Strange keyboard issues

UsedManatee · Post by **UsedManatee** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 3:21 am

Hi folks,
I've just started running EL (1.188, completely fresh install) in demo mode on Windows Vista 64 (home premium) with 6gb of ram. The game seems to run fine, and it's impressive, but I'm having some keyboard issues. My friend who I've gotten to download simultaneously is NOT having the same issues.

Just for the record, in Windows I have only one language for the keyboard installed at the moment. (US English).
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Basically, I am unable to use the [] keys correctly to adjust power, cannot use left-shift to fire the secondary weapon, and cannot use ; ' to switch weapons. Even more strangely, I am unable to rebind these.

For example, if I go into the binding it shows the expected keys (let's take for example the two brackets, because this is the same thing that happens with ; / ' ). Fine, I think, I'll just rebind these just to make sure. So I click the first option which is by default bound to [ . I type a [, and I get nothing entered. It comes up as a space. If I rebind and type the ] , it shows up as a [ (!!) . On my keyboard, unlike the diagram on keyboard.jpg, I have a \\ key to the right of my ]. If I type \\, a ] shows up.

In notepad, or Word, or heck in this browser window, all three of these characters show up as expected. []\\ .

Similarly for ; and ' I cannot rebind the '. When I type ', it comes in as a blank.

Frequently also the binding system says it detects a conflict when I type in one of these non-showing characters.

I can't deal with it anymore tonight, hoping it's a familiar issue to somebody out there.

Thanks!
UMS

Post by **Vice** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 3:28 am

That's a new one to me, almost sounds like the keyboard can't return standard scancode signals for those keys. What's the make and model of the keyboard?

UsedManatee · Post by **UsedManatee** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 3:33 am

Not sure, it's a no-name branded by Gateway. Just bog standard. I think I may be coming across a path of solution though, check this thread out. http://forums.station.sony.com/eq/posts ... _id=143320

I'm unable to disable those devices, but perhaps I can uninstall them. I have all these eHome drivers but I don't use this as a media PC. I'm pretty sure it isn't the hardware. If it weren't returning the standard scancodes, I shouldn't be able to type them in here. I think something is going on with the driver intercepting it under certain conditions though, e.g., in EL and in some other 3d mode games that I recall being unable to type an apostrophe into. In that case it was into chat where it was more readily obnoxious, but I didn't care too much.

UsedManatee · Post by **UsedManatee** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 3:34 am

Less gamey, more technical thread: http://www.vistax64.com/vista-hardware- ... ently.html

UsedManatee · Post by **UsedManatee** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 3:40 am

Ok, well it may not be a permanent fix (yet) but uninstalling those bizarre extra drivers seems to have done the trick. I was just able to clear and remap things sanely. Apparently in DirectX mode the keys were intercepted and remapped in a really bizarre way.

Thanks Microsoft.

Anyway, this may be of some help to other folks coming through. If I figure out how to permanently rid myself of them I'll post another follow-up. I'm not sure it is worth your time to cover over microsoft's zeal, but maybe it would be possible to detect if this were going on and do a counter-countermeasure on it to map it to what the user actually thinks he's pressing.

Post by **Vice** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 5:07 am

Interesting, thanks for posting the results. Vista does handle keyboard input very differently from XP, so it would make sense if the bulk of the problem was with a driver. There probably isn't a feasible way to detect for that problem, a proper scancode input is pretty dependent on static assigned values and the system itself is needed for solid multi-key input. It would be hard to even predict such alterations/interceptions since one would have to not only be able to detect the event, but also piece together all of the mismatched assignments (which could vary from systems to system, driver to driver). If it is a driver based issue, it's likely something that could be fixed with updated drivers, if the original developer offers corrected versions.

Maarschalk · Post by **Maarschalk** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 7:06 am

Hi UsedManatee, Welcome to the game and forum. Glad you got things worked out. Hope to see you out there !

49rTbird · Post by **49rTbird** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 4:41 pm

Hello UsedManatee, welcome to the forum and the Sim. See you out there sometime.

UsedManatee · Post by **UsedManatee** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 1:55 am

Vice,
Indeed, it would be tricky and a waste for you to try to compensate. I wonder if there are really that many variations though? If, for example, the same junk isnt' broken in Windows 7, then it could at least be limited to compensating only for people with certain drivers running on a particular (family of) operating system.

I agree the onus relies on the original manufacturer of the product to release updated drivers, but since MS is the original developer and it's broken with their own multimedia libraries, I am not holding my breath.

Notice their facepalming response on their official "answers" board. I decided to make a guest appearance myself.
http://social.answers.microsoft.com/For ... 0aa0f8f0bf

In any case I got on last night and things were working A-OK.

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Also, thanks for the greetings guys. I was able to get on MP a little bit last night and was chatting with a pilot named Paladin who gave me a few initial ideas. I won't continue on with them here, though, because I'd be hijacking my own thread.

I'll probably be on the official server as UsedManatee. I won't be having much time to really get into it until after next Thursday night, but I'll try to pop on again sometime before then.

Palgolak · Post by **Palgolak** » Sat Jul 17, 2010 9:30 am

I have the same problem on Windows 7 (Home Premium, 32-bit).

In Device Manager I can see only one keyboard, described as Enhanced Multimedia PS/2 Keyboard. I don't see the Microsoft eHome MCIR 109 Keyboard, which some people have said is the cause of the problem.

Any suggestions?