Strange vnc keyboard problem - only alpha keys not working

[Grant McDorman]

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Sound suspiciously like a keymapping problem. Make sure you don't have
anything doing an xmodmap on the server (look for .Xmodmap). Also look
at the output of xmodmap and compare it with a working (or untouched)
Xvnc server. (Check both the keymap - xmodmap -pk - and the modifier map
- - xmodmap -pm).

FYI, for and old version of Xvnc the modifier map should look like:
xmodmap:  up to 4 keys per modifier, (keycodes in parentheses):

shift       Shift_L (0xa),  Shift_R (0xb)
lock
control     Control_L (0x8),  Control_R (0x9)
mod1        Meta_L (0xc),  Meta_R (0xd),  Alt_L (0xe),  Alt_R (0xf)
mod2
mod3
mod4
mod5

and some signficant keys should be
~      8         0xffe3 (Control_L)
~      9         0xffe4 (Control_R)
~     10         0xffe1 (Shift_L)
~     11         0xffe2 (Shift_R)
~     12         0xffe7 (Meta_L)
~     13         0xffe8 (Meta_R)
~     14         0xffe9 (Alt_L)
~     15         0xffea (Alt_R)


Peter Fales wrote:
| A user reported a strange problem with keys not working using the windows
| viewer.   When she connects to the server some keys are sent, but
| other keys are ignored.   The keys that don't work are the regular
| alphabetic and numeric keys.  However, control keys work, as do arrow
| keys and function keys.
|
| When we run "xev" on the server, no events are reported when, for
| example the "A" key is pressed.  But if the control key is held
| down, then the "a" keypress is reported.
|
| The problem does not seem to be on the server, as it works just fine
| when we connect from other PCs or Unix viewers.   And there is no other
| evidence of any hardware problems on the PC.
|
| Any ideas?   If it matters, the PC in question is a Sony Vaio notebook,
| model PCG-Z505JSK
|
| We've tried VNC viewer 3.3.7, and 4.0 (and even TridiaVNC) - they all
| show the same problem.
|
| Thanks,

- --

Grant McDorman <grant.mcdorman "at" cedara.com>, Sr. Software Design Consultant
Cedara Software Corp.  <URL:http://www.cedara.com>
~  (formerly I.S.G. Technologies Inc.)
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada

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