Everything Else

best kb i've ever used is the granite sgi.
touch, contact point, quality ... you name it. top-notch in every aspect.

Maybe I should take one of my granite ones apart and give it a seriously good clean.

!m!

WolvesOfTheNight wrote: For the most part I find that the keyboards that come with computers are cheap peaces of junk, especially the dell keybaords that have overrun the place where I work. I have found that the clicky keyboards (old IBM Model-M) are some of the best keyboards out there, so I have one of my own that I use at work. However, they have the drawback of being rather noisy. Mine can drive my current office mate nuts. I can really sympathize with this since there are some backgound noises that can drive me nuts.

old kbs rule. no question.
can't stand the newer plastic toys either.

foetz wrote: best kb i've ever used is the granite sgi.
touch, contact point, quality ... you name it. top-notch in every aspect.

I have the kind that has the extra 2 inches of plastic above the function keys (I believe it is the kind that came with the indigo2 and indy), it is alright but not nearly as good as the slimmer ones at school (which I believe came with the o2/octane era machines)... those are AMAZING!

Not too soft and have some sort of possitive feedback and weight due to them still having some metal in them.

my personal favorite is the compaq KUS0060, I think I've mentioned this elsewhere. great feel except it has a useless credit card scanner in the side. I believe this is similar to what you are talking about, they are a membrane keyboard but have a thick steel plate in the bottom. very quiet.

still would recommend the deckkeyboards.com but you should really try one out in person because they feel so different.

I'd have to throw in another vote for the venerable IBM Model M . Over the years I've managed to collect 6 or 7 variants of the Model M. Everything from an original mid-1980s era PS/2 version to the fairly obscure 13H6705 <the only black Model M and one of the few with an integrated track point>, but the one I use the most is the relatively compact Model M2 <part #1395300> that originally shipped with the short-lived IBM PS/1 computer system.

Love the tactile feedback from a bucking spring keyboard, and from my perspective the M2 is about as good as it gets. It makes the SGI Indy/I2 era model 9500900 that's connected to the system next to it feel very 'dead' in comparison.

foetz wrote: best kb i've ever used is the granite sgi.
touch, contact point, quality ... you name it. top-notch in every aspect.

I have a couple of those, that came with my Indys and indigo2.

In my opinion they are ok, but nothing special. Typing feel is a bit too soft for my taste. Best part in those are the long cords, handy if you have several computers in a room.

And that mouse is awful. You have to adjust mouse settings to get it almost usable in Linux.

Best keyboard I have used is a digital branded keyboard, that came with one of my alphaservers.

I've always been pretty happy with the old Microsoft Natural Keyboards and Natural Keyboard Pros. The "ergonomic" shape is comfortable and the key action is smooth. I've never had a problem with joint pain from typing since I've been using them.

The newer MS natural keyboards are not so good though, the keyboard feel is "wrong".

The very worst keyboard I've used is a beige job that came with a server the company bought. I'm certain the computer shop was throwing them into every box to try to get rid of them. Some of the keys would actually jam half way down and require a forceful beating to register, it was physically painful to type on.

I've asked some of you about this HP keyboard on IRC channel (the black one below the VT-style one):


Sooner i've found that it's actually OEM rebranded by HP from Silitek (anyone ever heard about it? ) called SK 2502. There was both PS/2 and USB versions of it. These were part of zx2000/zx6000/rx2600 machines arrangements.

dukzcry wrote: Sooner i've found that it's actually OEM rebranded by HP from Silitek (anyone ever heard about it? :lol:) called SK 2502. There was both PS/2 and USB versions of it.

rebranding the chinese no-body keyboards is the rule rather than the exception.

IBM Model M is noisy but fantastic. Response, longitevity, quality all top-notch. Older SGI keyboards are pretty good, too. The IRIS 1000/2000/3000 series has odd key placement which makes typing difficult, but quality wise it is fantastic (though putting it on your lap might cut off circulation on some people). The first-gen PS2 keyboard is similar innards to the Indigo keyboard and is nice (never used a 4D keyboard), much better in my experience than the later NMB keyboards. Haven't used a "Klingon", though.

Apple Extended Keyboard 1 is slightly better than AEK2, but they're both good. The AppleDesign and later keyboard suck - Jobs is too interested in "style" and low-cost.

The new Dell keyboards aren't the worst out there, but that's the best I can say about almost anything. Cherry used to make some nice keyboards, but haven't used one in a while. In most cases the Wyse kbds are nice, but if you drop them the switch actuating rod can break off rendering them unusable. I have several from a small office where that happened- I keep them around to replace any switches should that happen to mine now. Other than that small failure they're pretty good - better than LKA201 and 401 DEC boards.