I work for an association that provides industry-relevant software to a few thousand clients. If they have any issues with software, or even just general IT problems, they call me and I assist.

This lady calls, I pick up and ask how I can help them. She was very nice and calm, but just kept saying “my computer is broken”. Despite the in-depth analysis of the situation that I received, I could not determine the root cause just yet.

After asking a few questions, I find out her keyboard is typing without her touching, like someone is holding the keys down. This is already about 5 minutes into the call, so I get to asking a few troubleshooting questions.

I start with the basics, then had to get more creative with ruling out other possibilities, like if she ever connected a second keyboard by Bluetooth.

“Nope.”

Have you spilled anything on the keyboard? Press the letter it’s typing and see if the key is sticky or has strange feedback.

“Ok one second, I have to take all this paperwork and files off my desk first. It’s completely burying my keyboard right now”