Keyboard Megathread

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Serious Hardware/Software Crap > Keyboard Megathread

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

I'm still rocking the age-old Logitech Internet Navigator. It's getting more and more yellow.

Some things I like about it:

1) Scroll wheel on the left - great for just browsing through long SA megathreads
2) Media control keys
3) Proper layout and space between keys
4) Wired - gently caress wireless input devices

Most of the shortcut buttons are pretty retarded (2000 internet boom thing), but it's just impossible to find a proper keyboard with a scroll wheel it seems :/.

Pilsner fucked around with this message at 17:19 on Aug 25, 2009

# ¿ Aug 25, 2009 17:16

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# ¿ May 2, 2024 18:31

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

weapey posted:

In all my time, I've managed to convince one person to get a mechanical, and that was to sell a broken mechanical I had so he got it massively discounted.

In my current office, they provide split Microsoft keyboards, and none of them would even consider 'regressing' to one of those "standard-layout, noisy overpriced keyboards" that this thread loves.

The noise is a factor to be considered for an office, though. I'd probably be pretty annoyed if my co-workers had a Model M or similar. Clak-clak-clak all day long.

# ¿ Jun 1, 2011 13:17

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

I'd like to go back to basics with a simple ol' style square keyboard (gently caress rounded Ctrl keys), but having a wrist rest of important due to ergonomics. Anyone got some good generic wrist rests? Preferably not gel, as I think it gets moist.

I've also read a tip from a guy who just used a rolled up towel. Anyone tried that?

# ¿ Aug 12, 2013 10:09

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

Nevermind, just found a great deal on two unused "new old stock" KeyTronic keyboards, WITH wrist rests.

They cost me about $30 for the pair.

Check out that lightning bolt spacebar. :rock:

# ¿ Aug 12, 2013 18:35

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

nftyw posted:

As much as I like the feel of Keytronics, just looking at that layout makes me want to choke someone. 99% of the time when I see a KeyTronic I think "Why can't they make a keyboard that doesn't have an unnecessarily large enter and tiny backspace like the rest of the civilized world?"

All Danish keyboards are like that, and I think also most other European. So, it's no problem for me, who has been used to it for decades.

It's rubber domed yeah, and I believe most if not all KeyTronics are rubber? It doesn't have the feel of a mechanical of course, but I can feel myself typing like a ninja on it, so I'm quite happy.

# ¿ Aug 13, 2013 07:33

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

As I now have no media keys, I wrote the following AutoHotkey script for adjusting volume and mute; which were the only media keys I used. Perhaps other goons can find it useful.

It binds Ctrl+Shift+NumpadPlus to volume up, Ctrl+Shift+NumpadMinus to volume down, and Ctrl+Shift+NumpadAsterisk to mute (toggle). Adjust as you please.

code:

^+NumpadAdd::
	Send {Volume_Up}
	Sleep 100
	return

^+NumpadSub::
	Send {Volume_Down}
	Sleep 100
	return

^+NumpadMult::
	Send {Volume_Mute}
	Sleep 100
	return

Another tip I can give is to set some global hotkeys in your media player (if it has such - WinAmp does, for example) for play/pause/stop.

# ¿ Aug 13, 2013 13:58

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

m3monster posted:

I also recommend the K70 it is the best built keyboard I have ever used. The only issue I have with it is that the extendable legs on the bottom do not have a rubber contact pad so if you use all 4 to make the board higher it will slide a slight bit. However, if you only use the 2 in the top to tilt it, it's not an issue.

Tip: Never tilt your keyboard (edit: towards you), it's horrible for ergonomics. If anything, it's preferable to tilt it forwards, like this:

http://jatinganhotra.com/images/Microsoft_Natural_Ergonomic_keyboard_reverse_slope.jpg

I gave that a shot for a while, although it had the unfortunate side effect of making my elbows sore - literally sores that never healed, because I was now resting my arms on my elbows.

Gonna end up a drat cripple from "keyboard hands". Anyone else suffering? I sit at the computer all day at work and also for quite some time at home.

Pilsner fucked around with this message at 07:28 on Aug 14, 2013

# ¿ Aug 14, 2013 07:22

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

404notfound posted:

I do like the profile, though, because it helps the arrow keys to stand out a little bit from the adjacent shift and delete keys. It can be especially annoying in Windows 8 now that hitting delete on a file to send it to the recycle bin no longer pops up a confirmation prompt. I'll be using the arrows to navigate a list of files and then fat-finger delete, and then I have to go into the recycle bin, sort by last deleted, and restore it. Hopefully this will help with that problem.

I really shouldn't be handing out advice to someone who buys a keyboard with non-standard placement of the ins/del/home/end/pgup/pgdn keys, :smug:

, but a tip: Hitting Ctrl+Z undos a recent file operation, such as having deleted a file. That'll save you from having to dig through the recycle bin.

# ¿ Aug 23, 2013 09:45

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

What's the point of a small keyboard though? Faster operation through less hand movement, or ergonomics since you can have the mouse closer to the keyboard? Just wondering. I feel utterly crippled whenever I have troubleshoot a laptop with ins/del/etc. spewn all over the right side of the keyboard.

# ¿ Aug 23, 2013 14:19

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

Agreed posted:

Man, the rubber domes on the K60 don't feel nearly as nice as the MX Cherry Reds, but they feel a ton better than the rubber domes on wal-mart special/el cheapo commodity OEM keyboards. There's obviously a range of construction quality in rubber domes, and apart from the MX Reds and Browns (and maybe Blacks as they're less likely to bottom out as easily) and for all I know anyway Topre I don't know of anything with that kind of soft-touch feel... What are some good rubber dome boards?

This is de facto the mechanical keyboard megathread, since they're becoming a real marketable item and are ultra nice, but I am interested in learning more about quality rubber domes. Surely they exist, even if they may not have the n-key rollover features or whatever. This is a bit hazy as it's been a couple years I seem to remember that apart from the weird layout issues my Microsoft Ergo Wireless Desktop 8000 (I think that's what it was, 7000 maybe) had a good feel to the keys. Any innovative or especially well done rubber domes?

I posted a bit ago about how I re-discovered the KeyTronic keyboards. I found two for cheap, and would you believe my luck; I just found another one in the trash of my apartment. It's a really good keyboard with a good feel.

I've used a Logitech Wave before that for a few years, and while it has an okay key key feel (the F-keys are really firm though), the layout stinks. Rounded keys and just-a-bit off placed keys for the sake of design can gently caress off. Never again.

# ¿ Aug 26, 2013 13:41

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# ¿ May 2, 2024 18:31

Pilsner: Nov 23, 2002

Robzilla posted:

So I have a Razer Tarantula that's pretty drat old and it's starting to show. Keys are starting to crap out on me so I think it's time to trade it in for a better model. I'm not touching Razer ever again, I've been a long time support of them for a long time, but I've been burnt to many times giving them a second or third chance.

I figure my choices are limited as I'm used to media keys and macro buttons. Honestly I could leave the macro's behind, not much of an issue.

So I am thinking about the K95 as it has all that I am used to. K70 comes in a very close second.

I would appreciate some other suggestions if there are any.

You can live fine without media keys. I recently ditched a Logitech keyboard with media keys for a regular old fashioned keyboard, and I just use a mix of Winamp global hotkeys and AutoHotkey macros (for volume control) for it.

# ¿ Sep 12, 2013 07:59

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Serious Hardware/Software Crap > Keyboard Megathread