I don't exactly even know how to phrase this question. My wife answered "yes" to some prompt about repetition -- she doesn't remember exactly what it was -- but the result is that she can't repeat anything. If she types an "E" she can't type another "E." If she backspaces, she can't backspace again.

Can anyone tell me what she did and how I can undo it?

You mean that if you hold a key down, it doesn't repeat, right?

Sounds like she turned on an accessibility option called Sticky Keys. The option is turned ON. Turn it off.

You turn it off in recent operating systems this way:

1. Click the Start->Control Panel menu item.
2. Click Ease of Access.
3. Under Ease of Access Center, click Change How Your Keyboard Works.
4. If Turn On FilterKeys is checked, UNcheck it.
5. Click Apply or Save.

Jeff/CompGuy

Just an interested observer, Jeff, but it reads to me like successive key strokes for the same letter, symbol or function will not produce successive characters. This implies typing another letter will then allow the original letter desired to be produced a second time, albeit with an undesired character in between.

If I'm interpreting Tad's question correctly, this is an interesting problem. If I'm not, I'm clearly not comprehending the question properly and offer humble apologies for interjecting.

Tad's phrasing could indeed mean that, but I rejected that interpretation because it didn't make any sense--there's no way such a feature would be useful in a keyboard. A key not repeating when held down, though, is a useful feature for those with a heavy hand or a lack of finger dexterity or who use special devices to input characters.

If your interpretation is what Tad meant, I'd say the keyboard is broken and to try a different one.

Part of my job is to attempt to read beyond the post and figure out what problem is being described, rather than pay attention to what was literally written. Tad's usually a careful writer, but in this case I presume he didn't explain the problem clearly.

Jeff/CompGuy

All of that is exactly what piqued my curiosity.

It doesn't make sense, but TFQ is correct. However, the problem went away with a reboot.

quote:

It doesn't make sense, but TFQ is correct.

Sir, I am always happy to surprise people like that.

While Jeff was willing to dismiss what he saw as problematical clarity in the note so that a more probable reason could be gleaned, to me it was highly improbable that your note would lack clarity and therefore, the more probable reason for the problem had to be dismissed from possibility.

I didn't mean you being correct doesn't make sense. I meant Jeff is right, it doesn't make sense that a computer would do this, but TFQ is right, that's what happened.

quote:

Originally posted by TheOldMole:
I didn't mean you being correct doesn't make sense. I meant Jeff is right, it doesn't make sense that a computer would do this, but TFQ is right, that's what happened.

I knew that. But it stil made me smile!

When it suppresses a key after that key is hit, does that suppression last until another key is hit, or does it have a time limit? I also wonder if hitting a shift key might turn off the suppression. (Course, if it's fixed now, it might be too late to figure out that stuff.)

Could also be that the computer was recognizing a key down signal but not processing the key release/up signal. So hitting a key once shows the key, but the computer is waiting for the key up release signal, thus ignoring repeated presses of the same key. When a different key is pressed, that is recognized and accepted.

Why does that happen? Glitch, memory problem, bad cable, bad keyboard socket on motherboard, confused keyboard ROM. Who knows?

Jeff