Random facts

[Daniel Beardsmore]

#000: Commodore 64 keycaps fit perfectly onto tall slider MEI WEAB switches:

Random Fact 000.jpg (215.48 KiB) Viewed 3422 times

[002]

#001: Topre's up arrow key on older keyboards was originally the same profile as the rest of the row but was changed to a more aggressive angle to address complaints of finger slips:

Random Fact 001.jpg (53.27 KiB) Viewed 3377 times

[matt3o]

#001 paragraph B: Leopold 660C still maintains the UP arrow on the same row profile (probably for the sake of aesthetics)

[cinnamonrollz]

Keyboard refurbishers would sometimes put springs with flippers in the stabilized slots on ibm 4704 keyboards.

[cinnamonrollz]

Ibm used a different plastic on model m barrels made in 1988.

[Muirium]

Pics or it didn't happen! And remember to number your Random Facts!

[cinnamonrollz]

Alright, Ill number them as soon as i figure out the syntax of which we are numbering. Ill take pictures of a chopped up 88 barrell. They are a weird brown-grey color instead of black or grey.

I really dont think pictures of model f flippies out of my my 107 key would do much.

[Daniel Beardsmore]

Your choices are limitless, but taking common options, it's pretty obvious what numbers you'd use. Octal, denary, hexadecimal and base-36 all have digits 0–7, so your numbers would be 002 and 003. Setting a limit of three binary digits (for a total of eight facts before integer overflow) would be a rather pessimistic numbering scheme, even by my standards. A traditional Klingon would argue for base 3 (giving you 002 and 010) but Hab SoSlI' Quch!

[jacobolus]

#001: Topre's up arrow key on older keyboards was originally the same profile as the rest of the row but was changed to a more aggressive angle to address complaints of finger slips:

Random Fact 001.jpg

Everyone should do this. But actually, the profiles should be more like: right/left arrows get ASDF row profile, up arrow gets QWER row profile, down arrow gets ZXCV row profile.

Aesthetics be damned. The whole point of having the arrows in their own little group in the corner is that you need to move your hand to type them. The keycap shapes should be based on what’s easiest to type from the expected hand position, not based on aligning with keycaps in a different part of the keyboard.

[Halvar]

#004 § A: My GMK Dolch has arrived
#004 § B: IvanIvanovich has already published details about an adapter set in his next GB that will start soon:

Quote from: IvanIvanovich on 2014-11-26, 17:22:11

I'll be using all U9 key. Kit will include:
row E: `~ , \| , Num Lock, divide, multiply, minus, Backspace (1x & 2x), 2 blank 1x
row D: Tab, \| , delete 1.5, 2 blank 1x
row C: 1.75 Caps Lock (fulltouch and stepped), 1.75 Control, 2.25 Enter, ISO Enter, plus, 2 blank 1x
row B: Shift (1, 1.25, 1.75, 2, 2.25, 2.75), 2 Control (1, 1.25, 1.5), 2 Alt (1, 1.25, 1.5), 2 Windows (1, 1.25), Menu (1, 1.25), Fn, Blanks (2 1x, 2 1.25, 2 1.5, 1.75, 2, 2.25, 2.75)

A little larger and more expensive, but should be able to patch kits for nearly any keyboard out there. Mine will be starting very soon, perhaps as early as next week.

[Muirium]

Adapters? Something involved (and height additive) like these or something else entirely? Different internal molding?

[Halvar]

Sorry to disappoint you: adapter set as in Moogle / Tsangan, making old beige/white Cherry doubleshot keycap sets or GMK sets usable on more modern keyboards / more interesting layouts.

[Muirium]

Oh right. Hadn't heard of Moogle etc. kits being called adapters before, but they are of course. Ivan's "I'll be using all U9 key" made me think of row profiles for some reason, because all non-SP speak is still mysterious to me!

[dorkvader]

Ibm used a different plastic on model m barrels made in 1988.

### The AT&T KB305 uses different plastic in a different mold than IBM for the barrels. This and other things indicate that while they are aesthetically similar and functionally the same, they were produced with different tooling at a different factory.

### The licon (cortron / ITW) keycaps are the same shape as the "new" microswitch ones but have different internal plastic flow indicating that they were made on different tooling as well.

Will replace numbers once I know what number we're on.

[Daniel Beardsmore]

005 and 006.

[amospalla]

To trigger Linux sysrq on a Matias Quiet Pro Mini:

1. press Alt-Fn-F9
2. release only Fn and F9
3. press s (for example you want to do a disk sync).