Removing keyboard from Dell Latitude D510 - craack! Normal sound?

Hi all,

I'm trying to remove the keyboard from a Latitude D510. One of the steps is to remove the "Center Control Cover" by popping it from the right hand end. Dell say this:

But that's ALL they say!

Anyway, I started trying to lift it off carefully using a flathead jeweller's screwdriver in lieu of the plastic gadget I had which didn't seem to be working. And at one point I heard a horrible cracking sound. So is the cracking sound normal? (I found instructions for something I was doing with a Mac and they warned that the Apple instructions fail to point out that a loud cracking sound is normal and not something to worry about!) Also, can someone please give more detailed instructions of exactly how one gets this cover off, such as where to lever step by step.

Thanks!

 

Rather like taking off a bike tyre, then. Makes sense. I had a look at a few YouTube videos to see if there were any that at least gave me some idea of how hard to pull but most covers just seem to come off quite easily. Anyway, won't be necessary to find out on this one after all, I'm pleased to say.

We picked up two identical laptops a few days ago, knowing that one had a keyboard fault. (Nice and cheap though, especially now they both work. :-D) Based on the behaviour when we turned it on, son suggested an arrow key or the tab was permanently activated. Strangely, when the laptop had been on for a while, the problem went almost completely away and we pinned it down to the left arrow.

Thinking it might be some kind of electronic fault that was minimised by warming up properly, I was starting some part swapping to find the faulty component. However, my gut feeling was still saying something stuck under the key. It occurred to me to wonder if it was something like sugar that softened when warm and allowed the key to move more freely.

So the next day instead of continuing on with removing the cover, I had another try at popping off the arrow key which popped all right and shot across the room, along with white "crumbs" that I couldn't identify. Now that they're gone, the key works quite normally. I have no guesses as to what the crumbs were since anything like sugar would have left a residue and there wasn't one.

Odd story but telling it might help someone else in the future to work out they're facing a similar problem.

So, saved from having to remove the cover but if ever I find myself needing to do it and there's still no video for this model on YouTube, I'll make one and put it up.

Thanks for your time, Halo, and the reassurance that the "crack" wasn't something to worry about.