The keyboard on my Pismo is only partly functional. The top row of keys works (QWERTY, etc.) as well as some of the function keys, but nothing else. There's a story:

About two years ago I spilled a glass of water on the machine. In my haste to get it dry I pulled the heatsink away from the processor. The machine never worked well after that--it ran hot and crashed randomly and the built-in keyboard only half worked--so I got a Powerlogix CPU upgrade card and used an external keyboard and it worked fine.

I still wanted to use it as a laptop, though, so I ordered a new keyboard and installed it. No luck: it was still only partly functional. The Powerlofix CPU died, so I got an original 500 MHz processor card, which works great. Seeking to fix the keyboard issue, and figuring that perhaps I had damaged the logic board connector for the keyboard, I ordered and installed a new logic board, whcih is working great while I type this on an external keyboard. Other than the keyboard issue the machine runs great. Like I said, I'm typing on it right now.

So, can anyone think of what might be causing this, considering that about half the internals of the machine are new? Is there something simple I'm overlooking?

well.. i guess i'll start off with the simple question.. have you tried replacing the keyboard?

Yes. Sorry if I didn't make it clear: the keyboard, logic board and CPU card have all been replaced since I got the machine.

I would still say its a keyboard problem if the new keyboard is still only partially working like the last one. Where'd you get the new keyboard?

Ordered it brand new from you guys.

Any ideas on this one?

strange.. i would say either send it back for a replacement or send the pismo off to the repair dept so we can diagnose it and see if something else is causing the problem.

I bought it in September of 2005. Can I still get a replacement for it?

nah the warranty is over on it.. i figured this was a recent replacement. did it work from sep 05 up until recently?

Nope. It never worked. I just gave up on the machine for a while but never got rid of it. I recently brought it back to life, though.

Question. Are the same keys dead on both keyboard, or different keys?

-Bradley
PowerbookMedic.com

I bit the bullet and ordered a new (used) keyboard from you guys and, Voila!, it works. Means you were right, and the last keyboard I got didn't work. I guess the machine was so messed up I didn't even think about that option.

Now I just have to stop dropping the thing. . .

Glad to hear it. Let us know if there's anything else we can do for you.

-Bradley
PowerbookMedic