On 05/21/2013 08:01 AM, dep wrote:
> i only have trinity aboard. though i suspect that it is more likely an 
> X issue than a trinity issue -- no special reason for this belief, 
> though.

At this point it seems to me more like a hardware compatibility issue
between the USB keyboard adapter and the docking station.  Sometimes
perfectly good devices just don't play nicely together with certain other
devices in certain situations.  (This assumes the other USB keyboard adapter
you tried is identical, or at least uses the same chipset.)  If you can try
a real USB keyboard, or a USB adapter with a different chipset, I suspect
the problem may disappear.  Also, try a live CD of a different Linux --
different kernel, display manager, DE, etc. -- and see what happens.

-- 
PGP key: http://homestead-products.com/pubkey.htm