Powerbook shift key is not working

**Kingfisher** · 13-02-2010

Hi,

I have a Powerbook G4. From few months my 'Shift' button on the keyboard stopped working. I do not think its a hardware problem because the two shift keys are not working. This keyboard is bad or it can be cleaned or worked on to fix it? Why Powerbook shift key is not working ???

**Tomaz** · 13-02-2010

The software may cause symptoms that make it seem that the keyboard was sticking or not working. When the keypad is enabled, only characters on the screen can generate keys which are mapped to the keyboard. If a key has a character of bronze, which indicates that the key works when the keypad is enabled, nothing will be displayed while the key is pressed. You can use the keys Panel Apple menu to see which keys work when the keypad is active.

**Barclay** · 13-02-2010

The software may cause symptoms that make it seem that the keyboard was sticking or not working. When the keypad is enabled, only characters on the screen can generate keys which are mapped to the keyboard. If a key has a character of bronze, which indicates that the key works when the keypad is enabled, nothing will be displayed while the key is pressed. You can use the keys Panel Apple menu to see which keys work when the keypad is active.

**CoModO** · 13-02-2010

If you hear a beep or see the flash menu bar (if you have the sound turned off), you may have enabled some features of a program called Easy Access. Easy Access is a control panel that can be installed to help people with physical disabilities. Open the Control Panel Easy Access from the Apple menu and make sure you disconnect their services.

**Salome** · 13-02-2010

Some applications do not support all the keys on the keyboard. If this only happens in certain programs with certain keys, you may want to consult the software documentation to find out if it supports the key in question. To verify that the program is something specific, you can open the Keyboard panel from the Apple menu and make sure the keys work. To determine if the issue is an extension conflict, restart with extensions off .

**CoModO** · 13-02-2010

This could be a hardware problem. If you need to use the computer until you send it to a service, maybe you can attach an external keyboard to the computer. Some PowerBook models support ADB, while others support USB. Check the user manual of your PowerBook if you're not clear what kind of mouse and keyboard should use.