Keyboard eliminators?

[BITM@D]

Has anyone seen a product that you can plug into the PS2 ports to simulate and eliminate the keyboard and mouse?

[otheos]

why?

[capybara]

voice recognition? try

www.sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/Forum1/html/009686.html (http://www.sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/Forum1/html/009686.html)

my wife is trying dragon dictate, but
there are errors in understanding similarly sounding words in english, so a keyboard is still necess to correct these errors.
=) David


Tried to fix link, however that link appears to be bad/down http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/frown.gif -Socalgal



[This message has been edited by socalgal (edited 01-07-2001).]

[BITM@D]

Here is the link to the full reason why I need this solution.
http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/Forum6/HTML/001810.html

Everyone I have asked has been stumped by this one but I know that your guys will have a solution.
My fingers are crossed as this will mean quite a few browny points for me (at work)if I come up with a solution.

If you don't have a clue about the solution I would like to hear from you as well as this will confirm to me and my superiors that the solution can't be found.

Maybe the solution will have to be one where we design our own 'plugs'/'dummy loads'.

Hasn't anyone come across this before. I feel I'm all alone out here with this one.

[Barney]

If you take the stuff inside the keyboard out (I think you'll only need the small card with the chip on it) and hook it up to the pc,you'll have a dummy.You can do the same with the mouse.

Ronald

[BITM@D]

Thanks Ronald, good idea.

I presume that this will work using the cheapest, nastiest (maybe even second hand/used?)keyboard and mouse (good cheap solution - I like it)

But, I have only looked into the inside of a keyboard once before. Doesn't the circuit board stretch the entire length of the keyboard? Which part of the board should I keep?

Thanks again.
BITM@D (Bill)

[Barney]

I opened my keboard a couple of times and the circuit board of mine is about 2 by 4".All the newer keyboards (not talking about 10-20 year olds) have this flexible thing under the keys (not a cicuit board).you can seperate it and the board easily.I have never tried if the computer sees the keyboard without this flexible thing on it,so you'll have to try that out.
The wire will be connected to the circuit board

Btw,I have a 5 year old Mitsumi Win95 keyboard,only costed $10 at that time.

The mouse won't be a problem,just remove the casing and the wheels and it will be un-useable (I assume that one of the reasons you want to do this is that no-one can use the computer).

Ronald

[BITM@D]

Yes Ronald, 'one' of the reasons we don't want to have a keyboard and mouse attached is for security. These servers are up to 3,000 miles away (we are based in Adelaide South Australia - I love these forums) from our base location so we have to fly someone out there or pay a local contractor to go in and re-boot (the costs are similar thanks to the outrageous fees that the contractors charge us).

I've got an old keyboard here that I will pull apart and have a look at.

I presume that there will be some type of wire connection to the main module from the area underneath the keys (the flexible part you mentioned). Just cut it (are there wires?) and tape/solder them up?

Thanks again.
Bill

[Barney]

In my keyboard the circuit board is tightly pushed on the flexible part and than screwed on the bottom of the keyboard.This way the circuit board and the flexible part connect.Take out the screws and the parts are already seperated.Ofcourse this can be different on another keyboard,but this is the most logical and cheapest way the parts can connect.

Ronald

[BITM@D]

Thanks a lot Ronald.

I'll have a look. It sounds like you may have come up with the solution we need. I'll try it out and once again I appreciate the time you have spent replying to this topic.

Bill

[MiKe85]

ahh if i open my keyboard...NO WAY THE THING WILL EVER WORK AGAIN!!!!
I'm just that destructive http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif

Mike

[Barney]

BITM@D,you can wait with thanking me.Lets first see if it works. http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/wink.gif

Mike,I know what you mean.I killed my 17" monitor by opening it and try to make it better...
Ah well.The reason I opened it was because the monitor was so fuzzy that I couldn't read the words on my screen at 1024x768.A week later I had a much better 17" to replace it.And the first 17" only costed my 10 bucks,so no big loss.

Other things I almost killed recently:
-The PII I had until a week ago.I tried to take the heatplate off.I made a big scratch on the processor's circuit board;

My GeForce256 card I just had 2 months (a new one,got it for free http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/smile.gif ).I was putting the diskdrive in my new case and it just fell inside the case and hit my videocard.There's a scratch on it,but still works ok.If the diskdrive still works?Who cares!I never use it.

I also know what it feels like to get 220 Volts trough your body.Tried it about 5 times... I think I could be struck by lightning a 100 times and still live...

I say this so you all know what my advise is worth..... http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/wink.gif

Ronald

[This message has been edited by Barney (edited 01-06-2001).]

[otheos]

A couple of thoughts:

even if you find "plugs", can't somebody walk in with his own keyb/mouse and use it on the server?

even if you find "plugs", has NT got the ability to be rebooted remotely (like Unix?). Have you sorted that part out?

suggestion: you can make the keys of the keyboard unclickable with glue (put the keyboard -keys firs- in a bath of epoxy glue). same for the mouse's ball/buttons.

[Richard_Cranium72]

NT 4.0 has the ability to remote "access"

Why not just boot them from the network ?

DrVette

[BITM@D]

Thanks for your comments Richard.

Please read this original post
( http://sysopt.earthweb.com/forum/Forum6/HTML/001810.html ) if you are interested in why we prefer not to have a mouse and keyboard attached.
Not the least of which is space (as it is we have to store some components in the floor space), extra space costs money and we can't justify an extra rack space (at 75 dollars a month) to store a mouse and keyboard.
We use PC anywhere for remote administration of these machines.
Sure, anyone can walk in with a mouse and keyboard and get into the machine but why make it easy for them? The machines are packed pretty tight in a large rack in many cases and the back of them is often a major headache to get access to. Security is also fairly good but we have had a situation where the keyboards where knocked out of their computers by people tripping over cables accidently, when it came time to re-boot the machine we had to pay someone to go in and see why we couldn't - more expense.

[BITM@D]

Apart from disecting the keyboard and mouse and keeping the internals does anyone have any other ideas?

[DVNT1]

Maybe you want a product like this ...
http://catalog.blackbox.com/BlackBox/templates/blackbox/itemgroup338guest.asp?param=471&ig_id=338&title=Keyboard+Emulators&related=
(they also have one called a ghost emulator that may work)

or
http://users.bart.nl/~andalco/kme.htm

or
http://www.keyzone.com/pc-extenders/crystalview.htm (just don't use the extenteder cable)

[Barney]

http://www.vetra.com/Elimina2.htm

They sell keyboard/mouse eliminators.Looks good only the price doesn't really,they cost $86 a piece...

Here is an about booting a PC without a keyboard: http://www.ntua.gr/electronics/chipdir/abc/keyboard/keybrd3.txt

Ronald

[BITM@D]

Thanks for the links DVNT1.

These are the only products I could find as well. They are all so expensive but I suppose compared to the options available we may not have much choice.

Thanks heaps to all who contributed to this topic. It is most appreciated and - as I stated in the networking version of this topic - this is one the best groups of tech helpers on the globe.

You have all helped tremendously.

Bill.