[comp.sys.ibm.pc.hardware] IBM PC Convertible Keyboard Question

stevens@vms.macc.wisc.edu (PAul STevens -- MACC) (06/05/91)

I have a more-or-less realtime application that will just barely keep
up with the world on a Convertible.  But I have what seems to be a 
problem with the keyboard interrupt.  I replace the keyboard interrupt
vector (at address 00:24h) and receive interrupts very nicely.  But
it appears that the interrupt itself requires about one millisecond!
At the interrupt address:
        push ax
 	in   al,21h
        or   al,2   ; disable keyboard
        out  21h,al
        mov  al,20h
        out  20h,al  ; reenable interrupt chip
        sti
        nop
It seems that it takes about one millisecond to get to the nop when a
keyboard interupt occurs.  What is going on??????  Is the keyboard actually
causing some other interrupt which is then passed on to me
after some thrashing about?  I cannot afford to spend one millisecond with
interrupts locked out.