Delay and rate of repeating keys can be adjusted using gnome-keyboard-properties. But when an external USB keyboard is plugged in, some default values are applied instead. I would expect that all keyboards always use the values set by the local user. --- Details --- The values are stored in gconf and can be get/set directly using "gconftool2" - there they do NOT change. On a lower layer the values can be read using "xset -q" - there they DO change (to delay=600 rate=25 for me). The change only affects the new keyboard. An internal laptop keyboard keeps its rate and delay. On numerous systems the values also change to default after resume from standby/hibernate. Looks like it occurs whenever a keyboard looses power for some time. The values do not change immediately upon plugin/resume, but after a few keystrokes on the new keyboard. When on a console screen (ctrl+alt+F1) "xset -q" does not show any changes until the screen is switched back to X using ctrl+alt+F7 (and a few keystrokes are done). --- Workaround --- See https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/xkeyboard-config/+bug/427168/comments/13 --- Related bugs --- On Launchpad this bug is discussed since 21.4.2009 and has already 5 duplicates (see URL above). On gnome.org I found 2 duplicates (see https://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=585222). It could be loosely related to or even caused by a fix of http://bugs.freedesktop.org/show_bug.cgi?id=10828. And it may lately get more attention due to https://bugs.freedesktop.org/show_bug.cgi?id=24336. Please consider to raise severity/priority of this bug. I left it default because I don't know yet what's common on freedesktop.org.
On gnome.org a promising fix is discussed. (see changed URL above)
whenever a keyboard is plugged in, it's a new device and thus takes the configuration X chooses (e.g. from the xorg.conf). If the configuration is changed at runtime, then that same client that changes it is also responsible for applying this configuration to new keyboards. So I'll have to close this as NOTOURBUG, this needs to be fixed in gnome. See also Oliver's comment #1 for the gnome link.
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