Basic Q: Mouse and KB in same port?

[crdean1]

I recently bought a powerbook and am running a single 7 port usb 2.0 hub. I have a card reader and mouse plugged nto it so far. When I went to plug my new apple keyboard into it, it said that the keyboard uses to much power and it won't work.

When I plugged the keyboard into the other usb port, it worked.

Can you notrun the mouse and keyboard in the same port?
Just curious.

Thanks.

 

[CanadaRAM]

There's a limit to how much power can be drawn from a single port, (500 mA at 5 V ) it looks like three devices (4 if you include the hub itself) exceeded that for you. I always use powered hubs (with their own AC adaptor) to avoid this problem.

The mouse can plug into the keyboard's USB-out port, obviously, so a mouse and keyboard are OK on a single port. It must be the card reader put it over the top, unless you have a non-standard keyboard or mouse.

USB Hubs
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=50468

USB FAQs (Series of 4)
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=30650

 

[crdean1]

The problem is...that I already have a powered hub. I tried unplugging everything else but the keyboard, and it is still doing the same thing....after some research, it looks as if I may have found the problem.

What do you think about this: Could it be that...since the (apple) standard keyboard has two usb ports on it, that the hub doesn't supply enough power to run those two ports. If so, then my error message would make since ("There is not enough power to run this device"). My keyboard works when I plug it into the pb itself, which leads me to another question.

Is there more power coming out of the usb port on my pb than the port on my hub, even though it has a seperate power adapter?

Anyway, thanks for your help, and more advice would be appreciated as I am just learning about this stuff. I think I will just sell the keyboard and get a bluetooth keyboard to avoid any further issues.

 

[bostonwhaler1]

If your hub is powered, this shouldn't be a problem. Does your hub have a switch anywhere on it? Most do, and the positions would be labelled "Self" and "Bus". The switch should be in the "Self" position to draw power from AC instead of the PB's USB port.

Just thought I'd throw that out there.

 

[crdean1]

Thanks boston, someone told me to look at this earlier. That may be the problem. I haven't checked on this yet. I'll post again after checking.

 

[bostonwhaler1]

No problem. Let us know!

 

[crdean1]

I came home to check it out, and there is no switch. Pretty weird. Anyway, I think I will just get a wireless keyboard, at least I can then use it on the bed or move it around easier on the desk. Plus, my wife will like it better. I hope there is nothing wrong with my hub. Even though it is seperately powered, it may not provide as much power as the single powerbook port to run those keyboard ports. Is that possible? Because I may run into this same problem when I plug in a printer, etc.