Subject: Re: Question...
To: Kelley Reynolds <schnozzy@verbotenplanet.net>
From: Ernst du Toit <et@houseofet.com>
List: port-i386
Date: 04/17/2002 07:43:37
Since the BIOS communicates with the micrcontroller in the keyboard as part of the POST, you'll need to 'fake' the acknowledge sequence of the keyboard probe.
Silicon Chip magazine in Australia (http://www.siliconchip.com.au) ran an article in it's Feburary 2002 issue on how to do this very simply... just strip the controller board out of an old keyboard and put in a small box. Crude but effective.
Maybe there is a 'dongle' made from a cheap PIC chip that can fake the keyboard probe. Not seen one yet though.
--et
On Tue, 16 Apr 2002 12:08:01 -0400
"Kelley Reynolds" <schnozzy@verbotenplanet.net> wrote:
> A bit off topic, but it's for a bunch of netbsd boxes on i386 machines, so
> it'll have to do. I got a bunch of Compaq's that won't boot unless a
> keyboard is plugged in. They are all PS/2. There is no option in the BIOS to
> ignore keyboard errors, and I want them to come back up by themselves if
> there is a power outage. Is there a way I can just toss a few wires into the
> PS/2 connector to short it and make the machine thing that a keyboard is
> plugged in?
>
> Kelley
>
>