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'Why I Use the IBM Model M Keyboard That's Older Than I Am' (yeokhengmeng.com)
Slashdot reader yeokm1 recently installed Linux on a 1993 PC. But in a new blog post he lists every keyboard he's owned over the last 12 years -- to explain why he's now typing on a 5.3-pound Model M keyboard from 1987 that's older than he is, "with its legendary buckling-spring switch."
It'll probably last me the decades to the day that keyboards should become obsolete... It is sad that with all the advancements in computing, the one piece of equipment that we use the most to interact with our computers has regressed technologically in the name of costs. We don't usually expect to be using 30-year-old hardware on a daily productive basis but the IBM Model M keyboard is that exception.
Today, I don't really care about fancy features like great aesthetics, RGB backlights, media keys and extra USB ports. I just need something that gives me great tactile feedback, be durable, enable me to easily swap keys to fit my Programmer Dvorak layout. The Model M fits my needs perfectly.
"Really can use this as a weapon," the blog post jokes. There's even a video "to show clicky sound difference" between two different versions of the Model M -- and in true geek fashion, he even removes the casing screws to see whether the inside had rivets or bolts.
The original submission drew a tip from long-time Slashdot reader Spazmania based on his own experiences with the Model M. "The thing I most like? There are little plastic caps on the keys. When they get dirty I can pop them off and run them through the dishwasher."
Any other Slashdot readers want to share their own experiences with Model M keyboards?
Today, I don't really care about fancy features like great aesthetics, RGB backlights, media keys and extra USB ports. I just need something that gives me great tactile feedback, be durable, enable me to easily swap keys to fit my Programmer Dvorak layout. The Model M fits my needs perfectly.
"Really can use this as a weapon," the blog post jokes. There's even a video "to show clicky sound difference" between two different versions of the Model M -- and in true geek fashion, he even removes the casing screws to see whether the inside had rivets or bolts.
The original submission drew a tip from long-time Slashdot reader Spazmania based on his own experiences with the Model M. "The thing I most like? There are little plastic caps on the keys. When they get dirty I can pop them off and run them through the dishwasher."
Any other Slashdot readers want to share their own experiences with Model M keyboards?
Having an actual Model M is pointless unless you want to feel superior to other mechanical keyboardists.
My keyboard is a ~$40 no-name with 'blue' keys. It works just fine. It has a white backlight for dungeon coding sessions.
I'm confused. How is continuing to use a product not the ultimate form of recycling?
Hell, these keyboard were discarded by other people who didn't want them. They would have ended up in landfills, most likely, but I intercepted them and kept them for my own use.
I am being more environmentally friendly by continuing to use these old relics than I would be by buying new ones. And when they do die, of course I will recycle them properly.
Your thinking is absolutely nonsensical.