On Tuesday 29 December 2009, Mike Kershaw wrote:
> On Tue, Dec 29, 2009 at 08:33:41PM -0500, Brian Sutcliffe wrote:
> > I have mythdora running which is based on Fedora Core 10 Kernel
> > 2.6.27.38-170.2.113.fc10.i686.
> >
> > Does anyone know of a good wireless keyboard that has good Linux
> > drivers? One with a built in Mouse would be ideal.
> >
> > Thanks,
> 
> A negative recommendation:  Avoid all random wireless keyboards. 
>  Most of them SUCK BADLY and only work for about 2 feet.  I got a
>  brand-name wireless mouse which worked for about 8 inches.  Many
>  are meant to be "i don't like wires on my desk" not "i want to
>  cross a room".

I have a "Gyration" wireless keyboard + laser/accelerometer mouse 
combo which has decent range -- has a USB transmitter with about a 3' 
cord which can be placed to help get the desired range.  However both 
the keyboard and mouse have different battery issues.  The keyboard 
takes 4 AA batteries that don't last terribly long (about a month I 
think), and the mouse uses a formed rechargable Nickel Metal Hydride 
battery (i.e. proprietary manufacture rather than easily replacable, 
but the good news is that the mouse battery is only $6 to replace), 
but NiMH is a type of battery that has "memory effect".  

   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battery_memory
   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NiMH

But the combo works with Linux immediately without any effort, 
although I didn't bother trying to use any of the extra media keyboard 
buttons.  The accelerometer mouse feature is interesting, as it means 
you can use the mouse in mid-air.  The bad news is that the combo is 
pretty expensive (about $140 at NewEgg) but you can sometimes find 
these on sale (retail) for $70.

All that said, I still don't like wireless keyboards or mice.  Wires 
on a desk might be annoying, but having a keyboard or mouse not work 
when you want it because the battery is dead is even more so.

   -- Chris

-- 

Chris Knadle
[email protected]
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