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The Best Keyboards For Every Occasion
ThinSkin writes "ExtremeTech has written an article on the best keyboards in every category, such as gaming keyboards (macro and hybrid), media center keyboards, keyboard gamepads, and so forth. Of course, the big companies like Microsoft and Logitech dominate these lists, while smaller companies like Razer, Ideazon, and others play an important role as well."
The IBM Model M
"When life gives you lemons, don't make lemonade. Make life take the lemons back!" -- Cave Johnson
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Model_M_Keyboard - About the keyboards. http://shop.ebay.com/items/?_nkw=model+m+keyboard&_sacat=0&_fromfsb=&_trksid=m270.l1313&_odkw=model+m&_osacat=0 - Ebay availability http://www.clickykeyboard.com/ - Used Model M Retailer http://pckeyboards.stores.yahoo.net/keyboards.html - Unicomp Model M Keyboards (using the same machinery that made the originals)
I explain it by the fact that not everyone likes 'clicky' keyboards. Personally, I prefer to have a light-touch keyboard that I can feel the key hit the bottom of the stroke, but makes no noise doing so. It should have a little tension, but not so much that I have to work at hitting the keys.
And yes, I'm talking about office work (programming, emailing, document writing, etc in this case) and not gaming.
"If you make people think they're thinking, they'll love you; But if you really make them think, they'll hate you." - DM
The link brought a two paragraph page, designed not for useability but for page views. If a TECH publication can't do something as simple as designing a useable web page, it has no credibility with me whatever.
C|NET was always bad about this, too. Do they still use this incompetent madnes? Whatever these sites are paying their webmasters and visual designers, they're getting ripped off. The site is simply shoddy.
Lastly, does anyone have a link to a "printer-friendly" (i.e., human useable) version?
Free Martian Whores!
7. Can be used to club burglars into submission.
Sure, the act of bludgeoning another person with a Model M will probably be quieter than actually typing on the damn thing, but such is the price of home security.
Oh, and almost forgot:
8. Reduces instances of cat-on-keyboard syndrome. They'll either weigh too little to depress the keys, or the sound of the spacebar going off like a gunshot will probably traumatize them enough that they won't try it again.
Integrated audio chip might annoy those with speaker setups
What? How? Does it force you to use its own audio?
Short of hotkeys.
Ok, first of all, does anyone here find the "Home Page" key to be useful?
Alright, I can see the point of things like volume keys. What I don't see is why it's so hard to map some unused keystroke to those anyway. I tend to map various global keystrokes with the Windows key to Amarok.
Also, WTF is a "Gaming keyboard"? Last I checked, most games are built to respond to keystrokes on a normal keyboard. As for macros, why not do it in software? If it's to foil the game's anti-cheat mechanism, wouldn't this then be considered cheating? Is WASD really that hard to use?
The media center keyboards I can kind of see, but really, it's not that difficult to just use any wireless keyboard (why do you need integrated tracking?) and learn keystrokes, or use a good old-fashioned infrared remote.
As for "clicky" keyboards, at least you've got a valid reason for those -- personally, the keyboard I'm fastest with is Apple's aluminum keyboards (I prefer the wired version), which cost me $50. Most of these are much more than that, even one of the "gamepad keyboards". I just wish someone other than Apple would make one, so I could have an insert key, and not have to swap command/option.
Don't thank God, thank a doctor!
I've been using a Kinesis Advantage keyboard for several years now and I have to say it's probably one of the best out there, specially if you have issues with RSI.
I ended up getting two; one which I leave at home on my workstation, and one that I have at work.
Programmable, very good tactile feedback (almost as good as the Model M), can be switched to Dvorak, and their support staff is phenomenal.
It will take you maybe a week or so to get accustomed to the key positions, but once you get the hang of it, you'll never go back.
If you're in the market for a good keyboard that will last you years, definitely have a look at these. They're a little pricey (about $300 or so, depending on the model), but they'll be the best money ever spent on a keyboard.
"We'll need 2000 crickets, 4 cans of Easy Cheese, and the fluid from 18 glowsticks for this plan to work...." - ph0n1c
I then take that keyboard, and remap the capslock key to be a second control key. After all, when was the last time you needed to use capslock? Never.
You must lose a lot of your internet debates.
I've heard a lot of people on slashdot say the model M is awesome, but why? Supposedly annoyingly loud clicky noises are... good?
I agree with these people. The reasons are:
1. Durability. The keyboard is built using the design principles first worked out during the construction of the pyramids. It contains lots of metal. In a pinch it can be used to deflect RPGs. The key switches do. not. wear. out. ever. because they are based on a mechanical switch with a 10,000,000,000 activation duty cycle where the standard rubber dome design is good for at best 100,000 activations. The standard rubber dome designs also become squishy and unreliable with age. Model M keys work the same way always.
2. Ease of maintenance. Easily disassembled and cleaned of foreign debris. Nose hairs, Cheetos, Pepsi, spray from food fights not a problem. If you should spill Pepsi into it, disassemble and cycle in the dishwasher and you are good to go.
3. Tremendous tactile and auditory feedback. There is no doubt that you have completed a keystroke. Yes, I can see where the person you are sharing your cubical might not like this but that is a sign that you should be working for a company that provides its developers with offices.
4. Keypress distance. All too many modern keyboards have 0.001" keypress distance. This drives me nuts.
5. Full sized. No compromise in key spacing meaning people like me with relatively large hands do not have trouble using these keyboards.
6. No newfangled keys. The good old One True Way ANSI-101 design. No learning bizarre key loacations every tine that new age girly-keyboard needs to be replaced.
7. Chicks can tell you are a real man who will satisfy all their needs if they see you using a Model M keyboard.
> why did the phone guys make theirs upside-down?
... in case you hadn't noticed ... top to bottom. With those two points in mind, my question to you is, why are the keys on numeric keypads and calculators upside-down? :-)
Go to the "Keyboards" section of this course outline and follow the link to the PDF copy of the "Bell Labs 1960 study". In short, it's because that configuration ranked highly for inputting phone numbers. If you take a look at the image provided of the button-based phone's predecessor you'll see that 7, 8, 9, and 0 are at the bottom and 1, 2, and 3 are at the top. I'd guess that made that structure more familiar to the test subjects, along with the fact that English is read from left to right, and from
Whoever designed level 61 in Frozen Bubble is a sadistic bastard.
Bought a Kinesis a little over a year ago and I absolutely love it. It's worth every penny. (~$325 for usb contour advantage).
After slaving away on model m's, microsoft natural's (& knock-offs) ,thinkpads and my current mac book pro; I can say that I've tried a lot of different things.
Between my hobbies of guitar and lacrosse, and all of the typing through high school, high school internships, college, college internships and co-ops and my full time job now; I can say with ease my hands and wrists have never felt better.
Prior to the switch my typing endurance was starting to fade somewhat rapidly; I noticed that my guitar playing was suffering. Additionally if I took a couple whacks to the hands during lacrosse my typing tended to really suffer for the next couple days.
Took me about 2.5 weeks to regain full speed on it; but within a month I was typing faster than I ever had. I could go on endlessly. Every one who comes in my office asks me about it, so if nothing else its a great conversation piece :-). Loaned it to my best friend for two weeks while I was on vacation last June, as he had been suffering from what he thought was (what people call mis-label) as RSI or some precursor. He reluctantly put aside his model M (much to his girlfriends delight, as he works at home) and used it exclusively while I was gone. By the time I got back he had already ordered and received one of his own, and had safely secured his modem M away for posterity. (much to his gf's dismay)
My parents came for a visit recently and I brought it to my apt from my office to show them. Immediately after looking at my mother (a licensed O.T. in MA before retiring) saw many of the obvious benefits that I saw immediately in regards to both speed and reducing fatigue/strain: emphasis on our thumbs instead of pinky/index finger. The critical keys (space, backspace,delete, enter, pg up/down, home/end, ctrl,alt,super/meta) are all moved to the thumbs. This single factor is what will make it nearly impossible to ever use another keyboard because of how much I enjoy it. Particularly as an emacs user this is fantastic (and FWIW my friend a vim user found just as many benefits)
Obviously it's probably not for everyone, and it is a little pricey.. but I'd buy it again in a heart beat. In fact I might have to buy one for my apartment after being so spoiled by using it all day at work.
Apologies for the slightly over detailed plug/endorsement. But I freaking love this keyboard if it isn't obvious.
"Jazz isn't dead, it just smells funny" ~Frank Zappa
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