The 2 key on my laptop is broken, how to cope
December 8, 2015 11:01 AM Subscribe
My laptop has developed a thing where the 2 key, which had been intermittent for a couple of weeks, now seems to be completely kaput. How to deal with this? If not to fix it, then maybe to cope with it until my next computer?
I spend roughly half my computing time right now at a local bookstore/coffee shop and so I rely on having a laptop I can work from. Unfortunately, my machine has developed a problem, which I'm pretty sure now is hardware in nature: the 2 key (brought to you here through the courtesy of CTRL-V) completely doesn't work. They key doesn't rest funny, make any noise when struck or anything like that. Mechanically, it seems the same as the other keys. It's just, when pressed, nothing happens.
I've taken the cap off the key and examined it; when I press the little rubber button-nub beneath the key, the one that sticks out from the little hinge apparatus, nothing happens from that either. It used to be that if I pressed hard it would eventually start working for a while, but now that doesn't work either.
Maybe it's trash or something between the contacts? I don't know, but I don't have the money to get the laptop repaired professionally. I could possibly do it myself, and have indeed disassembled and reassembled laptops before, and successfully. But I hate doing that, I'm always worried about messing something up, or losing track of screws, and in any case I'd have to buy a new keyboard part and money is very very tight right now. And before going that far I'd probably instead just install some tiny tray applet to enter "2" (or, it's sadly ubiquitous companion, "@") for me in response to some other keypress.
For emergencies I have recourses: a USB numberpad is part of my normal kit, which handles 2 but, sadly, not @, and moving my hands away from the keyboard just to type some number is annoying when writing or coding. I have a USB keyboard, but carrying that around is also annoying. Windows 10 provides no less than two onscreen keyboards, but again, it takes me out of the flow to go through such contortions just to type a simple number.
What can I do to fix (hopefully without disassembling) the laptop, or barring that, living with this until my next machine?
I spend roughly half my computing time right now at a local bookstore/coffee shop and so I rely on having a laptop I can work from. Unfortunately, my machine has developed a problem, which I'm pretty sure now is hardware in nature: the 2 key (brought to you here through the courtesy of CTRL-V) completely doesn't work. They key doesn't rest funny, make any noise when struck or anything like that. Mechanically, it seems the same as the other keys. It's just, when pressed, nothing happens.
I've taken the cap off the key and examined it; when I press the little rubber button-nub beneath the key, the one that sticks out from the little hinge apparatus, nothing happens from that either. It used to be that if I pressed hard it would eventually start working for a while, but now that doesn't work either.
Maybe it's trash or something between the contacts? I don't know, but I don't have the money to get the laptop repaired professionally. I could possibly do it myself, and have indeed disassembled and reassembled laptops before, and successfully. But I hate doing that, I'm always worried about messing something up, or losing track of screws, and in any case I'd have to buy a new keyboard part and money is very very tight right now. And before going that far I'd probably instead just install some tiny tray applet to enter "2" (or, it's sadly ubiquitous companion, "@") for me in response to some other keypress.
For emergencies I have recourses: a USB numberpad is part of my normal kit, which handles 2 but, sadly, not @, and moving my hands away from the keyboard just to type some number is annoying when writing or coding. I have a USB keyboard, but carrying that around is also annoying. Windows 10 provides no less than two onscreen keyboards, but again, it takes me out of the flow to go through such contortions just to type a simple number.
What can I do to fix (hopefully without disassembling) the laptop, or barring that, living with this until my next machine?
Best answer: Blow compressed air under it, in hopes of dislodging some bit of debris. If that doesn't work, go with one of the options you've already thought of.
FWIW, I just replaced my laptop keyboard. The part cost me $8.99 including shipping (eBay), it arrived within a few days and took only a few minutes to install. I've replaced several laptop keyboards, and it's generally pretty easy.
posted by jon1270 at 11:10 AM on December 8, 2015 [3 favorites]
FWIW, I just replaced my laptop keyboard. The part cost me $8.99 including shipping (eBay), it arrived within a few days and took only a few minutes to install. I've replaced several laptop keyboards, and it's generally pretty easy.
posted by jon1270 at 11:10 AM on December 8, 2015 [3 favorites]
Best answer: I think autohotkey mapping F2 to 2 and shift F2 to @ would be OK as a crutch.
posted by advicepig at 11:13 AM on December 8, 2015 [6 favorites]
posted by advicepig at 11:13 AM on December 8, 2015 [6 favorites]
That might be heat damage - I had to replace my keyboard because a lot of keys near the fan stopped being responsive. As a work around, I installed a (free) remote android keyboard, which is certainly not ideal, but did the trick.
posted by lmfsilva at 11:18 AM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by lmfsilva at 11:18 AM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Very kludgey, but if your laptop has the ability to use the right hand side of the keys as the number pad, you can enter that mode to type "2" and press and hold alt, press the letter that 6 maps to ('O'), the letter that 4 maps to ('U'), release alt to get "@". You can do the same with just the alt key and the external keypad. I don't know if either are more attractive than pulling up the on screen keyboard.
Depending on your local market, you might be able to find a mom and pop computer repair shop that will swap the keyboard with a replacement for a reasonable price with good quality of work.
Personally, I'd say the chances of something really irritating happening while coding and thinking that you entered "2" or "@" but didn't leading to frustrating debugging would be high enough that I'd either bite the bullet and pay the vendor to fix it, do it myself, or if it were older sell it as is and buy a new laptop.
posted by Candleman at 11:40 AM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
Depending on your local market, you might be able to find a mom and pop computer repair shop that will swap the keyboard with a replacement for a reasonable price with good quality of work.
Personally, I'd say the chances of something really irritating happening while coding and thinking that you entered "2" or "@" but didn't leading to frustrating debugging would be high enough that I'd either bite the bullet and pay the vendor to fix it, do it myself, or if it were older sell it as is and buy a new laptop.
posted by Candleman at 11:40 AM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: jon1270, it's a Dell Inspirion N4110. I could probably replace it myself if I could get over the sizable reluctance to take it apart. I always worry about not being able to get it back together right, or breaking something. Fixing it would be ideal though, it is true.
Could compressed air work for this? Can air even get underneath the rubber button-nub? Aren't those all molded into one continuous sheet, could air even get in there?
Am trying AutoHotkey now, with the keys F2=2 and +F2=@, and, as was just demonstrated, it seems to work pretty well, as a stopgap measure at least! I always wondered why more programs don't use the function keys.
Candleman, unfortunately I am in pretty tight circumstances financially and have to watch individual dollars right now. I hope things are turning around for me in the near future, but the sad fact is, they haven't yet.
posted by JHarris at 11:46 AM on December 8, 2015
Could compressed air work for this? Can air even get underneath the rubber button-nub? Aren't those all molded into one continuous sheet, could air even get in there?
Am trying AutoHotkey now, with the keys F2=2 and +F2=@, and, as was just demonstrated, it seems to work pretty well, as a stopgap measure at least! I always wondered why more programs don't use the function keys.
Candleman, unfortunately I am in pretty tight circumstances financially and have to watch individual dollars right now. I hope things are turning around for me in the near future, but the sad fact is, they haven't yet.
posted by JHarris at 11:46 AM on December 8, 2015
Best answer: I could probably replace it myself if I could get over the sizable reluctance to take it apart.
I don't think it would be necessary to take it apart (different model, but very likely the same process). Spare keyboards look like they're under $10 plus shipping on ebay. Even if you can't now (and well, I totally understand that), it's something you should be able to do without any worries (wish I could say the same of replacing the fan/DC10 Turbocharged engine on mine) once the situation improves.
posted by lmfsilva at 11:59 AM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
I don't think it would be necessary to take it apart (different model, but very likely the same process). Spare keyboards look like they're under $10 plus shipping on ebay. Even if you can't now (and well, I totally understand that), it's something you should be able to do without any worries (wish I could say the same of replacing the fan/DC10 Turbocharged engine on mine) once the situation improves.
posted by lmfsilva at 11:59 AM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: WinKey+R for the run prompt, and then: osk.exe (or just OSK) for the On-Screen Keyboard. Open it now and let it sit in the background until it's needed.
I'd use the numlock for the "2", but the @ character is trickier.
Search youtube for videos on how to replace the keyboard. Here's one I found (on preview, same as previous comment), but there are others. That video is 1:15 long and the replacement happens in realtime; that's how easy it is. You'll want to take a little more time to be sure when you slot that ribbon cable into that connector and closing the connector.
posted by Sunburnt at 12:02 PM on December 8, 2015 [2 favorites]
I'd use the numlock for the "2", but the @ character is trickier.
Search youtube for videos on how to replace the keyboard. Here's one I found (on preview, same as previous comment), but there are others. That video is 1:15 long and the replacement happens in realtime; that's how easy it is. You'll want to take a little more time to be sure when you slot that ribbon cable into that connector and closing the connector.
posted by Sunburnt at 12:02 PM on December 8, 2015 [2 favorites]
Response by poster: Hey wow, that does look very similar to my system! Huh, I may try that when I can get the part. Thanks very much lmfsilva and Sunburnt!
Actually, thanks everyone, this has all helped me out a lot. I can use Autohotkey in the meantime, and probably replace the keyboard without much issue when I have the spare funds. Attapersons all around.
posted by JHarris at 12:05 PM on December 8, 2015
Actually, thanks everyone, this has all helped me out a lot. I can use Autohotkey in the meantime, and probably replace the keyboard without much issue when I have the spare funds. Attapersons all around.
posted by JHarris at 12:05 PM on December 8, 2015
$11.50 shipped from a U.S. seller with excellent feedback.
posted by jon1270 at 12:11 PM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by jon1270 at 12:11 PM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
Best answer: $10.19 or best offer, shipped, from a U.S. seller with pretty good feedback.
posted by jon1270 at 12:16 PM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by jon1270 at 12:16 PM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: That's very kind of you to find for me! Thank so much.
posted by JHarris at 1:20 PM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by JHarris at 1:20 PM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Some followup....
I found the freeware (and apparently open source) program SharpKeys, which can effectively swap the identities of two programs at the Registry level, which is helpful for some programs that are not fooled by AutoHotkey.
posted by JHarris at 9:02 PM on March 9, 2016
I found the freeware (and apparently open source) program SharpKeys, which can effectively swap the identities of two programs at the Registry level, which is helpful for some programs that are not fooled by AutoHotkey.
posted by JHarris at 9:02 PM on March 9, 2016
Response by poster: I finally got the keyboard replaced. Thanks everyone for their advice!
posted by JHarris at 4:15 PM on April 27, 2016 [3 favorites]
posted by JHarris at 4:15 PM on April 27, 2016 [3 favorites]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Sequence at 11:07 AM on December 8, 2015 [3 favorites]