9 O L . \ F9 Keys not working

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Level 1

5 points

9 O L . \ F9 Keys not working

The above keys are not working on my Powerbook G4. I've done everything I could think of to fix this problem - had a new keyboard installed, checked the num lock, even reinstalled OS X thinking it might have been something I downloaded that caused the problem. Nothing really works - the keys will start to work at times, then cut out, then work again, then cut out again.

Does anyone know what might be causing this?

Powerbook 5,6, Mac OS X (10.4)

Posted on Mar 9, 2007 8:48 PM

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Answer 1

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louie

Level 4

2,950 points

Mar 9, 2007 10:09 PM in response to jvana

When bad keys line up like that, in my experience it's been a bad conductor in the keyboard circuit, which usually are in a matrix. You say you had the keyboard replaced, so perhaps it wasn't done correctly, or perhaps the problem goes to the connector at the motherboard. Even a piece of lint in the connector might do that. Or the connector might be bad, or just loose. Mine had a piece of tape over it to keep it down. I don't recall if the flex cable from keyboard to motherboard is removable at both ends, but if it is, it could be defective.
Unfortunately, examining the connector or trying another internal keyboard requires taking the whole top off.

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Answer 2

dpf923

Level 1

10 points

May 31, 2007 2:05 PM in response to jvana

had same problem. problem is at flat flex cable zif connector. it's possible during reassembly that some contamination was present at the contact surface or that the cable is not alligned properly or that the zif locking bar was removed and not replaced in the exact proper location on the connector

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