Tracy R Reed wrote:
A month ago my nice Logitech wireless keyboard died.
...
Right now I am using an ancient and cheap keyboard which barely
functions. I need a new one. I have gone through a lot of keyboards over
the years. I am tired of the crappy $20 keyboards and try not to buy
them anymore. I tend to eat at the computer and the keyboard gets dirty
after a few years. I wish someone made a nice easy to clean keyboard. I
also want a keyboard without those silly Windows keys or special buttons
for "email" and "IM" and "Interweb" and whatever else. As far as easy to
clean goes this looks ideal:
...
Anyone have any opinions?
I'm typing on a Key Tronic KB101 that I paid about $120 for over ten
years ago because of Jerry Pournelle's Byte Magazine's review verdict of
"Recommended". I've never regretted it.
It's a bit noisy, but no more than an IBM clickety-clacker - it just
makes a different noise when a key is pressed. It uses rubber cups
instead of springs, which I understand some people don't like.
As for cleaning - no problem. No mechanical switches in the normal
sense. Only foil-faced foam on the end of the plungers contacting the
motherboard. Take out a dozen screws, dump the crumbs, wipe down the
circuit board with the spilled Coke [1] and you're good for another
million characters. I have no doubt this keyboard will outlast me.
As for key placement, it has them where _I_ like them:
o 1 1/2 key-wide Tab and Caps Lock keys
o 2 1/2 key-wide shift keys
o double-wide backspace key on top row
o slightly wider Enter key (taking up only one row)
o Backslash key above Enter (and right of ']' key)
o Alt keys next to space bar
o Control keys on extreme end of space bar row
o No useless "Windows" keys to get in the way
It's heavy enough that it stays where I put it and doesn't feel like a
toy. It's not a as heavy as the old IBM's though.
I suppose the only drawback nowadays is that it has an AT style
connector while even PS/2 connectors are disappearing from motherboards.
[1] Occasionally, I have to burnish a contact point with a pencil eraser
when a key stops working reliably. But that happens only one every few
years.
--
Best Regards,
~DJA.
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