The last computer difficulty I am ever going to have

An IT guy was helping me with my computer. IT people are very security conscious. This IT guy, as wonderful as he is, decided I needed a password to type in before I can get into my computer.  This was not Heaven Admin. It was someone else.

It has been difficult having a password. I remember this one very well, but sometimes I have to type in the password several times before I get it right.

But what happened the other morning was unconscionable. The e key on my laptop was sticking. The letter e appears in my password a few times.  No e, no entry into computer.  Imagine my frustration.

I discovered that if I pressed the e key from a certain angel, the e would type. However, when I do that for a password, apparently the computer robots pick that up as two presses of the key or something, invalidating the password.

Do you see what I have to go through?

I tried everything under the sun. What would you have done to solve this?

Hurray, I did solve this. I am more computer literate than either you or I know!

Is there someone reading this who can figure out how I managed to get past the password and into my computer when the e on my laptop kept sticking?

If you are the first to figure this out and post your answer here, you will win a Heaven CD.

Posted by Gloria on March 9th, 2009 under these topics
computers
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8 Replies

Reply from Charles Fines on March 9, 2009

You can change your password to something without an “e”.

That doesn’t solve the problem of the sticking key, which is almost certainly a physical problem with gunk under the key. If you are willing to take a chance on possibly damaging your keyboard, you can pry off the cap that has the letter on it with a screwdriver or some such. It should just pop off.

Then you can see if there is some lint or a bread crumb or something in there that can be blown out or scraped out with the end of a paper clip or whatever works. If it looks clean, the cap will pop back on by pressing down on it.

Your computer should be off when you do this. If it makes you nervous, you could get someone else to do it. The whole keyboard could probably use blowing out with some kind of compressed air. You can buy a can of stuff to do this but if you read the label you can see you aren’t supposed to breathe it. I use an air compressor but that probably isn’t recommended in the manual and you have to make sure there isn’t water condensation in the tank or hose. I turn the keyboard upside down when I do this and also blow out whatever I can in the rest of the computer.

A smart person would get a second opinion before doing any of this.

Reply from Jochen on March 9, 2009

Charles, you don’t seem to want a CD!

Señora, quite obviously you used a jack to take one of your very rare glimpses at the downside of things, finding the spot where the can opener can be inserted for minimally invasive surgery. Through the opening thus created, you easily detected the knothole in your computer’s (grade two) motherboard and, of course, the e that had fallen into it, whimpering pitifully ee-ee-ee. After rescuing it with an e-levator from Dear Microsoft’s built-in HELP, the rest was easy. You just told two of the childrenboards to guide poor e home, and off they went.

Or did you use an external keyboard?

Reply from Sally on March 9, 2009

It is my theory that anything can be fixed with either duct tape or WD 40. Doesn’t sound duct tape compatible so my guess is WD 40.

Reply from Steve on March 9, 2009

Nothing as creative as Charles or Jochen!

I can’t possibly say as I’m sure it must be some sort of ‘trade secret’… but backspace after e springs to mind.

Reply from Gloria on March 9, 2009

I absolutely LOVE these responses!

Charles, would that I had the courage and equipment to do as you suggest! Did you really imagine I would have any idea as to how to change my password? If I knew that, I believe I would elect no password. Can you tell me how to do that?

Read further, and you will see that there was some kind of intercession that I can only call divine. :)

Jochen, one of your responses is correct. I wasn’t sure whether 2 answers might have disqualified you. Then I decided that, due to correct answer and imagination — YOU ARE THE GRAND WINNER OF THE CD!

Whenever we meet, we will have an award ceremony, and Charles will have to attend as well — and anyone else who happens to submit a really wild imaginative answer,

When I first arrived in Phoenix, Carol hooked up my lap top to an external keyboard. I had not brought mine. Mine is ergonomic, as you will remember, and I am used to typing on it as well as on my laptop keyboard. I had disconnected her external keyboard because my fingers weren’t used to it, and I kept making mistakes. However, in my emergency, I cleverly reconnected it.

Now, let me give you the surprise follow up!

The very next time I tried using my laptop’s very own keyboard, the little e and big E worked as if nothing had ever happened! It had fixed itself!

Who can explain THAT!

Reply from Gloria on March 9, 2009

I didn’t see Sally’s and Steven’s comments until I had posted my response, but now I see they had come in before I saw them. Another miracle, I think, don’t you? This probably couldn’t be duplicated.

Sally, your idea makes perfect sense to me.You have big vision!

And,now, Steve, I am eager to try yours the next time a key sticks. Backspace. Genius! I assume this will work with keys other than e’s.

I will confess that I have fixed stuck keys (not when doing a password) by shaking my computer upside down.

Reply from Dianita on March 10, 2009

Now that we have fixed your e, what can I do with my stuck remote key for my TV?

Reply from Steve on March 10, 2009

Hee hee I’ve heard of people standing oin their head to use a computer but not anyone turning the computer upside down! :-)

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