What is wrong with my Silicon Graphics bigfoot 9500829?

[glaurung]

Edit: my PS/2 to USB adapter was the source of the problem. WIll update again when I find an adapter that works with this eccentric old keyboard.

I love the feel of the old Apple Extended Keyboard II. And they are quiet. The only problems are the interface (incompatible with everything) the mac layout (I switch between windows and OS X so I'd prefer a standard PC layout) and worst of all, the touch type nubs on the wrong @#$%! keys.

Having learned that SGI made a line of keyboards with the same quiet alps switches as the AEK II, I started looking for one and actually managed to find a SGI 9500829 for not too much money. Same lovely feel as the AEK II, with standard PC keys: perfect!

Sadly there's something wrong with it. Here's what happens when I try to type on it:

The uickrown fox jumpedoverttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttte lazy dogs

The Quicbrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrown ox jmped ove the lazy dogs

It's like it's intermittently not registering keypresses and also intermittently not registering key releases. If it was always the same keys, I'd figure it needed cleaning. But the problem doesn't seem to be confined to specific keys, so I'm wondering if the controller chip is dying? If it is the chip, did SGI use the same controller in their membrane keyboards so I could just get one of those and do a swap, or is it going to be a lot more complicated and difficult?

Finally, looking at how little free time I have these days, is there any shop out there that does repair and refurbishing of SGI keyboards?

[lucar]

Hi,

I have the very same Keyboard.

When I bought it on ebay, the seller sold it with no warranty ; he wrote a warning on the listing that the keyboard might have problems with some PCs.

I don't know if this is related to Your problem, mine works well hooked to an Asus TUF Z270 motherboard PS/2 port.

Are You using a PS/2 to USB converter?

Luca

[glaurung]

Hi,

Are You using a PS/2 to USB converter?

Yes. I haven't bothered to dig the only PC in the house with a PS/2 port on it out of the basement for testing. But if it doesn't work with a converter, then I've wasted my money.

My PS2-USB converter is the real thing bought from clickykeyboards.com, not a cheapie passthrough converter.

[Polecat]

Hi,

Are You using a PS/2 to USB converter?

Yes. I haven't bothered to dig the only PC in the house with a PS/2 port on it out of the basement for testing. But if it doesn't work with a converter, then I've wasted my money.

My PS2-USB converter is the real thing bought from clickykeyboards.com, not a cheapie passthrough converter.

Sounds like the same problem several of us have had with the "cheap" converters. By "cheap" I don't mean a pass-through (those will only work on USB-compatible keyboards, which the SG is not...). On my Acer/Multitech KB-101A I tried a Radio Shack converter and also a blue cube (both active converters, not pass-throughs) and I had similar problems with "sticking" keys and missing keystrokes. Those two converters acted funny on a couple other vintage keyboards also. I bought a Soarers converter from Orihalcon on ebay and it completely solved the problem, and I've been using the Acer almost exclusively for the last few months. I never did figure out why the other converters weren't working, but it was not due to bad caps or missing/needed pull up resistors, as I tried both of those.

[lucar]

Hi,

Are You using a PS/2 to USB converter?

Yes. I haven't bothered to dig the only PC in the house with a PS/2 port on it out of the basement for testing. But if it doesn't work with a converter, then I've wasted my money.

My PS2-USB converter is the real thing bought from clickykeyboards.com, not a cheapie passthrough converter.

Sounds like the same problem several of us have had with the "cheap" converters. By "cheap" I don't mean a pass-through (those will only work on USB-compatible keyboards, which the SG is not...). On my Acer/Multitech KB-101A I tried a Radio Shack converter and also a blue cube (both active converters, not pass-throughs) and I had similar problems with "sticking" keys and missing keystrokes. Those two converters acted funny on a couple other vintage keyboards also. I bought a Soarers converter from Orihalcon on ebay and it completely solved the problem, and I've been using the Acer almost exclusively for the last few months. I never did figure out why the other converters weren't working, but it was not due to bad caps or missing/needed pull up resistors, as I tried both of those.

As POLECAT noted, You have to first try the keyboard connecting it to whatever wherever PS/2 port and roule out that the keyboard itself is faulty, then, eventually, You replace the USB converter.

And don't forget to post here the results, should others have the same problem.

Luca

[Anakey]

I have also had problems with one of my keyboards when using a blue cube but when i used a different converter it then worked. But as others have said check on another ps/2 port to make sure that the keyboard itself is functioning correctly before then purchasing a different converter.

[glaurung]

I realized that there was a PS/2 port hiding on my laptop's docking station and Luca was right, it was the !@#$% USB adapter that was the problem.

Now off to try to find the recommended USB adapter. Very disappointed in Clickykeyboards.com for selling dodgy adapters. I guess they only care if the adapter works with Model M's.

Thank you all very much.

[lucar]

Luca