Trouble getting started with Raspberry pi

[vladektrooper]

This is my first time posting here, since I am a new Raspberry Pi user.

I recently got two Raspberry pi boards, and I have been trying to get one to work. I've scavenged parts to plug in to the board, and everything seemed to work except for the keyboard or mouse. The screen loads up, and the power is sufficient. I'm using the Wheezy raspbian disk image, and I can eventually see the first menu. I've tried various keyboards and none seem to work though. I checked the list of keyboard known not to work, and I am now using a "Wired 600 Keyboard" from Microsoft. The keyboard works fine on my MAC, but does not even light up the Capslock key when I plug it into the Raspberry pi. I tried using various keyboards, ranging from old mac to old PC keyboards, and none seem to work, even when I used my other raspberry pi.

What could be the problem, and what else could I do to get my keyboard issue fixed?

[texy]

Hi and welcome to the forum.
If you have tried 'various keyboards', it would seem that the keyboards are not probably the problem.
I would suggest that perhaps the power supply you are using is not quite up to the job - not supplying enough current to drive the Pi and the keyboard, etc
An alternative is to use a good quality powered USB hub.

Regards,
Texy

[toxibunny]

Yeah, it sounds like the power supply to me too...

[Spid]

I have had issues with various keyboards and mice over the last 8 months and recently purchased a F5u234 Belkin Powered USB Hub to replace my Chinese USB Powered Hub and Power Supply

http://www.belkin.com/uk/F5U234/p/P-F5U234 & http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Belkin-4-Port ... 1130805285

About £9.00 on Ebay and comes with a hefty 5V 2.1A Power Supply, which powers up the PI as well as a BT and WiFi Dongle, my wireless keyboard/mouse RF Receiver is plugged into the Pi.

[vladektrooper]

Right now, I'm using an AC Adaptor with an output of 5V and 1000mA. Is that enough current, or should I get a new power supply?

[Jim Manley]

Some power supplies aren't accurately rated - they may be able to deliver 5 V at minimal load, but the voltage can droop at full load. The only way to tell for sure is to measure the voltage across TP1 and TP2 (TP stands for "Test Point") on the Pi with all of the peripherals plugged in (including Ethernet, if used). If it's below 4.8 V, you're pretty much guaranteed at least intermittent trouble (e.g., the "repeating keys" syndrome), sometimes even when it's below 4.85 V.

Keyboards with backlighting and a built-in USB hub (pretty much most Mac keyboards and many fancy PC keyboards) are particularly problematic if you're not using an externally-powered USB hub plugged into a Pi USB port, so either avoid them or use a powered USB hub.