Bluetooth Problems
Bluetooth keyboards can be nice: you eliminate a bunch of wires. Or you can connect to devices you couldn't connect to otherwise, such as my iPod Touch. The keyboard I use with my Mac Mini uses Bluetooth, but it is a full-sized keyboard. I wanted something portable.
I got a Zippy keyboard through Amazon. It works, for the most part. But connecting anything Bluetooth to the iPod Touch can be a problem because the Touch lets other machines steal its peripherals.
The initial connection involves turning on both the computer and the keyboard, pressing the reset button on the keyboard and then entering the four-digit number that displays on the computer. The trouble is that the Mac Mini remembers the connection and the Touch forgets it as soon as it is turned off.
I have the Mini set up at the rear of the house, towards the east. I want to use the iPod Touch in the living room, at the west end of the house. This is close enough for Bluetooth signals, so, as soon as I turn on the keyboard, the Mini takes it over even though the Mini has its own Bluetooth keyboard.
I have told the Mini to forget the Zippy, which works for a while ... until I receive a software update for the Mini. Then the Mini discovers the Zippy and takes it over again. I have to turn it off at the Mini.
I have a similar problem with my Bluetooth headphones, the Touch and my ASUS Transformer Android computer: I would have to tell the Touch to connect to the headphones but the ASUS grabs it as soon as I turn it on. I have to tell the Transformer to forget the headphones before I can use them with the Touch. This is annoying because I like to listen to music on my Android and either watch movies or listen to music on the Touch.
Today I had an additional problem with the Zippy: two keys stuck. The F8 and F9 keys stuck (I never use them anyway), causing any key I did press to repeat continuously until the keyboard was shut down. The problem went away when I used a knife blade to pry the stuck keys up.
I can almost touch type on the Zippy: I have to watch what I'm doing to hit the right keys. Mostly, I'm happy with it, despite its minor problems.
Posted via LiveJournal app for iPhone.
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