Keyboard gone haywire

[Taffycat]

I'm not sure if anyone can help me with this keyboard question, I thought it was going to be simple to put right, but I've tried all that I can think of, so I'm now a bit stuck.

My husband was typing something into Google, (using our XP-Pro PC) but I kept hearing "tweets" so had a look to see what was happening. For some reason, the S key was producing a capitalized Ç (regardless of whether shift was being used; it came up in bold each time too).

Closer inspection revealed that the W was apparently dead, and instead it brought up Outlook Express.

Earlier when he was typing, the PC suddenly shut down - after giving a "tweet" when he pressed certain letters. We tried to replicate it, but had no luck. At the time I thought he'd accidentally "chanced" upon a shortcut with a few mis-typed keys.

I've checked out the PC language settings and so on, just to ensure they'd not been re-set. Oddly enough, this problem has only arisen since that last Microsoft update (the one which caused the conflict with Zone Alarm. The download and the new patched version of ZA are on that computer).

The keyboard is fairly new - only a few months old. But it is therein that the problem seems to lie. I tried re-booting, unplugging the USB and using a different port, etc. I tried using the alt, alt gr, and ctrl buttons in various combinations to try "switching off" whatever has been turned-on, but have had no luck.

I am open to suggestions, if any of you have one please?

The keyboard is an A4Tech "mini" which, for anyone who isn't familiar with them, is a fully functional, keyboard with full-sized keys, it simply lacks the numbers block on the right hand side, which we have no use for. The other A4Tech has been used heavily for about a year, with no problems at all.

Oh, and just for information, I reproduced that Ç by just copying and pasting it from one of my Google searches for answers to the above.... so I did try

Thank you for reading.

 

[Taffycat]

PS: I checked the website and this keyboard doesn't require a driver. Sorry, forgot to tell you that.

 

[Madxgraphics]

Have you tried disabling "sticky keys"..??

 

[Ian]

Yep, the tweet sound does sound like sticky keys - but I don't know if it would do all those other weird things. Try pressing the shift key 5 times quickly to bring up the options just in case

Just checking, did you swap the other keyboard to this PC to see if that does the same thing?

 

[floppybootstomp]

Aye, the first thing I'd do is try another keyboard to eliminate any possible keyboard fault. I've had similar symptoms with keyboards that were faulty in the past.

 

[Taffycat]

Hi there and thank you all for the suggestions.

I have tried the 'faulty' keyboard on Vista, and found that it does exactly the same thing (foreign 'C' etc.) Sticky keys are off, by the way. When I use a different keyboard on XP, all is fine there - so looks as if the keyboard itself might be up-the-creek (to use a technical term ) do you think?

It's just a bit annoying that it was absolutely fine one minute, then suddenly, it wasn't. But I suppose that is the way things go sometimes

 

[Madxgraphics]

Sure does sound like its the keyboard thats up the creek then..Have you still got the reciept for it..Take it back if its still under warrenty...

 

[Taffycat]

I will have to check my rather dodgy filing system, lol, it might still be lurking somewhere.

 

[Madxgraphics]

Would that be the same filing system I have, thats stacked at the back of the desk, with an ashtray that needed emptying 3 months ago as a paper weight..?????

 

[Taffycat]

No this is the one with a full filing drawer, which needs to be sorted, to be able to take the other"important" stuff which is lying on the top and keeps falling off every time one of us passes it!

 

[muckshifter]

... get another keyboard

I still have one of the "spare" keyboards you sent me ... you can have it back for a mere £1,000 ...

 

[Taffycat]

Yup, I still had a spare one... Actually, the great thing about these keyboards, is that their keys are laser etched, so even the 'oldie' doesn't have any worn-off letters

 

[Madxgraphics]

This might seem like a silly question..But have you tried opening the keyboard up to see if owt has fallen in..You'd be supprised what next to nowt trapped under keys or in the workings can do..

Sorry fot those that don't know:
Owt = anything
and
Nowt = nothing

 

[Taffycat]

That's a good point Madxgraphics, I'll have a shot at finding the receipt before un-screwing anything though. so as not to mess-up the guarantee. Thanks for the suggestion