Fn-Key not working after booting with Knoppix 3.3 (Dell)

[thegrid]

Hi all,

Usually I work on WinXP or on Win2000 on my Dell Inspiron 8000. Since I ran Knoppix 3.3 from CD, the Fn-Keys on my notebook are not working any more neither in WinXP nor in Win2000.

Now, there are two possibilities:
1. The Fn-key is broken and the solution might be expensive
2. Knoppix somehow disabled the Fn-keys and the solution could be cheap.

I already updated the bios and surfed the web for hours to find a solution...

Does anyone know this problem?

Greez,
Marcel

[firebyrd10]

Chances are its 1.

Knoppix does nothing to the hard drive unless you tell it too and I've never heard of software ruining a peice of hardware like a keyboard.

[windos_no_thanks]

Chances are its 1.

Knoppix does nothing to the hard drive unless you tell it too and I've never heard of software ruining a peice of hardware like a keyboard.

Probably, but since it is a Dell you can't be sure. If any of the stories on this site about Dells not booting after a shutdown are true then their BIOS is complete crap. I'd consider disconnecting the battery and waiting 30 min or so. (and if that fixes it I would never buy another Dell )

[thegrid]

I just tried a keyboard test software, it displays every keypress exept of keys like [Prnt Scrn] or [Fn]

I let you know when I find out something more...

[thegrid]

Hi again,

Finally, I found out how to "fix" the problem. Just removing the battery for about half an hour helped... As far as I know does this reset parts of the flash bios.

When I started knoopix on the notebook again, it didn't happen again, so maybe I wrongly suspected knoppix to disable those keys. Nevertheless it happened at the same time as I started knoppix first, so who knows...

Anyway, the problem is fixed and I know what to do if it happens again.
And after all, knoppix is still a very fine and handy operating system

Greets from Switzerland,
Marcel