Thanks guys. I think the problem is solved. I dug out the keyboard that came with the computer. I plugged it into a USB 2.0 (not 3.0) in the back of the computer. Not sure if the port made a difference, but as soon as I started pressing DEL key the computer acknowledged it with beeps. Lo and...
My new computer arrived today.
iBUYPOWER Gamer WA563R7 Black Desktop PC with AMD Six-Core FX-6300 Vishera Processor, 8GB Memory, 1TB Hard Drive
It has an MSI motherboard 760GMA-P34 (FX)
I started it up, went through all the prompts to install windows 8.1. Got it to the desktop, installed VLC...