PCTech Forums

Hello, and happy Thursday. My question is dealing with a computer keyboard a friend gave me today...I have a really old keyboard so I was really pleased. Well, the new keyboard is USB, wheras the old is PS/2. I cannot get the new keyboard to communicate with the computer... I let windows install what drivers it recommended as well as changed the "Keyboard Input" to USB in the BIOS. The keyboard lights come on so I know the board is good, but they "freeze"(you cannot select or deselect NUMS Caps Lock or Scroll Lock) but different ones will light, etc. when it comes on. I though it would be as simple as plug and go. I am at an end for ideas...so, please, if anybody has any advice or ideas, it would be much appreciated.

You can buy an adaptor that will connect to your usb keyboard and the other end of the adaptor will have your PS/2 connection.
You should be able to get one from most office/computer supply stores and should only be $2.00 - $4.00

Well, in response to your answer Gecko, I do have one of those connectors...but I had a feeling that USB would be smoother, a higher data transfer, possibly...as well as the fact that the keyboard has two USB ports in it...which would be nice to use. I know my computer will accept a USB keyboard, because the option is in my BIOS.

What version of usb is the keyboard? You might have to upgrade to usb2.0
Also have you checked the keyboard manufactures web site to see if there are new drivers available for your keyboard?

It is a Hewlett Packard ....with hot-buttons for the internet, cd player, volume control, etc... model no. SK-2506U. I already went to their website and came up with nothing, unfortunately.
I do not believe I have USB 2.0...if that is the case, is there a PCI card for 2.0...or how would I upgrade?
Is it even worth the trouble...am I near base in thinking that the USB connection would communicate smoother for button intenseness as video games for example (I can tell when too many are pressed on my current at the same time, it stops responding to new buttons, or seems delayed to action on screen...)

Yes you can get a USB 2.0 PCI card for around $10.00 - $15.00

I am not sure that the lag you are seeing with your old keyboard was due to the PS/2 interface, it might be due to the game and CPU limits of processing the keystrokes but I could be wrong.
USB 2.0 will support up to 480 Mbps for high-speed devices. USB 2.0 is suitable for high-performance devices such as high-quality video conferencing cameras, high-resolution scanners, and high-density storage devices.

Thanks for the replies, Gecko, I sure appreciate it.