Slashdot Mirror
Old-School Keyboard Makes Comeback of Sorts
CharlotteShma writes "Some old writer once said that in order to keep going, he needed to hear the scratch of the pen on the page. Some self-proclaimed keyboard aficionados would make the same argument for computer keyboards. Is it possible that the old 'clicky' keyboards are making a comeback? Now that we've replaced the old buckling springs with rubber domes, our keyboards are only getting quieter and quieter. According to the people at Unicomp Inc., all keyboards made since the early 1990s are, frankly, no good. They still use and produce vintage IBM Model M keyboards in their small factory in Lexington, Kentucky. The IBM Model M keyboards are ugly, built like tanks, and, most importantly, have a spring under each key which clicks when you press it." Not sure what's ugly about them — most other keyboards are ugly, when you shut your eyes.
Not sure what's ugly about them most other keyboards are ugly, when you shut your eyes.
WTF kind of sentence is that?
I have my Unicomp and I love it. There's nothing that gives you the same feedback in the fingertips as you type as a nice clicky board. My wife, on the other hand, hates it because - the bedroom is next to my office, and she can hear me at all hours of the night typing away. But... totally worth it.
As a bonus, I honestly feel that I get less cramping and fatigue when I'm typing happily on this rather than the crap you get most times today. Not sure if there's anything to back that up with, but I graduated from a Microsoft ergo keyboard to this and I'm far happier now.
I wish there was a choice that said "Factually Wrong -1" when I mod.
Is this company sponsoring slashdot?
Anyway.. there is definately something about feeling, but it's only really about what you are used to. I prefer a fujitsu 8725, a modern cheap-ass keyboard to more exensive ones, simply because I am used to it.
----------------------------
Esobofh - Currently drinking fresh mango juice.
Frankly this sounds more like neophobia and/or nostalgia than a legitimate concern about keyboard quality.
There's no -1 for "I don't get it."
(and some older keyboards had as well):
A mechanism to absorb the energy exerted on the keystroke.
Without that the energy ends up being dissipated in the muscles, tendons, and (especially) joints of the hand.
This is one of the factors leading to repetitive stress injuries and perhaps also accelerates arthritis.
I'd like to see a keyboard design that "catches" the key after it's pressed far enough to be detected as a "press" and consumes the energy.
If it does it by making a sound (especially if the sound has a one-to-one correspondence with the detection of the keystroke) it also provides feedback. All the better for typing accuracy.
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
I have a Das Keyboard, based on the original Model-M design. Definitely recommended if you're sick of typing into a soggy sponge.
There is something incredibly satisfying about solving a particularly complex problem, and hitting "enter" for a crunchy click. No other keyboard satisfies my lust for tactility the way this one does.
"In the absence of the ability to establish the attribute of truth they tried to establish the noble attributes."
Mine was born on Nov. 6, 1989. Despite your pronouncement, it ain't dead yet.
What changed under Obama? Nothing Good
I am still using an IBM model M keyboard made in 1985. It doesn't have the Windows key, which is one more reason for me to like it.
You cannot beat the touch of a model M, and the tactile feedback helps me limit the number of fat-finger typos.
One downside of a model M is that the clicky noise might annoy coworkers in open space offices. But I have few complains. Complains are generally going like this:
Cow orker: "Eric, your keyboard is sure loud".
Me; "Yup."
Cow orker: 'Err..."
Me: "Heavy too. All metal. Feel this."
Cow orker: "Wow. At least three pounds".
Me: "Almost five, actually. And reliable, too. You can wield it as a baseball bat, whack someone's head, clean up the brain bits from the bottom, and it's still good for years of service."
Cow orker: (Gulps, retreat hurriedly.)
See why I love it?
Fantasy: http://ferrisfantasy.blogspot.com/
In the 90s, I got used to typing on an NMB mechanical keyboard. Back then, clicky was taken for granted, and "quiet" keyboards were the unusual ones. And then one day, it finally broke and started typing gibberish...
Over the course of many years, I went through a bunch of the sucky membrane keyboards, always buying the least-bad one I could find, but my typing speed and accuracy were never as good as when I was on my old NMB. I just recently came across one, and snagged it, and it's really eye opening how much more pleasant it is to type on this one. The sound is satisfying, a light click instead of the Model M "chunk", but it's the touch that really matters. There's a subtle resistance, and then falling away just as the key makes contact, and then a hesitation and snap loose when it breaks.
I never did get into the Model M (now Unicomp) craze. They're too loud, and the spring pressure is way too high. The NMB mechanism is very light, but very tactile. My fingers feel like they're just brushing over the keys, instead off banging on them.
The only thing I don't like about this one is that the \ is in the wrong place, to the left of the backspace instead of under it. I'd be in heaven if I could find a keyboard with similar touch and an IBM-standard layout. Anyone know of one? Das Keyboard III is looking like a likely contender, but I'm reluctant to drop that kind of money without being able to test drive it first.
Obviously the model M is gone, but the keyboard isn't. And judging by the other posts, the keyboard is missed.
It's a geek badge of honor. I own a few and I love them like my children (okay not really, maybe like my pets) but part of that comes from the effort I put in to scrounge them and clean them up myself. I do like the feel of typing on a Model M but what I love is the feeling of gravitas (figuratively and literally, it's really heavy).
Vintage hardware is neat but most of it is of no practical use today. Is there any other part of a 20-year-old computer that you could still use for day-to-day tasks? A Model M lets you feel old-school without actually having to live in the bad old days of floppy disks and 300 baud modems.
I type on my wife's Mac keyboard and it's fine. I type on a rubber dome keyboard at work and it does the job too. Maybe I would feel differently if my job required pumping out hundreds of thousands of words very quickly, but for most people (and, I suspect, most Model M owners) that's not the case.
Nostalgia is fun. It's okay to have a "throwback" keyboard if that's what you want. Not every technological choice we make has to be justified by greater efficiency or superior ergonomics. Relax and feel the Model M love.
Never approach a vast undertaking with a half-vast plan.
Ah the classic model M, the only keyboard you could beat a user to death with, then sit down and use it delete their account.
come to the dark side, we have penguins.
Something with a good solid thunk when I hit a key makes an incredible difference to my typing.
But not good when you have to type while others sleep. Some of us need the quiet keyboards or have them bashed over our heads at 2am.
"Nobody knows the age of the human race, but everybody agrees that it is old enough to know better." - Unknown
>>>don't know whether it's the audible feedback, or the mechanical feedback,
The only noise I need is my television in the background. I don't need mechanical feedback but simply watch the text flow across the screen. Perhaps it's because I grew up with a Commodore 128 and Amiga 500 with their relatively-quiet keyboards, and therefore I don't feel the need for noise.
In fact, noise is annoying - reminds me of my old manual typewriter. Ick.
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
You forgot to mention the most important part, after you hit the salesman the keyboard will still work.
Actually I've heard that after those M keyboards get the blood of salesmen they actually make you type faster.
Just take some of those cardboard trays that hold 144 eggs and glue them to the ceiling (covered in felt). That will work as a sound insulator and your mother will be able to sleep much more soundly.