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strange symbols appear instead of letters; links download on desktop

i'm currently having two problems with my ibook:

1. when typing a ms word document or when typing web addresses while using safari, letters are replaced by weird symbols and characters. it is a sporadic problem - sometimes my computer will be fine for days, and then suddenly while typing the characters return. i've checked my fonts and disabled all of the ones with characters/symbols. the helvetica fractions and times phonetic are NOT in my font book, so i know they are not causing this problem. it is also not a question of hitting F6/num lock. any clues as to what might be generating this problem?

2. sometimes when clicking a link on various RELIABLE websites such as bbc.co.uk the link DOWNLOADS onto my desktop. any ideas why this is happening?



ibook G4 Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Posted on Dec 4, 2006 6:57 AM

Reply
9 replies

Dec 6, 2006 10:42 AM in response to am536

I would guess that your option key is probably sticking. If you hold down the option key and press most any letter on the keyboard, it will display alternate characters. Also, if you hold the option key and click on a link in a web browser (verified in firefox, not sure with safari) it will download a copy of the page to your desktop.

Dec 8, 2006 2:36 AM in response to Jamie Cox

You're right, the symbols that appear mirror those that come by typing while simultaneously holding down the option key. However, my option key doesn't appear to be stuck. I was typing something this morning when the symbols reappeared. I then pressed the option key, but the symbols did not cease. Could there be another solution to this problem?

Dec 8, 2006 5:25 AM in response to am536

If you don't ever use the option key you could disable it. To do this go to system preferences, and click on Keyboard & mouse. Then click the keyboard tab in the preference window. In the bottom left there is a button called Modifier Keys..., click it. In the window that appears click option and set it to "no action". This will totally disable the option key, to re-enable it just reverse the last step.

Mar 25, 2007 12:18 PM in response to am536

Hello,

I'm experiencing the exact same problems with my iBook G4 and was wondering if someone has actually found a solution for it.

I've sifted through all of the other threads related to strange characters/symbols appearing when typing and have also done the suggested fixes (creating a new user, etc.) with no luck.

I should also mention that upon rebooting, the iBook will occasionally have difficulty identifying the startup disc which is usually resolved by another restart.

Is this a hardware issue? Any ideas?

Thanks

strange symbols appear instead of letters; links download on desktop

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