It is possible to cut a telephone handset cable in half and reconnect
the wires while reversing them but that has problems with the tinsel
wire often used for flexibility. The strand of string that is twisted
with the wires makes it impossible to solder.
Best is a crimp tool and a handful of RJ10 connectors. The
combination may cost less than the shipping cost.
If you're in a hurry, the cut-in-two-and-reverse-before-reconnecting method
works just fine. Carefully cut away any string/foil junk before attempting to
resolder, and you won't have any trouble. Use heatshrink tubing to stabilize
the whole assembly (and if you are lucky, you can find a color that matches the
cable's pretty well). If you do this relatively close to one connector, the
splice won't be too noticeable.
Be sure to keep track of wire order. The way it's designed, you are virtually
guaranteed to kill either the keyboard or the mac's keyboard interface chip (or
both) if you fail to reverse the connections.
Finally, I've modified RJ-11 connectors to fit by using a dremel's emory cutoff
wheel (a soldering iron would also work, but it would be a toxic mess). It
sorta melts its way through more than it cuts, but it gets the job done very
well. A little filing afterwards will make it look and fit ok. So, if the
narrow RJ-10 connectors are hard to locate where you are, this cheesy
alternative is worth considering.
--
Prof. Thomas H. Lee
Center for Integrated Systems, CIS-205
420 Via Palou Mall
Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-4070
http://www-smirc.stanford.edu
650-725-3709 ph, -3383 fax
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