Who's bright effing idea...

[Kommander]

... was it to start putting an on/off button on fucking keyboards?

You know what I like about having the power button on the computer case and not on the keyboard? When I set something on my desk and it falls over my computer doesn't shut off!

Now, for some reason, it won't turn on and I don't have time to fugure out the problem because I have to leave for a singing lesson in ten minutes. I have a second computer, which I'm using now, but it's running Debian. I have this computer set up as a "learning to use Linux" computer, not an "actually use as a computer" computer.

Anyone else find the power button on the keyboard to be a pain in the ass? Or at least useless?

 

[Jadzia]

You should have a nice normal keyboard like mine

 

[Kommander]

I like my keyboard aside form the stated problem. It's waterproof, so I can spill all the beer I want on it and it still works.

I'm going to try to figure out how to disable the buttons for power and sleep mode. The button doesn't work on my Linux computer so I'm guessing it's possible.

Oh, and I got my main computer working. I just had to turn the power supply off and on a few times. That's another thing I dont like about it. The keys don't even work properly. If I hit the "sleep" key, I can't get it to come out of sleep.

And the power button on the keyboard is instant. The one on the tower brings up log off screen in windows... If it was the other way around, it would be tolerable.

 

[JuanBolio]

It was MY bright effing idea. I came up with it just to piss you off. Kinda like the idea I had to sprinkle crab eggs all over your towel.

I'm sure they have versions of those soft, wateproof keyboards that LACK power buttons. You could pick up one of those. Maybe the designers of yours though some people would find it convenient to have a power button on their keyboard, but I have to agree that its rather unnecessary and potentially inconvenient. Then again not all of us have as much of a tendency to type while drinking beer.

 

[Trekker4747]

Yeah, my keyboard has a "sleep" button on the corner of it and if I push it against the over-hang on my desk for where the printer is just right my comptuer snaps to sleep when the tightness between the keyboard and that over-hang hits the button.

 

[Mytran]

I just removed the off button (and the sleep button, and that third one) entirely. Then filled in the gap with plasticine to stop detritus falling the holes. Crude methods, but effective...

 

[Kelthaz]

You people and your fancy keyboards. I paid $8 Canadian for a keyboard/mouse set and I don't have a single complaint. Well, a leg broke off the keyboard, but it still works.

 

[Zulu Romeo]

Mine has an equally redundant "mail" and "search" button when F3 works just as well (in fact better). Ditto a "web/home" button which does nothing for me as I no longer have a "home page".

Furthermore, no sleep (or on/oiff for that matter) for my keyboard till Brooklyn.

On the other hand, the numerical keypad also has a neat calculator button which brings up a new instance of Windows Calc at my beck and call without having to trawl through the Start Menu, saving me precious seconds.

Plus the volume controls and play/pause buttons actually do work.

I love my fancy keyboard.

 

[Jadzia]

My previous keyboard did some of those things, but they were all mixed up.

My home page button made the volume increase.
My mail button didn't do anything.
My volume up button made the volume increase.
The volume down button didn't do anything.
The mute button also made the volume increase.
There was two "custom hotkeys" as well, but all the first one did was bring up some obscure arabic website, and the other one loaded windows cd player.

 

[Zulu Romeo]

My previous keyboard did some of those things, but they were all mixed up.

My home page button made the volume increase.
My mail button didn't do anything.
My volume up button made the volume increase.
The volume down button didn't do anything.
The mute button also made the volume increase.
There was two "custom hotkeys" as well, but all the first one did was bring up some obscure arabic website, and the other one loaded windows cd player.

Well, if it's any consolation, my Search function doesn't work except in (Not Internet) Explorer, which is probably a good thing really.

And if I want to check my mail, I'll go to my usual web-based service, which hasn't really given me as many problems as Outlook Express (which I did try a while back, but then something happened and I stopped using it).

The hotkey buttons on my laptop are more useful - one of them opens up the Kingdom of Loathing home page. [checks it still works] Actually, no it doesn't work now.

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

Did the keyboard have any kind of installation software? It might have a control panel that would allow you to toggle that button off, or ask for confirmation between shutdown.

 

[Zulu Romeo]

Did the keyboard have any kind of installation software? It might have a control panel that would allow you to toggle that button off, or ask for confirmation between shutdown.

The MS keyboards I've used before have pretty comprehensive Control Panel add-ons which can be programmed, and I think reprogrammed too.

 

[JuanBolio]

The keyboard/gamepad combo on my to-get list:

 

[Zulu Romeo]

Some of the keyboards at work also glow in the dark. Great during night shifts.

 

[Lindley]

Apple keyboards have had a power-on key since the 80s, but only in the last 10 years or so has that key also been able to shut the thing off. It brings up the "Are you sure" box though, so you'd have to hit return after the power key to accidentally turn the machine off.

 

[Zulu Romeo]

This takes me back to the good old days of the BBC Micro and the BREAK key (which reset the computer) placed right next to the f9 key.

 

[RoJoHen]

I have never encountered such an issue. Then again, I've been using laptops for the last 10 years.

 

[Kommander]

It was MY bright effing idea. I came up with it just to piss you off.

I don't know what's worse: That you do all these various things just to piss me off, or that I haven't yet learned to expect it.

Anyway, I managed to set things so that pressing the power/sleep buttons doesn't result in instant "computer no work" anymore. For some reason, the "allow this device to bring the computer out of sleep mode" was unchecked for everything... either it's like that by default because Microsoft is stupid or JuanBolio was fucking with my settings the last time he was over. Usually he just moves my files around so I can't find anything. Although, one time he switched my keyboard type to the Dvorak layout, so this level of deviousness makes sense.

 

[Canadave]

Yeah, my keyboard has a "sleep" button on the corner of it and if I push it against the over-hang on my desk for where the printer is just right my comptuer snaps to sleep when the tightness between the keyboard and that over-hang hits the button.

My sleep button is located just north of my Escape key, which is rather annoying when playing games sometimes. All I want to do is pause, and then I send the whole machine to bed...

 

[sojourner]

The keyboard/gamepad combo on my to-get list:

^I have that keyboard. Three notes:

1. No volume control on the keyboard.
2. Flimsy legs broke off.
3. only one usb port.