duo 230 sticky keyboard

[Marc Sira]

> has anyone one the list experienced sticky keys on a duo 230 keybd before?

Has anyone not? ;)

> furthermore, has anybody experienced a duo 230 keybd whose keys seem to
> require too much pressure to depress?? could it be that my duo's keybd is
> just getting old... in fact the only reason i don't use this machine more
> often is that the keybd is painful to type on... any ideas on how to fix /
> replace this nasty keybd?

The stickiness is generally resolved by cleaning out the junk between the
keys and the rubber layer beneath. This involves popping all the keys off
(pry from under the top edge) and removing the layers that make up the
keyboard successively. To get at the bottom ones you'll probably want to
remove the keyboard from the Duo and unplug the ribbon cables.

The lack of responsiveness is a bit more effort, but you can often achieve
a tremendous improvement by disassembling the entire keyboard and thorougly
scrubbing the crescent-shaped contact pads on both plastic membranes within
using a white drafting eraser. This removes the oxidised layer that's getting
in the way of a good connection. Make sure to clean all the eraser bits off
afterward with a soft cloth, and be very careful not to fold, spindle or
mutilate the membranes. You can also try gently cleaning the black donuts on
the underside of the rubber part with Q-tips and pure isopropyl alcohol. Don't
overdo those, though.

The whole procedure takes a couple of hours if you're industrious, and will
probably last about six months before the keyboard becomes unbearable and you
have to do it all over again. It is still a Duo keyboard after all. But it
will work more or less like new for a time.

-- 
Marc Sira		|	toh at victoria.tc.ca
If you can't play with words, what good are they?