.

This one almost sounds like the keynoard processor is going off
to la-la land.

I have noticed that after a while a particular USB port will go
intermittant - if this is a USB keyboard you might try a different port - it
doesn't seem to be the connector itself.
"engineman" wrote in message
...
I have a Compaq desktop running xp with sp3. Every so often the
keyboard goes dead and I have to reboot to get it working again.
Plugging in a different keyboard doesn't help.
It has the round connection.
I recently installed new drivers but that did no good.

Too much noise in the computer help nswsgroups.

Engineman

"engineman" wrote in message
...
I have a Compaq desktop running xp with sp3. Every so often the
keyboard goes dead and I have to reboot to get it working again.
Plugging in a different keyboard doesn't help.
It has the round connection.
I recently installed new drivers but that did no good.

Too much noise in the computer help nswsgroups.

Engineman

Sometimes that can happen if you have an old installation of XP. Driver
files get corrupted, and after a few hours the keyboard and/or mouse stop
working. If the back of a tower is touching a wall, the socket can be
damaged as the resident cleaner moves it to dust. High humidity can also
corrode the pins on the plug, just enough to cause you're problem. I used to
run a free public computer lab, located in a basement office. The latter two
problems were common. The lady janitor had to be told to leave the keyboards
alone, as she ruined several, by cleaning them with a wet cloth.





Steve R.