Cannot get rid of the On Screen Keyboard and will not read USB memory sticks

[Ronald Kunce]

I currently purchased a high-end 1-TB Surface Book with Windows 10. As a Visual Studio developer who knows my way around most Windows implementations, I am disgusted with how ordinary properties and options have become so obfuscated with this system. Two major issues are that

1. with the included Keyboard attached, I cannot seem to get rid of the On Screen Keyboard (OSB), even after following every instruction I could find. This is riduculous! Microsoft should have a default action that automatically detects the external keyboard on start up and any time there is a call-back or other action that would prompt the appearance of the OSB and block it entirely. It is a real nusiance having to constanly close the OSB display.

2. The Surface Windows 10 implementation will not show a memory stick or its contents in the file manager or device manager, when plugged into a USB port. This should also be a default action no matter if it's a USB-2 or USB-3 port. A Bing search, revealed that the USB drivers must have been installed incorrectly and suggested uninstalling the drivers and reinstalling them. I tried this and wound up with an uninstall of the Generic USB driver caught in an endless loop that could not be interupted or canceled. After running for over 24 hours, and not being able to use the camera or the external keyboard, I finally had to just do a full power-off and re-boot. At least that automatically reloaded the drivers, but did not resolve the inability to read and load from a memory stick.

Please explain how to fix these issues without having to resort issue resolutions from several years ago, using properties and options that are wholly different than used in the new profile!

 

[Yoosuf Belal]

Hi, I also have a 1TB Surface Book with similar problems with the USB. I just did a hard reset of the Surface Book and the USB slot worked just fine after. Remember to back your files up before doing a hard reset as it will wipe your Surface. Doing a hard reset fixes many errors and bugs, this could solve your keyboard issue too.

As for your keyboard problem I have not got the problem. Therefore, I advice that you should go in to your local Microsoft store and try get it sorted or get a replacement.

 

[olyar15]

The on-screen keyboard should have an "x" on the top right of the keyboard. Operates just like any other window. Also, with the base attached, pressing any key on the keyboard should make the on-screen one disappear.

As for the USB stick, is it possible that the memory stick itself is defective or possibly improperly formatted?

 

[Ronald Kunce]

Thanks. I have resolved to USB memory stick issue following cold-boot and it now works correctly. I am well aware of the 'X' in the upper right corner and constantly am invoking it with pen, mouse, or finger. It is a nuisance! With external keyboard attached, it should be detected and the OSK disabled. I've only had it for a few days and did not notice that using any key on the attached keyboard closes the OSK window. It is always in the way of other windows. Like most people, I do not start typing on the keyboard until I can see where I am entering my keystrokes.

The task bar has a selection icon for the OSK, therefore it should not always keep popping up until actually needed by using the task bar selection. Is there any way to permanently disable it?

 

[zerospace-net]

My experience is that the USB hub in the Surface Book's keyboard is... shaky at best. The keyboard itself connects to the tablet via USB. I've had issues with it from day one last October, and continue to have odd issues from time to time even today (my keyboard will sometimes cut out off and on after resuming from hibernation, sometimes ending in a "usb device malfunction" error). Functionality is only restored when I detach the tablet from the base and re-attach, or reboot.

Whenever you have a problem with USB on the SB, always try a reboot or cold boot first. That usually solves it, but the fact remains that these issues just should NOT exist in a machine as pricey as the SB. This is probably its biggest remaining issue to this day.

 

[Ronald Kunce]

I understand that the external keyboard uses an USB connection as do the Cameras among many other things and that USB's are prone to get hung-up on occasion. What I want to know is how can I permanently disable the "On Screen Keyboard" or OSK (the original post some how used the term OSB instead of OSK but for some reason I cannot edit it with this sites built-in editing function).

 

[zerospace-net]

You shouldn't see the on-screen keyboard if you're in desktop mode unless you specifically toggle it from the system tray unless the system is not recognizing the physical keyboard (this happens to me sometimes when I first wake my SB from hibernation and the keyboard drops out at the same time as Windows Hello decides not to recognize me, thus the OSK pops up so I can type my PIN).

I honestly don't know why you'd want to do this on a machine that has touch so deeply integrated like the SB, but have a look at the following article:
How to Permanently Disable The Touch Keyboard In Windows 8 and 10