Apple Wireless keyboard types incorrectly after power failure

[SBConsult]

Had a power failure and after the rebooting my iMac the Apple Bluetooth keyboard is now typing characters that I am not typing. Example. "Now is the time" shows up as "Nodw is thf timq". Happens in all apps. Paired the keyboard with my Apple Laptop and it typed perfectly.

So back to the iMac. If I log in remotely from a different device using TeamViewer QS it types perfectly. I'm thinking a corrupted driver? Bluetooth mouse works fine.

Ran maintenance routines with the Disk Utility, all fine. Google searched and deleted some "apple.com.HIT.plist files at the suggested by others, didn't help. Downloaded OnyX and cleared most all of the Cache files, still the same problem. My only thought left is to do a clean install of the OS.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!!!!

 

[Cory Cooper]

Hello and welcome.

Sounds like a corrupt preference file somewhere.

-What version of OS X?
-Have you tried unparing and re-pairing the keyboard?
-Do you have a USB keyboard you can try to see if it exhibits the same behavior?

C

 

[SBConsult]

Thanks C.

Yea, unpaired and re-paird with no luck. I was hoping it might be a corrupt Pref file as well, unpaired and deleted the Bluetooth pref files, still no go.

OS is 10.7.5 btw.

I cloned the hard drive with SuperDuper yesterday and think I will do a clean install. Can always revert back. BTW, I'm doing all this troubleshooting remotely for a friend... told them to go out and get an inexpensive USB keyboard. I would like to know as well if it acts up.... But it doesn't do it when I type from my side remotely. If it does act up with the USB keyboard that would be really weird.

 

[Cory Cooper]

Let us know if the USB keyboard corrects the issue. If so, then it is definitely a corrupt preference file.

Good move to do the clone...a clean reinstall and migration should fix the issue, unless it is within the user folder itself. Before going through all of that, have you tried creating another user and seeing if the issue persists when logged in it? That will determine whether it is a system-wide issue, or just with their user.

C

 

[SBConsult]

Let us know if the USB keyboard corrects the issue. If so, then it is definitely a corrupt preference file.

Good move to do the clone...a clean reinstall and migration should fix the issue, unless it is within the user folder itself. Before going through all of that, have you tried creating another user and seeing if the issue persists when logged in it? That will determine whether it is a system-wide issue, or just with their user.

C[/QUOTE
Thanks Cory,
Well in all my years of working with Macs I've never seen this before... After resetting the PRAM and SMC, reformatting the drive and performing a clean install the Bluetooth keyboard still acts up. (note, that's before restoring ANY user data.)

(FYI... I know the keyboard is fine after testing it on a different Mac.) My only guess is there is some type of hardware issue because all this started after a power outage. But I've never heard of hardware (bluetooth board?) being partially damaged? as the bluetooth mouse works fine.

So a new USB keyboard works fine and I told them to just use that instead. Since I'm doing all this trouble shooting remotely it prevented me from trying other things like hooking up a different bluetooth keyboard, etc. But they now have a working backup which they didn't have and are now running Yosemite with all its goodies vs Lion.

Thanks for all the suggestions!