6 ms·

The keyboard problem doesn’t make the whole computer unusable, as is claimed by the article. It makes the keyboard unusable -- that is, a person can still conne

The keyboard problem doesn’t make the whole computer unusable, as is claimed by the article. It makes the keyboard unusable -- that is, a person can still connect a USB keyboard.

ajross 8y ago
It's a laptop. I mean, yeah, this is technically true, but...
otachack 8y ago
It's a laptop, it'll make the whole usage of it obsolete in important tasks for people they heavily depend on typing.
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
mrsteveman1 8y ago
Seems a bit like saying a broken steering wheel doesn't make the whole car unusable, you just have to find some other way to steer. It's a laptop, if the keyboard routinely doesn't work properly, then it becomes a slightly more portable desktop.
whymauri 8y ago
"A broken driver's wheel doesn't make a whole car unusable, it just makes the driver's wheel unusable." Sounds kinda silly.
- otterley 8y ago
  You can plug an external keyboard into a laptop to get by until you're able to get the built-in keyboard fixed. I'm not sure you can so easily bypass a car's steering column.
  - jamesrcole 8y ago
    And when using it on a commute?
    - iagooar 8y ago
      Even harder to quickly swap the wheel while driving.
      - jamesrcole 8y ago
        What's your point?
        iagooar 8y ago
        Sorry I forgot to show the "joke" sign, I guess that's a must on HN.
        jamesrcole 8y ago
        What joke? How is your comment making any point or being funny?
        iagooar 8y ago
        I guess the sign isn't enough, I also need to explain the joke...
        whymauri 8y ago
        For what it's worth, I thought it was funny. HN is humorless.
        jamesrcole 8y ago
        Just because people think something is not funny doesn't mean they're humourless. I'll make my point a bit more specific, how is that comment funny in relation to the comment it is replying to? It doesn't even make sense as a reply to it. I could see it as being more humorous as a reply to the comment I was replying to.
  - simion314 8y ago
    -plugging an external keyboard makes the computer not to be a laptop/portable -you may not own a USB keyboard , you need to buy one and hopefully you have enough ports free or yo will need to buy an USB hub too -having the device repaired will take a while if you are not into a big city, it won't be fun without your computer, so it is a big deal that the keyboards is shitty and sometimes the replacement one breaks too. -I hope they will fix the keyboard if it breaks exactly when your warranty expired, otherwise because of on ekey you will have to buy for all the parts that are glued with the keyboard.
    - otterley 8y ago
      Sure, I don't think anyone is suggesting here that the workaround is without drawbacks. As for the USB concern, there are many Bluetooth-compatible battery-powered portable keyboards that one can use to get by.
pessimizer 8y ago
It's part of a pattern of sloppy reporting. A recent article of theirs claimed that a design defect made an entire car unusable, when the only thing it rendered unusable was the brake pedal. The laptop could still be used as an awkward flashlight, or a low-power space heater.
drusepth 8y ago
I went through two MBPs with this issue. Yes, you can technically just keep mashing keys over and over until they stick and/or delete the 2+ instances of the character each time it finally types, or you could technically hook up an external keyboard for the laptop, but... both "solutions" are pretty much showstoppers for a laptop. The issue did make my computer unusable and I was unable to work on it. Side note: I dropped from 110+ WPM to ~20 WPM because I had three keys with this issue and had to spent 5+ seconds every time I tried any of those keys. The worst part is sometimes it wouldn't register the key and sometimes it would register it on the first try but type the character several times repeatedly. It was literally hell.
- nsgf 8y ago
  There is a simpler solution by installing Karabiner-Elements and mapping problematic keys to vk_none. This effectively disables the keys. You can do this for every key available in the built-in keyboard. Then just use an external keyboard.
- tqkxzugoaupvwqr 8y ago
  Product idea: Key debouncer, a program that listens to key presses and corrects input. If a character was repeated within x milliseconds, it reduces the input to a single instances of the character. Ideally it debounces the input before any key events are passed on to other programs.
  - tqkxzugoaupvwqr 8y ago
    Crude prototype: Use macOS text corrections (System settings > Keyboard I think), e.g. “ff” is corrected to “f”, “fff” to “f”, etc.
  - drusepth 8y ago
    Throw on the capability to also detect if a word is missing a character that was typed but not registered and I think you're positioned well for an eventual Apple acquisition.
deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
2RTZZSro 8y ago
This comment is fascinating. Apple is a marketing company first and a technology company second. They market their products as truly premium and many of their users are so taken by Apple's propaganda they refuse to believe Apple could ever be at fault for anything. They make excuse after excuse for why their Macs, iPads, iPhones don't work and they never relate it back to Apple. Louis Rossmann, a highly-respected Apple repairman in Manhattan, NYC, explains the problems with the cult of Apple: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hYHwkIuEMo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hYHwkIuEMo
jzr 8y ago
nope. just stop.
danmg 8y ago
iiii ageee -- set frm myyyy macbokpo

The keyboard problem doesn’t make the whole computer unusable, as is claimed by the article. It makes the keyboard unusable -- that is, a person can still connect a USB keyboard.

ajross 8y ago

It's a laptop. I mean, yeah, this is technically true, but...

otachack 8y ago

It's a laptop, it'll make the whole usage of it obsolete in important tasks for people they heavily depend on typing.

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

mrsteveman1 8y ago

Seems a bit like saying a broken steering wheel doesn't make the whole car unusable, you just have to find some other way to steer. It's a laptop, if the keyboard routinely doesn't work properly, then it becomes a slightly more portable desktop.

whymauri 8y ago

"A broken driver's wheel doesn't make a whole car unusable, it just makes the driver's wheel unusable." Sounds kinda silly.

otterley 8y ago
You can plug an external keyboard into a laptop to get by until you're able to get the built-in keyboard fixed. I'm not sure you can so easily bypass a car's steering column.
- jamesrcole 8y ago
  And when using it on a commute?
  - iagooar 8y ago
    Even harder to quickly swap the wheel while driving.
    - jamesrcole 8y ago
      What's your point?
      - iagooar 8y ago
        Sorry I forgot to show the "joke" sign, I guess that's a must on HN.
        jamesrcole 8y ago
        What joke? How is your comment making any point or being funny?
        iagooar 8y ago
        I guess the sign isn't enough, I also need to explain the joke...
        whymauri 8y ago
        For what it's worth, I thought it was funny. HN is humorless.
        jamesrcole 8y ago
        Just because people think something is not funny doesn't mean they're humourless. I'll make my point a bit more specific, how is that comment funny in relation to the comment it is replying to? It doesn't even make sense as a reply to it. I could see it as being more humorous as a reply to the comment I was replying to.
- simion314 8y ago
  -plugging an external keyboard makes the computer not to be a laptop/portable -you may not own a USB keyboard , you need to buy one and hopefully you have enough ports free or yo will need to buy an USB hub too -having the device repaired will take a while if you are not into a big city, it won't be fun without your computer, so it is a big deal that the keyboards is shitty and sometimes the replacement one breaks too. -I hope they will fix the keyboard if it breaks exactly when your warranty expired, otherwise because of on ekey you will have to buy for all the parts that are glued with the keyboard.
  - otterley 8y ago
    Sure, I don't think anyone is suggesting here that the workaround is without drawbacks. As for the USB concern, there are many Bluetooth-compatible battery-powered portable keyboards that one can use to get by.

pessimizer 8y ago

It's part of a pattern of sloppy reporting. A recent article of theirs claimed that a design defect made an entire car unusable, when the only thing it rendered unusable was the brake pedal. The laptop could still be used as an awkward flashlight, or a low-power space heater.

drusepth 8y ago

I went through two MBPs with this issue. Yes, you can technically just keep mashing keys over and over until they stick and/or delete the 2+ instances of the character each time it finally types, or you could technically hook up an external keyboard for the laptop, but... both "solutions" are pretty much showstoppers for a laptop. The issue did make my computer unusable and I was unable to work on it. Side note: I dropped from 110+ WPM to ~20 WPM because I had three keys with this issue and had to spent 5+ seconds every time I tried any of those keys. The worst part is sometimes it wouldn't register the key and sometimes it would register it on the first try but type the character several times repeatedly. It was literally hell.

nsgf 8y ago
There is a simpler solution by installing Karabiner-Elements and mapping problematic keys to vk_none. This effectively disables the keys. You can do this for every key available in the built-in keyboard. Then just use an external keyboard.
tqkxzugoaupvwqr 8y ago
Product idea: Key debouncer, a program that listens to key presses and corrects input. If a character was repeated within x milliseconds, it reduces the input to a single instances of the character. Ideally it debounces the input before any key events are passed on to other programs.
- tqkxzugoaupvwqr 8y ago
  Crude prototype: Use macOS text corrections (System settings > Keyboard I think), e.g. “ff” is corrected to “f”, “fff” to “f”, etc.
- drusepth 8y ago
  Throw on the capability to also detect if a word is missing a character that was typed but not registered and I think you're positioned well for an eventual Apple acquisition.

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

2RTZZSro 8y ago

This comment is fascinating. Apple is a marketing company first and a technology company second. They market their products as truly premium and many of their users are so taken by Apple's propaganda they refuse to believe Apple could ever be at fault for anything. They make excuse after excuse for why their Macs, iPads, iPhones don't work and they never relate it back to Apple. Louis Rossmann, a highly-respected Apple repairman in Manhattan, NYC, explains the problems with the cult of Apple: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hYHwkIuEMo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hYHwkIuEMo

jzr 8y ago

nope. just stop.

danmg 8y ago

iiii ageee -- set frm myyyy macbokpo