stupid user question re dell keyboards

keyboard layout moaning and groaning!

[chewy]

Hi,

SU here - my question is does anyone know the Dell latitude keyboard situation?

For years I've blindly purchased Dell notebooks with the assumption that the keyboard (and function keys) would never change.

so - now they have changed the keys all around and I'm all back to re-learning touch typing on another keyboard.

this one has all sorts of horrible three key combinations to get simple keystrokes.

to get refresh, you have to do F5 and Fn and that never works because it is always in the other mode where it turns off or on the keyboard light.

there is no real single finger key for page down - that requires two hands. Ouch!

everything in my fingers is acclimated to the old keyboard say on my e6410.

when I upgraded to the 7420 (and it seems all Latitudes) they changed the keyboard.

no one at dell support understands this question as they all love their mouse and learn on this newstyle keyboards.

i'm an old fXrt and can't easily adjust for a variety of mostly physical issues - i have hand operations that alter my ability to use a keyboard planned and I do not ever want to adjust to this new keyboard as I always am hopping back to my other machines that have the original layout.

the layout I prefer is 6 keys under the shift button on the right side. those WOULD Be Pg Up, Pg Down, left / right and up . down. pretty ingenious.

anyone also experiencing the same? Is there a solution?

[engine]

I don't use a Dell machine, but i'm aware of that the keyboards change depending upon the country. Is the new Dell machine an "import"?

[chewy]

no. they all have the same stupid keyboard.

i'm the stupid one - i just need to learn the new layout - but I hate it at every keystroke!

[Dimitri]

I feel your pain.

I don't know if it can help, but with PowerToys, you can remap keys as you wish : [learn.microsoft.com...]

[chewy]

under shift key on 7420 are three keys - up / down and right arrows.

under shift key on 6430 is six.

the 6430 and previously have the six keys I like and presumed would be the "future"

now with this new stuff, they totally pooched any use of HOME, END or any function keys, or any up page or down page keys.

yes I could remap, but that doesn't really fix the problem.

everyone thinks I'm just plain mad about this - but what the heck?

I know links and images are disabled but give this a try:

[www....] laptopmag.com/reviews/dell-latitude-7410 -- layout I have and cannot abide.

this is the old-school and PREFERRED layout for me --

[www....] dell.com/support/kbdoc/en-us/000143031/dell-latitude-e6430-keyboard-guide

the latter link - the older machine - seems to be the last recent model with the "correct" keyboard. all others have the new and "incorrect" one!

[chewy]

no - a big no - on the remap - there aren't enough keys to enable the same functionality....

I had hoped that I could make it work with macros and stuff but that is my LAST option.

I would rather buy a brand new machine with a "correct" keyboard...

and yes, I will even abandon 10+ years of Dell fidelity. OUCH.

I may just never upgrade again. Ouch!

[engine]

I agree, it's far more challenging with a laptop keyboard; Not so bad with a desktop.

About five+ years ago I got a replacement for an Acer laptop, which was an awful machine, and it packed up one month over the warranty period. I won't be acquiring another Acer. The replacement was an HP. It was way better build quality, but it had a slightly different keyboard layout. After all this time my brain has not yet rewired to automatically locate certain keys.
I keep practising.

[tangor]

I know it might be a PITA, but plugging in a USB keyboard with the preferred layout will solve your problem, just won't be as portable.

[chewy]

The funny thing is the Dell people don't even seem to acknowledge a change. Literature naming this new convention seems non existent.

i also hate the mouse touchpad whatever - give me keystrokes over moving the mouse to click a button that the cursor should have already found. AK!

[chewy]

tried all above - no go for me - been trying for nearly a year. Not ever going back to a USB keyboard except for weird stuff like entering huge data sets.

MUST RESOLVE this somehow. Thanks all for the support.

Miss all youse guyses!

[Sgt_Kickaxe]

Dell laptop keyboards are detachable and, I believe, interchangeable? I can't check or confirm that as I don't own one currently but I do remember Dell going with a common EU keyboard layout in the US some years ago.

It caused problems for makers of keyboard pretectors too. Shipping the wrong one led to negative reviews on Amazon and users didn't know the difference before ordering a protector.

Worse, anyone setting their language to US would see it revert back to EU every 20 minutes and so all the special symbols would change, you had to disable your location verification in powershell to make it stop. Oh Dell...

To be clear, opening the keyboard and changing the keys and sensor pad is required. You can get them in a plug and play kit for each country for about $35 US. Some preffer replacing the entire keyboard but it's pricier. You will still need to tell the computer which language you want (EU vs US english) and you will need to specifiy the model AND country when trying to find the right kit.

If you call Dell support and inquire about a specific laptop their computer is not telling the support staff how to solve problems of a different laptop, and an EU laptop is not the same as a US laptop, even if it's the same model. Frustrating, but it's not the staff.

Good luck.

[chewy]

Sarge, is there a vendor that you can mention? Are you saying this is for notebooks? If so, wow!

If this works out, this could be MAGIC but I suspect as the bezel is also different, I wonder if there is any solution at all.

thanks all!

[Sgt_Kickaxe]

I don't think I can mention a specific vendor but you can find them from several vendors via Amazon. You need to specifiy the language region to find the right one even if you include the model info in your search. Skip past the ads too, they don't seem to understand the nuance you're looking for.

[chewy]

if you mention more than one, it might pass. But no worries. Thanks!