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TICKET ARCHIVE -> Loss of Use of Minus Key

Montgomery - May 6, 2005 - 12:05 pm

I have lost the use of the minus key for my account on a 17" PowerBook G4, OSX 10.3.9. The underscore key works (Shift minus key) and the loss is specific to my account. When I log in as someone else on the same machine the functionality returns.

I do not know when this happened but it must have occurred in the past month. I ran both Disc Utility and DiscWarrior but to no effect. Recent software installed iMovie HD and iPhoto5.

Your help is appreciated.

DeltaMac - May 6, 2005 - 8:59 pm

Open your International Prefs in your System Preferences, and click on the Input Menu tab. Find the Keyboard Viewer in the list, and click on the box next to that. Now click on the flag that appears in your menubar, and open the Keyboard Viewer. You'll see your keyboard layout displayed on the screen. Press the minus key, then press shift minus. Play with the rest of your keys. Do they all work? Do you see any response from the minus key here? And, is that the only key with a problem? - you can test your entire keyboard with this.
Let me know how this works.

- Dale

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Montgomery - May 7, 2005 - 6:55 am

Dale

Thanks for getting back so quickly. I followed your instructions. The minus key is the only key that does not respond using the Keyboard Viewer.

Any suggestions for the next step?

Joe

DeltaMac - May 7, 2005 - 7:43 am

OK, this would indicate that your keyboard is bad.
However, you mentioned that minus key works when you are logged in as another user. Please verify that with this same test. If this is just one user that is affected, then you have some software or utility that is affecting just the minus key. I couldn't begin to tell you how to find out, but you can move your user/Library/Preferences folder to your desktop. Then logout and log back in as the same user. All your apps and settings will be reset to defaults. Try the keyboard viewer test again. If the minus key works, then one of those settings files is the culprit. You may need to find registration files for certain apps, and complicated setups will also be stored in files, usually with the name of the app, or the software publisher name. Mostly, you can just use your system, and change settings as you need. When things are back in your control, you can delete that old preferences folder.
Give it a try and come back here with what you find! Good Luck!

- Dale

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Montgomery - May 7, 2005 - 8:10 am

I've moved the preferences folder as you suggested and my minus key works again! Thanks very much.