The question is self-explanatory. I've noticed that some buttons of my keyboard have started gathering grease (possibly from natural fluids) and start gleaming, so I am wondering if there's a certain liquid or cloth that I can use to wipe them clean.

Naturally I am very reluctant as I do not want to think of liquid stuff falling on my keyboard and destroying it (although once I spilled olive oil and tomato on a keyboard and it still works just fine).

Take off the keys and clean them separately from the keyboard unit. I don't know what natural fluids you're talking about and frankly, I don't care.

I can't. It's a laptop and I'll have to unscrew stuff to actually remove the keyboard, and I don't really trust my workmanship.

You *can* take apart the keys. Just yank them off. Unless it's one of those Macbook ones where it's basically embedded with the unit.

Change your diet

It is embedded unfortunately. I was wondering if alcohol and a couple of good wipes or anything like that may do the job?

I laughed.

Haha, very funny.

Yes, use isopropyl alcohol. Don't just pour it out like Gazza at Euro 96 though, use a really thin cloth - or better yet, those cotton buds.

Use the disinfectant wipes, and curl them around toothpicks for those hard to reach places, like between the keys.

Alternatively, use a flame thrower. It's the only way to be sure.

Using an appropriate cleaning fluid (for the type of the dirt and the material your keys are made of) shouldn't put your laptop at risk as long as you're careful. Don't spray fluids at your keyboard - instead, spray them on a piece of cleaning cloth, and use that to rub the keys clean. Don't make the cloth soaking wet, try a small amount of fluid first and only increase it if necessary. Obviously, turn the machine off and remove the battery before doing so. For increased security, wait 2 hours before re-inserting the battery; even if a small drop of fluid managed to squeeze itself into a position where it could cause trouble, it should have dried up by then.

In general, as long as a bit of common sense is applied, the risk of destroying a laptop by cleaning the keyboard is smaller than most people think. Nevertheless it's good to be careful. Some of the advice I gave above is like the typical advice "ground yourself before touching electronic parts" - in 99,9% of cases nothing happens if you don't do it, but for the 1-in-a-1000 case of bad luck, it's still a good idea to perform this basic precaution.

Edit: Also, when using a cleaning fluid for the first time, I recommend to test it with the maximal amount of pressure you're planning to apply, on a safe spot of the laptop surface that doesn't immediately strike the eye, and then test it on a non-important key. Again, this precaution usually isn't necessary, but there are combinations that can damage the upper layer of the case painting and/or the color of the characters printed on the keys, especially if cheap materials were used. Since it's practically no additional effort to perform the test procedure I just described, I recommend to apply it.

Are you sure that it's grease and not that you've simply polished the keys from lots of use? On all of my keyboards the lesser-used keys have a bit of a pebbly surface, whereas WASD, for example, are worn smooth and shiny.

http://www.ehow.com/how_4869670_remove-laptop-keyboard-keys.html

Here's a nice guide to getting those keys off. You would be amazed at how much dust and gunk get stuck under the keys, especially if you snack and play! So yeah, all laptop and keyboard keys can be removed, cleaned, and replaced, though some models are more forgiving than others :(

You would also be amazed at how much of a pain in the azz some are to put back on. Really, you will get to a stage where it doesn't bother you so much. The keyboard and mouse are tools. As such tools do get dirty. Why should I wash my Jeep when I'm just gonna get it muddy again? My keyboard and mouse are pretty much the same. Don't worry about it a little olive oil or grease. It's probably helped keeping the keys nice and lubed anyway. So, you're really doing yourself a favor not to clean it. Why mines full of all kinds of stuff. I will take it to the car wash eventually....

So this is you? ;)

Great picture btw. :)