Keys q,w,e,r,u,i,o,p / 1,2,3,4,7,8,9,0 / a,s,d,f,j,k,l,; Not Working, Rest Other keys Are Working Fine in Laptops And Desktops
Finally, found a solution to get the keyboard working!!
This seemed to be a very common problem with laptops and desktops. Compaq, HP, MAC, Sony, Dell, name a brand and they would have had this problem at some point or other!
Specific keys not working has nothing to do with virus or hardware failure and the fix is very simple.
While searching a solution for the Keyboard problem where the keys would all of a sudden stop working, I found out that the following / similar combination of keys stop working :
1234 7890
qwer uiop
asdf jkl;
zxcv m,./
ujm
rfv
edc
ik,
Many more such combination of keys stop working! What was strange was, I ran all possible anti-spyware, anti-malware, anti-virus software, but nothing seemed to work.
If you notice, all these set of keys have a pattern. They are placed in a line on the keyboard, either vertical or horizontal.
Searching further I found out, when the keys are pressed and depressed, there will be electrical contacts between some underlying sheets, which results in proper functioning of the keyboard.
And in our case, the circuit pattern has some sort of a problem, which is causing this type of an issue.
Solution for Desktop Computers Keyboard:
If your desktop is having this problem, then it must be quite easy to fix it.
I removed all individual keys of the affected row, got hold of a new painting brush / tooth brush and used it to remove off the dust / crumbs / dirt that had settled on my keyboard. Fixed the keys back in their respective places and this fixed the problem.
This video on How to Clean your desktop computer’s keyboard should help you, however it’s a bit more complex than what I did with my keyboard:) :
Solution for Laptop Keyboard:
You should attempt cleaning a laptop keyboard only if you have prior experience, else you risk spoiling your laptop which can cost you quite a bomb.
My serious suggestion is, take your laptop to the nearest laptop repair store and get the keyboard cleaned by an expert. It should not cost you more than $20 – $25 or something similar depending on which country you are from.
However, if you search you surely will find videos which will show how to clean your laptops keyboards. You should attempt it only if you are an expert.
Here’s one such video from YouTube:
Other temporary solutions are that you can use an USB keyboard (if you travel often, then this is not for you) or if you are on Windows, then you can use the On Screen Keyboard which can be found at: Start–> All Programs –> Accessories –> Accessibility –> On-Screen Keyboard (working on this keyboard will be extremely slow).
Thanks for the update Bill.
I’ll update the post with your finding.
my $20 SIIG, Inc. keyboard’s QWER UIOP keys stopped working. I tried the above comment of removing the keycaps & cleaning, to no avail. I opened it up (which was a pain) and realigned the silicone(?) layer, then plugged it in and tested it with no top on the keyboard & it worked. put it back together and voila, saved myself another twenty bucks
my dell latitude E5400 certain keys stopped working ZXCVM,.# ANY SOLUTION
[SOLVED]
My Genius keyboard’s QWER and UIOP keys were dead. I opened it and found out that the connection between the circuit board and circuit sheet was a bit loose, just one metal plate that connected the QWER UIOP keys to be exacted (thanks chris ck). I cleaned it up, press and move the plastic sheet again the circuit board a bit, and it worked like news again.
Here are the images that can help your imagination if you don’t know what I’m talking about, you can Google Image “keyboard circuit board” for more.
http://alexpb.com/notes/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/keyboard_electronic_board_2resized.jpg
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r2OHbl1lNs8/Tqx23-QWPeI/AAAAAAAAAL0/K3PLGY73PiQ/s1600/Imgp8679.jpg
That’s it, the copper wires etched into the board, and the wires on the plastic sheet. Each wire is responsible a group of keys, like QWER UIOP in my case.
Hope that’s help.
On old IBMs the solution is is to hold Shift and NumLock down together. Wow are these answers a real misdirection!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Some experts
Hi there,
I had the same problem with my Del Latitude E5400, I restarted my laptop, pressed F2 and set everything to the default and it worked perfectly fine.
Cheer
Suleman
Mine is dell mini 1011.
Same issue happened to me days ago. At first keys not functioning were q-w-e-r-u-i-o-p, then even keys like a-s, b-n, stopped working.
Having a background in electronics, seriously I must agree with some comments that cleaning keyboard didn’t sound like the most logical solution. So I didn’t try it.
Then I remember last year I had open the case to install the 2gb ram, so I opened up the laptop (it’s only few screws away from the keyboard wire), found out that the wire linking keyboard to the internal board was a bit loose. Tightened it up, Voila, things are back to normal.
Most likely it’s the circuit issue, maybe cleaning the keyboard would somehow fix the circuit unintentionally. I read from a post that a guy fixed the same problem by re-plugging his external usb keyboard (desktop), I suspect that his usb connection was little loose where a part of the circuit out of contact, causing only a few keys couldn’t work.
So my advice, it’s not a virus/malware issue (at least I have not come across any scripts that would paralyze a random few keys in organize pattern after spending hours to google worrying this could be one of the possible threats).
If yours is desktop, it’s not a big problem. Try checking the cable for any loose wire or over-stretched usb connector. If anything fails, replace a new keyboard.
If you’re using a laptop, it’s little bit more tricky. Try checking the internal wire (get someone to help you if you don’t know how).
Dirts don’t cause your keys to malfunction in a row pattern. Most likely a circuit issue.
if it is patrens then would that not suggest it is an electial issue. Why would dirt cause keys to stop working in certain rows on every laptop?
HI THERE,
I AM HAVING A PROBLEM WITH ASDFGJKL AND ENTER KEYS AS WELL AS RIGHT/LEFT ARROWS. ALL THESE KEYS PRINTS 2 LETTERS IN LOWERCASE AND I HAVE CLEANED KEYBOARD AND FOR SOMETIME THE PROBLEM SEEMS SORTED OUT BUT IT REAPPEARS AFTER SOMETIME.
IS THERE ANY VIRUS? SHOULD I REINSTALL DRIVERS I AM USING HP PAVILLION DV2000 WINDOWS VISTA HOME PREMIUM EDITION 32BIT.
KINDLY LET ME KNOW IF THERES ANY SOLUTION?
zaxscdvfmj,k.l/; SAMPLE ERROERS.
REGARDS
ZEE
hi there,
i am having problem with my hp-dv 2670en laptop
keys are asdfjkl:and enter key
all these keys prints double characters and printS lower string.
for example:
a prints = ZA
s “” = XS
d ”= CD
f “”= VF
i did clean it as you mentioned in laptop video it gets sorted out for few hours. but came back again later. i cleaned every inch ofthe keyboard again but couldnt resolve my issue. can you suggest what exact problem really it is a malware or its really a dust issue?
and i am writing with caps lock on and by pressing shift key. how pethatic… br zee
@Required
It worked for this laptop, just because it didn’t work for you doesn’t mean it’s not a solution.
All I can said is that it worked for me. Thank you so much.
@Required – I’m not negating that re-installing the driver will not fix the issue. That might be just another case. This one has worked for me, and just because this option did not work for you, doesn’t mean that it doesn’t work at all. However, thanks to take out time and write n let us know that it doesn’t work in all cases. I’m really sorry that this method did not work for you.
You fail. You have to be one of the dumber people on the internet. SUGGESTING cleaning, because that’s all you’re doing…considering you dont know what the problem is…
Cleaning the keyboard will not fix this! Thanks for wasting my time. Go read “Computers for dummies” again.
If you were smart and knew what you were talking about, you wouldnt suggest cleaning it fixes the issue. Spilling something on it is only a possibility. It’s not the end-all fix, and it’s damn sure not the fix for this issue.
First off, you should “Suggest” (with your infinite wisdom) the user uninstall the device driver for the keyboard and restart. And if the problem goes away right after; The keyboard isnt doing it from dirt. It’s doing it from a hardware/software malfunction. Try again.
Also, I’ve had this same issue with my keyboard multiple times. I dont know the fix, but I know re-installing the driver via uninstall/restart fixes it temporarily. It’s not from getting stuff stuck in the keyboard. And you suggesting cleaning it, or having someone clean it, only makes the issue cost $$$ for no reason.