I know we have discussed cleaning stand alone keyboards before, but
how about notebook keyboards? Pam spilled a small glass of grape
juice on hers! She is getting unwanted 'sticky keys!'
Just so people know, the Lenovo (IBM) laptop keyboards (at
least, for the T-series Thinkpads I have experience with) can
take spills pretty well. My wife just spilled coffee and
cream into hers (cat jumped up to be petted) and had to tip
it over to drain. Yesterday. I wasn't around to help, but
came back home by car about 30 minutes after the event and
there was almost nothing to do. It's almost as though they
use a hydrophobic plastic. Just a few tiny, bunched-up
droplets under a few of the keys, when I got a chance to pull
off keys and look around. Everything worked before and after
I messed around with it.
Under the keyboard perimeter is a beveled lip that helps
direct any fluids out and away from sensitive areas
underneath.
I've often had to clean out cat/dog hair, dandruff, and other
dry accumulations, as well, in cases where a vacuum or duster
can didn't seem to deal with it well enough. And although
the mechanisms "look" to the eye to be tiny and breakable,
I've been lucky over this last decade or so using them (first
unit was a T20 and an A21, most recently two T510's) to never
break any of them. So I'm a believer in these laptops.
Also, just as an aside, Lenovo sells insurance on them. I
just purchased a T510 in late June and received it about 3
weeks later. Because I have a profoundly autistic adult
living with me and because she 'loves' laptops too much, I
also bought the extra coverage (no-fault.) Turned out, I
left my laptop on the (usually) unused side of the living
room couch while seeing my oldest son off, after he visited
us. Gone only 5 minutes, or so. But she'd been so happy
that she almost immediately went into the living room while I
was gone and started bouncing on the couch as she clapped her
hands. My NEW laptop was a causality, since it flipped over
flatwise and she must of sat on it while bouncing. Broken
screen. Bad news. I had a shipment box on my doorstep the
very next morning and a repaired unit back in my hands in
about 3 working days. I'm using it now. No questions, no
cost. Just fixed and back in service. The insurance cost is
about $50 per year and I picked up 3 years to start. I'm
told I can buy another two, later on. I'll probably pick
that up, as well, considering my situation. I know whose
getting the better deal!
I don't know where I can buy that kind of service, elsewhere.
If someone does know, I'm listening.
Jon
