Dell laptop keyboard problem - Help!

[FatBoab]

Right, I seem to have broken my laptop keyboard!!! All of a sudden the space, return and backspace keys don't work.

I'm having to use the on-screen keyboard to type this, and it's painful

Does anyone know of *any* OS setting (XP Pro) which might have cause this, or is it defo the hardware that's stuffed?

Thanks in advance.

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[MD]

well dell's in the office are reknown for losing those keys first when they are on thier way out or gone, only suggestion I can give you is shake it, make sure you don't have food and stuff stuck under there....

matt.

[FatBoab]

Quick shake suggests that crud is not the problem...

Oh well, on a plus note, it's a work machine and it's >3 years old, so I'll get a new one to replace it -- and we've standardised on Thinkpads now

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[nichomach]

It's as likely as not to just involve unplugging the keyboard and plugging it back in again. What model is it? They're usually pretty easy to sort.

[FatBoab]

It's.a.laptop.keyboard..How.do.I.unplug.it?....Sorry.for.all.the.dots...can't.be.arsed.with.the.on-screen.keyboard.anymore.......fb........[Edit].It's.an.Inspiron.4150....

[nichomach]

It depends on the model; some of the older Dell keyboards are held on with screws, accessed under the machine, some with screws accessible by removing the hinge cover. What model is it please?