1-18
There are two types of Hewlett-Packard keyboards available for use
with your workstation. They are the following:
•PS/2 Keyboard
•ITF Keyboard
CAUTION: Use only devices that conform to the HP HIL
specification with Hewlett-Packard computer
systems. Devices that are not HP HIL compat-
ible but have similar connectors may appear to
be compatible, but will damage your system.
Keyboard Differences
Aside from the obvious difference in the appearance of the PS/2 and
ITF keyboards due to the arrangement of the keys, there is also a dif-
ference in the keys and their output codes. For example, some keys on
one keyboard may not exist on the other keyboard. These keys gener-
ate codes that may not exist as output from the other keyboard (or
may be generated by a different key). Codes that are generated when
a key is pressed are called keycodes.
Some applications expect to use keycodes generated by keys existing
on one of the keyboards (the ITF keyboard for example). Since the
keys do not exist on the other keyboard (the PS/2 keyboard for exam-
ple), an accommodation must be made if the PS/2 keyboard is to be
used. In most cases, it is still possible to use some other key that is
equivalent (generates the same keycode from a different keycap). To
do this, it is necessary to know which keys are equivalent on the two
keyboards. Table 1–3 compares the equivalent keys of the ITF and
PS/2 keyboards.
NOTICE: Keyboard keys not mentioned in Table 1–3 are
the same on both keyboards.
Keyboards