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My motherboard doesn't even have serial or parallel ports you insensitive clod!
 
... I suppose I could use one of these...

if you can't hack it, there's the camera connection kit and something like this... so long as it doesn't need drivers.

The only thing here is that you can not plug your speakers into the airport express.

USB speakers?

http://www.usbgear.com/USB-Video-Card.html

"led most of us to believe"

People pointed out that this is just a prettier version of an optical mouse with trackball scroller, and similar to IBM's Scrollpoint mouse.

The notion of hiding multiple mouse buttons under a seamless cover in order to give Mac users the option of using multiple buttons without changing the appearance of a single button mouse has also been proposed multiple times on Slashdot, in particular for Powerbooks.

So, yes, you have another instance in which Apple marketing is a little too glowing and the actual product is just a prettier version of a standard PC product. But, hey, that's not bad: Apple's mouse is nice looking (but, then, it's also three times as expensive as the plain, functionally equivalent alternative).

You can get a USB Mic/Speaker plug:
http://www.usbgear.com/usb-audio-adapter/usb_audio _blaster.html

or just put a stereo mini-pin splitter on your mic and spk out so you can plugin your speakers:
http://www.radioshack.com/product.asp?catalog_name =CTLG&product_id=274-894

(you can get them cheaper than the shack, but it's easy to find there in a pinch)

Use the Full-Duplexing capabilities of the USB 5.1 Channel Audio Adapter to record and play back without the use of a PC sound card! The USB 5.1 Channel Audio Adapter provides exceptional stereo performance with it's standard input / output connectors. Connect to the most popular audio equipment such as microphones, home stereos, musical instruments, and powered speakers through your USB capable computer.

Much to my surprise, I find myself seriously considering buying one of these $500 Macs.

I have wanted a Mac since I got to use one of the originals which was on display at Science North in Sudbury, Ontario the summer after their commercial release in 1984.

Price has always been the major sticking point. When I was thinking of upgrading my Commodore 128, I had a few choices. In the Time Before the Internet (for us home computer users), I wrote Apple and got brochures back for their two new models, the Mac SE and the Mac II. According to the price list that came with them, the cheaper Mac SE cost more than three times as much as a similarly equipped Commodore Amiga or Atart ST. Remember, all of these computers were roughly equivalent at the time.

In the 1990s, I started buying the horrid, commodity IBM PC clones, starting with 486s, and I have not changed since then. If Apple were to release a cheap Mac, I would be seriously tempted to buy it.

Why? Because my recent brushes with Apple hardware and software have been positive. I used iTunes on my PC to convert my CD collection to MP3s. Later, I bought a used 10GB second-generation iPod, and have been pleased with it too. After the front-page articles on Slashdot, I even have downloaded and run Mac OSX on my 2.5GHz 32-bit PC using Pear PC. The emulation was slow (the two times I tried it), but it did give me some idea of what a Mac is like.

So, now to my question: I have a favourite keyboard, an IBM Model M. What kind of keyboard port is standard on Macs these days?

From my limited knowledge, I would guess that this new headless Mac would take a USB keyboard, in which case I would need some kind of USB to PS/2 converter.

Does anyone have any experience with present-day Macs using IBM PS/2 keyboards?

This one: http://www.usbgear.com/USBG-OTG1.html actually isn't USB HDD case, but kind of bridge for transferring files between USB mass storage devices.

A lot of similar devices popped up in recent months. And I really mean a lot. Maybe not all of them are powered by AA batteries, some have Li-Ion rechargable battery, some have bundled power adapter. I did a bit of research on this some time ago, here's list of already available devices (as opposed to the one from story, which will be available in mid Jan only):

http://www.macally.com/new/new_syncbox.html, review of this product.
http://www.macally.com/spec/usb/input_device/table ts.html - "coming soon"
http://www.delkin.com/pdf/product_docs/usb_bridge. pdf
http://www.usbgear.com/USBG-OTG25.html
http://www.sarotech.com/cgi/main_eng.cgi?cmd=cutie dx_e
http://www.welland.com.tw/html/otg.html
http://www.welland.com.tw/html/otg/940otg.html
http://www.sitecom.com/index.php?prod_id=308&grp_i d=1
http://www.usbgear.com/USBG-OTG1.html
http://itsupplier.trustpass.alibaba.com/offerdetai l/12276816/Sell_font_color_red_Otg_font_Enclosure. html
http://www.globalsources.com/si/6007000637244/Prod uctDetail/Flash-MP3/product_id-1000452775/action-G etProduct.htm

Make your pick. But remember that some USB devices (like flash drives) are powered through USB port directly, so USB On-the-go host is supposed to provide power both for embedded hard drive and whatever you attach to it. Think about it when buying device powered by AA batteries - they may be not enough for some power-hungry USB appliances, microdrive-based "flash" drives are coming to mind here.

A lot of similar devices popped up in recent months. And I really mean a lot. Maybe not all of them are powered by AA batteries, some have Li-Ion rechargable battery, some have bundled power adapter. I did a bit of research on this some time ago, here's list of already available devices (as opposed to the one from story, which will be available in mid Jan only):

http://www.macally.com/new/new_syncbox.html, review of this product.
http://www.macally.com/spec/usb/input_device/table ts.html - "coming soon"
http://www.delkin.com/pdf/product_docs/usb_bridge. pdf
http://www.usbgear.com/USBG-OTG25.html
http://www.sarotech.com/cgi/main_eng.cgi?cmd=cutie dx_e
http://www.welland.com.tw/html/otg.html
http://www.welland.com.tw/html/otg/940otg.html
http://www.sitecom.com/index.php?prod_id=308&grp_i d=1
http://www.usbgear.com/USBG-OTG1.html
http://itsupplier.trustpass.alibaba.com/offerdetai l/12276816/Sell_font_color_red_Otg_font_Enclosure. html
http://www.globalsources.com/si/6007000637244/Prod uctDetail/Flash-MP3/product_id-1000452775/action-G etProduct.htm

Make your pick. But remember that some USB devices (like flash drives) are powered through USB port directly, so USB On-the-go host is supposed to provide power both for embedded hard drive and whatever you attach to it. Think about it when buying device powered by AA batteries - they may be not enough for some power-hungry USB appliances, microdrive-based "flash" drives are coming to mind here.

from Linux1394: What exactly is IEEE 1394? It is a serial bus similar in principle to USB, but runs at speeds of up to 400 Mbit/s and is not centered around a PC (i.e. there may be none or multiple PCs on the same bus). It has a mode of transmission which guarantees bandwidth which makes it ideal for digital video cameras and similar devices.

from Linux-USB:The specification (version 1.0) was first released in January 1996 and the latest official version 1.1 was released in September 1998 The document is still under development and a version 2.0 was announced in 1999. The USB is strictly hierarchical and it is controlled by one host. The host uses a master / slave protocol to communicate with attached USB devices. This means that every kind of communication is initiated by the host and devices cannot establish any direct connection to other devices. This seems to be a drawback in comparison to other bus architectures but it is not because the USB was designed as a compromise of costs and performance. The master / slave protocol solves implicitly problems like collision avoidance or distributed bus arbitration. The current implementation of the USB allows 127 devices to be connected at the same time and the total communication bandwidth is limited to 12Mbit/s. Howewer use of low speed devices, management of USB "interrupts" and other overheads mean that actual throughput cannot exceed about 8.5Mbit/s under near ideal conditions, and typical performance may be around 2Mbit/s.

finally, for the speed of USB2, check out any one of numerous product descriptions such as this one:USB 2.0 runs at up to 480 Mbits/sec.

Hmm, with http://store.yahoo.com/pckeyboards/cus101usenon.ht ml and http://www.usbgear.com/usa/item_92.html

(which I found separately after scouring the comments here)

I think I can assemble the perfect keyboard. I suppose I should try the ps2->usb adapter that came with my mouse, but it seems that there might be more to it than that... if it doesn't work, I'll just order the adapter thing from usbgear... yay! With the adapter, it ends up being about $75 per keyboard, though. :|

-If

Have you counsidered a USB to PS/2 keyboard adapter?

I think he was infering to use something like this USB to Serial Adapter

How about using the USB ports for audio? You probably don't want a cheap pair of USB speakers, but perhaps just a box you can hook up from USB to your amplifier. A quick web search found one but of course I have no idea if it meets your quality needs. If this works, you could use any laptop with decent USB.

Perhaps you could get a small computer that has a PCI slot, such as a Shuttle SV24. Get a flat-screen display and a small keyboard and mouse, and then stick in your choice of high-quality PCI-based sound card. This plus a couple of carrying cases would be about as functional as a lunchbox portable, and a heck of a lot cheaper.

Good luck.

steveha