'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?

Comments

I've been using Model Ms for 20 years

[ZorinLynx]

I have two in use right now, at home and at work, and a couple of spares, all made between 1988 and 1991. No other keyboard feels quite like this, and I plan to keep using them as long as I am typing.

I work as IT staff at a university, and it's always fun to see students come into my office and notice my keyboard. "Why are you using such an ancient keyboard?" they usually ask. And I just say that they don't make them how they used to. Occasionally another fan of Model Ms comes in and I get a fist-bump or a "Sweet! Model M!" from them.

Then I think and realize that these college students are all significantly younger than the keyboard. I'm getting old!

Re:I've been using Model Ms for 20 years

[ZorinLynx]

Oh! I forget to mention the day that a new faculty member arrived, and when I went to his office to set up something, I noticed he had a Model M with a few keycaps missing.

I have a SHITLOAD of spare keycaps because I ended up with a whole bunch of Model Ms, some of them not working, a couple decades ago. So I quietly went over there and replaced the missing keycaps when he wasn't there.

Eventually he figured out it was me by asking around (I'm well known as "that Model M guy") and thanked me. It was awesome to help out a fellow Model M fan.

Threw Them Away :-(

[jvp]

I know, it's a travesty. And I'm a criminal for doing it, too.

I attended Clarkson University in the early 90s which was awash with IBM hardware. Students were "given" (we purchased them through tuition) PS/2s, and the labs all over campus were full of IBM RS/6000s. Model Ms were everywhere. Literally. When I left Clarkson, I had a few of them, brand new, still in their boxes. I kept them for a long time, and even tried making them work properly with those awful 6-pin-to-USB adapters. But at the time (this would be late 90s), those adapters were trash and didn't work... well.

My mistake: I chucked the keyboards. Off to the local electronics recycling center. I think I got rid of 5 of them, if I'm not mistaken. And yes, I should be punished for my crime.

Today, I use the modern version of the M, built by Unicomp with full USB functionality. They're not *perfect* copies of the original M, but they're damned close. And they still annoy my co-workers. ;-)