Arg! Mini and Dell keyboard

[yippy]

I have a Dell USB keyboard hooked up to my Mac mini here at my work. However, for some reason, the mini refuses to recognize the num pad but if I connect the keyboard to a Dell in the office everything works.

Does anyone have any idea how to fix this? It is really frustrating because I want to enter a bunch of numbers to an Excel sheet and I can do it so much faster with the number pad.

Thanks

 

[Eniregnat]

Num(eric) Lock- is it on?

 

[yippy]

Sorry didn't make it clear, hitting num-lock does nothing.

 

[GilGrissom]

Strange. I've got a similar problem with an external USB num pad, my PowerBook doesn't recognise that either! Which is disappointing as it would be handy to have a num pad!

Maybe it isn't just the Dell keyboard, and maybe Macs liking num pads??

 

[jeremy.king]

Maybe it isn't just the Dell keyboard, and maybe Macs liking num pads??

Apple keyboards have num pads, so that can't be it.

 

[jeremy.king]

Try this to see if it helps.

http://doublecommand.sourceforge.net/

 

[iEdd]

I'd like to point out that I have a problem with the reverse. In virtual pc, my apple pro keyboard's num pad isn't recognised. Neither is the button on the scroll wheel of my mouse.

 

[kgarner]

Maybe it isn't just the Dell keyboard, and maybe Macs liking num pads??

I'm gonna have to vote for the Dell keyboard being the issue. I have a Viewsonic keyboard hooked to my Mini and everything works fine (aside from the loss of audio control and eject). It could be a screwy USB controller in the keyboard that isn't compatible with Apple's set of USB keyboard identities (or some similar techno babble).

 

[GilGrissom]

Apple keyboards have num pads, so that can't be it.

I meant non-Apple External USB keyboard (in my case, a numpad). I guess most work, I've just got an odd ball!!

Thanks for the link, but my num pad isn't even recognised, Mac OS X comes up with a window saying the "keyboard was not recognised and please push the button directly right of the shift to continue"...its a numpad...it doesn't have a shift button!! Only numbers etc!! Does Mac OS X simply not support these things?

I hope that link solves yippy's problem or drawns them nearer a solution.

 

[yippy]

Unfortunately it doesn't. The enter / * - + keys work on the numpad but not the numbers. I way trying it with keyboard viewer open and the computer doesn't even seem to be recognizing a key press when I hit them. Although every once in a while it will, like I just had the 5 key on the numpad act like F11 for a short time and then it stopped, really weird.