Problem: Sometimes continuously repeating keyboard input in Terminal or TextEdit

Hello, I got a problem after upgrading to Lion. When I type something into for example the Terminal app (or iTerm2) or into text editors like TextEdit, TextMate or MacVim all of a sudden the system keeps repeating the last key press.
For example I am pressing "g" and and the system keeps repeating this key and entering "ggggggggggggggggggggggggg..." and so on.
This can happen with any key, for example cursor up / down, enter or backspace.
I am using a 2008 MacBook Pro and an external USB Apple Keyboard (Layout: English / International) and Lion 10.7.4. So far these problems have only occured when I am typing on the external USB keyboard and not the build in keyboard.

Looks like this is the same problem:
https://discussions.apple.com/message/11412601#11412601
And I just tried what I read here: https://discussions.apple.com/message/15042907#15042907
Resetting all keyboard shortcuts to default so far has helped greatly. The only place where I was able to reproduce this problem now was in TextMate when I am pressing and holding cursor left or right.
And maybe I am imagining things, but scrolling and text input feels a little smoother now.

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Installed rdesktop - but keyboard input still goes to Mac Terminal??

My work PC has been "upgraded" to Windows 7 which made the Microsoft Remote Desktop Connection v2.0.1 stop working (it connects OK, I can login and see my work PC screen, but as soon as I try to do something I am "disconnected" from the PC). I can't install RDC 2.1 because I have a PPC G5.
So I searched for alternative remote desktop apps. Cord 0.5.0 crashes on my machine and 0.5.5 won't even start up.
I ended up installing rdesktop (www.rdesktop.org)
It looks promising - very fast, and gets me to my PC login screen. My mouse pointer can click on the screen buttons, but any keyboard input appears in my G5 Terminal window and is not sent to the Windows 7 PC. This makes it impossible to enter my Windows 7 password to login!
I'm sure this is a simple problem to solve but I have no idea on how to solve it.
Any clues appreciated. Thanks.

Try:
rdesktop -x m -r clipboard:"CLIPBOARD" -g 1280x1024 -u<username> <hostip>
I do recommend using ssh tunnel for RDP over internet. Is more secure and limits open ports to only ssh port in firewall.
There are instructions about on how to use cygwin with RSA key login, turn off ssh password login when working properly.

Repeating keyboard characters problem

Discussion got archived before I solved it. I have installed a Macally keyboard & solved my problem after 2 successive Apple keyboards demonstrated same issues. This matches with other users solutions to the problem.
Apple - you need to come clean or fix this problem - unless 100+ WPM is too fast for you.

definitely NOT just a bluetooth keyboard issue. I have the USB version of the thin apple keyboard, and I also get the repeated key issue from time to time. sometimes it happens once a day, other times it happens 10+ times an hour.
And it isn't just a single key repeat like ttime or appple, sometime it repeats whole strings like hellohello or startart.
i love the keyboard and so many people that come to my shop always take note about how cool it looks, but this issue is definitely a weird one.
And I don't even type 100+ WPM. I am very slow, and it still seems to do weird repeated key buffering. Very annoying when I am coding in PHP. I would rather the coding mistakes be ones I make, and not the keyboard.

Keyboard Input Output Problems on Mac OS X

Hey guys,
I'm at college studying Java, however my teacher and the rest of the class all use the Kawa IDE, I've been using Project Builder, provided with Mac OS X. Our tutor gave us a class made up of various methods which the college designed to handle keyboard Input and Output, however when I import it I get unpredictable results. I've put it online at: http://www.lostroom.co.uk/inout/
All I'm trying to do is run a simple program;
import InOut;
class CostReckoner
public static void main(String[] args)
// Declare the variables
int quantity;
double unitCost, basicCost, vatCost, totalCost;
double vatRate = 0.175;
// Input the number of items and the cost per item
System.out.print("What is the unit cost of the items?");
unitCost = InOut.readDouble();
System.out.print("How many items in the order?");
quantity = InOut.readInt();
// Calculate the cost of the order
basicCost = unitCost * quantity;
vatCost = basicCost * vatRate;
totalCost = basicCost + vatCost;
//Output the total cost of the order
System.out.println("Cost �"+InOut.format(basicCost,2));
System.out.println("Vat �"+InOut.format(vatCost,2));
System.out.println("Total �"+InOut.format(totalCost,2));
I seem to need to press space bar after I input anything, as it doesn't recognise "Return" without it. Any ideas ??
Strange thing is it seems to work fine on the PC Kawa IDE within college. Any advice you guys could offer would be really appreciated. Send me an email at: <[email protected]> if you can help.
Regards, Gareth

Hi thanks for your help, I tried compiling the code you gave me to read the streams, however I seem to be have problems with it.
ERROR
keys.java:18: unreported exception java.io.IOException; must be caught or declared to be thrown
n=stream.read();
HERE IS THE CODE I'M TRYING TO COMPILE
import java.io.*;
public class keys {
public static void main(String[]arguments)
BufferedInputStream stream = new BufferedInputStream(System.in);
int n=0;
while(true){
n=stream.read();
System.out.println(Integer.toHexString(n));
if (n==0x30) break;// this termination condition is optional
Any ideas ??

HT201109 When I download my Final Cut project onto a DVD 3-4 photos are continually repeated throughout the presentation. If played back via the computer there is no problem

When I download my Final Cut pro project onto a DVD about 3-4 photos are continually repeated throught the presentation. If I play back via the computer this does not happen. It is the same photos repeated. I have taken loop off from view. Any assistance ?

I have two projects one with DVD and photos and the other just photos. The DVD is 20 mins and the photos just 8 mins.
I have tried to burn from the share dropdown menu ( DVD ) in FCXP and also tried download to media browser then used DVD creator to produce the DVD but the problem exists with both actions. I deleted the repeated photos from the presentation but another 3-4 different photos repeat. I hope this makes some sense .
thanks salty777

Troubleshoot keyboard input problem

the right hand shift key, and full stop, have stopped working. When I attached a different apple keyboard the same thing happened to it. The only way I can get a full stop is with the numeric pad, and the only way to get shift is with the left hand shift key. Does anyone have a solution, please?

Well, the game is a bit big now, but the problem is definitely in the file GameBoard.java, and my source is:
http://userpages.umbc.edu/~cbutle3/space.zip
It is simply a Space Invaders Game. I have gotten almost everything working but keyboard input. I have it set up now so that the game even plays itself, cuz it doesn't listen to my button presses :)
I really want to add a KeyListener to the JPanel (the GameBoard extends JPanel) so that keyboard input is invisible, but it won't let me - says the GameBoard never has focus and just ignores it. So to get any key input to work at all, I temporarily added a TextField to the panel, and added the KeyListener to the TextField. That's part of the problem. And the main problem is that inside the "gameplay" loop, the KeyListener has no effect. I tried making a new class with a run(), putting the KeyListener in there and calling start() from the GameBoard, but it had the same outcome. Please help! :)
-chris

OSX/SL 10.6.8 all window apps lose keyboard input; mouse and cmd-N work for spaces

Input suddenly stops going to all applications, from MacBook Pro and wireless keyboards, and from "Show Keyboard viewer" (OSX 10.6.8 'Snow Leopard', MacBook Pro). Though the OSX Keyboard Viewer shows the keys onscreen as they are pressed on the MacBook and wireless keyboards. 'Spaces' responds to cmd-N commands, but no input is possible to any running or newly-started 3rd party or Apple-provided application. Killing off applications one by one doesn't recover keyboard input ability; a complete reboot appears necessary to restore the ability to key input into applications. This happens repeatedly, yet never registers as an OS/X 'crash' because 'Force Quit'ting applications and restarting is still possible using only the magic mouse or trackpad. No data whether only logging out and back in would correct the apparent input-focus disconnect of all applications with the window manager. There may be some way to restart the window manager by using the mouse to open up new apps and/or cut and paste characters ( including a carriage return ) or cut and paste entire saved typed commands into a terminal window.

Do a backup, using either Time Machine or a cloning program, to ensure files/data can be recovered. Two backups are better than one.
Try setting up another admin user account to see if the same problem continues. If Back-to-My Mac is selected in System Preferences, the Guest account will not work. The intent is to see if it is specific to one account or a system wide problem. This account can be deleted later.
Isolating an issue by using another user account
If the problem is still there, try booting into the Safe Mode using your normal account. Disconnect all peripherals except those needed for the test. Shut down the computer and then power it back up after waiting 10 seconds. Immediately after hearing the startup chime, hold down the shift key and continue to hold it until the gray Apple icon and a progress bar appear. The boot up is significantly slower than normal. This will reset some caches, forces a directory check, and disables all startup and login items, among other things. When you reboot normally, the initial reboot may be slower than normal. If the system operates normally, there may be 3rd party applications which are causing a problem. Try deleting/disabling the third party applications after a restart by using the application un-installer. For each disable/delete, you will need to restart if you don't do them all at once.
Safe Mode - About
Safe Mode

Keyboard input stops after a few characters

Suddenly, I cannot use Firefox 8.0.1. Keyboard input fails after a few characters. Sometimes (but not always), mouse input fails as well. The only button that works when this happens is the "X" (close program) button in the top right corner of the window.
The only things I changed recently were adding FlashGot and Windows Media Player plugins. Firefox worked after each installation and continued to work for at least a couple of days.
Did a complete removal including personal settings, clean installed 8.0.1 without any personal settings, but the problem persists.
I have no other keyboard or mouse input problems with any other browser or programme. (I am submitting this on Chrome browser, and everything is fine.)

Start Firefox in <u>[[Safe Mode]]</u> to check if one of the extensions or if hardware acceleration is causing the problem (switch to the DEFAULT theme: Firefox (Tools) > Add-ons > Appearance/Themes).
*Don't make any changes on the Safe mode start window.
*https://support.mozilla.com/kb/Safe+Mode
*https://support.mozilla.com/kb/Troubleshooting+extensions+and+themes

Maple13, tiling wm and keyboard input

Hi,
I am using a tiling wm (musca). I installed maple and at first had the problem, that maple would show only a grey window.
Using wmname and
wmname LG3D
I resolved the problem. Now the problem is, that the worksheets wont accept my keyboard input.
Mouse/menus work. All dialogs also work with keyboard input.
If I open a new worksheet, input works. But as soon as I switch worksheet it does not work anymore.
Anyone an Idea what I could do?
Thanks!
PS: I already tried sun jre (from pacman) and openjdk6 by changing the maple startup file. It's always the same

Depending in your window manager you may have the option to add a floating workspace. Try working there. If that doesn't solve the problem you can try runing an aditional floating window manager inside a Xnest or a Xephyr session. This has worked for me for some other problematic applications. For example try:
Xephyr -ac -br -host-cursor -noreset -screen 1280x800 :1 &
sleep 3
twm -display :1
this will initiate a new X session inside yours, which will be managed by twm. There you can run a terminal and of course maple. Maybe is a sub optimal workaround, but is the only alternative I have found.
(Note that Xephyr is found in xorg-server-xephyr package and twm, well in xorg-twm )

Solaris 10 8/07 Install hangs awaiting keyboard input

I have a W2100z Java Workstation that I am trying to install S10 8/07 on. When it first powers up, I get the standard bios prompts and can hit F2/F8 to customize things as I wish.
However, when I start the Solaris install from CD, after the OS installer is loaded, it first prompts for 1, 2, 3, 4, ... choices (1 being an interactive install). No amount of keyboard punching seemed to get it to make a choice. So after about 30 seconds or so, it times out and presumes interactive install.
After a bit, it loads a text-based window to let me choose a language. Just move the cursor around, select a language, and then hit F2 to continue. Unfortunately, it does not recognize any keyboard input and just sits there comatose for as long as I choose to wait.
So, perhaps I have a keyboard issue, so I swapped out a Kensington for a Dell keyboard. That didn't work so I acquired a Sun keyboard. That doesn't work either. I've also plugged the keyboard into every USB slot I could find (two on the front and 3 on the back), all to no avail.
Now, Solaris 11 from the SXDE has no problem booting and installing on this computer with all of those keyboards. Unfortunately, that is academic in that I need to run S10.
So what is the magic to getting the W2100z to boot/install Solaris 10?

After much gnashing of teeth and pulling of hair, I found an BIOS upgrade for the W2100z. The keyboard now is recognized and the bits are installing.

[Solved] Programs hang on keyboard input (uim-xim)

Update: I've narrowed the issue down (via trial and error) to uim-xim. If it's running, it causes this problem (in XMonad) and if it isn't, gnucash has no issues. Oddly enough, when I start uim-xim by hand after gnucash, it works fine too. Starting uim-xim by hand before gnucash results in the same issue, and so I'm inclined to believe it's either an issue with XIM implementation, or simply uim-xim. Might also be a mixture of XMonad and uim-xim, as it works fine in Openbox.
I've noticed lately that certain GTK programs (I'd list them, but I haven't paid close attention until today, where I was using gnucash) work fine until I try to input anything via the keyboard. The moment I start typing (or, at the latest when I hit the shift key or backspace key) the program will hang (without any error message). I originally assumed that this was an issue with the program - not my window manager. However, I tried one of the problem programs (gnucash) in Openbox today, and it works just fine. That leads me to assume it's caused by my configuration in some way. I have absolutely no idea where to start debugging this issue.
A bit of information:
I use UIM (in both openbox and XMonad with identical configurations), run a script for a Japanese date format in XMonad (piped to dzen), and load the same xmodmap file in both window managers. Also, I start all my window managers using CDM (Console Display Manager), but in the case of XMonad I supply a bash script instead of the binary, in order to preload certain files. Also, I use a german keyboard layout.
<I removed the rest of this post because it was long and, ultimately, irrelevant>
Last edited by lswest (2012-05-01 09:53:46)

spectater wrote:
Same situation, Confirmed here
I'm having the same problem with my laptop after upgrading to gnome 3 :
gnome-terminal , gedit can not accept keyboard input , lower case letters, enter , backspace and so on , but upper case letters are OK.
files can not be renamed with nautilus , also the find function affected in nautilus
while other programs such as xterm ,firefox , pidgin skype , thunar leafpad libreofficecan ...and so on work out of the box .
lower case & upper case letters all are not accepted well in my case.

International keyboard input

This is not really a problem, just wierd.
I have my computer set up for multiple languages for keyboard input. This works great for the most part, but occaisonally changes input langauge randomly.
I have only been using the standard American English method for some time, but it has recently switched to French, and U.S. Extended. This use to happen before when I switched back and forth. Sometimes an application would be using a different language than the O.S. Sometimes it would switch into Greeek, which I use very rarely.
On my last reboot, I found with a French Keyboard.
Is there any reason for this? Does this make any sense?

I need to use Bulgarian language. Whether be supported Bulgarian language in the future.

After update the latest iOS 4 my ipad screen sometimes continues moving

Why after update the latest iOS 4.3, my ipad screen sometimes continues moving and hard to chose or touch the keyboard or icon?

I have the exact same issue. The screen moves up and down just a little so the bars in the top left hand corner are almost hidden. And pressing icons does not work at times. Pressing buttons inside open apps does not work at times or takes forever to execute the command. Also, some apps freeze or open and then suddenly close. I updated all my apps to determine if the cause was an app that is not compatible with the new operating system. This did not work. Is there a way to update again? Could the problem be that the update was corrupted in some way? Any suggestions would be appreciated. It did not happen with my iPhone when I installed the update.

Multiple Keyboard inputs...

I've finished up a version of Pong for extra credit for a Java class i am taking, and i ran into an interesting situation.
I cannot figure out how to have a two player version of pong have both players control their paddles with the keyboard. The specific problem i run into is, when i enter one paddle to move, and the other attempts to move it stops the first paddle from moving, also there is the whole issue of the key delay that occurs when a key is held down. If anybody can help me out, i would be incredibly greatful.
It seems like it could possibly being done, for example, in games ive played before a character has been able in mid run(holding arrow key) press another key(such as shift) and jump into the air, while still running, to perform a run-jump.
I have tryed setting up a keyboard input test so if both keys are pressed both paddles move. This works for one movement, but have you ever tryed hitting two keys at once in word? they both will display once, their will be that short delay, then one of the two keys will continously repeat.
Any advice? I have it working with one Keyboard input, and the other Mouse input, but the mouse clearly has a big advantage over the keyboard player...
Thanks,
Sean Green

and the repeated key thing still happens as well as the delay....I guess you'll get this as long as you use keyTyped() for player1. Is
there some reason why you're doing this?
What I was thinking of was along these lines:boolean up1, up2, down1, down2;
keyPressedHandler()
    if key is w up1=true
    if key is s down1=true
    if key is up, up2=true
    etc
keyReleasedHandler()
    if key is w up1=false
    etc
drawingCodeOrWhereever()
    if(up1 && !down1) player 1 is on the way up
    (else) if(down1 && !up1) player 1 is on the way down
    if(up2 && !down2) player 2 is on the way up
    (else) if(down2 && !up2) player 2 is on the way downYou may want to handle the case of up and down both pressed
differently.
If getting rid of keyTyped() doesn't help, post some code. An example
simple enough to just show the problem woule be good. Say how
you would make a dot move left-right and up-down indepently.

Firefox not responding to keyboard input

I'm having issues with Firefox temporarily no longer responding to keyboard input.
I have two machines, both running Windows 7. On my laptop, I never have any issues but on my desktop, I find that Firefox sometimes blocks keyboard input. It will allow me to enter one character in any text field, and no more. Any further input is ignored. This applies to the address bar, the search box and any text fields in the displayed web page, in any tab. All keyboard navigation seems to also be ignored.
I've tried Reset Firefox and Safe Mode, they don't appear to change anything. I've also tried uninstalling Synergy and changing from my regular English-International keyboard layout to US English, but this still seems to occur. I am also running Workrave which can interrupt keyboard input, but since I can add 1 character, I suspect that Workrave is not the problem.
Sometimes it can seemingly be unblocked by pressing Start+F9, CTRL+SHIFT+ESC, restarting firefox or opening a new tab, but this seems to only be a temporary solution, the problem soon reoccurs. This bug has been present for some time, I first noticed it in v28 (although it may be even older), I am currently using v31.
One thing I've noticed is that it never occurs until after my screen has been locked at least once.
The trouble-shooting information attached will not be entirely accurate because I'm using my laptop to type this - Firefox is not accepting keyboard input right now on my desktop! However, the two environments are similar.
Thanks, Tadhg

Some have reported that pressing F9 and the Windows key simultaneously one or more times has worked to fix issues with the keyboard not working.

Problem: Sometimes continuously repeating keyboard input in Terminal or TextEdit

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