Beer + Keyboard = Bad
Beer and my Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 do not mix. Upon opening, a lively Samuel Adams poured all over my keyboard. Having spilled things on it before I figured that it would be ok. Unfortunately this wasn't the case. The keyboard now spontaneously types letters and keys like J and P now on occasions operate as Backspace. The keyboard was great to use and I'm hoping that once the beer has dried I will be able to use it again. Luckily I had an old Microsoft Natural keyboard that I can use but it's nowhere near as comfortable as the other one.
If it doesn't work, maybe I could splash out on one of the new wireless entertainment keyboards from Microsoft.
This has happened to me far more often than i could possibly count, and I always either take the keyboard apart and clean it, or I simply spray it with my shower head and let it dry. Just remember that if you just let the beer dry without rinsing it, the residue hidden behind the keys will make the keyboard unusable (STICKY keys!) :P
Posted by: Andri | Thursday, October 05, 2006 at 02:16 AM
WD40.
spray it with WD40 and it covers the surfaces of all the buzzing bits with a thin film of oil, thus preventing any potential oxidising agents in the brew from corroding it, and means that once the brew has dried out, the thing should work properly again... although admittedly that is bad science... I have a friend who's mobile phone went through the washing machine, she picked it out, and threw it away, her little bro found it immediately after (so very little time had passed between it getting wet and getting taken out of the washer and thrown out) and sprayed it, and it worked as well as it had before! score.
Posted by: hugh | Thursday, October 05, 2006 at 03:29 AM
Iwork for a computer regen place and some keyboards we get are more or less unuseable and we wash them and they work as good as new after there dried. hope ya get it fixed as i suposse microsoft stuff is expensive (damn you Bill Gates)
Posted by: Paul Harris | Thursday, October 05, 2006 at 08:45 PM
This morning the keyboard didn't work at all so as I've got nothing to lose I gave it a rinse under the tap. Hopefully after a few days drying it will work.
Posted by: Robert Gale | Thursday, October 05, 2006 at 10:17 PM
Hey Robert,
I work at MSFT in the Hardware group. The WED 8000 is not available yet but would you like me to track you down a new Ergo KB?
Posted by: MW | Thursday, October 12, 2006 at 01:30 AM
Did the shower help? I'm having the same problem right now and as I haven't got the slightest clue what WD40 is, I'm quite sure we don't have it in the house.
Posted by: iphi | Monday, October 30, 2006 at 11:56 PM