abcscnuk@csuna.UUCP (Naoto Kimura) (06/16/88)
I am using an IBM 7552 Industrial PC, and it has a keyboard with 12
function keys, a separate set of keys for cursor movement, both a left
and right hand set of ALT and CTRL keys (it is an IBM keyboard), though
the BIOS doesn't seem to support F11 and F12. What I'm curious about is
why when I run a program that I got from someone (it's called NEWINT9) I
some interesting things, such as the right-hand set of the ALT and CTRL
keys send 3 different scan codes and repeat ( two alternating codes when
they are held down, and one for the release -- sometimes) while the
left-hand ALT and CTRL keys don't. F11 repeats the press and release
codes, while the other function keys don't. Is this normal behavior or
is the keyboard screwed up ?
I'm also having difficulty whenever I press the right-hand set of
ALT and CTRL keys, as they get "stuck." Any ideas on how to trick the
BIOS into thinking that they were released ? I've had to resort to
doing something potentially dangerous by using a program that will write
into the keyboard status area so that at least I could save the file
I was editing before I reboot (I've found that it does release the
keys until I hit another key, which makes the keyboard think that the
keys are stuck again).
//-n-\\ Naoto Kimura
_____---=======---_____ (csun!csuna!abcscnuk)
====____\ /.. ..\ /____====
// ---\__O__/--- \\ Enterprise... Surrender or we'll
\_\ /_/ send back your *&^$% tribbles !!jcmorris@mitre-bedford.ARPA (Joseph C. Morris) (06/20/88)
In article <1248@csuna.UUCP> abcscnuk@csun.UUCP (Naoto Kimura) writes: > > I am using an IBM 7552 Industrial PC, ... > when I run a program that I got from someone (it's called NEWINT9) I >some interesting things, such as the right-hand set of the ALT and CTRL >keys send 3 different scan codes and repeat ( two alternating codes when >they are held down, and one for the release -- sometimes) while the >left-hand ALT and CTRL keys don't. F11 repeats the press and release >codes, while the other function keys don't. Is this normal behavior or >is the keyboard screwed up ? > > I'm also having difficulty whenever I press the right-hand set of >ALT and CTRL keys, as they get "stuck." Sounds like you've got a mismatch between your BIOS and the keyboard. Some users have gotten AT's (and the IBM Industrial Strength PC is an AT in rack-mount hardware) and replaced the old eighty-something key keyboard with the new 102-key unit. The additional keys send special sequences so that in most cases programs don't have to know which type of keyboard they are using...but the BIOS in the older AT's doesn't know how to handle the new codes. Symptoms are chiefly that the (new) right-hand CTRL and ALT keys act as locking functions, and PrintScreen when it finishes leaves the keyboard in shifted state. If you find yourself with a keyboard which is acting strangely, the *left* CTRL and ALT keys will cancel the 'locked' state from the right-hand keys, and the *LEFT* shift key (not the right) will undo the shift state caused by PrintScreen. Apparently, IBM was trying to expand the keyboard while keeping in m