Out of the Blue [Dec 07, 2004, 09:56 am ET] – Share – Viewing Comments
I just need to vent a little here. I ruined a keyboard with a coffee spill
yesterday, and contrary to the logic that might suggest a cheap replacement was
in order for an item that had suffered such a carelessness-related demise, I
picked up a fancy Microsoft wireless desktop as a replacement. Now I am
suffering with a couple of inconveniences using it, because they have decided
that the small array of keys above the arrow keys (home, insert, etc.) needed
rearranging. Specifically, the six keys are now five, and instead of being two
rows and three columns, the keys are now in two columns, with the insert key
removed from the mix and placed on the top row to share a key with PrtScrn and
SysRq (talk about marginalized -- I guess some folks find accidentally hitting
Insert as welcome as the Caps Lock). This all completely messes with my
instinctive use of all these keys, and why? Because they decided the delete key
needed to be twice as tall as it was for some reason. Also, the 12 function keys
that are traditionally laid out in three groups of four are now four groups of
three. WTF?
Nothing like a little change for change's sake. Too bad, because the keyboard
has the nicest action I've ever used... but I still may have to return this. We
shall see.
I guess today marks the true start of the holiday season, as the Festival of
Lights begins tonight at sundown. Happy Chanukah!
| Links of the Day: | Seinfeld Dictionary. Yada yada yada. |
| Stories of the Day: |
Mother of the Matrix Victorious.
Thanks Brandon. Nativity Plays Boosting Tea Towel Sales. Scientists Seek Limit on Shark Killings. |
| Science!: |
NASA Seeks Methods to Repair Shuttles in Flight.
R2D2? Science Is Eating His Dust. Roads Gone Wild. |
| Media of the Day: |
Yiddish with Dick
and Jane. Thanks RedAnt. Gym Class. Thanks bowerbird. |
| Auction of the Day: | 2nd-PC Natalie Realdoll type silicone doll. Thanks choke. Used? |
| Thanks Mike Martinez and Ant. |
kannibal -
I will vouch for the Apple/Matias KB. You will not be disappointed. I'm using one right now, and I would marry it, if the regulators would just get off the fence about that whole issue..
It is so finely made and just ludicrously overbuilt with no silly frills. The world needs more lunatics like the ones who engineered this thing. It ain't quiet, mind you, but these are the mechanical noises of pure blissful typing precision, and easily ignored.
Ever since USB came to Windows, I have always used Apple Pro KBs for my PCs, as they have always had all the things that make a keyboard great (plus an integral USB hub), and none of the fluff. Funny thing is, the Matias is built on the design of the best one Apple ever made (they're not lying in their ad -- the KB was almost perfect). Not only that, but it improves upon it in the only way I could have imagined: by making the keys white w. black letters vs. black w. grey letters like on the old ones (which just didn't provide quite enough contrast to read the letters easily in a dimly lit room).
caveats re -- Apple KBs on a Wintel box: You will be without 'prnt scrn', 'ins', and 'pause' (if memory serves) keys. The keys are there, and Windows sees them just fine, but they're labelled F13-F15. Now, the only time this has ever tripped me up was with Homeworld 2, which insisted on using the 'pause' key for that essential game function, didn't let you remap it, and wouldn't recognise the F-key (which all other games seem quite happy to do). Never could get past the first few missions in that game thanks to that little 'quirk', but I always blamed this on the coding rather than the KB. Also, in place of the Windows key, you have the Apple key. Sadly, this key still works just like the Windows key in games, and is therefore an abomination.
That's_it. Those are the only two caveats I can offer... unless you're a crazy HW2 nut, I don't think either one qualifies as a real 'problem', either.
Get the Matias KB. You will be much more fond of yourself after you do
-----
"I want my lamp back. I'm gonna need it to get out of this slimy mudhole."
This comment was edited on Dec 7, 16:17.
I will vouch for the Apple/Matias KB. You will not be disappointed. I'm using one right now, and I would marry it, if the regulators would just get off the fence about that whole issue..
It is so finely made and just ludicrously overbuilt with no silly frills. The world needs more lunatics like the ones who engineered this thing. It ain't quiet, mind you, but these are the mechanical noises of pure blissful typing precision, and easily ignored.
Ever since USB came to Windows, I have always used Apple Pro KBs for my PCs, as they have always had all the things that make a keyboard great (plus an integral USB hub), and none of the fluff. Funny thing is, the Matias is built on the design of the best one Apple ever made (they're not lying in their ad -- the KB was almost perfect). Not only that, but it improves upon it in the only way I could have imagined: by making the keys white w. black letters vs. black w. grey letters like on the old ones (which just didn't provide quite enough contrast to read the letters easily in a dimly lit room).
caveats re -- Apple KBs on a Wintel box: You will be without 'prnt scrn', 'ins', and 'pause' (if memory serves) keys. The keys are there, and Windows sees them just fine, but they're labelled F13-F15. Now, the only time this has ever tripped me up was with Homeworld 2, which insisted on using the 'pause' key for that essential game function, didn't let you remap it, and wouldn't recognise the F-key (which all other games seem quite happy to do). Never could get past the first few missions in that game thanks to that little 'quirk', but I always blamed this on the coding rather than the KB. Also, in place of the Windows key, you have the Apple key. Sadly, this key still works just like the Windows key in games, and is therefore an abomination.
That's_it. Those are the only two caveats I can offer... unless you're a crazy HW2 nut, I don't think either one qualifies as a real 'problem', either.
Get the Matias KB. You will be much more fond of yourself after you do
-----
"I want my lamp back. I'm gonna need it to get out of this slimy mudhole."
This comment was edited on Dec 7, 16:17.
-----
I'm not even angry. I'm being so sincere right now, even though you broke my heart and killed me.
I'm not even angry. I'm being so sincere right now, even though you broke my heart and killed me.
Date
Subject
Author
Copyright © 1996-2025 Stephen Heaslip. All rights reserved.
All trademarks are properties of their respective owners.
Privacy Policy. Manage Cookie Settings.
News CGI copyright © 1999-2025 James "furn" Furness & Blue's News. All rights reserved.
Chatbear v1.5.0/blue++: Page generated 20 June 2025, 21:21.