OnBoard FAQ

The keyboard does not work.
Check the following:

1. Make sure the keyboard’s USB connector is pushed all the way into the USB port on the computer, USB hub, or USB extension cord that you are using. Make sure your computer’s USB port is not physically damaged and that the connection with the keyboard connector is snug.

2. Make sure your USB port is enabled and properly configured by testing whether another USB device (such as a USB mouse) works on the port. Try plugging the keyboard connector into a different USB port. If you have other devices installed that conflict with the keyboard, you may need to check with your computer manufacturer or with the manufacturers of those devices how to change the settings of those devices.

3. Sometimes USB hubs and docking stations are unreliable or quirky. Try plugging the keyboard directly into the computer, into a USB extension cable, or into a different hub.

4. Make sure that your computer's operating system is compatible with the OnBoard Travel Keyboard (see Compatibility & System Requirements section in the User’s Manual).

5. Check whether the needed drivers have been installed by looking in the Windows “Device Manager”. Navigate to the Device Manager by going to Start | Settings | Control Panel | System | Hardware | Device Manager (or simply right click on the My Computer icon on your desktop and select “Properties”, then go to Hardware | Device Manager). Click on the “+” sign next to the word “Keyboards”. The directory tree will expand and you should see something called “HID Keyboard Device”. Right click on HID Keyboard Device and select “Properties”. Look under the “Driver” information for driver details. You should see two drivers: kbdclass.sys and kbdhid.sys. If you see those drivers, the keyboard drivers are installed, but if they do not seem to be working, you can try clicking on “Troubleshooter” and/or “Update Driver”. If that does not help, or if the drivers are missing, you can try to manually install the drivers by clicking on “Add/Remove Hardware” in the Windows “Control Panel” (under Start | Settings) or by clicking on “Hardware Wizard” on the hardware tab in the “System Properties” window (which is the name of the window that appears when you navigate to “System” as described in the navigation path above). If you still do not see the drivers, then there is a driver installation problem.

6. Make sure that you have administrative privileges on your computer and that you have access to the drives on your computer or network where the drivers reside.

7. If the drivers are not on your computer’s hard drive or on an available network drive, you may need the original operating system CD in order for the drivers to be found and installed.

8. Make sure you have the latest Windows Updates from Microsoft.

9. Try re-booting your computer with the keyboard already plugged in, and if that does not help, try re-booting the computer with the keyboard not plugged in (i.e., plug it in after the computer has fully booted up).

10. If the keyboard still does not work, try using it on another computer to help narrow down whether the problem seems to be your computer or the keyboard.

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The keyboard works intermittently only, or does not wake up the computer from hibernate or standby state.
Check the following:

1. Make sure the USB connector is plugged all the way into the USB port. Make sure the cable is not damaged.

2. Try changing the “Power Options” settings in your Control Panel to see whether that solves the problem. Depending on what operating system you have, you may also be able to change the “Power Management” settings in the Device Manager. Navigate to the Device Manager by going to Start | Settings | Control Panel | System | Hardware | Device Manager (or simply right click on the My Computer icon on your desktop and select “Properties”, then go to Hardware | Device Manager). Click on the “+” sign next to the word “Keyboards”. The directory tree will expand and you should see something called “HID Keyboard Device”. Right click on HID Keyboard Device and select “Properties”. Under “Power Management”, you should see a box you can select that says “Allow this device to bring the computer out of standby”.

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The keyboard causes the laptop computer keyboard’s settings to change.
Default settings in the laptop computer’s Windows registry might cause the laptop computer to respond in certain ways to the plugging in of an external keyboard. For example, the external keyboard might cause the laptop computer to activate Num Lock, F lock, or Fn mode when you plug it in. Although these settings may not affect your use of the OnBoard Travel Keyboard, if you switch to using the laptop computer’s built-in keyboard you may discover these changed settings are not how you want them to be. For example, you might type letter keys but find numbers appearing on the screen instead. This situation can also occur when you push a key such as Num Lock on your OnBoard Travel Keyboard intentionally and then the laptop computer keyboard also goes into that mode without you realizing it. If the laptop computer is not in the mode you want, normally you can change it by simply pushing a key on the laptop computer’s keyboard, such as the Num Lock key, to change the mode. Usually there is an LED on the laptop keyboard and/or an onscreen icon in Windows that tells you what modes the laptop computer is in. If you want to make permanent changes to the way the laptop computer responds to the plugging in of an external keyboard, contact your computer manufacturer or computer consultant for assistance in changing Windows registry settings. We recommend that you do not try to change any Windows registry settings on your own, as modifications could cause major and even permanent computer problems.

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