> > Is it a bug or the nature of the beast that a PS/2 mouse plugged into a
> > keyboard PS/2 connector *prevents* the OS from booting?  (It gets up to
>
> This reminds me of something else related to mice and keyboards: my
> laptip has a keyboard and touchpad which are both functioning as PS/2
> devices. But there is also an extra PS/2 connector. Connecting a mouse
> or keyboard seems to do nothing at all, no extra device is detected. (It

Do you connect them before you boot, or after?  I don't know if it puts
undue wear and tear on the circuits to plug and unplug PS/2 stuff while
the computer is on, but I don't think that they will be detected unless
they are plugged in when the OS is booting and probing for devices.  I
don't think that NetBSD even sees the *port* if there's nothing plugged in
during device-probe.

I am pretty sure that this Just Works with at least one laptop I've tried.
(Under NetBSD.)

And, although my basis for this isn't very strong, I think that if you
have just one PS/2 connector, I'd start by assuming that it's a keyboard
connector rather than a mouse connector.  (Prior to USB, about the only
option going for an i386 laptop to have an external keyboard was PS/2.
But you could get *either* PS/2 or serial mice.  So...if the port really
cares what's plugged into it, and you have just one, I'd go with a
keyboard.)


  ``I probably don't know what I'm talking about.'' --rauch@math.rice.edu