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Cannot type shift s for capital s

I wouldn't be here typing this if I hadn't tried everything else I came across on the internet.


My story goes like this: at some point today, my keyboard became incapable of giving me a capital s when typed with either shift key, but it's perfectly capable of typing the letter s in lowercase. I can do the caps-lock s if I want it capitalized, but I'm already conditioned to doing single capital letters with the shift key, so I really don't want to convert my entire way of typing. It doesn't even seem to matter what application I use, if I have the ability to type, I can't type shift+s for the capital s.


Based on various articles found online, I've been through checking keyboard shortcuts, even restoring them to the detaults (because by default, there shouldn't be a shift+s shortcut for anything, obviously), and even checking, double-checking, and changing the text-to-speech shortcut (which is also turned off, as I don't need it in use).


The first thing I tried doing was to restart the computer. As laughable as that is, I've been around computers long enough to know it's actually a valid way to resolve minor issues. No luck. I even repaired permissions, and verified and repaired the hard disk (of which, there was nothing to repair at all) by using the disk utility on the snow leopard (10.6) disc.


The most recent addition to my computer has been a wireless mouse, a Logitech m510, which I bought about a week or two ago, but things were still working fine on the computer after adding it. I added the Logitech Control Center software for grins and giggles that same day, which really didn't change anything. As for the keyboard, a Logitech G110, I've had this for at least a year and have been using it without issue.


Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I'm sure I'm not the only person who has had the shift+s issue and not have it related to text-to-speech.


Thanks in advance!

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.8)

Posted on Mar 10, 2012 12:04 AM

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20 replies

Mar 10, 2012 9:05 AM in response to fane_j

I see the login window when I try to do a safe boot, but it doesn't say "safe boot." I have it set to log me in automatically, so it's only doing part of the safe boot procedure.


Right now, as a matter of fact, I'd be in safe boot if all seemed to go well, and I can't do shift+s for the capital s.


Does it mean anything for the computer to do a string of @^@^@^ during startup while it's waiting for something to be accessed/loaded/checked/etc?

Mar 10, 2012 10:51 AM in response to LunaDragon

I opened the Keyboard Viewer, and figured this much out:


If I hold down the shift key, it capitalizes all of the letters, etc. as it's supposed to. If I hold down shift and press s, it acts the same as if I press down one shift key and, while still holding it down, press the other shift key, in that all the letters are then in lowercase. The s key isn't acting like another shift key, in that if I press the letter s to have it in lowercase, it's apparent that I can type the letter s.


Does this get anyone any closer to a possible solution?

Mar 10, 2012 4:22 PM in response to Tom Gewecke

In speech recognition, speakable items is turned off, and the key to hold down is, by default, the Esc key.


The only other third-party software I've used would be Amazon's MP3 downloader. Otherwise, I had Pages (Apple word processor) opened, and right now it's not running.


On a regular basis, I'm running Firefox, safari, Adium and iTunes, plus the G-series Key Profiler which just allows my keyboard to display in pretty colors and detect macros assigned to the G-keys (like F-keys, but off to the left side instead of being above the numbers). Firefox didn't run any updates, and as for Apple software, nothing changed after I did run my updates last night.


I had a friend on Facebook suggest that I take the keyboard to the Apple store, because it might just need to be cleaned. I don't think that's the case, based on what happens when I press certain keys. But also, I don't think they'll touch my Logitech keyboard.


What's the next suggestion? I'm about two seconds away from trying a keyboard off a Windows computer, but I'm really hoping the keyboard itself isn't the issue.

Mar 10, 2012 5:08 PM in response to LunaDragon

This strikes me as odd, but... why would this issue have persisted?


I just absconded with a keyboard from an HP computer, and I'm able to shift+S. I really don't understand why the s-key, when lowercase, works, but when the shift key is pressed, that is the only letter which does not work.


So as it turns out, I'll be purchasing a new keyboard for my computer. On the upside, I know the rest of my computer seems to be in working condition.


Thanks to both of you for helping me troubleshoot this. Again, it's not the resolution I wanted or expected, but at least it's resolved.

Mar 10, 2012 5:20 PM in response to LunaDragon

LunaDragon wrote:


If you know how I can remotely log into my Mac from a Windows computer or from my iPhone, I'll try a safe boot that way.

To connect remotely, Remote Login must be enabled, and firewalls configured accordingly. At any rate, I do not believe it is possible to Safe Boot remotely.

the login screen does not say "safe boot" once I get to it

Make sure to disconnect all peripherals prior to safe booting. Then, if you have followed the procedure correctly, but still are not in Safe Mode, you may have a hardware issue.


Reset the SMC


<http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964>


and, for good measure, the NVRAM


<http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1379>


and try again to Safe boot. If it still doesn't work, then the keyboard is defective. Try an external Apple keyboard to be sure, but don't hope for too much.

G-series Key Profiler which just allows my keyboard

If you have a problem with the keyboard, then your first troubleshooting step should be to remove any third party tool (and I do mean any) that could interfere in any way with it or modify its response. Key Profiler is a prime candidate. That's why my first advice was to boot in Safe Mode, which should prevent such software to load. However, Key Profiler should not be able to interfere with Safe boot.

Mar 10, 2012 5:57 PM in response to fane_j

The article about starting in safe boot goes on to mention how to do so if the keyboard doesn't work, and it says about needing to access the computer remotely. I'm in a one-Mac household,


I had the G-series Key Profiler app running the entire time I had a different keyboard attached just now - that app wasn't the issue. It seems obvious to me that the issue is with the keyboard itself, though it baffles me because it acts software-broken, not peripheral-broken.

Mar 10, 2012 6:23 PM in response to LunaDragon

LunaDragon wrote:


The article about starting in safe boot goes on to mention how to do so if the keyboard doesn't work, and it says about needing to access the computer remotely.

You don't need to access the Mac remotely, because you can still enter commands from the keyboard. But first, do the SMC and NVRAM reset.


Then, for the Safe boot, launch Terminal, enter the command mentioned in that article


sudo nvram boot-args="-x"


press Return and restart.


The problem is that the Shift key at restart works at a low level, so it shouldn't be intercepted by any third party tools, which load later. If it doesn't work, then a hardware fault is the likeliest explanation.

Mar 10, 2012 9:38 PM in response to fane_j

Two more points.


(1) Remember that you need to revert the NVRAM setting to boot normally


sudo nvram boot-args=""


(2) If, even in Safe Mode, the Shift key still doesn't work as expected (which is my bet), revert to normal booting, then try to boot in Safe mode by using the other Shift key. Although they are almost always treated as if they were the same, they are actually independent and have different key codes.

Jan 29, 2013 7:02 AM in response to LunaDragon

I wasn't able to use the shift+i and shift+o turns out there was a process running in the background like a screen recording suite. I killed it through my task manager and guess what it started working again. Having said that, if you have already tried to restart your system and it still hasn't worked then it probably not the same issue. I hope you found a resolution for your problem.


S

Cannot type shift s for capital s

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